Ryder's Surrender (Hell Yeah!) Page 18

  Samson stepped between them, holding his hands up in a defensive posture. “Stop. Neither one of you are going anywhere. Let’s sit down and discuss this.” He grabbed his head, his fingers rifling through his hair. “I can’t believe I’m the only one who can see what’s going on!”

  When neither Gideon nor Ryder made a move, Samson sat first. “Please.”

  Ryder and Gideon cast one apprehensive glance at the other, then Ryder spoke up. “Samson, I’d like to speak to you privately.”

  “Yes, of course,” he agreed, but he looked pained, as if he didn’t want to delay the conversation at hand.

  When Gideon started for the door. “I’ll give you two the privacy you need.”

  “No!” Ryder moved to stop him. She grabbed his arm, let her hand slide down to clasp his. “Don’t go, I want to talk to you. Just wait one moment, that’s all I ask.”

  As he stared into her beseeching eyes, there was no way Gideon could tell her no. “I’ll be here.”

  To Gideon’s surprise, she hugged him again. He met his brother’s eyes over her shoulder – and seeing his encouraging look – this time he hugged her back.

  With a soft, quick kiss to his cheek, she went to Samson, who guided her out of the kitchen and down the hall. “Where do you want to go?” he asked.

  “Here is fine.” Ryder pulled him into the formal dining room. “What’s going on? I feel like I’m missing something.” She walked up to him, fully expecting his arms to open and hold her tight – they did. “Are you giving me the green light to ask Gideon if he wants to…?”

  “Yes,” Samson spoke unequivocally. “I’ll explain it more later, but Gideon overheard part of our conversation the day you came to say goodbye. What he heard convinced him that you wanted to be with me only. He backed off so we could be together, not because he didn’t want to be with you.”

  Ryder searched Samson’s face. “I’m scared, Samson.” She nestled against him. “But the one thing I do know, is that I want you and I want Gideon too. Like your mother tried to tell me, what I feel for your brother doesn’t lessen what I feel for you one iota, and what I feel for you, doesn’t change how I feel about him. I cherish you both. Equally, but differently.”

  “You are saying exactly what my mother always said, what my grandmother always told us. Love enough for three.” He kissed her on the forehead. “Go tell him. This is between the two of you.”

  “Shouldn’t you be there?” Ryder asked, not wanting to do anything that would cause either of her men a moment’s pain.

  Her men. The thought thrilled her.

  “No. Gideon knows how I feel, he’s always known. What needs to happen now, is for the two of you to find your footing. You are the heart of this relationship, Ryder. Go to Gideon and let him know how you feel. Show him how you feel.”

  “Do you mean…?”

  “Yes, last night was our first time, this will be your first time with Gideon.” Ryder shivered and he rubbed her arms, giving her the assurance she needed. “I’m going to give you the privacy you need and take care of some business. I’ll be back later tonight and we’ll all go out to dinner together.”

  “All right,” she agreed, raising her lips for his kiss. “I want this, I want you, and I want Gideon. Please don’t ever let me do anything to hurt you.”

  Samson framed her face. “The only way you could hurt me is if you would leave me.” He kissed her tenderly. “Please don’t ever leave me, Ryder.”

  “If I ever do, come look for me. I won’t have left you by choice,” she vowed.

  Samson gave her an encouraging smile and the nudge toward Gideon she needed. “I’ll always look for you, sweetheart – now go get your man.” As he sent her on her way, Samson felt the oddest thing – a chill swept over him, like a foreboding wind blowing through his soul.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Gideon waited, staring out the window. He’d almost left, but a promise to Ryder wasn’t something he could easily break. “Dammit!” he whispered, stuffing his trembling hands in the front pockets of his jeans. “What a big fuckin’ man-baby.” Gideon felt like he was waiting for the executioner. Why were they torturing him like this? Ryder hadn’t changed her mind; she wouldn’t turn her back on her family. Her father was too delicate for her to risk upsetting him and causing damage to his health.

  “Gideon?”

  Her soft voice caused ripples of awareness to cascade down his spine. “I’m still here.” He stepped into her line of vision. “Where’s Samson?” he asked, noticing she was alone.

