Page 19 of Fame And Secrets
I paced the room. What the hell had I gotten myself into moving here? Of course, I wanted to be with Julian. But he’d mostly be gone until after the baby came. And even then, it’d be hit or miss when his schedule allowed him to be a present and active father. Having him on the road would only…
A flash of movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention.
What the hell?
Walking to the bay window, I scanned the street. Dusk illuminated everything with a hazy yellow hue. The outside world stood quiet—not even a bird sang. Giving one last look through the window, I shook my head at my own paranoia and walked toward the kitchen.
“Damn it, Ryker, where the hell are you calling, Oregon?” As I entered the kitchen, a shadow passed in front of the window. I paused, blinking a few times, and narrowed my eyes at the window again.
Nothing.
Jesus. This pregnancy would be the death of me.
***
Rolling onto my back, I counted the swirls in the paint on the ceiling. Quietness surrounded me. Even the constant hum of the football game downstairs had silenced. Ryker must’ve fallen asleep. The battle of wills we engaged in earlier ran through my mind and infuriated me.
Ryker dropped the phone to his shoulder and stared at me with the familiar mix of suspicion and intrigue. Running my hand through my hair, I rested my hands on what was left of my hips.
“What’s the hold up?”
He let out a long sigh and jerked the phone away from his ear. “Stupid delivery driver is backed up. It’ll be two hours before the pizza gets here.” He winced and shrugged. “Sorry.”
It couldn’t be this easy. I hesitated, because opportunities this easy usually blew up in my face. “So go get it.” I attempted to sound indifferent.
He laughed, and I wanted to punch him. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious, Ry. I’ll be fine.” His stomach gave a loud rumble, and I knew I had him. “You want to wait two hours to eat?”
“I don’t know, Pheebs. Can I seriously trust you to stay here and not answer the phone or door?”
Rolling my eyes, I stalked over to him. With a quick flick of my wrist, I grabbed the cell phone out of his hand and brought it up to my ear. “Is this Heights Pizza Palace? Hi, the order for Ryan? Yeah, don’t worry about delivery, we’ll pick it up.” I listened and shot an accusing glare at Ryker. “Yes, I know what he told you, but I’m fairly confident the house won’t blow up in the time he’ll be gone.”
Julian had better cover his nuts when he opened the door, because I’d have my stun gun aimed at his sack for this. Scowling, I hit the disconnect button in an exaggerated show of independence.
Anger radiated off Ryker. “I swear, woman, you make my life hell.”
“Good, because I live to make your life hell, Ry.” Taking a deep breath, I pressed the phone into his hand. “Look, you’re obviously tired. Did you sleep at all on that last press tour?”
“I don’t get paid to sleep.”
“I know, but if you don’t take a breather, you’re not going to be any good here, are you?” I was reaching, but at this point, I’d try anything short of crushing Ambien in his drink to distract him.
“You promise you’ll stay here? Here, Pheebs, inside the house. I know I have to spell it out, so there’ll be no misunderstanding.”
“Yes, Ry. I’ll keep all doors locked and all blinds pulled. It won’t kill me to be here alone for an hour.” He winced. “Okay, wrong choice of words. It isn’t going to harm me to be alone for an hour.”
He stared hesitantly at the door, then scooped the keys out of his pocket and stalked toward it. Jerking the handle back, he tilted his slightly bearded chin over his shoulder. “Don’t make me regret this. I can’t break my word to my brother.”
With a nod, I wrapped my arms around my chest, momentarily distracted by the tapping of what I assumed to be a foot against my forearm. “I won’t. I may be a pain in the ass, but we’re going to be family soon, Ry. I care about you.”
Redness rushed to the base of his neck. He jerked the door open with harsh force, his voice wafting back as he closed it. “You’re a pain in the ass, but you’re all right too.”
I blinked up at the ceiling of my bedroom and shook remnants of the earlier memory away, refusing to feel guilty about what I was about to do.
Guilt was a time-wasting emotion. I finally had my chance, and I couldn’t waste another minute making sure Ryker had fallen into deep REM sleep. Stealing the keys to the Infiniti seemed like a risky move, but I had no choice. Griffith Park was at least twenty-five minutes away, and Julian would be back soon. After that, I’d be under lock and key until both wardens had better things to do.
A few swings of momentum finally had me hoisted off the mattress and on my feet. Walking down the stairs, a surge of cold air suddenly blasted my face, and I rubbed my palms over my goose bumped skin.