Storm Front (The Charistown Series) (Volume 2) (23 page)

Wrinkle-Lover

Two months later…

“I’M SORRY, BUDDY, that sucks. You
can crash at my place for a couple of days, but I don’t do roommates. Been
there, done that, prefer to go it alone.”

Hearing male voices, Ashley paused at the back door of the
near empty bar. Ryan had been in Charistown for a couple of months and other
than their one night of scorching sex, she’d managed to keep her distance…at
least physically. Late at night lying in her bed, alone, Ryan starred in her
dreams and she frequently brought herself to orgasm with her own hand, all the
while wishing it were his.

Following a mild meltdown where Ashley expressed her…
distaste
at the fact that Danny and Julie had hired him to work at
her
bar, she
had requested that they schedule Ryan different shifts so they wouldn’t have to
work together.
In fact
, she wondered,
why was he even there?
Thursday’s were her nights, damn it. She stayed hidden so she could eavesdrop
on the guys’ conversation.

“No, that’s totally fine, Max, I appreciate the offer—even
if it’s only temporary.” The fact that Ryan’s laugh caused a shiver to run up
her body pissed her off.

“I don’t understand,” Kyle, the other bartender and her good
friend, piped up, “they’re just kicking you out without any notice?”

“Look”—Ryan’s voice was laden with defeat—“the rental house
is a piece of shit so I’m not surprised they’re tearing it down. I’m just happy
they are letting me back in to get my stuff. Unfortunately, it was all I could
afford when I got to town. I’m waiting on payment for some songs that I wrote
to come through but until then, I’m screwed. It cost me a lot of money to find
her.” What did that mean? Was he talking about her?

Ashley’s heart raced at the thought of Ryan spending time
searching for her. Why hadn’t he just asked her parents?

So here he was tending bar and writing songs for the bands
he should be performing in.
What gives?
She would have to ask him…
eventually.

“Dude, I’d invite you to live with me, but I already have
two roommates—”

“And you really don’t wanna live with Kyle.” Ashley chose
that moment to make her presence known. “He’s a dog, and a slob,” she
hip-checked Kyle while tying the cocktail apron around her waist.

“What are you trying to say, Spicy?” That nickname, along
with all of the others the men here at Danny’s called her, made her smile. They
were so much better than the plain, perfect image she’d been forced to wear her
whole life.

“I’m sayin’ if it looks like a dog, acts like a dog, and
lives like a dog…WOOF!” She giggled uncontrollably as Kyle lunged forward and
tickled her.

“Well, Ash, do you have a better solution to our boy’s
problem?” She wanted to slap the smug look off Max DeLucca’s gorgeous face. She
knew what he was getting at—everyone who worked at Danny’s did. Ryan had made
no secret of the fact that he and Ashley had been a couple. He’d also made no
bones about the fact that he’d screwed up and wanted a chance to earn back her
trust. They had an unspoken agreement that the specific details of their
history would remain between them, so none of the group understood her flat out
refusal of any of Ryan’s advances.

Pulling in a lungful of air, she regretted her proposal even
before it left her mouth. “Ry, I live in a big house. Really, it’s too big for
just one person. I’m not even sure what I was thinking when I bought it…”

That was a bald-faced lie. After more than six months of
traveling up the coast, living in and out of her car, she’d seen the quaint
house on the beautiful tree lined street and had to have it. She knew it was
much too big for just her, but at the time her brain had been blindly hoping
that one day Leo and Ryan would surprise her and come knocking on her door. In
reality, she knew that neither would happen, but it hadn’t stopped her from
buying the house. Nor did it stop her from leaving the lights on by the front
door each night. Hope was a terrible thing to lose.

Standing at the bar with a look of sheer shock on his face,
Ryan made a display of knocking the side of his head with his open hand. “I’m
sorry, I didn’t hear you. What did you just say, Princess?”

She growled out loud at his attempt to make her say the only
thing he knew she’d feared saying. “I’m offering you a place to crash, you big
pain in the ass. If you’d like, feel free to move your shit in and stay there.
But, I expect rent on time. I am
not
your maid or your mom—” He leveled
a painful stare at her and immediately she apologized and re-phrased. “Sorry,
Ry, but I’m
not
gonna cook or clean for you. So, as long as you keep the
place neat, you’re more than welcome to dwell there.” She stood behind the bar
and stared expectantly at him.