  “He left, he wanted to give us time alone.” She approached him, almost shyly. “Could we talk?”

  Gideon nodded. “Sure.” Why this long, drawn-out goodbye? Didn’t she realize he was human, that he could be hurt? Despite his angst, Gideon couldn’t help but appreciate how lovely she looked, dressed in tight blue jeans and a red sweater that hugged her mouthwatering curves as tight as he’d like to hold them.

  Ryder cleared her throat, trying to garner her courage. This was so important. She hoped to high heaven she and Samson weren’t misreading the situation. All she needed to do was humiliate herself with Gideon. She wanted a future with him so badly she could taste it. “Could we go somewhere so the staff won’t hear our conversation?”

  Gideon wanted to ask her to his private suite, but that probably wouldn’t be wise. “Let’s go into the study.” He led the way, wondering what the next few minutes would bring.

  Ryder hugged herself, feeling more nervous than she had in a long time. He held the door open for her and she entered ahead of him, barely aware of the rich woodwork and fine leather furnishings. Since getting to know the brothers, their wealth played a much lesser role in comparison to the forcefulness of their personalities and her feelings for them as individuals. “Thank you for speaking to me.”

  “Here, sit.” He held out a chair, then went to sit on the desk, bowing his head. “God, baby, of course I would speak to you.” Gideon stopped, not knowing what else to say.

  Ryder sat on the edge of the chair, her hands clasped in her lap. “Let me try to explain what happened.” Seeing that he was waiting, she swallowed hard and continued. “The day of Dad’s episode, when you two left after your plant caught on fire, I went in to speak to him and he essentially told me that all of the family’s ups and downs had taken their toll. He told me I was his good girl, the only one he could count on not to break his heart.”

  Gideon could see what this was costing her, emotionally. “Look, Ryder, I understand.”

  “No, wait.” She held up her hand. “Let me finish.”

  God, this was killing him. She was looking at him with her heart in her eyes, but he didn’t know what she wanted from him. “Go on.”

  “I didn’t know what to do.” She pushed her hair behind one of her ears. “I panicked. That’s when I came here and told Samson I couldn’t be with the both of you.”

  “I know. I heard. You said you could love him, but you couldn’t be with us both.” Even as he repeated what he’d learned that day – his heart ached like a son-of-a-bitch.

  Ryder frowned. “You were listening? Why didn’t you come to me?”

  Gideon shook his head. “Why would I? You don’t feel about me the same way you feel about Samson. I didn’t want to interfere.”

  “Interfere? I told Samson I could love him and I could love you, that if I had my way I’d be with you both.” She was talking fast, trying to convey the turmoil she’d been dealing with. “I just didn’t know how to have it all – you, Samson, and my family.” Bowing her head, she thought about all that had happened. “You know Samson would have never come to me that night, knowing the impossible situation I was in…if you hadn’t told him you didn’t want me.”

  “Wait!” Gideon knelt in front of her. “Whoa!” He grabbed Ryder’s hands, which she was wringing in her lap. “The only reason I ever made Samson think I didn’t want to be in this relationship was because you said being with both of us was impossible, I heard
you say you could love Samson, and I knew without a doubt he wanted you.”

  “Oh, Gideon, in the next breath, I said I could love you too. I wasn’t choosing. The whole thing was breaking my heart because I wanted you both.”

  He cupped her cheek, understanding dawning in his stubborn, hard head. “And Samson, thinking I wanted out, saw an opportunity for the two of you to find some happiness.”

  “Yes.” She leaned into his touch. “But never for one moment did I forget you.”

  Hope was blooming in his heart. There was just one more question. “So, has anything changed? You’re with Samson, now. But you’re also sitting here with me. Why? If your family could never accept you being with both of us, why are you tempting me with something I still can’t have?”

  Ryder shook her head, a cascade of emotion making her shake. “Somehow, Heath and the others found out about yours and Samson’s…reputation. They confronted me, tried to perform some type of stupid intervention. I told them I hadn’t done what they accused me of, I’d never even been with a man at all at that point, Samson had been a total gentleman. I also told them they were right - if I could, I’d belong to the two of you in a heartbeat!” She gave him a wry smile. “Then, I promptly marched out and came straight here.”

