Page 87 of Better When Shared (Kristin Lance Anthologies #2)

Kiaan

The seaplane lurched as it hit the water. I gripped my armrest tight enough to leave an impression in my palm, but it wasn’t because I was concerned for my safety. It was because of one man Ryker Hale. He sat in the row in front of mine, talking cheerfully to the passenger next to him as if he wasn’t about to single-handedly destroy my love life.

My eyes skimmed over his broad shoulders, down to the stupid Denver Fire Department t-shirt that fit him like it was painted on.

Thankfully, he hadn’t looked my way, or perhaps he had and hadn’t recognized me. At first, I’d tried to convince myself it wasn’t him. After all, most Denver firefighters probably looked a bit like Ryker. But why would a random Denver firefighter be travelling to a remote island in Washington State, where our best friend lived?

That didn’t seem likely.

The longer we sat on the plane, the more the details convinced me it was him. I’d heard Ryker’s booming laugh a million times through my gaming headset, and one of his muscled forearms sported a Legend of Twin Blades 3 tattoo.

There couldn’t be two gamer geek Denver Firefighters with that tattoo.

So, if it was Ryker, why was he headed to San Juan Island on the same flight as me? This was my big move; my grand romantic gesture. And he had not been invited. Hell, he hadn’t even been told about it.

The pilot announced our arrival at Friday Harbor, his voice drowned out by the engine’s whine as we taxied toward the dock. Ryker gathered his worn backpack, probably full of heroic firefighting stuff or kittens he’d rescued, while I pulled my carry-on from beneath the seat.

I’d known Skylar and Ryker both for years; we’d been members of the same Legend of the Twin Blades guild since the first edition of the game released when I was in college. And while other players came and went, those two had been steady.

The plane rocked as it bumped against the dock. Passengers began to disembark, and I hung back, letting Ryker go first so I wouldn’t have to acknowledge him. Maybe he wouldn’t recognize me. I’d rarely shared my photos with the group the way he had—I valued my privacy in the gaming community, never wanting anyone to realize who I was and treat me differently.

Besides, I always thought I looked dorky in photos.

Stepping onto the wooden dock, I scanned the small seaplane terminal for Skylar, stomach churning as I searched the crowd for a beautiful Asian woman with teal-streaked black hair.

At first, Skylar hadn’t shared photos at all, but lately, things had gotten a bit more heated between us in direct messages, and she’d shared a little more.

But I didn’t see her anywhere, only an older woman, elegant in a bohemian sort of way, and waving enthusiastically. At me?

I looked back, just to be sure she wasn’t waving at someone behind me. There was nobody else there.

“Ryker! Kiaan! Over here!”

the woman called, waving both arms now.

Wait. She knew our names?

Ryker turned at the sound of his name, then frowned and glanced my way, his eyes finally landing on me. I watched the progression of emotions across his stupidly handsome face: confusion, recognition, and then something that made his nostrils flare and his jaw clench.

Perhaps he was as irritated to see me as I was to see him. His gaze dragged from my face down my body and back up again. What did that mean?

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous,”

he muttered. Or, I think that was what he said. Maybe I’d misheard him.

Heat rushed to my face. I hadn’t expected the low, husky quality of his voice or how it would send a jolt straight through me. And I definitely hadn’t expected how much taller he’d be in person, or his impossible blue-green eyes. The photos hadn’t done him justice.

His face broke into a golden retriever smile, and he pulled me into a hug before I could dodge it.

“Kiaan! Holy shit, man! Hui didn’t say you were coming, too!”

His arms were solid around me, his chest firm against mine. He smelled of cedar and something clean and masculine that made my brain short-circuit.

I stood stiffly in his embrace, hands awkwardly patting his back.

Hui rushed up to us, her smile wide.

“Ah, my granddaughter’s two handsome young men are here in person! Skylar will be so surprised.”

“You must be Hui. Skylar mentions you often.”

Ryker tilted his head and frowned.

“Wait. What do you mean, surprised?”

Hui blinked, then laughed.

“Thrilled, I meant to say.”

“Why didn’t Skylar tell us she’d invited both of us?” I asked.

“Who knows?”

Hui said, eyeing his t-shirt.

“Denver Fire. That makes you Ryker? And you must be Kiaan. My granddaughter has told me so much about you.”

“Has she?” I asked.

“Of course! Though not as much as I learned from my own research.”

