The Neighbor #4 (The Neighbor Romance Series - Book #4) (3 page)

“I don’t think they’re aware…They are men after
all.”

We both laughed. As usual, Sayler provided me with
help only she could deliver.
I
was headed back to
Lewis Ave. where I would get spruced up before going to Ryder’s house. I called
Ryder one more time and had no success.

Chapter
Three

I walked into my house after noticing Ryder’s Lexus
in his driveway. Perfect, he was home. I showered and tried to spy on his
bedroom, but he had the blinds closed.

My conversations with Sayler and my mother had
helped. Kelly was correct when she said I had support—even she had been
helpful. In my brief time with Kelly, she had transformed from a roommate into
a friend.

It was early December by this time, but it was South
Carolina, so it was balmy. I put on a blue flirty dress with a yellow cardigan.
The dress was innocent with the cardigan and revealing without it.

I flitted down the stairway.

“Where are you headed, Jenna?” my mother asked.

My mother was sitting on Claude’s lap. I had
definitely walked in on something that was none of my business.

“I have nothing to lose Mom. I’m heading to Ryder’s.
I
have already been kicked out of school, so I’m
getting good at rejection. YOLO, as Max would say. Don’t wait up.” I winked.

“We won’t be up for long,” my mom said.

“WE?
Ick.
I don’t like thinking of my mother in that way,”
I shouted.

I couldn’t find shoes to match my outfit. The ones
that
I
had in mind were buried in my luggage, which I
had hastily packed without any sense of order. I walked next door in my bare
feet.

I stepped up to Ryder’s door. His doorknocker
was shaped
like a golf club. I bashed it against his door hard.
I heard footsteps, but he did not answer. I banged a second time, and a third.
I knew he was behind the door.

I called out, “Ryder! It’s me, but I’m sure you knew
that. I’m not leaving here until you answer the door. This is a problem for
both of us.
I
’m going to have Potato shit all over
your front lawn. He had table scraps for dinner and it—”

Ryder opened the door. “Don’t have the dog shit in
my yard or I will have you arrested.”

Ryder was wearing his old ripped jeans and he had on
no shirt. I had never seen him with stubble before. He was wearing about three
day’s growth and he looked hot. Beyond his amazing body and stunning face was
something I had never seen, Ryder’s frown. His green eyes were not vacillating
between moss green and hazel. All I could see were his beady pupils staring at
me.

“I have been calling you for two days. I was so
concerned. You have some explaining to do,” I said.

It wasn’t my intended first line. I wanted to jump
in his arms and reassure him that everything would be okay. I wanted him to
reassure me.
I
could tell from his body language that wasn’t
going to happen.

“Now that you’re in you may as well have a seat,”
Ryder snarled.

I was standing in front of a man I didn’t know. When
he was lecturing on a mundane topic, he had never appeared as disengaged as he
was now. There was no trace of emotion or animation in the man before me.

“You rearranged the furniture. You changed around
the rooms. The dining room and living room have flipped. I’m anxious to see
what else you did.” I tried to keep my voice light and playful.

“I had some time on my hands. I changed the sleeping
arrangements. Sammy deserves the larger room so I swapped it with my own,” he
said.

“I guess I won’t be able to watch you sleep.” I
laughed.

My attempt at humor sank like an anchor.

“Yeah.
That is a little creepy.”

“I didn’t come here to discuss your house. You know
by now that we have an enormous problem to deal with.”

“I know, Jenna.
Whatever
we had turned into a huge pile of shit.
Our problems have to
be handled
separately, because they’re
very different.
I
’m out of a goddamn job. I have a
mortgage, child support, and health insurance to consider. You are on easy
street. You are a childless student with a mom to pick you up when you fall.
They will conduct a full investigation and find out we had more than a
golf-instructor-slash-student relationship. I have heard of men getting into
trouble by following their dick and I cannot believe I fell into that fucking
trap myself,” Ryder said. He grabbed a Hilton Head sweatshirt and threw it on.

I didn’t know where to start.

“Whatever we had?”
My
voice
was raised. “We did not merely share a night in the sack. We laid it on the
line to be with one another.
Don’t
fucking patronize
me, Ryder, as if I’m a clueless schoolgirl without a care in the world. My
mother is just scraping by herself. College was my ticket out of a life teetering
on the poverty line.
I
have loans to pay for college,
which come due when I’m thrown out. I’m not going to be in a financial position
to go to another school, but that won’t be an issue. No college will accept me
after my suspension. You can sell some of your fancy gadgets and get a few
extra bucks.” I stopped to take a breath.

“Electronics don’t have much resale value. Everyone
wants the latest and greatest technology.”

I was pacing. I got confused about the new furniture
layout. I thought I was going to hit a couch and I ended up crashing to the
floor. Ryder extended his hand to lift me from the ground. The feel of his skin
on mine was electric and I knew he felt it too. He quickly pulled back once he
had me safe on my feet. It was as though his hand had touched a hot iron.

“Thanks.”

Ryder nodded his head.

“So, do we stick with the golf instructor tale? We
have to get our stories straight. I don’t know why, but Dean Meadows wants to
take us down. He seems to think that having us kicked out will be a slam dunk.”

“I don’t mean to patronize you, but you have no idea
about university politics. People like Meadows don’t like men like me. He
worked hard for his position and he assumes I took some sort of short cut. I
work my ass off. I happen to come across as laid back and he sees me as a lazy,
good-looking guy,” Ryder said.

