Page 56 of Wicked Minds
I’m on top of the world as Royce drives us down the dark country roads, knowing Riley is here. That she trusted us enough to leave with us. It feels like a huge reward after the work I’ve put in this week to not completely lose her. I’ve been an emotional mess, straddling the line between getting her to lower her walls and not wanting to barge all the way in and demand anything. I’m a hockey player, for god’s sake. I’m used to slamming my way in there and taking what I want, but that approach won’t work with Riley.
Hearing how I shattered her trust not once but twice flayed me open. It was the slap across the face that I needed. That I deserved. Seeing the hurt in her eyes… I never want to fucking see that again. Never want to be the cause of her pain.
Seeing her at The Depot tonight… was like seeing a mirage after days lost in the desert. For a moment, I thought my brain had conjured her after constantly obsessing about her for weeks.
It doesn’t matter that she was there for Royce. The fact she was there at all gives me hope. Hope that all is not lost. That if she is opening herself up to my best friend then one day she might be willing to do the same with me.
“Where are we going?” Riley asks.
Leaning forward between the two front seats, I suggest, “I could go for a milkshake and fries,” not yet ready to take her home and say our goodbyes.
All I get with her these days are tiny pockets of moments together. Guarded ones, at that. But tonight, there’s a carefree air about her that I haven’t seen all week. She always seems on edge at lunch, despite me trying to take it slow.
“Of course, you could,” Royce grumbles as he reaches the T-junction, but I smirk when he puts his blinker on in the direction of our favorite fast food joint when we’re at The Depot. “There’s an all-night diner not far from here,” he says to Riley, tone sweeter than one he’s ever used with me.
“They do the best milkshakes,” I inform her.
She turns in her seat to look at me, grinning. “Perfect.”
A few minutes later, Royce pulls off the road onto a gravel parking lot, his headlights lighting up the small, fifties-retro diner. The vibrant cherry red and creamy white exterior has faded with age, the curvy letters displaying Leon’s Diner on the glass of the door peeling off. However, the interior lights cast a warm and inviting glow at this late hour.
Climbing out of the car, the parking lot is empty as I move to hold Riley’s door open for her and hold out a hand to help her as she jumps down. Royce rolls his eyes at me, and when Riley’s back is turned I give him the middle finger. Fucker just laughs, and Riley glances between us, confused about what she missed.
“Come on, Shortcake. Milkshakes wait for no man.” I usher her up the steps behind Royce. The door creaks on its hinges, acting as a replacement bell since the original hangs listlessly above. The musty scent of old grease brings back good memories of many a night here, myself, Royce, and Grayson sucking down some surprisingly good burgers and fries while Royce rode the high of his latest win and the three of us forgot about our real-world problems for a bit.
An older woman behind the counter gives us a weary glance. Her customer service smile is notably absent as she waits to see if we’ll take a seat at the counter or one of the empty booths. I nod at her in greeting before placing a hand at the base of Riley’s spine and directing her ahead of me down the narrow aisle between booths.
Royce slides into an end one, the vinyl upholstery creaking beneath his weight, and before Riley can slip in beside him, I push her toward the seat opposite and shimmy in beside her, smirking as she shakes her head at my antics.
Royce scowls, but I ignore the bastard as I drop my arm across the back of the booth behind my girl, my fingers picking up a strand of her hair and absently playing with it while I watch her peruse the extensive menu.
What? If I’m getting extra time with her, then you can bet your ass I’m going to hog every second of it. If Royce is alreadykissingher—plus whatever he was doing in the locker room that had her moaning his name for the entire warehouse to hear—then I obviously need these extra moments more than he does.
“What can I get ya’s?” the woman from behind the counter asks, approaching our table several minutes later.
“Burger, fries, and a chocolate milkshake for me,” I say with a disarming smile.
“Same for me,” Royce puts in his order, his smile non-existent as he hands over his menu.
“I’ll take a plate of fries and a strawberry milkshake, please,” Riley says sweetly, passing over her menu too. The woman jots down our orders before leaving. Alone, every single question I’ve astutely held back since Christmas Day sits like an anvil on the tip of my tongue, ready to spill, but now that we’re away from The Depot, she has tensed up, her fingers fidgeting with the napkin holder and her gaze on the chipped tabletop.
“So, what did you think of Royce’s fight?” I find myself asking instead.
Her shoulders relax marginally, and she leans back against the booth as she lifts her head, looking at me before focusing on Royce.
“It wasn’t actually my first time seeing him fight.”
“It wasn’t?” I ask, surprised.
She shakes her head, a secretive smile playing along her lips now. “Nope. Last time, Royce accused me of stalking him and told me to get on my knees since I must be so desperate to know the taste of his cum to follow him out here.”
I choke on my spit and Royce actuallylaughs. A full-belly one that I don’t think I’ve ever heard before. Smirking like a cocky asshole, he leans forward, eyes only for Riley. “If I remember correctly, James. I made you eat your words from that night.”
Her cheeks turn a deep shade of red, but she doesn’t lower her gaze from his as my dick twitches at the reminder of her on her knees, Royce’s cock shoved deep in her mouth. The way she flushed beneath Royce’s searing gaze is somehow even hotter than the act itself.
A silent spectator, I watch with a mix of curiosity and surprise as the two of them share a moment charged with electricity. I have no idea what exactly happened between them on Christmas Day, but clearly, things have changed. The way Royce is looking at her right now… I’ve never seen him look atanygirl like that. He’s barely given a girl a second glance as long as I’ve known him, yet here he is, looking at Riley like…
Fuck…
