Do Me Right (De Toi à Moi #1)

Thirty Two

I decided not to let the fact Ryder saw Ellie bother me too much. They were ex-lovers, maybe they still had some unfinished business to take care of. Or maybe Ryder just wanted to know why she was here. Either way, it shouldn’t matter. Ryder had told me she was a part of his past and I believed him. So I wasn’t gonna ask him about it.

I wasn’t gonna let it ruin my birthday.

So after having a quick lunch with Carrie, I went into the office. I knew Ryder had told me I could take the whole day off, but I felt bad. He had a ton of work to do and if he had to do my job on top of that as well, he would be way too stressed.

“Miss Ryan,” the receptionist said when she saw me walk into the building. She got up from her chair and stared at me. “Mr. Jackson told me you wouldn’t be in today.” I licked my lips. He’d told people I wouldn’t come in? What about not causing any more suspicion about our relationship? “He told me you called him to let him know you weren’t feeling well.”

“Oh I know. But I’m feeling much better and I have a lot of work to do.”

She accepted my answer. “Before you go up though, Miss Ryan, we have another delivery for you.”

Oh God not again.

“Alright.” Smiling, I walked over to the reception desk and accepted the envelope.

“I think you might have a secret admirer,” she giggled when I took it from her. “Enjoy the rest of your day!”

“You too!” I called back as I headed for the elevators. I scanned my badge which would give me access to the private elevators. While I waited for it come down, I stared at the envelope. I was scared to open it and read the message inside. I should’ve called Wayne again to let him know to stop this, but on the other hand, maybe that was exactly what he wanted. Maybe if I just ignored it, he would stop.

Sighing, I stepped into the car and pressed the button to the fifteenth floor. I thought about throwing the envelope in the trash without opening it, but at the same time, I was curious about what was inside. So I ripped it open and pulled out the piece of paper. The note was once again typed out.

There’s more to him. He’s not who you think he is.

I frowned at the note as I read it again. This couldn’t have been sent by Wayne. He didn’t even know Ryder outside of their business relationship. “What?” I said as I let my eyes wash over the letters one last time.

When the elevator dinged and the doors opened, I wanted to step out, but Ryder was in the way. Frowning, he looked at me. “What are you doing here?” he asked. “What’s that?” He stared down at the note and envelope in my hands.

“I, uh, nothing.” I quickly stuffed both in my bag and cleared my throat. “I didn’t wanna waste away a whole day, there’s so much work to do so I just figured I could come to work for the afternoon.”

Ryder sighed and slammed his hand against the side of the door when the elevator was about to close. “You should’ve stayed home.”

Now it was my turn to frown. “Why? It’s just my birthday. It’s not a national holiday.”

“I know. But I was planning to surprise you with take-out tonight.” He pouted.

I laughed and stepped out of the elevator so he wouldn’t need to keep it open anymore. “We can get take-out together.”

He sighed again but he seemed to agree with it because he smiled and then looked around quickly before pressing his mouth to mine. “Happy birthday, Angel,” he breathed. “Did you like my gift?”