Kyle threw his head back and laughed hysterically, “Wow,
Spicy, that was some sweet invitation.”

“Gee, Ryan, how the hell could you turn down something
so…warm and inviting?” Max laughed before he threw his arm around a clearly
frustrated Ashley, giving her a quick hug.

Ashley crossed her arms over her chest trying to hide her
anxiety with sarcasm. “What the hell? That’s what I get for being nice.”

“Ashley Kynde, thank you so much for the invitation.” Ryan
smiled broadly trying to hold back his laughter. “I accept your proposition,
and I am eternally grateful.”

“Whatever. Fuck you guys. That’ll be the last time you see
my sincere, heartfelt generosity.” With her bottom lip between her teeth she
walked away from the deep, riotous, laughter coming from the bar and she went
to her locker in the back room. By the time she returned to the main bar the
men had reassembled their game faces.

“Here’s my key, go make yourself a copy.” She tossed the
metal to Ryan before heading back through the double doors. “Jerks.” The
laughter followed her all the way to Danny and Julie’s office.

“Holy shit, man, I can’t believe she’s letting you move in
with her. I’ve been trying for two years to tap that fine piece of ass, but
she’s never so much as batted an eyelash at me.” Kyle’s crude words hit Ryan
like a punch to the gut. “Kyle, you fucking idiot, you’re like Sophia from the
Golden Girls?” Max slapped Kyle on the back of his head before turning his
attention to Ryan. “Don’t listen to a word this douche says. There isn’t a
female within fifteen miles of here that this guy hasn’t tried to ‘tap’.” Max’s
use of air quotes had Ryan laughing. “Seriously, Ry,” Max stage whispered,
“rumor has it Kyle Marx here, once got tapped himself by a lady who ended up
being not such a lady at all…you hear what I’m saying?” Kyle blushed under
Ryan’s gaze.

“She…he…whatever the fuck it was,
it
was hot.
And
it was offering a blow job. No reason to turn that shit down.” Kyle shrugged
his shoulders and started to wipe down the bar. “And Max, you wanna talk shit
about me? You watch the fucking Golden Girls, you pussy. So shut your trap, you
wrinkle-lover!” At that point, Ryan’s chuckle broke out into full-blown
laughter.

Finally regaining his composure, Ryan reached over the bar
and put his hand on the rag that Kyle was using. “Listen up. I don’t care who
she dates. I won’t like it, but I can’t stop it. I love her and I intend to get
her back. It’s only been a couple of months but I already like you guys, and I
see us being friends. That being said, I will mow you down to get to her if the
chance ever presents itself. She is not just a piece of ass for me to ‘tap’.”
Ryan sneered using air quotes to drive home his point to Kyle. “She’s my
everything. We clear?”

Clarity entered Kyle’s usually cloudy green eyes, “Yeah,
man, crystal.” Ryan wrapped his fingers around Ashley’s keys and left the bar. Thoughts
of living under the same roof together had him giddy like a schoolgirl, yet
hard like a teen-aged boy.
This is it, I’m gonna get my chance. I’m finally
gonna get Ashley back
, he thought with every piece of hope left in his
heart.

We Are Just Friends

Four
years later…

TIME PASSED QUICKLY as Ashley and
Ryan continued living together, platonically. Oddly enough, it seemed to work
for them. Even though he’d spent the better part of that time unsuccessfully
trying to win her back, they had managed to build an amazing friendship. Ashley
dated various men over the years but it was never serious, and never for long
stretches.

Ryan never dated anyone. Ashley tried for a while to
convince him to go out with women from the bar or from their gym, but he
refused and eventually she stopped trying. Everyone from the bar made fun of
them about their pseudo-relationship and it pissed her off. They were
not
a couple. She couldn’t be with him—she couldn’t ever really be with anyone, no
matter how many dates she went on. Why couldn’t anybody understand that?

“Hey Princess, you gonna stand there all night with your
head in the clouds or are you gonna serve the customers?”

“Bite me, Ryan,” she snipped shaking the Cosmos for the
suits at the far end of the bar.

“What can I get for you two, chickies?” It was a Thursday
night in mid-March and the weather was unseasonably warm. Ashley loved the rare
warm days Mother Nature tossed out in the still of winter. They reminded her of
a lover’s gentle tease before the hot, steamy sex.

