Rescue Me Read online

  Letting the volleyball soar over the net, I noticed that Ryland’s backyard had a lovely view from where his house sat on top of a hill. He lived far enough from downtown that the top of the arch was barely visible as it glittered with a mix of silver and gold, reflecting the last rays of the afternoon sun.

  The patio was strung with miniature old-fashioned lightbulbs that crisscrossed from the beams above. For a bachelor pad, it had little touches here and there that made me wonder if his mom had come over recently. Mrs. O’Hara owned a decorating business, and I couldn’t see her letting her only child live like a typical single guy. His house was homey, inviting, and I wondered what it might be like to be with him, as a girlfriend. Ryland was the first guy I even fantasized about the more with. Not even my disastrous relationship with Beau struck these thoughts within me.

  I spent my evening joking around with Oz, who told me a dirty little story about this cougar he was sort of hooking up with while Ian was giving him some solid relationship advice. I wondered why Ford tried to steer me clear of his co-workers, I thought they great and funny. Eventually, Ford pulled Oz and Ian into a deep debate about Class A and B fire extinguishers putting the snooze on our fun. I sipped wine with Lily discussing potential baby names for her and Benjamin while Ryland played the good host. He worked the backyard hobbling around on his crutches and whenever we passed by each other I’d feel him touch me. It felt like a drive by and fleeting but when I would look up he’d smile at me and go right back to his conversation stunning me. The party wrapped up with a few guys and the chief shuttling food to the fire house for the crew working today.

  “Summerrrr Roooose.”

  Leaning over the railing, I turned to see Ford staggering up from the yard a little worse for wear. Oz was no better, taking a final swig of his beer on swaying feet before tossing the empty into a recycling bin. So much for those fire extinguishers keeping them sober.

  “Ford…” I was feeling grateful—I knew drunken Ford couldn’t lecture me about Ryland and any of the touches he might have glanced earlier. My brother still wanted to punch the doctor who cheated on me but settled for calling him a limp unicorn dick instead every time he assisted on a paramedic call. It made working in the ER awkward, but as long as my hotheaded, bossy brother steered clear of my business with Ryland, we would be okay. They were best friends, and I didn’t want to damage years of friendship with my crush.

  “I’m a gonna need you to drive my car.” He exaggerated each word, gesticulating with his hands in a dramatic roll along with his eyebrows and lips.

  “We came together, or did you forget?” I realized then that Ford’s truck was a manual, and I wasn’t the greatest at driving stick shift. I knew coming over here I should’ve just driven my little Prius, but Ford had insisted.

  “Summer, that’s okay, Benjamin and I will drop Ford and Oz off. They’re on the way, right, honey?” Lily was holding a box of party supplies when Benjamin rounded the corner with Ryland hopping behind him.

  “As long as they don’t puke or fall asleep in the backseat, sure. What about Summer, though?”

  Benjamin nodded at me, and I felt a little uncomfortable with five sets of eyes staring at me. In fact, it felt downright conspiratorial based on Lily’s exaggerated wink.

  “I can drop her off. She can’t drive Ford’s truck.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “Are you supposed to be driving?” Worried that Ryland was doing something he shouldn’t, I hesitated and considered leaving with Lily and the guys.

  “Summer, I’m fine.” Ryland smiled, but I still wasn’t reassured.

  “All right, it’s settled, then.” Benjamin took the box from Lily, gave me a conspiring wink that matched his wife’s, and left us there to hash out the details. Ford still had his mouth wide open, looking confused, until Lily poked the bottom of his chin with her finger.

  “Flies, Ford, you’re catching fire flies.” Lily shook her head, whistling some tune I probably wasn’t old enough to know. “Come on boys, your ride is leaving.”

  Oz followed behind her like a puppy, but Ford stood there, looking back and forth between Ryland and me.

  “Well, you heard the lady. Git moving, Ford.” Ryland used his crutch to point down the hall.

  “Ry…” Ford was drunk, but his tone held a warning. The two seemed to square off in this silent battle of wills before Ford threw his hands up in the air and staggered after Lily before slamming the front door closed.

