“Likewise.”

He looked over at Ryder. “It was a pleasure.”

Ryder sucked in his jaw and nodded but didn’t say anything as Christian exited the house.

God, why had I invited Christian in? I never would have chosen to hurt Ryder like this.

I turned toward him. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

“I wanted to surprise you. Unfortunately, I was the one who got the surprise.”

I knew if there was ever a time to put aside my pride, it was now. This man had come all the way from California to surprise me, only to find me having coffee with another guy. Even if it meant nothing, he had every right to be upset.

I placed my hands around his face. “Listen to me. I know what that looked like. But there was absolutely nothing happening there. You have to trust me. I’ve spent this entire week miserable, missing you like crazy. Then, when Ollie said he hadn’t heard back from you today like he normally does… I’m not gonna lie—I got a little paranoid. Now I know it’s because you were on a plane. I am so fucking crazy about you, Ryder.”

He stared into my eyes for a long time. I hoped he could see the truth pouring out of them.

His shoulders relaxed. “I felt like I’d been going crazy as it was, and then to see you with him. I just…”

I ran my fingers through his hair, and he closed his eyes. “I would’ve felt the same if I’d traveled all that way only to walk in on you having coffee with a woman. I get it. But that doesn’t change the fact that what you saw was meaningless.”

“I overreacted, but the truth is—this is the kind of shit that will happen when I’m not around. There will always be some other guy trying to nab you. You’re such a fucking catch, Eden. I don’t think you realize it, because you’re humble.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh yeah…with my baggage and my crazy-ass job? I’m such a catch.”

“Your brother isn’t baggage. He’s the fucking bomb. And your job is how I met you, so as much as I hate it sometimes, I’m damn thankful for it. You’re beautiful and smart. And that guy was making a play for you, whether you realize it or not. I can’t fucking blame him, but I still want to kill him.”

I lifted my brow. “Boyfriend, huh?”

“I know we haven’t really talked about that, but I wasn’t about to lose an opportunity to stake my claim.” He looked over at my kitchen clock. “You’re late for work.”

“I can’t work with you here.”

“Yes, you can. And you will. I want to watch you.”

That took me by surprise. “What? I thought it bothered you.”

His voice was gruff. “It does…but I want to watch anyway.”

“After what you’ve told me about how you feel about my job, how could you want to witness…everything?”

“Morbid curiosity?” He tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “I want to see it all, no holds barred. I want to watch you get ready. And then I want to watch your show, every second of it.”

Even though it was against my better judgment, I wasn’t going to deny him anything tonight.

“Okay,” I said.

The tension in the air was thick as Ryder followed me into my bedroom. I could feel the heat emanating from his body, and the hairs on my back stiffened. His cologne wafted in the air, his smell alone turning me on. I didn’t want to work tonight. I wanted to just lie in bed with him.

He sat in the chair in the corner of my room. Even though he looked exhausted from his flight, he was still sexy as all hell as he leaned back and stared over at me. His hair was perfectly tousled, and he wore a collared shirt. He was dressed exactly the way I imagined he did when he wheeled and dealed in Hollywood. Fuck hot. He must have hopped on the plane straight from work.

A few buttons were opened at the top of his shirt, and his sleeves were rolled up. The watch he was wearing had to have cost thousands.

He relaxed farther into the chair. “Show me everything. Tell me what you do to get ready.”

His sexy glare made me a little nervous and turned me on at the same time.

“First, I take off all of my clothes, and I change into a fresh thong.” I took a pile of panties out of my drawer and placed them on his lap. “Do you have a preference?”

He ran his fingers along them and wrapped a royal blue lace one around his hand. “This one. Definitely.”

His eyes followed as I removed my cotton panties and tossed them aside before sliding the thong up my legs and over my crotch.

He swallowed as I lifted my shirt over my head and unsnapped my bra. Ryder’s breathing quickened. He licked his lips as my breasts sprang free.