She patted my arm.

“Very impressive, selling your company so young. Skylar mentioned you were successful, but she didn’t say billionaire successful.”

“Half-billionaire,”

I corrected, then winced at how that sounded.

Ryker’s eyebrows shot up, but he didn’t comment. Instead, he grabbed both our bags and followed Hui to the parking lot, chatting with her like they were old friends. I trailed behind, trying to process what was happening.

When Hui had sent me a message, letting me know that Skylar wanted to invite me out to the island, and that she was tasked with helping with logistics, I’d jumped at the chance, too thrilled to question it.

Clearly, I should have questioned everything, including whether this visit was meant to be romantic in nature.

Hui led us to a well-maintained Prius with what appeared to be at least a dozen good-luck charms dangling from the rearview mirror. Ryker tossed our bags in the trunk and slipped into the passenger seat, leaving me the back.

As we pulled away from the harbor, Hui launched into a detailed history of San Juan Island, pointing out landmarks and peppering Ryker with questions about firefighting. Ryker answered each one with that earnest enthusiasm. How was he so unbothered by my presence while I was flipping out about his?

Turning to look out the window, I tried to force myself to focus on the scenery. The charming seaside town gave way to rolling farmland and forests. This island was beautiful, exactly as Skylar had described it. I tried to imagine her growing up here, climbing trees and sailing boats while I was locked in coding competitions and networking events in Silicon Valley.

“Ai ya! You must try the dumplings at my daughter’s coffee shop while you’re here,”

Hui was saying to Ryker.

“Bloom makes the best coffee, but I make the best dumplings. We have a good arrangement.”

“I’d love that, ma’am,”

Ryker replied, the “ma’am”

making me roll my eyes so hard I nearly strained something.

I slouched lower in my seat, watching the back of Ryker’s head. The casual ease with which he charmed Skylar’s grandmother grated on me. Meanwhile, I sat silent and sulking, mentally calculating how much of my romantic plan had just gone up in smoke.

The plan had been simple: I’d travel here to meet Skylar in person, something I’d been yearning to do for years. Then I’d whisk her away to a five-star dinner in Seattle via private helicopter, confess my feelings somewhere dramatic and exclusive, and fall madly in love.

I never imagined the possibility that Hui hadn’t told Skylar we were coming. Or that I’d have to compete with Mr. Perfect, who probably rescued puppies in his sleep and had dimples deep enough to dive into. Or maybe it wasn’t a competition at all. Maybe Skylar had invited us both, but just as friends.

Hui caught my eye in the rearview mirror, her expression unreadable.

“Not long now,”

she said, turning onto a gravel road.

“Strawberry Creek Ranch is just ahead.”

I nodded, sitting up straighter and smoothing down my shirt. I hadn’t built a tech empire by giving up at the first obstacle. Game on.

Skylar had described the ranch in our late-night chats, and it looked the way I’d imagined it to, with beautiful pastures and wildflowers crowding the edges of the driveway. To the left, I saw the new horse barn, the one Skylar had laughed about as she told us that her friend Makai was terrified of horses.

And then I spotted her, standing near a big horse, feeding it a carrot.

My heart stuttered. Eight years of friendship, two years of increasingly explicit texts, countless hours imagining this moment, and there she was. Skylar Shen.

She was smaller than I’d pictured, more compact. I supposed I hadn’t judged her height right in photos. maybe because she seemed so formidable online. She wore ripped black jeans, a faded tech conference t-shirt, and titanium-framed glasses perched on her nose. Real. Tangible. Perfect.

She wasn’t alone. A tall Hawaiian guy with a man-bun stood beside her, and I had to assume he was Makai.

Makai was a lot fucking hotter than I’d pictured him, which sent me into a whole different panic spiral about the exact nature of their business relationship. They were with another man and woman, all laughing about something. Clients for their tour business, perhaps? They all turned to watch our car, the conversation pausing.

Hui parked and waved cheerfully through the windshield as she put her car in park. Ryker was already opening his door, all eager golden retriever energy. I took a deep breath, checked my reflection on my phone screen, and stepped out into the afternoon sun.

Skylar’s brows shot up. She stared at us—first at me, then Ryker, then back to me. Her mouth opened, closed, opened again. No sound came out.

Eyes wide and panicked, Skylar turned and jogged off without saying hello.

