Ryder (Resisting Love #2.5)(21)

Saxon rubs the back of his neck, now staring at the floor. He looks so different. My Saxon didn’t have any tattoos or piercings or have his hair like that.

“Did you know?” Saxon asks me.

“Did I know what?” I respond, confused.

“That Ryder was in Morning Alliance with me? Is this some f*cked up way for you to get back at me? By getting with a guy I consider family? Cos you win, AJ, this f*cking hurts like hell!” Saxon spits out at me. I notice Ryder putting a little space between us and it pisses me off. He doesn’t believe Saxon, does he?

I gape. “You think this is all about you, Sax? What the hell?! I never wanted to see you ever again!” I’m yelling now. I turn around and look at Ryder who is now staring at Saxon, not looking at me. “You know what? Fuck you both!” I hiss, walking towards the club exit. I don’t deserve this shit. I hail a cab and jump in.

*****

Ryder

“She’s the girl? The one you never got over? The one you kept looking for?” I ask Sax, already knowing the answer. Fuck if this doesn’t hurt. My Lexi has been with Sax, and from the looks of things, they were serious. Serious enough that Sax never got over her. This whole thing is a cluster f*ck of epic proportions. I don’t want Sax hurt, but Lexi…

Lexi is mine.

“Yeah, she's my girl, Ry,” Sax states, causing me to clench my fists.

“She’s not your girl anymore, Sax,” I say in a quiet, deadly tone.

“I don’t think you understand, Ry. We were together for years. High school sweethearts, we were each other’s firsts…in everything,” Sax says simply.

I see red. He was Lexi’s first? Fuck.

“I’m sorry, but you’re not getting her back, Sax. L, she’s with me,” I tell him frankly. I hear our name being called on stage. How the f*ck am I going to perform now? Not to mention Lexi ran out by herself.

I make an instant decision and run off after her, but I’m too late. I see her jump in a cab and drive off. Running my fingers through my hair, I exhale deeply. Walking back into the club, I see the disapproval from the other band members. I put Lexi out of my mind, and jump on stage.

“How is everyone doing tonight?” I say into the microphone. We get some cheers and catcalls from the audience. I see Tee shooting me daggers, so I avoid looking at her. I concentrate on the task at hand, and put on a good show for the crowd.

As soon as we get off stage, the guys start in on me.

“What the hell, Ryder? Why were you with AJ?” Kidd asks, looking confused.

“She goes by Lexi, and she's mine,” I spit at him.

Jet walks over looking confused. “What’s going on?” he asks before taking a gulp of water.

“Nothing,” I say to him.

“Nothing? Stealing my girl is nothing to you?” Sax hisses at me.

“Steal? Don’t make shit up, Sax. If she was yours, I wouldn’t have gone near her. I’m not like that and you know it,” I tell him, affronted.

“Yeah, well, I’m not going to sit around and watch you with the woman I love,” he tells me, his face blank, and then he storms off, not giving us a backwards glance. He even slams the door for good measure.

“Fuck! This is going to mess up the band, Ryder. Look, I love AJ... I mean Lexi... She’s a good girl and I’ve known her for many years, but this is our chance, everything we’ve ever wanted for us is almost within reach. With you and Sax going at each other this isn’t going to happen! You need to sort this out.”

I stare at the ceiling. Fuck if he isn’t right. And I hate it. What’s that saying? Get what you want, lose what you have. Which is it gonna be? My career, or the woman of my dreams? It seems fate is a bitch and won’t let me have both.

I know exactly how this is going to play out.

*****





Chapter 12


Lexi

I rush out of the bar and jump into the nearest taxi. I absently give the driver my home address, and then stare out of the window. My mind returns to the scene I just left, and then all the memories come flooding back.

Saxon was my first love. We started out as friends, and it just grew from there. He was my everything; my best friend, my boyfriend. He was the one person in my life that I could trust and rely on. I went by AJ then, Saxon gave me that nickname and it just stuck.

When my mother died, in the beginning he was there for me, helping me grieve. She was here one day, and the next she was hit by a drunk driver; never even got the chance to say goodbye. After a while Sax wasn’t around as much, and I found out why fast enough.

I was out getting some groceries when a woman walked up to me. She was pretty, dressed simply in a sundress and sandals.

“Are you AJ?”

I frowned in confusion, wondering who the hell this girl was. “Yes,” I told her, a little hesitantly.

“AJ, as in Sax’s girl?” she asked.

“Yeah... Why do you want to know? Is he okay?” I asked, concerned. Suddenly there were a thousand different scenarios running through my head.

At first I thought she would be bitchy, but she almost looked sad, as if she didn’t want to be the one to tell me this next blow. “My name is Shanora. I don’t want to tell you this, but I have to,” she said, and then took a deep breath. “I slept with Sax a few nights ago. I didn’t know he had a girlfriend until he called out your name during… our time together.”