  “What on earth was that about?”

  Ryland took a deep breath, not answering my question as he silently hobbled back to the kitchen. I followed him into the kitchen and stood by the small butcher’s block island where I had chopped onions hours earlier.

  “Ryland?”

  He leaned over the sink, looking outside, saying nothing.

  “I saw a few bottles left outside. I’ll just go clean those up and…” I felt awkward and uncertain why he wasn’t speaking to me.

  “Don’t.” Ryland hadn’t moved, but he didn’t say anything else. He stood with his shoulders tensed and his large hands gripping the counter.

  Anxiously, I rubbed the bare spot above my breastbone where my grandmother’s necklace usually rested. “But…”

  “Summer…”

  We spoke at the same time, and then silence became a pregnant pause as seconds ticked by without additional sound or affirmation.

  “It’ll just take a moment…”

  “Come here…”

  Again, our voices collided with no resolution met, but Ryland turned and propped his crutches against the cabinets before holding his hand out to me. “Please,” he asked, and I was helpless to turn him down. Gulping back my last vestiges of hesitation, I took a shaking step forward and put my hand into his.

  “Tell me you want me to drive you home, and I will.” He pulled me into his embrace, one hand cupping my cheek, his thumb slowly rubbing over the bone from the corner of my eye down to my lip. Each breath felt like a tumble further down the rabbit hole, and my body molded itself to his embrace. Any alcohol I’d consumed earlier had already left my body, so there were no excuses.

  I ignored his question—two could volley in this game. “Did you like the cookies I made?” Nerves made me reach for the most obvious of questions. I’d made the vegan recipe especially for him, uncertain of how they would turn out without having sampled them first. Nursing shifts didn’t leave me much time to experiment in my kitchen.

  Ryland lifted his face, looking up at the ceiling fan as it slowly rotated in the stifling heat of the kitchen, and laughed. My body stiffened with rejection, and I tried to step back. His hands slipped over my shoulders to settle on my hips, drawing me in closer to him. I was surrounded by his thick, muscled body, and the only thing between us was pressed tightly—long and hard—against my center. Excitement, shock, and a crazy desire to run and lock the front door shot through me. I felt jittery like I had this intense sugar rush from eating my favorite strawberry ice cream when he touched me because it was a sweet combination of chills and heat.

  Ryland’s lips rubbed against my ear, and his hot breath made a bead of perspiration slide between my breasts. “I loved them, Summer.” His teeth grazed my lobe before he spoke again. “I ate every single one. Thank you.” He ended by kissing my neck, sucking a little at the end before releasing me with a pop that I’m positive resulted in a mark I wouldn’t be able to hide tomorrow. As far as second kisses went I wanted a whole lot more and didn’t think I could wait a respectable amount of time courting between each one.

  “I’m happy you liked them.” I licked my dry lips.

  The room felt pressurized—between the hot kitchen and Ryland sucking all the air from the space, but that could have been my imagination.

  “I did, and I don’t like sharing.” Ryland seemed to be talking about other things, but I let that go and focused on filling my lungs with enough air to keep me conscious.

  “I can make you more if you’d like.” />
  “Mmm.” A guttural humming between his lips was the only response he gave me as I felt fingers inching my summer dress up my legs. I’d worn a bikini, knowing Ryland had a hot tub, but now I found he was using that to his advantage and tugging on the strings, letting my perfect little bows unravel. If this made me a hussy, because I wasn’t about to stop him, I could live with that.

  “Ryland.”

  “Summer.”

  Our mouths met in a joining of tongues and lips seeking out their mates. We stroked each other in a dance of twirling tongues, coaxing more each turn. I ran my hands over his massive shoulders, which were honed by years of training for his dangerous job, and ended up with my fingers tangled in his short but tuggable hair.

