Page 86 of Running from Drac

God, he’s beautiful. Strong… sculpted… thick… and oh so ready. He watches me ogle it, eyes glittering with pure male satisfaction.

“Come here,” he says, curling a finger. “Let me remind you of exactly what you’re walking away from.”

His voice is velvet drenched in sin, and my body aches for what I shouldn’t want—for what I already had and never should’ve tasted.

“You could leave,” he murmurs. “Or I could put you on your back and make you forget my name all over again.”

“Ryder,” I breathe, the alcohol hitting me like a tidal wave.

He smirks. “Never mind, I prefer the way it rolls off your tongue. I’ll make sure you say it over and over again.”

He offers me the ring again. “Go ahead. Take it.” The delicate ring sits there cold in his uncalloused hand, waiting for me to take it.

“I didn’t mean to leave it,” I repeat, guilt creeping through my haze of lust. “I didn’t even realize…”

He gently takes my hand and presses it into my palm before closing my fingers around it. He then presses his lips to the back of my hand. It’s tender. Too intimate.

“I would’ve made ya brekkie,” he says softly. “Held ya ‘til noon. Asked ya last name. I thought we were somethin’, Amber,” he says softly.

I look up at him, torn apart.

“I’m marrying someone else.”

He nods. “But should you be? Are you truly happy with him?”

He doesn’t move away. Instead, he leans in, mouth barely brushing mine.

“Ya don’t have to say a word. I can make ya forget his name the same way ya forgot mine.”

I lean in. For a second, I think I might kiss him, and I almost say yes, but I thankfully pull away, trembles shaking me thoroughly, my heart shattering in my chest.

“I can’t,” I whisper. “I’m sorry.”

He nods, his lips still lingering near mine, but refusing to chase as my hand presses against his chest and pushes him back.

“I love my fiancé.”

Ryder cooly takes a step back. “He’s a lucky, lucky man.”

If he’s bothered, he doesn’t show it. The man probably has thousands of women throwing themselves at his feet.

“Our show’s here for two weeks. If ya change ya mind, ya know where to find me.”

“I won’t.”

He winks, smirk spreading even further. “You will.” The look in his eyes promises that if I turn back, he’ll catch me. “And when ya do, I’ll be here, waitin’ to pick up the pieces that leaving him creates for you.”

“Goodbye, Ryder.”

“No, love… I’ll see ya soon.”

I turn away, but the second I do, I feel him calling me. His scent lingers like he imprinted it, burning my skin like a bruise only I can see. Every footstep toward the exit feels like betrayal, not towards Ryder, but for myself, knowing a darker part of me wants more. The golden ring bites into my palm, leaving its mark on me. This shouldn’t be so hard. I’m engaged to Eddie. He’s the man I’ve promised forever to. He knows my favorite songs, how I like my coffee, the way I cry during sad movies. But Ryder... Ryder knows the sound I make when I’m about to come. The way I tremble when someone touches my soul, and not just the skin. He makes me feel dangerous and alive in a way that terrifies me. And that’s the part that tears me in two. Love should be easy. But here I am, caught between the man who knows my future... and the one who somehow owns my body.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Eddie

I wake up in a cold sweat, my nightmare still taunting me even though my eyes are open. Beneath the sheets, my heart races, both anger and frustration weighing heavily on me.