From Lies to Promises (23 page)

 
As I’m scanning the vendors, Skeigh elbows me. “Kat.” She nudges me again, “Kat, is that Jake and Lyla over there?”

I follow the direction her finger is pointing straight to the asshat and siren. They are sitting next to each other at a table
in the very center. “Ugh. I wonder what plot they are cooking up now.” I ponder out loud.

  “Let’s just go finish shopping and get out of here before they see us.” Lexi sighs.

  But it’s too late. Lyla already has us in her sights and a menacing smile on her face. “Too late.” I say.

  Lexi pushes on my shoulder and I follow her and Skeigh away from the food court. We only shop for another hour. Seeing the two evil doers ruined all of our shopping highs.

              Christmas Day is on me before I realize it with the way the rest of my week went. I had to run back to the grocery store three time for things that we forgot to put on the list, Lexi has worked over every day, and Skeigh hasn’t been in a ‘holidays rock’ kind of mood. Jamie called and asked if they could join us for dinner a couple days ago and I told her she didn’t have to ask, to just come on. She tells me they want to make all new memories and that her mom put the house up for sale and are finding a new one.

  The food is coming along pretty good. Lexi and I stayed up most of the night baking, cooking, and prepping what we could.
Skeigh did the tree and decorations throughout the house. Cole and Rhett got here early and are on the couch playing video games with Skeigh. Ryder and Dave will be here soon. They stayed over at their dads all night playing poker and drinking. I stopped in for a little bit just to tell Allen Merry Christmas and invite him over tonight. He said he would love to but wants to stay at home.

  After another hour of Lexi and me bumping butts in the kitchen Ryder walks in the door with his brother, followed by Jamie and her mother. I pull the
turkey from the oven and holler over to him, “Hey gorgeous, you want to carve this here bird?”

  Every man in the house answers. “I meant Ryder, boys. Not that you all aren’t gorgeous, too.”

  As the darn’s and whatever’s come from the living room, Ryder walks up beside me. “I’d be happy to carve the turkey, darlin’.”

  I hand him the knife and
he gets to work. Lexi makes Skeigh come help us set the table, while I set all the food out. A few minutes later we are sitting at the table. Right as we go to dig into the food there is a knock at the door. We all look at one another wondering who it could be.

  “I’ll get it.” Skeigh says. The happiness she had diminishes to nothing when she opens the door. “What the fuck are you doing here? Better question is, how the hell do you know where we live?”

  “I just followed the guys here.” Jake says as he pushes Skeigh so he can come in. He holds his arms out at his side and walks to the end of the table. “So either my invitation got lost in the mail, or my friends have all fucking forgot about me.”

  Dave jumps out of his chair s
o fast that it hits the floor. He rushes over and pushes Jake into the wall and holds him there. “You have no right to be here. You have caused enough problems.” Dave backs away from Jake only when Rhett walks over there and puts his hand on his shoulder. Then he walks over and wraps Skeigh up in his arms. “And this will be your only warning to never lay a hand on Skeigh again.”

  “All of you are seriously turning
your back on me for these cunts?” Jake shouts.

  I have been so wrapped up in Dave confronting Jake I didn’t even pay attention that Ryder is now up and standing behind my chair. “You need to leave. Now.” He says.

  “Someone has a stick up their ass.” Everyone turns back to the door at the sound of Lyla’s voice. She saunters in like she is a prize debutant. “Honestly, has this little girl of yours taken all the fun clean out of you?”

 
Ryder’s hand squeezes the back of my chair so hard I’m positive I hear the wood groaning in protest. “I’ve already told you, Lyla, we are done. I love Katrina.”

  She
morphs from princess to devil instantly. “You have got to be shitting me! You are really going to pick this daddy fucking whore over me?”

  Skeigh pushes out of Dave
’s arms and knocks one across Lyla’s jaw. She pulls her arm back to throw another one but Dave pulls her back. Since she can’t get in another hit in she screams at her, “You bitch! You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

 
Lyla straightens her back out and wipes some blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand. She sticks her hand towards Jake and he pulls something from his back pocket and hands it to her. She unrolls it to reveal the issue of Strong Women. “The whole world knows.”

  I look around at everyone. They are all on their feet in defense of me. TJ, Cole, Lexi, Jamie and her mother, and my
amazing Ryder.

  Ryder pulls my chair out and sticks his hand in front of me to help me up. When I am standing beside him, he looks back at Lyla and ask, “Have you even read it?”

  “I have.” She replies. “It’s some gross shit. Have you?”

  “I don’t have to read it, because she told me what happened before the article was written. Only someone as sick and twisted as you two could read that and come up with the sick
thought you did.” Ryder seethes.

  “Just leave. We all made it pretty obvious you aren’t welcome here.” Lexi
jumps in.

 
“No.” Lyla walks up to Ryder. “You can’t be serious about her. I have been here for you since we were kids. Love me! Be with me!” She pleads.

 
“Lyla, you don’t even know the definition of the word love. If you did you wouldn’t need manipulation and sex to get a man in bed.” Ryder says disgusted.

  “You will come back to me.
You always do.” Lyla sneers.