“It sounds as if you’re just giving up.” I felt
deflated. “Wow, I guess I thought we meant more to each other.”

“I let my priorities get mixed up. I slacked on
things in life that matter like work, my golf game and Sammy.”

“I’m not letting you get away with that, Ryder. If
anything, I helped with each one of those things. I was an excuse to get you on
the golf course and you worked on your game. I made work a thing you looked
forward to. Our secret flirtation during class was fun and harmless. As far as
your son goes, Sammy had a great time with us last weekend and I think he
accepted me well. It was a little odd with Sally, but understandable. You were
more disturbed by her than I was.”

“Yeah, but have you forgotten that, during all of
this, I have been battling cancer. It weighs on my mind now and again.”

“Ryder, I think about your health every day. I don’t
bring it up because you like to keep that portion of your life a secret. You
kept it from me for a long time.”

“I did, until you decided to snoop around my
bathroom and read the labels on my pill bottles.”

Ryder was lashing out. His guns were blazing and I
was his target. I would have to suspend my sensitivity and let him rant. Some
people reacted that way when they were scared. I folded my hands and placed
them in my lap. I prepared for his continued barrage.

“I’m not trying to hurt you Jenna and while we’re on
the subject of cancer, I had a scan and some blood work done several days ago.
I have an appointment next week with my oncologist. It is my 6-month look-see.
If all goes well,
I
’m out of South Carolina. I’m going
to sell this place and move to North Carolina.”

“What about Sammy?” I asked.

“I will remain close enough to see him every-other
weekend. It won’t change things much.”

I hesitated but I opened my mouth. “What about us?”

“I’m moving to another state, not another planet. I
will come back to Pelican Island on occasion. It isn’t as though we’re never
going to see one another. I think we need some time to get both of our lives on
track. You and I gave this thing a try, and look where we ended up. We are up
the creek in a kayak without a paddle.”

“Well, we were caught in a storm in one and we made
it out together—remember?”

“Of course, I remember. Those were good times. Don’t
get all sentimental on me.” Ryder looked at me, as if I was a pathetic child.

“Oh my god.
You are being an asshole! We have been acting as a couple. I did not make up
the intimacy we shared.”

I stood up and got ready to storm out.
I
would’ve been upset, but I was too mad to let in those
feelings. I looked down and remembered that I had no shoes on.

“If your feet are cold Jenna, I can give you a pair
of socks.” Ryder looked down.

“No. I’m footloose and fancy-free—remember? Just
tell me if you’re breaking up with me?”

Ryder started to laugh.

“I haven’t had a girl ask me that since I was a kid.
Oh, sorry, you’re a kid.”

“Fuck you, Ryder. I guess I will play the goddamn
golf tournament without you this weekend. Have a nice life.”

We had signed up for a golf tournament together. I
couldn’t believe I was going to play the stupid sport without him.

I pounded my feet as I walked out of Ryder’s house.
It was presumably the last time I would be in the place. I slammed the door on
the way out, which made Potato howl next door.

Chapter
Four

I slept well, as my run in with Ryder proved
exhausting. I felt that I stood up well to his ridiculous behavior. Hopefully,
he would sleep on his decision to move without putting up some sort of fight.
Moving would cost a ton of money, which he would be short on with no job. If he
followed through with trying to salvage his reputation, he had the chance of
getting a severance package from the university.

I looked at the clubs propped up against my wall. I
intended to play the tournament at Magnolia with or without Ryder. The entry
fee was already paid. First, I needed breakfast, I was sure my mother and
Claude would be anxious to hear about my evening. I risked hearing about their
night, but I decided to take my chances.

****

“Good morning, guys. Can I join you for breakfast,
or is this a private party?” I asked.

I was wearing my South Carolina sweats, showing I
had not given up the fight.

“Don’t be silly. Grab a cup of coffee. Better yet,
grab a seat and let Claude grab you some.”

Claude raced to the coffee maker faster than a
waitress in a crowded diner. My mom had trained him well.

“I’m glad I have a chance to talk with you, Jenna. I
got a call from the dean’s office today,”

“What did they want? Were they checking to make sure
I wasn’t hanging in my closet?” I laughed.

“Don’t be so dark, Jesus. We have a meeting tomorrow
at the dean’s office. It will be just you, the dean, and me. I said we would be
there, of course. Does it fit into your schedule?” my mother asked.

“I guess, but my only request is that you don’t
dress like a
hoochie
mama.”

“
Hoochie
mama?
Is that how you see me?” She threw her hand up on
her hip.

“I’m only asking that you dress conservatively,”
I
said. “Help me out here, Claude.”

I had stirred the pot in the Walsh household.

“You always look lovely sweetheart. Your daughter
only asks that you make an extra effort to tone things down a little. I know
that you recently bought some new clothes to compliment your new figure. Save
the
hoochie
outfits for me.”

I wanted to puke hearing his sweet talk, but
Claude’s comments were perfect to get her to dress like I wanted. I excused
myself before I said anything else offensive. I ran up to my room and changed
into a khaki
skort
and a black polo with neon pink
accents. I grabbed my Callaway golf clubs and headed to Pelican Island.

****

The parking lot at Magnolia Country club was full. I
had signed up for the best ball tournament with Ryder. I was hoping a last
minute change was acceptable because I was flying solo. Before I hopped out of my
car, I took a glance at my phone. I was still mad at Ryder but I found it
difficult to believe that it was over. He still hadn’t called.

I walked into the club foyer, which was painful,
because it reminded me of Ryder.