Ryan Reign (New York Ruthless #4)(18)

“Love you, too,” I say with a smile and then he winks at me before ending the call.

I roll onto my back and Shane sits beside me and brushes my hair back from my face. “You going to be okay here on your own today?”

I sigh dramatically. “I’m sure I’ll survive for one day. I’m going to watch some trashy TV, I think.”

“Don’t leave the suite. Okay?”

“Okay,” I bite on my bottom lip and look up at his handsome face.

“What is it?” he frowns at me.

“Nothing.”

“Jessie!” he snaps.

“Do you not want me to come with you because of what happened yesterday?” I whisper. The thought that I somehow embarrassed him has been eating away at me all morning.

I see his Adam’s apple bob as he swallows and tears prick at my eyes. I bet Erin would never show him up like that. “Hey,” he cups my chin in his hand. “I’m meeting with some people today. It’s delicate. That’s all.”

“And you don’t want me to embarrass you.” I sniff. “I understand.”

“No, sweetheart. You couldn’t embarrass me if you tried, but you do distract me and I need to focus today.”

“If I’m such a distraction why did you bring me here?”

He narrows his eyes at me. “Jessie, don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t pick a fight with me when I have to leave, sweetheart.”

“I’m not trying to,” I whisper, but somehow we always seem to be on the verge of a fight. Is that the way things will always be between us?

“Sean O’Connor is a cunt. What happened yesterday was because he acted like one. But regardless of that, I wasn’t planning on taking you with me today anyway. I told you before we left you’d have to spend some time here on your own.”

I place my hand over his. “I know,” I whisper.

“So don’t ever accuse me of being ashamed of you, Jessie Ryan. I would wear your naked ass like a coat if it wouldn’t get us arrested for indecency,” he winks at me and I stifle a giggle.

“Now, I gotta take another shower because I’m covered in your cum,” he says before leaning down and giving me a quick kiss.





Chapter 10





Shane





I open the door to our suite and walk inside to see her lying on the sofa, her legs draped over the end and a cushion under her head as she flicks through a magazine. She hasn’t heard me come in and she jumps with fright when I lift her legs so I can sit beside her.

“Shane!” she shrieks. “You almost gave me a heart attack!”

“Sorry, sweetheart,” I chuckle as I take a seat. “You were lost in your own little world.”

“I was reading about this man who married his truck.” She arches one eyebrow at me. “His truck! Like he has sex with it and everything.”

“With a truck?”

“A truck!” She places the magazine on the floor beside her. “Those things are addictive,” she giggles and it makes me smile. She’s never had the chance to switch off and relax before and it is fucking beautiful to see her doing it, and especially with me.

“Why are you back so early, anyway?” she asks as she slides her bare foot onto my groin and rubs my cock. I take hold of it, keeping it in place.

“Not to fuck you, as much as I would love to, but we don’t have time right now.”

“Why?”

“I’m taking you to meet someone.” I smile at her and tap her legs. “Put some shoes on. We need to leave.”

She sits up and reaches for her socks and sneakers beside the sofa. “Who?”

“It’s a surprise.”

She rolls her eyes at me. “Is it business stuff?”

I shake my head.

“Can I have a hint?”

“No.”



An hour later, we pull up outside the cottage in the countryside and Jessie peers out of the window. There are wind chimes hanging all around the outside as well as overgrown bushes that hide the house largely from view. It hasn’t changed much since I was a kid. I love this place.

“Come on,” I say as I climb out of the car and Jessie follows suit.

“Whose is this place?” she asks, wide eyed as she looks around at the flowers in huge colorful flowerpots. There is a giant sundial on the middle of the lawn and a fountain a few meters behind it. “I love it,” she breathes.

I take her hand and walk her up the path. I don’t even have a chance to knock on the door before my Aunt Em opens it. She has barely changed either, except her hair is slightly grayer, but she still wears it loose and wavy. She still wears long flowing skirts and dozens of bracelets and I only just realized how much I have missed her.

“Shane!” she says as she steps out and pulls me into a hug. The smell of patchouli and jasmine takes me back to the summers we would spend at this cottage when we were kids. It was my grandmother’s back then. Em inherited it when she died, given that she was the only surviving daughter.

When she releases me, she doesn’t even let me introduce Jessie before she wraps her in her arms too. “And this must be Jessie. Shane has told me so much about you.”