  “You and Samson hadn’t…” God, he couldn’t even bring himself to say it.

  Ryder’s cheeks tinged pink. It was still hard of her to be so honest about things she considered intimate and private. But…if she was going to have two men, she needed to get over that apprehension. “Samson made love to me last night.” Lifting a hand to caress his scruff darkened cheek, she gave him a shy smile. “I’m tired of worrying about what my family thinks. I know what I want. I want you and Samson. Do you still want me?”

  Gideon felt a flash of exultation. Steel bands of despair broke their hold on him and he could finally draw a full breath of air into his lungs. “God, yes, I want you.” He stood to his feet, pulling her up with him. Drawing her into his arms, he covered her mouth with his and she flowered open, granting him access. They’d kissed before – but this was different, an undertone of certainty, of confidence in one another. Their tongues danced together and he could taste her surrender. There was no holding back, no hesitation. Ryder’s hands slid up his chest and around his neck, her fingers kneading his nape, moving up to weave through his long, dark hair.

  This was it as far as Gideon was concerned, he didn’t intend to back away again. He would ingratiate himself so deep into her life and thoughts that she wouldn’t be able to remember not having him around.

  Ryder clung to him, feasting at his mouth. This was what she needed, what she’d been missing – Gideon. She didn’t try to understand, didn’t try to justify what she felt. Having him in her arms and knowing Samson completed their trinity only brought her joy.

  Double the joy.

  “Take me to bed, Gideon,” she whispered as she slid her lips from his mouth to rub against his five o’clock shadow. “God, I love to touch you, you’re so sexy.”

  Chuckling, he slid an arm beneath her knees and picked her up, his lips only leaving hers for a moment. “I’m glad you think so. The feeling is more than mutual.” Gideon knew he wasn’t the eloquent one in the family. No matter, what he couldn’t tell her with words, he’d show her with actions – loving and worshiping her body with everything in him.

  As he carried her to his suite, she gazed up into his face. “I’m so glad you’re here. I was happy with Samson, but having you makes me complete.”

  “I know, baby.” He nuzzled her neck as he carried her into his haven. As they’d always dreamed, he and Samson would share the woman of their heart – but right now was his time, where he could cherish her in a private world for just the two of them, a domain where she would be his queen, the object of his desire.

  Entering his room, Gideon set her down, backing her toward the massive bed. All the while, his hands explored her body. As he’d remembered, her skin was silky smooth to the touch. “Sit here.” Gideon urged her down while he divested himself of his clothing, anxious to make her his.

  Ryder watched, enraptured. “You’re so beautiful.” Her dark prince. Broad of shoulder, narrow of waist – a chest rippling with muscles she planned on tracing with her tongue at the earliest opportunity. And when he removed his jeans and briefs, Ryder moaned and reached for him. “Closer.” Gone was the trepidation from the night before. Samson had introduced her to the ecstasy of lovemaking, now she wanted that same knowledge of this man who’d captured her heart as completely as his brother.

  Gideon moved closer, almost between her legs, offering all of himself. When her delicate fingers touched him, grazing his thigh, her lips pressing to the heated skin below his navel; he closed his eyes, immersed in the ecstasy of the moment. And when her small hand closed around him, he groaned in gratitude. “No more, witch. I don’t want this to be over so soon. I have to please you first.”

  “Awww,” she protested, as he came over her, his big body pushing her back on the mattress.

  Rolling to one side, he brought her on top of him. “You’ve got on way too many clothes, Princess.”

  His calling her by their special pet name was almost Ryder’s undoing. “Let me help.” She began fumbling with the zipper of her jeans while he worked on the buttons of her sweater. Soon she sat on top of him, clad only in a lacy bra and panties. He wanted to make her comfortable, so he began to pet her, with long, slow caresses. Ryder responded to his attention, luxuriating in his touch. She reminded Gideon of a kitten, purring when she was stroked.

  When she began arching her back, wordlessly offering her breasts to him, Gideon couldn’t resist. Using both hands, he hooked his fingers into the cups of her bra and pulled down. Her breasts popped out and Gideon growled, “Damn, Princess.”