I stood frozen beside the car, my carefully rehearsed greeting dying on my lips. This... was not in the plan. I glanced at Ryker, expecting him to look as shocked as I felt, but his expression was calm.

“What the fuck just happened?”

I asked no one in particular.

Hui sighed, shaking her head.

“Ai ya. That girl. So much like her mother, running from feelings.”

The people in the pasture looked as confused as I felt. The man-bun guy called out.

“Hui? What’s going on? Who are these guys?”

“Stop stressing, Makai. They’re friends of Skylar’s,”

Hui called back.

“From her computer game. I invited them to surprise her.”

A slow grin spread across Makai’s face, and he burst out laughing.

“Holy shit. This is good.”

He turned to the woman next to him.

“Should we get popcorn and watch the drama unfold?”

The woman rolled her eyes and tugged him away, and the other guy followed him, leaving us standing there, confused.

“You won’t win her heart by just standing there like idiots,”

Hui said, gesturing towards the cabin.

“Chase after her!”

I stared at Hui, irritation bubbling up.

“We’re both here to win her heart?”

“Hui,”

Ryker said, voice calm.

“Didn’t Skylar know we were coming?”

“Not in so many words.”

“Hui!”

I protested.

“How could you—”

“Oh, stop freaking out,”

Hui said.

“What’s a little white lie in the name of love?”

With that, she bustled off, leaving us to chase her.

I studied Ryker as we walked. He was taller and broader than I was, his firefighter physique evident in the way his t-shirt stretched across his chest. His hair was messier than in his photos, like he’d been running his hands through it. It looked soft. Touchable.

“Did you know I was coming?”

I demanded.

He shook his head.

“Had no idea. Hui messaged me last week and said Sky was going through a rough patch and could use a friendly face. What did she tell you?”

I turned to Hui, who was watching us with the same enigmatic smile.

“That Skylar was ready to take things to the next level, and she wanted to help me book the right flight.”

Ryker snorted, laughing.

“You believed Skylar communicated through her grandmother for a date?”

I felt my cheeks go hot, realizing that my hopeful optimism had clouded my judgement. Why had I believed Hui’s wacky story about Skylar not understanding the plane schedules?

“Fuck,”

I whispered, and Ryker chuckled.

“Hui. Why would you lie to us?”

She shrugged, unrepentant.

“Young people today, always hiding behind screens. Typing little hearts instead of speaking real feelings. My granddaughter needs to face what is in front of her.”

She gestured between Ryker and me.

“Both of you.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

I asked, my voice sharper than intended.

“You want her to have two boyfriends.”

Hui’s smile widened.

“Perhaps. Two boyfriends are better than none. Or maybe there is a contest to be had. May the best man win my granddaughter’s heart!”

I glanced toward the tiny cabin where Skylar had disappeared, then back at Ryker. His eyes were on the cabin too, his expression soft with what looked like genuine concern.

How was I supposed to compete with this guy? He saved lives for a living. Pulled children from burning buildings. Posed with kittens for charity. Meanwhile, I wrote code and made money. Lots of money, sure, but I’d seen enough of Skylar’s lifestyle to know she wasn’t impressed by wealth. Her gaming setup was top-of-the-line, but everything else in the background of her video calls was modest, practical, chosen for function over form.

Against a literal hero, what did I have to offer?

“If this is a contest, you don’t stand a chance,”

I said, the words coming out harsher than I’d intended.

“You’re so... predictable. Boring. The good guy, who always follows the rules. Skylar needs someone who challenges her.”

I expected anger, defensiveness. Instead, Ryker just looked at me with those steady eyes, a slight smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

“Is that what you think of me?”

he asked.

“Interesting.”

Something in his tone made my stomach flip. There was a heat there, an edge that didn’t match my image of RykeRanger, the by-the-book paladin from our gaming adventures. For a flash of a second, I remembered the way his eyes had traveled over my body at the seaplane dock, the muttered comment that I still wasn’t sure I’d heard correctly.

His silence was maddening, a mirror reflecting my own insecurities back at me. I couldn’t read him. I couldn’t predict what he’d do or dismiss him as easily as I wanted to.

“I’m going to talk to her,”

I announced, turning to knock on the door.

Hui placed a gentle hand on my arm.

“Perhaps give her a moment. The surprise had a... bigger impact than I expected.”

Ryker blew out a breath, eyeing the closed door.

“Probably wise.”