CHAPTER FIVE

PAIGE

“I come bearing gifts…”

The doorbell rings and Gage yells that he's got it. Smoothing sweaty palms down my pants, I take a deep breath.

It's just dinner.

He's just a man.

There's nothing to be nervous about.

Ryan and Gage enter the kitchen/dining room combo.

“Hey guys, I hope you like lemon herb chicken and pasta.” Ryan holds up the grocery bag in his hand. Boxes of ingredients and fresh greens stick out the top of the paper bag.

“Are you sure you want to cook for us? You don't have to.” When Gage proposed inviting his coach to dinner, I hadn’t expected Ryan to accept the invitation on the condition that he makes the meal.

He refused to let me dissuade him, and since no one’s ever cooked for me outside of my parents, I didn’t fight too hard to change his mind.

However, good manners are too ingrained in me to not offer one last out before letting him take over the kitchen.

“I'm positive. You do enough already with working a full-time job during the day, taking care of the boys, and organizing the team banquet. The least I can do is provide dinner. Besides, I'll have help from my sous chefs.” His gaze bounces between Levi and Gage.

“Us?” Skepticism drips from Levi’s tone.

“Don't worry, bro, we got this.” Gage offers his fist for a bump with his little brother, and Levi hesitantly reciprocates.

“Why don't you go relax in front of the TV, take a quick nap, whatever you want to do, and we'll call you when the food is ready?” The groceries are set on the kitchen counter before Ryan carefully herds me toward the exit.

“Okay, okay. I get it. No need to guide me out of my own kitchen.” I lightly swat his hand away with a grin, a feeling of freedom adding buoyancy to my steps.

I like the feeling of being taken care of.

A lot.

Forty-five minutes later, food is on the table as the four of us take our seats, and there’s even a centerpiece of fresh flowers to complete the cozy, familial setting.

“This looks delicious,” I say, studying the pretty mix of yellow lemon slices and green herbs decorating the chicken and pasta. A delicious aroma perfumes the air, prompting my stomach to growl. “You guys did a great job.”

A round of thanks goes up as everyone digs in.

Well, almost everyone.

Ryan clears his throat, his fork still resting beside his plate. “I’ve got some exciting news.” Gage, Levi, and I pause a moment before resuming to eat, waiting for his announcement.

“After speaking with Mr. Littleton at the high school, who then directed me to the superintendent, an endowment for the school district has been accepted. The money will cover athletic and academic team costs, which means you,” he points at me, “don’t have to worry about fundraising anymore.”

“Seriously? How did this happen? Where’d the endowment come from?” A million questions flit through my mind.

Did Ryan do this for me? He told me he’d handle the fundraising issue, but I didn’t expect this. I thought he might recruit more parents to help, not personally fund something for the entire district.

You don’t know that it’s his money.

“The Foster heirs decided it was a worthy cause to support, so it’s sponsored by all of us: Addie, Derek, Hope, Brooke, and myself.”

While my head and heart swirl with gratitude and something more for Ryan, the boys pepper him with questions about the other heirs, curious about the newcomers to our town. Everyone knows the general story behind their inheritance, but they remain a mystery while living on Serenity Ranch.

After dinner, my brothers volunteer to clean up, leaving Ryan and I to chat on the back porch in the cool quiet evening. I should ask him more about the endowment, but the moment we’re alone, his gaze darts to the door before pulling me into his arms for a kiss.

This one is slower, deeper than our first impromptu one, but it's no less exciting.

“I couldn’t wait any longer. I’ve been wanting to kiss you since I got here, but with your brothers around as chaperones, there hasn’t been a moment to get you alone until now.”

A hot blush scorches my cheeks. I’ve never inspired unadulterated passion in someone, and to do so in a handsome man like Ryan is butterfly-inducing.

“I appreciate you waiting,” I murmur.

My brothers aren’t used to having men around the house. I don’t really have time to date, but even if I did, there would be a long test period before introducing Gage and Levi to someone.

It’s sort of a gray area having Gage and Levi already familiar with Ryan.

“Hey, are we watching this or not?” Levi shouts from inside, referencing the movie he insisted we had to watch after Ryan admitted to never having seen it.

Rolling my eyes at the untimely interruption, I shout back that we’re coming, both of us sharing a secret smile, before heading inside.

***

“Knock, knock.” Ryan stands in the doorway of my classroom with two cups in his hands. It’s the middle of the week, and we haven’t seen each other since he cooked my family dinner. “I come bearing gifts—the hot chocolate I owe you for winning our game of HORSE on ice.”