  Sliding his hands around her waist and up her back, he pulled her toward him so that her tits dangled in his face. Giving her a dazzling smile, he rubbed his face against the quivering globes. “I’m going to enjoy you so much,” he murmured as he sucked one tender bud into his mouth. Ryder shuddered, kissing the top of his head while he fed on her breast. Seemingly, unable to be still, she undulated on top of him, scrubbing her feminine center against him.

  “Hungry, baby?” he asked her.

  “Uh-huh,” was all she could say. “I need you.”

  His cock ached, throbbing in anticipation of making her his. Knowing his control would be negligible, Gideon needed to please her first. “Lie down for me.” He helped her, reversing their position, lowering Ryder to the bed. Enjoying the view, he slipped off her panties, tossing them to one side. “You are so perfect,” he said, leaning forward to kiss the valley between her breasts, then moved lower, taking his sweet time to reach his ultimate goal. “I only got one small taste last time and I’ve dreamed of this moment ever since.” He couldn’t wait to learn the things that would bring her the most pleasure.

  “Me too,” confessed Ryder. “I’ve relived the kiss you gave me there, over and over.” She reached out and rubbed her hand on his chest. “You’ll never know how torn I’ve been, wanting you, fantasizing about you, even when I felt completely committed to Samson.” She chewed on her lower lip, feeling vulnerable, yet freer than she’d ever been. “You, Gideon Duke – all of this is the stuff of dreams.”

  Going to his knees by the bed, he eased her body into position. “Let me make your dreams come true.” Gideon brushed his mouth over her mound, inhaling the scent of her excitement. It aroused him beyond measure.

  Just his breath on her flesh caused frissons of anticipation to dance across her skin. Ryder whimpered as his mouth hovered over and teased her pussy. “Gideon, don’t make me wait. I’m dying here. Kiss me, please.”

  Feeling triumphant, Gideon lowered his mouth and kissed her soft center. When he felt her desire coat his tongue, he groaned. All his intentions to tease and prolong their play flew out the window. His own hunger spiked, he was starved for her. Parting the pretty
lips of her labia, he set out to seduce Ryder by learning and worshiping her pussy with his tongue.

  The sensation was so wonderful; she couldn’t be still. As he held her open, licking and feasting between her thighs, she moved restlessly beneath him. He placed a steadying hand on her abdomen, to keep her hips in place. Still, she tossed her head and clawed at the silky sheets.

  “Feel good, Princess?” he asked, realizing that pleasing her was a heady experience, surpassing his own quest for fulfillment. Sliding one hand beneath her bottom, he lifted her for a better angle. With long strokes of his tongue, he laved her slit, teasing the opening to her vagina, spearing deep, relishing Ryder’s taste. Her clit was swollen and peeking from its hood, he swirled his tongue around it, flicking and sucking – loving the way she keened and jerked rhythmically, seeking her own release.

  “So good…so good.” Her moan escalated, rising into a crescendo when he sucked her clit between his lips and curled two fingers deep inside her channel. “Gideon!” she exclaimed as her body tensed and her orgasm hit hard.

  “That’s my girl,” he praised her as he continued his onslaught, forcing her to squeeze every ounce of pleasure she could from her climax. When she finally stilled, her chest heaving, he kissed a path to the top of her mound and gave her a gentle nip. “Birth control?”

  “Taken care of, come to me.” Her eyes met his and she gave him a dazzling smile. “I am the luckiest woman in the world.”

  With a growl of possessive hunger, he stared down at her body. “You belong to me, Ryder. Don’t ever doubt it. She was glorious. No other woman he’d ever known even compared. “Scoot back a bit, make room for me.”

  Make room. Ryder eagerly moved up in the bed, her eyes eating up Gideon’s fine form. “There’s plenty of room,” she told him. And there was. In her heart. In her life. Room for Gideon. Room for Samson. Ryder felt rich beyond her wildest dreams – and it had nothing to do with the Duke’s wealth and everything to do with the Dukes themselves. “I’m ready,” she announced with a grin, spreading her legs invitingly.