“We’ll have two lemon drop shots with our Lemontini’s,
please.” The women waiting for the drinks had been sitting at the bar for over
an hour laughing, joking and having a great time. Lyla and Janie had introduced
themselves the previous week when they’d come in to Danny’s on Main for the
first time. Both were beautiful and friendly, and they had included Ashley in
their conversation anytime she was close enough to their end of the bar. She’d
found herself hoping they would come back so she could listen in on their silly
stories. Since moving to Pennsylvania, Ashley hadn’t made that many female
friends—in fact, she’d never had a whole lot of friends, even back in Florida.

She wasn’t gossipy or girly. She wasn’t high maintenance or
ditzy. She didn’t use a lot of words, and she didn’t require a lot of phone
time or communication to make her happy. Add that to the fact that she didn’t
want to share any details about her life—none, nada—that pretty much cut her
out of any of the girlfriend groups. There were times when she thought the
guys—and by guys she meant Max, Ryan, Kyle, and Danny—saw her more as one of
them than as a woman, but, that didn’t bother her…too much.

“Janie, I can’t believe you are still seeing that fucktard.
Richard doesn’t deserve you. Dump his hairy ass and move on.” Ashley smiled at
the candidness of the women’s conversation.

“Here ya go, chickies.” Ashley poured their shots and one
for herself.

“To hot men with tattooed bodies and muscles that flex, but
most of all to hot, steamy sex!” Lyla giggled at her own toast before clinking
her glass to both Janie and Ashley’s and pouring the clear liquid down her
throat. Ashley couldn’t help but laugh at her goofiness as she followed suit.

“Ly, your toasts get more ridiculous each time.” Janie’s
eyes watered as laughter bubbled out of her.

“Here’s some water for you ladies.”

Ashley knew, without turning around, exactly who was
offering the beverages. Max had noticed Janie last week, and while he was known
for his ‘Fuck and Release’ method of dating, he hadn’t stopped talking about
the stunning woman all week. Most women threw themselves at him, but not her. She
kept her distance and that kept him interested.
Typical man
, Ashley
thought to herself.

Janie’s aqua eyes went round as she accepted the glass from
his hand. “Um, thanks…”

“This sexy beast here is Max. Max this is Lyla and Janie.”
Ashley watched as sparks zipped between the Greek God and the brunette beauty.
“I’ll be right back, I need to go take care of those customers.” She excused
herself from the triad, giving them time to get to know each other.

“So the ladies from last week are back, huh?” Ryan looked
over Ashley’s shoulder and smirked.

“What’s the look for, Ry?”

“What look?” He asked innocently.

“When you’re up to something you get this smirk, and you
have it now, so what gives?”

Ryan shrugged. “It’s just a hunch, but I have a feeling
we’ll be seeing a lot of those two. They have staying power.” Ryan ran his
hands through his hair catching the attention of a frizzy-haired fem-bot on the
other side of the bar practically begging for a little Ryan TLC. Watching them
interact, Ashley was surprised to feel a slight stirring in the pit of her
stomach. She couldn’t name the feeling, but she didn’t like it.

Not one bit.

“This was such a thoughtful idea. Thanks for having all of
us to your home, Lyla,” Julie said, handing Lyla a bouquet of roses and a homemade
apple pie.

“Thanks, honey, this is much appreciated.” Danny pulled Lyla
in for a big hug. Ryan, who had arrived at the same time as Danny and Julie,
noticed how Lyla’s body had stiffened at the contact, but she’d accepted it
nonetheless.

“It’s our pleasure, really. Janie and I’ve been having
Sunday dinner together for years and when it falls on a holiday it’s nice to
celebrate. So, thanks for joining our little Memorial Day party. If you wanna
know the truth,” the sassy espresso haired vixen said, “you’re actually helping
us. We buy the same amount of alcohol whether there are two or ten of us, so
drink up.” She winked and led them through to her kitchen.

“She’s spunky, I knew she’d fit in perfectly, Danny,” Julie
stage whispered.

“Jane, guests are here, time to act civilized.”

Ryan checked his phone for the time.

“You waiting on a train?” Danny was the master of several
things and sarcasm was one of them. “That’s the third time you’ve checked your
phone since we walked through the door, what’s up?”

“I’m waiting for Ashley.” Ryan popped the top of a beer and
took a long pull of the cold drink before continuing. “She was arguing with her
mom when I left the house. I offered to wait but she insisted I go on ahead.
She usually only speaks to her dad, but today her mother intercepted the call
before her dad could even get to the phone. I hate that cold bitch. I hate what
she does to Ashley, I just…hate it.”