  Ryland’s fingers managed to untie the knots of my bottoms, and I felt the fabric sliding against my inner thighs and dropping to the floor. I was wetter than a flash flood from my arousal which never in my limited experiences happened before. Ryland’s left hand abandoned its grip on the curve of my hip to cup my sex gently and trace a finger along my slit. He played at my entrance, circling my wet center with agonizing slowness before pushing his finger inside me. Everything below my waist shuddered and clenched around him tightly, drawing a groan from Ryland’s lips.

  “Oh, sweet Jesus.” It slipped from my mouth, and I dropped my head against Ryland’s rumbling chest in embarrassment.

  “Should I look for those car keys?” He taunted me.

  He pumped within me, and rational thought fled. I didn’t care if it felt like an inferno inside the kitchen. Satan could have my soul if he gave me one night of this with Ryland—consequences be damned.

  “You do that, and I’ll throw them over the fence.” I was dead serious.

  3

  Ryland

  “But I’m an injured man. You wouldn’t do that to me, would you?” I teased her hooking my finger inside her wet center sliding in and out listening for the nuances in her moans.

  Summer was sexy in the throes of passion. Demanding and unexpectedly fresh.

  “I saw you walk without your crutches earlier.” Panting she said each word with a cute pause attempting to catch her breath. “You’re not that injured.”

  “Ah, I’m busted, then?” I chuckled keeping up the constant pace letting her soak my hand.

  “A little, but your secret is safe with me.”

  I kept the rhythm of my fingers slow, pumping and curled up inside her as I stroked that spot that made her squeak little noises of approval the closer I got to making her come. My dick hurt, pressed up against my shorts, but I didn’t want to rush Summer either. She wasn’t a random fuck, and Ford would cut off my balls if I used her like that.

  “Oh, that feels so good.”

  “I’ll make it feel better.” Hushing her sexy moans, I kissed her neck again, leaving my mark. I didn’t care if it made me juvenile. Let the guys she worked with see my brand on her skin and know that she was with somebody. I contemplated how to pop in at her job this week hoping that dick doctor she worked with would see it. It was stupid, but he fucked up in the worst way and the twelve year-old-boy in me wanted to make funny faces and stick my tongue out at him.

  Summer was my girl.

  “Ryland, oh.”

  I lifted her right leg up, using the small space between the counter and the drawer handle behind me for her foot to rest on. My hips rolled against her, and her hot pussy dampened the front of my shorts where she was pressed against my straining dick.

  “That’s it, Summer. Ride me, baby.” I half-lifted her, unconcerned about my bum knee even though the strain was dulling my own desire.

  Summer moaned louder, and I kissed her again in a new spot, sharply coloring her neck. I’d give her a necklace of love bites if she let me. She clamped down on my fingers as I pumped harder. A guttural cry and a whimper left her leaning against me limply. The deadweight of her body wasn’t much, but my knee decided to give out right then, and I leaned back with a grimace.

  “I am so sorry. Did I hurt you?” Startled, Summer rambled on as I was basked in her post-orgasm weight against me. “I should go, maybe call a cab or something.” She shuddered. I steadied myself and rubbed my hands up and down her arms to calm her.

  “For what?” Was she serious? I wasn’t letting her go anywhere.

  “Your knee. Ryland, let me get you some ice. It’s going to swell taking my weight like this.”

  Summer was crazy if she thought her slight weight affected me.

  “I want you.”

  “Not like this.” Summer began to withdraw, returning to her shy self.

  “The hot tub, then. It’ll help my knee, I promise.” Summer gave me a smirk that suggested she knew I was full of bullshit, but I didn’t care. “Come on, at least help me out there if you won’t go and make-out with me.” I teased her.

  Huffing, she put a shoulder under my arm and let me lean against her as we skipped the crutches, and like a three-legged race gone wrong, she helped me outside, down the patio step, and into the hot tub. Once I was sitting inside, the circulating water eased the ache in my knee and soon a different kind of ache returned with a raging need.

  “How are you going to get out if I leave?” Standing outside the tub, she put her hands on her hips, and the motion pushed her breasts up at the neckline of her dress.

  “You’re not leaving Summer; give it up.”

