Page 31 of Ravaged Devotion

Or, maybe he was imagining it.

Not wanting to sit here and dwell, Ryker got changed into fresh clothing and headed out. The others were already waiting in the lobby once he made it there, but Ellery and Uriel weren’t alone.

“They mentioned you guys are going to explore the grounds,” Hollis Broderick, Esti’s boyfriend, spoke to Ryker first. They’d met once or twice at corporate events, but weren’t close.

“Cosima said there’s a small hiking trail past the camping area,” Ishleen Henrietta, the daughter of Rhys’ best friend Vance, told them, coming from the front desk. She was holding a pamphlet in her hand with a folded map of the grounds.

“Perfect,” Ellery exclaimed, clapping his hands and glancing around at their small gathering. “We all here?”

“Didn’t realize this was going to be a group event,” Ryker grumbled.

Ell tossed an arm around his shoulders, ignoring the way he bristled at the contact. “Relax, Ryk. The whole point of this retreat is to mingle. Everyone here will be entering the company after graduation, same as you.”

“Not everyone.” He pointedly looked in Rue’s direction, where he was standing with his friends, waiting. As far as Ryker knew, Bowie and Lenore were here strictly to provide Rue companionship. Neither of them would be getting jobs at Hart Holding.

Playing the part of team leader—probably just for shits and giggles—Ellery did a head count.

What a showy idiot.

But they were all here. Ryker had already checked.

Hollis and Esti were dressed in airy garments meant to combat the heat, clearly not realizing they were high up in the mountains and the weather forecast said it’d be chilly within the hour.

Penn Augustine, the son of Izan, another of Ryker’s dad’s close confidants, was wearing fancy hiking gear. It would have been laughable considering they weren’t planning on being out for long, except Ishleen was dressed much the same way.

The rest of them had opted for boots and jeans.

“Let’s go!” Ellery led the way, really taking charge, but Ryker didn’t mind.

Better Ell than him.

Everyone fell into small talk as they walked, heading around the side of the lodge toward the east side. The pool was massive, water clear and glittering beneath the sunlight, and they paused long enough for the girls to test the temperature with their hands, seemingly pleased afterward.

A few of them made plans to swim after dinner, but Ryker’s attention had moved on, eyes on the back of Rue’s head.

He was at the front of the group, talking with Bowie, the two awfully close as they moved on the path. Every now and again, their shoulders would bump, but the contact never disrupted the flow of conversation between them.

Ryker’s hands balled into fists at his sides as jealousy swept through him. He hated it. Hated that he could still feel this strongly for a person who had treated him like garbage, and yet no matter how hard he tried to shake this desire for Rue, he couldn’t.

The library hadn’t helped.

It’d meant to be a punishment. A warning. The plan had been to go in there and beat the shit out of him.

But then Ryker had seen how scared Rue had been. How weepy.

For some reason, he’d shifted gears.

Made things…sexual.

He inwardly cursed and ran his fingers through his dark hair.

“You messed it up.” Ishleen, who’d been walking quietly at his side, lifted a hand toward his head. “Here.”

Ryker was about to turn her down, but he caught sight of Rue turning out of the corner of his eye and ended up dipping lower, making it easier for her instead.

She combed through the thick strands of his hair and then gave him a coquettish smile. “Better.”

“Thanks.” Ryker looked forward just in time to see Rue quickly glance away.