Over the years, Ryan had heard several conversations between
the women where Ashley’s mother had torn Ashley down for pretty much
anything—from not graduating from high school, to blowing her scholarship to
the University of Pennsylvania, and even going as low as blaming Ashley for
Leo’s accident. Ryan knew deep down that Ashley’s inability to find true happiness
and her fear of commitment stemmed from all of the pain she lived through in
Florida. He also knew that a fair share of that blame lay squarely on his
shoulders. While she’d opened the door to her home for him, she had never let
him back into her heart and he was running out of options when it came to
getting her back.

“Sweetie, I understand that Ashley’s mother is a nasty,
unkind, cold woman that hurts Ashley and makes her sad, but
you
need to
understand that it isn’t your job to make life better for her. Every day that
sweet girl lets her past dictate her present is a choice that
she
makes—not her mother, not you, only
her
.
She
has to make the
choice to decide when enough is enough.” Julie draped her arm around Ryan’s
back. “And Ry, think about this. Sometimes, when you know that you’re so
protected that there is no possible way you could fail, you don’t even bother
to try. Because…what’s the point?” Ryan looked into Julie’s knowing eyes and
received her message loud and clear.

“She’s good, boy, pay attention,” Danny advised, before he
laced his fingers through his wife’s and led her out to Lyla’s backyard.

Was he standing too close to Ashley? All this time he’d
been trying to stay in her focus, but did she even see him anymore?
His
thoughts were interrupted by the doorbell.

“Look what I found lurking around.” Ashley walked through
the door with Kyle and hugged Lyla, handing over a tray of cookies as Max and
Kyle each kissed Lyla on the cheek.

“I feel so loved,” she teased.

“We brought booze,” Kyle shouted. The lack of focus in his
eyes had the appearance of someone who had already started drinking before
coming to the party.

“Is Janie here yet?” Max asked.

“I see you’re going for the subtle approach, huh Max,” Ryan
laughed.

“Yes, and her douchey boyfriend can’t make it today. I’m
torn up about it. Can you tell?” His smile nearly split his face.

Ashley called out from the deck. “Hey, guys, Janie’s outside
filling water balloons. Get your asses out here—boys against girls.”
After
the blowout with her mother, she probably needed some good clean fun to take
her mind off things
, he thought to himself.

“Oh, Princess, you are going down.” The sexual undertone in
Ryan’s comment was unintentional but when Ashley’s eyes lowered from his face
to his shorts, he felt his cock stir.

He felt his cock grow rock hard when she seductively licked
her lips and replied, “You wish, Ryan, you wish.”

Splat, Splat!!
Ashley’s thoughts were rudely
interrupted when colorful, thin latex exploded in her lap.

“What the fuck!” She looked up, the shock quickly
evaporating when her eyes locked on a very proud Ryan Baker grinning like a
fool.

“Don’t worry, Ash, I’ve got you covered.” Janie dragged over
a tub overflowing with water-filled balloons and Ashley started heaving them at
Ryan. One after the other, the balloons hit him like heat-seeking missiles,
splashing water in his hair, his face, and his chest. Soon he was drenched and
everyone was laughing at the scene.

“It’s like watching Frogger,” Max roared.

“Holy…shit!”

The sound of awe in Lyla’s voice pulled Ashley’s attention
away from Max’s hysterics to whatever Lyla and Janie were gawking at. “Look at
his fucking body.”

Lyla, who Ashley had learned could maintain a poker face
like no other, was blatantly staring at Ryan. He’d peeled of his wet t-shirt
and laid it on the back of a chair to dry. “I wanna name every one of his abs,”
Lyla murmured in a lusty voice.

“Down, girl!” Janie flicked Lyla in the arm, earning her a
mean stare and a playful pinch from her best friend. “Ly, that boy is spoken
for.” Janie’s words instantly pulled Ashley back into the conversation.

“Um, I didn’t realize Ryan was dating someone…” Ashley
swallowed hard, praying with everything she had that she could keep hold of the
pretzels that weighed heavy in her stomach.

Lyla and Janie giggled. “Come on, Ash, cut us a break,”
Janie and Lyla said in tandem. “We’ve been hanging out with you guys for a
couple of months now. There is
no
way that there isn’t something going
on between the two of you.”