  “No I wo
n’t.” Ryder turns his back to Lyla to face me and grabs my hands in each of his. “I didn’t want it to happen like this. With them here, but I think this is the only way she will understand how much I love you.”

  My eyebrow arches in question. “What are you talking about?”

  “This.” He sticks his hand in his pocket and comes out with a small black box. Gasps come from every direction of the room and I am sure I hear Lexi let out a squeal. With my attention still focused on the box Ryder opens it for me to see a stunning diamond ring. It’s a beautiful shape, sharp on both ends, and has a white gold band with smaller round diamonds on each side of it.

  I close my eyes tight and open them back up, only to find that I’m not dreaming. This is real. Ryder is standing in front of me holding a tiny box with a ring in it. My throat gets tight and makes it hard fo
r me to speak. “Is…uh. Oh. My. God. Is that what I think it is?”

  Ryder gets down on one knee in front of me and
my heart feels like it is about to explode. “Katrina Brown, will you put me out of my misery once again and marry me?”

  It takes some effort to speak past the lump in my throat. “Yes.” I swallow and say it again. “Yes, I will marry you!” I drop to my knees
and fuse my mouth to his. When I pull back and open my eyes, I find Ryder’s eyes are the greenest I have ever seen them. His thumb swipes at my check, wiping away moisture.

  “No tears.” He whispers.

  “They are happy tears.” I explain.

 
He smiles at me then takes the ring from the box. “This was my mother’s ring. I got it from dad last week and had this done to it.” He holds it up so I can see the inside of the band where I find an engraving that says, ‘I Promise’.

“It’s perfect. What about Dave? Wouldn’t he want your mothers ring one day?” I ask.

  The grin he gives me is contagious. He leans in and places his mouth next to my ear and whispers, “I’ve talked to Dave and he said he would be happy to see mom’s ring on your finger. Plus, he thinks that Skeigh might want something a little more modern.”

  I jerk back and look to see if
he is serious. He is. “Holy SHIT!” I slap a hand over my mouth. I can’t help but looking over at Dave. He freaking winks at me.
Holy crap. Holy crap.
I’m getting married. Dave is going to ask Skeigh to marry him. Wow. My happiness just grows as Lyla stomps her foot then storms out the door like a spoiled kid who didn’t get her way. Ryder and I get back to our feet and turn to see Jake still standing there.

 
“Are you not going to follow your ring leader?” Ryder asks, gesturing his hand in the path Lyla just stomped.

  “Fuck off.” Jake says on his way towards the open door.

  Once he makes it outside Cole shouts, “And don’t come back!” We all let out a laugh and sit back down at the table as if nothing happened. Skeigh jokes about telling Ryder it was too cliché to propose on Christmas, and that she now takes it back because it ended up pretty epic. Yes, my girls knew about the whole thing for over a week! Lexi starts passing the food around the table and the dinner goes on with my family.

***

  After we all exchange and open gifts, Ryder and I tell everyone goodnight and head to his house for the night. I’ve been there so much over the last month I don’t even bother with packing a bag because I everything I need.

 
Walking through the door to Ryder’s house and turning on the light, I catch sight of the ring on my finger. He asked me to marry him and gave me his mother’s ring.
It’s like a dream still.

  “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Ryder says.

  “What?”

  He walks up and grabs my hand and twirls the rings with his finger. “You were looking at the ring like you weren’t sure.”

  “Ryder, I want this more than I have wanted anything in my life. I’m just in shock, I guess. I wasn’t expecting it.” I explain.

  He pulls me into his arms and looks down at me with a smirk, “I am pretty sure that is the whole point of a proposal.
For you not to know it’s coming.”

  I place a soft kiss on his lips. “
It is and you done a damn good job.” I tug on his shirt, “Now let me take you to bed and thank you properly.”

  “You will hear no arguments from me.”

  Clothes are pulled off and left from the door, up the stairs, and all over the bedroom. I push into Ryder’s chest, making him lay down on the bed and climb on top of him. I take my index finger and drag it slowly from his collar bone, down to his chest. I make sure that I run my nails across his nipples, then continue past his belly button and follow the very ‘happy trail’ all the way to his cock.

 
I lift myself enough for him to enter and glide down. I keep my focus on Ryder’s face as I slowly make my descent and take him in completely. His eye’s fall closed as he releases a groan. That groan is the best sound I have ever heard and it does nothing but feed my hunger for him. When his eyes open the same fire I feel in me for him is staring right back at me. Leaning forward I nuzzle my nose to his.

  “
You are my ray of light that brought me out of my own personal hell.” I pull myself back up his length. “I love you, Ryder.” I say as I pull back just enough to watch him shutter when I take him back in.

  Ryder reaches up and puts both hands on either side of my face, “I love you, too, Katrina.” He places a chaste kiss on my lips. “Always,” then another, “and forever.”

  I smile and ask, “You promise?”

  “I Promise.”

Asking Alexandria – The Death of Me

Sleeping with Sirens – Alone

Apocalyptica – I Don’t Care

Bullet for My Valentine – Tears Don’t Fall

Evanescence – Bring Me To Life

Three Days Grace – Never Too Late

Slipknot – Dead Memories

Peirce the Veil – Hold on Till May

My Chemical Romance – I’m Not Okay

Linkin Park – Leave Out All the Rest

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