He boots the door closed with his toe, and a wave of anticipation travels down my spine.

Get a grip, girl.

I’m at work in an elementary school, but the kids are gone along with most of the staff. School dismissed two hours ago, and if it weren’t for parent-teacher conferences coming up, I’d already be home, too.

So, Ryan and I are technically alone.

For the first time since our rushed kisses.

“Perfect timing,” I say, sipping at the sweet brew he offered with a slight dip of his head. “I could use a pick-me-up after dealing with all this.” My hand sweeps across the desk to encompass the stacks of folders for each student, and the evaluations I’ve been filling out with topics to discuss with parents.

“Happy to be of service.” He winks. Honest-to-god winks, and it’s sexy as heck. Hell. Sometimes it’s hard to break out of my second-grade teacher filter.

Ryan rests his thigh on the edge of my desk as I lean back in my chair and face him. He’s decked out in Guardian Valley athletic gear today, and it looks damn good on him.

There’s the gray GVHS Mustang ball cap covering his head and a lanyard hanging around his neck with our mascot galloping over the thin fabric straight to his school ID. A navy polo skims over his muscular chest and shoulders, and an embroidered school logo with ‘Head Coach’ in white block letters decorates his left pec.

My appreciative gaze rises up to meet his amused one, and I flush at being caught checking him out. Flustered, I fiddle with the papers on my desk and skip to a safe topic that doesn’t involve Ryan, me, and exploring his firm body in the middle of my second-grade classroom.

“No practice today?” I ask, despite knowing the answer. Every week, the boys get a break from constant after school practices and games to enjoy a free afternoon. Gage is spending his time at a friend’s house playing the latest car chase game—at least, that’s what his last text said they were doing.

“Nope.” He slides closer, his hand landing on mine to stop my fidgeting with a folder. “Gage let me know that you were still here when I texted him. Pretty sure he’s aware of my interest in his sister.”

My head snaps up. “Did he say something?”

“Nah… But I don’t make it a habit to message my players about their parental guardians’ whereabouts. Plus, I’m pretty sure he caught us kissing after dinner the other night. I saw a glimpse of his quickly ducked head when we went inside.”

“Crap!” Gage hasn’t said anything to me. Does that mean he doesn’t care if Ryan and I start seeing each other more seriously? “I should talk to him.”

“Or I can, but trust me, it'll be fine. We’re not doing anything wrong.” Ryan pulls me out of my chair and into his broad chest, surrounding me in his protective warmth. “He’s a sixteen-year-old boy. I’m sure the last thing he wants to hear about is his big sister’s love life. I know Brooke never cared to know the details about mine.”

I forgot for a second that he also has a younger sibling. Based on what I learned during my brothers’ dinner inquisition, he has experience raising a sibling, too.

“You were a professional hockey player who had women throwing themselves at you for years. I can understand your sister’s reluctance to learn of each escapade,” I tease, although my gut clenches at the realization that the guess probably isn’t far from reality.

Even in Guardian Valley, Ryan Stanley is a hot commodity. Most of the teachers like to gossip about him and flirt any chance they get. And the women in town are just as bad, hovering around him, waiting to be plucked from singlehood by one of the most eligible bachelors around.

“Don’t be jealous, sweetheart.” A smug grin tugs at his cheeks, his perpetual five o’clock shadow darkening his sharp jawline. “Any escapade I ever had has been eclipsed by a certain schoolteacher who’s got a mean slapshot.”

“I’m not jealous,” I lie, although his praise somewhat appeases the green-eyed monster that popped up at the mention of other women. “The point is Gage isn’t used to me dating, if that’s what two kisses, dinner, and hot chocolates equate to.”

Because it’s not like we’ve had a DTR conversation yet. Things between us are still new.

“Oh, we’re dating. Exclusively.”

A knot ties itself around my heart and squeezes tight.

“Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of dating? Rotating between different people to find the right match?” I ask out of curiosity.

Not that there’s anyone else I’m remotely interested in, but I can’t let his possessive ‘exclusive’ declaration go completely unchallenged.

Even if the growled promise caused a rush of arousal to soak my panties.

Ryan’s large palms slide beneath my legs and heft me high enough to sit on the desk, flipping us around, so I’m caged between him and the wooden furniture.

Holy hotness!

I glance toward the closed classroom door, a brief thought about being caught in a compromising position crossing my mind, but it’s swiftly dismissed in favor of enjoying being manhandled by Ryan.

Because I’m a sturdy woman, and he just hoisted me in the air like a freaking featherlight baton.

Fucking, Miss Second-Grade Teacher filter.

Fucking… I like the sound of that.