Page 10 of Ryder

Me:Fine, but you better be paying.

Tossing my phone back onto the table, I didn’t bother to wait for a response. I did appreciate Allison’s thoughtfulness when trying to set me up, but I just wasn’t interested in dating.

Wind rushes upon me, causing my already unruly hair to fly around my face.

By the time Friday rolled around, I had mentally prepared myself to take the boys to the track. Rev Speedway was having a big weekend celebration for the new racing team Ryder was part of. From the moment I stepped foot in the house Friday morning, it was all the boys could talk about. They barelymanaged to get through their school day, but now that the evening was here, it made my heart swell with pure joy as their faces lit up. These boys had been through more pain and hardships in their young lives than most adults could ever fathom.

Allison and I busied ourselves, making and serving dinner until it was time for us to drive them to the Speedway in Fontana.

Piling the boys into our vehicles, we made the journey to the southside of town. We drove along the coast. The pristine view of the breathtaking ocean seemed to calm all of the boys down.

As we pulled into the parking lot, the first thing that I noticed was the massive crowds of people walking through the lot. Seeing this, I became nervous.

It was just Allison and me to watch five excited boys. I began giving them the rundown of rules, which they had already heard before we had left the house. They knew to stay together and always have eyes on myself or Allison.

Once everyone was out of the car, Allison and I began leading the boys to the speedway track. Jenna had told me we had a VIP section for us and to look for Travis. I kept my eyes open, looking everywhere for someone that I knew. The sun was starting to set in the sky, but the heat was still very much awake.

“Hey, there’s Travis and the MA Enterprises tent,” Allison shouted to me, pointing to my right.

As I looked over, I spotted the large tent and Travis. The boys almost ran the rest of the way, their excitement hard to contain.

All I could do was laugh. This was better than Christmas or their birthdays.

Travis spotted us and waved, greeting the boys with high-fives and big smiles.

“Hey, I’m so glad that you all were able to make it,” Travis beamed.

Allison and I joined everyone in the tent. People were rushing around and talking so fast. I could barely understand what was going on. Engines were revving, music was blaring, and loud voices carried around us.

“Where is Ryder?” Christian asked Travis, his eagerness on full display.

Before Travis could respond, I felt a pair of eyes burning through me. Turning to my right, a flash of black hair caught my attention. Spinning on my heel, I locked eyes with Ryder, who was watching me with a dark gaze. Scowling, he never looked away as a group of guys talked with him.

“Wow, what kind of a bike is that?” I heard Christian whistler, as he too noticed Ryder.

Travis leaned down with a wide grin and answered. “That is a KTM 450 Tracker. That kind of a bike is specifically built for racers like Ryder. Even that custom sky blue was used to match his eyes.”

I almost rolled my eyes. Ryder was like a god to these people, and I knew he was eating up all of the attention.

“What are you looking at?” Allison asked me, her tone already telling me she answered her own question.

“Why does he look at me like he despises me?” I asked, giving Ryder my own death glare back.

“Girl, that is definitely not a look of hatred. He is fucking you with his eyes,” Allison whispered into my ear.

Eyes widening, my mouth fell open as I removed my eyes from Ryder and looked at my clearly delusional friend. “Allison, you have seriously lost your mind,” I laughed.

Shaking her head, she just walked away and joined the boys who were now watching another racer get ready for a test lap. They were cheering wildly as the driver put on a show of revving his engine and doing some fancy tricks as he sped past us.

Once the announcements were made to begin the event, everyone who wasn’t racing scattered off the track. Girls in skimpy bikini tops and tight shorts made their way to the starting line. Guys around us whooped and hollered, and our young boys joined in on the fun.

As a few of the racers made their performances, Ryder sauntered over to our area. I made it my mission to ignore him.

“Look, Ryder is coming over here,” Isaac said, trying to stay cool and calm.

I held in my laughter as I watched him try to pretend like he was super cool and not trembling with excitement.

“Hey boys, are you all having fun?” Ryder asked, slapping their hands in high fives.

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