Free Impacted (Conflicted Encounters #2) by Alyne Roberts

night. It reminded me of just last year, having our girl's night. Although we were both so different, she was always like a sister to me. We were too exhausted to fix the hideaway bed, so we both slept in my king sized bed. In the morning, we called and ordered room service for breakfast. After the coffee washed away night before, we set about getting ready.  
    I was just heading to get in the shower after Chloe got out and heard a knock. I came back out into the main room and saw Chloe, wrapped in her towel, in front of the open door. Ryder stood in the doorway with his hair wet and his arms resting on the door frame. His eyes locked on mine, and my step faltered from the surprise. I resisted the instinct to run to him and let him wrap me up in his arms.  
    "Why is she opening the door to just anyone?" he asked, annoyed.  
    "Chloe, this is Ryder," I introduced. "Ryder, this is Chloe, who was just going to go get dressed." I gave her a pointed glare.  
    "Oh, chill. He didn't even look at me." She dismissed me as she headed back into the bedroom.
    "What are you doing here?" I asked Ryder as I waved him into the room. I could smell his soap as he walked past me. I discreetly inhaled the familiar scent.
    "Scarlett called and said your car was at the bar and you weren't answering your phone," he explained.
    I quickly looked around the room and found my phone on the desk. I never plugged it in last night. "It's dead."
    "How did you get here?"
    "We walked. Were you worried?" I asked, tilting my head to look at him. He sure looked concerned to me.  
    He clenched his jaw, apparently unwilling to answer me. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay," he said gently.
    "Because you still care," I returned. It wasn't a question. I knew he did. I just didn't know what he would do about it.  
    Chloe came out of the bedroom, so Ryder didn't have a chance to disagree with me. She flopped on the couch and strapped on her sandals.  
    "I was going to go shower," I said, pointing in the direction of the bedroom. "Wanna wait?"
    "Sure," he said, staring at the door to the bedroom. I hoped he was thinking what I was. "You need a ride to your car?"
    "Or you could just take us to your place," Chloe offered with a devious smile. "We're going to the bonfire later, right? I’m assuming we won't be driving back here after."
    I knew where she was going with this. Wing-woman. I arched my eyebrow at him. "Sure," he nodded.  
    I left them alone and took a quick shower. I picked out a matching black and baby pink bra and lace panties. I wore jean capris with a pink, one-shoulder top. I packed a small bag in case I wanted to change and made sure to grab a hoodie for tonight. I let my hair air dry, applied some make up, and then grabbed a pair of white, low heels as I walked into the main room.  
    Chloe was typing away on her phone while Ryder leaned against the desk. His hair was dry now and stuck out in different directions. His toned arms were bare in his tight shirt, and I wanted to run my hands up them. I stood there, taking him in. He looked like he’d gotten bigger since I last saw him. Not gaining weight, just muscle.  
    "What do you want to do until Scar gets off?" he asked, smirking at me. He obviously caught me checking him out.  
    "Can we check out this diner that Kallie worked at?" Chloe asked quickly. "I have to see this uniform."
    He laughed. "Sure thing. Shall we ladies?" He smiled his breathtaking smile that did me in that first night at Hank's. He held out his elbow for Chloe, and she wrapped her arm through it. When I approached, I took his other arm and he escorted us down to his truck. He opened the door for us, and Chloe joked about how much of gentleman he was. It was clear he had already won her over. A BFF's opinion always matters about a guy.  
    I rode between them on the half an hour drive back into the small town. My skin tingled where Ryder was almost touching. I fiddled with my bracelets to keep from touching him. I