  She rolled her eyes, but we both knew it was true. Summer wouldn’t leave me out here.

  “You know Ford is going to kill us both.” She put her arms into the water up to her elbows and swished back and forth, testing it out.

  “I’m less worried about Ford, who will have a raging hangover tomorrow, and more concerned that you think this isn’t something more than a casual fuck.” I winced saying it crudely but I wanted her to understand.

  “Well isn’t it casual? We’re fooling around.” Her soft, worried voice sounded delicate and fragile, yet a challenge to get a read on.

  “It’s not casual for me.” I moved across the hot tub to grip her arms gently but firmly so she couldn’t walk away. “Summer Rose, I’ve had it bad for you since I saw you that day in the ER with Doctor Douche Canoe. Shit, to be honest, I’ve felt this way for years, but I ignored it because I knew Ford would kick my ass and end our friendship if he caught me making moon eyes at his precious baby sister.

  “I’m done waiting for Ford to grow up and accept how I feel about you. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. Heck, I’d ask you to move in if I didn’t think your mother would drive over here with rosary beads and a priest.”

  “Pfft.” Summer blew her loose hair from her face and rolled her eyes. Goose bumps peppered her skin, and they weren’t from the balmy evening air. She looked nervous—maybe scared of getting hurt again?

  “Yeah, my mom would do that too.” She laughed shaking her shoulders.

  “I know this is new for both of us but I’ve been harboring these feelings for a while and I don’t think I’m alone in this, am I? I want a relationship with you, and I want everyone to know about it.”

  “Ryland…” She leaned from side to side hemming and hawing over what I said.

  I was done waiting. I leaned over Summer to get a better grip on her and then lifted her up and over the edge of the tub, uncaring as water sluiced over the side.

  “Ryland!” she screamed, flailing as I dumped her inside, sputtering water and smacking my chest.

  “There, all settled now.”

  “I’ve got my clothes on.” She looked down as her dress billowed up like a balloon in the swirling, bubbling water before sinking and turning translucent in the moonlight.

  “Not your bottoms,” I reminded her, pulling her close and setting her down on my lap.

  “Whose fault is that?”

  Summer tried to remain impassive, but I slipped my hands under her dress and pulled it up and off her body in one swift move. She didn’t protest until I tugged at the string holding her top.

  �
�Ryland,” Summer smiled through her little growl and I could see she was shocked, but not pissed, so I took it as a good sign.

  “There, blame away, but I find this much more effective in rehabilitating my knee.” My hands drifted under the water, back to her center circling slowly.

  “I don’t think that valid medical advice.” She blew out a breath of air as I worked my magic on her.

  “Tell me you’re not the least bit attracted to me or don’t have feelings for me and I’ll stop.” A slickness not from the water eased the way as I slid my finger inside her again.

  Her hands clutched my shoulders, “I want you, Ryland.”

  “That feels like a but coming…” I hesitated for her to mull over her decision.

  “I want you enough to risk pissing off my brother. I know you’ll fight for me because you’re one of the good guys.”

  Shifting on the seat in the hot tub, Summer helped me pull my swim trunks off in the water. We were naked, the heat fusing us closer together. Embracing her, she melted into my arms and we rubbed against each other, which only fueled the fire more.

  “Yes, please,” Summer begged so prettily, and I obliged, lifting her up over my shaft. Her legs parted wider, and she sank down over me, letting me fill her. Her tightness made me dizzy and I ground my hips up to get deeper.

  “You are so beautiful.” Words escaped unfiltered from my lips as I whispered whatever soft nonsense men do when their dick is being milked and their brain is devoid of all rational sense. Except I meant every sweet word and every caress against her trembling skin.

  Summer lifted and sank down over me in a gentle rhythm. Her breasts bounced in the bubbles, nipples dark against the reflective surface of the water. We were everything and nothing at once, and I didn’t know where I ended and she began. My cock jetted into her and it felt like coming home. At that moment, I knew I didn’t want any of this to change. I’d take the ribbing at the firehouse and Ford kicking my ass as long as I got to hold her like this forever.