UNEDITED
"Hello," Ryan answers his phone. He was sitting in his office, in his oversized chair, leaned back, and relaxed as ever. His phone has been constantly going off, but he wasn't annoyed by it in the slightest.
"Finally." River breaths from the other end. "Why haven't you answered any of my calls?" She was frantic, pacing up and down her room like a madwoman.
"All your texts told me what I needed to know." He slickly replies back.
"Please." She begins verbally begging. "Give me back the ring." Landen was coming over soon. She has dodged him for a couple of days now, but that was an impossible thing to do today. It was the monthly family dinner night and the only excuse that could get you out of that is illness.
"Hmm... " Ryan's throat rumbles. "I willing to give you anything you ask for River, just you wearing another man's ring, is not something I'm willing to compromise on."
"Why are you doing this?" Frustration was eating at her. What is she supposed to tell his brother?"
"After what happened between us, you're really going to ask me that?"
All the wind dragged from her lungs. All the hairs on her body stood on end, and a shiver surges through her. This is what happened to her just thinking about it. Just thinking about him. The remembrance of the electricity was enough to get her weak.
"River." He pauses. "I don't feel sister feelings for you. I never have."
She has been wanting to hear him say that so badly that now that he has, she didn't know what to do or even think. What does this mean? What does it change? All questions she couldn't focus on. She was too worried about that damn ring. "The ring Ryan."
"You're not getting it back."
"Why?" She whispers. Tears almost wanted to burst from her eyes.
He greets his teeth. "Because you're not his."
"I..."
"I have a client." He cuts her off. "We could continue this discussion during dinner if you want."
"Sure, while everyone is sitting closely around." She states sarcastically while taking a deep breath. "Look, Landen is going to be here soon. What am I supposed to tell him?"
"Whatever you want. The truth would be my preference."
"Please, just give it back. I'm begging here. "
His eyes close. He wanted to give it to her just because she was asking. He hated to hear her pleading but, it was more than giving in to his weakness. She was meant to be his, and he was not letting up. "I have to go." He hangs up.
She looks down at her phone. "What the hell!" She shouts and tosses it on her bed. How was she going to explain where the ring is? Why did she let Ryan take it? Damn it she behaves like a mindless zombie around him.
When the doorbell rang a while later, she answered it with her hand behind her back. "Hey."
"Hey, Sweetness." Landen had a bouquet of red roses in one hand and snaked the other around her back for a quick hug. "I've missed you." He kisses her cheek.
She takes the roses with her bravest smile and turns away hurriedly. "They're beautiful." She takes quick steps in the kitchen. Almost like she was running, because really she was. She opens the cabinet under the sink and pulls out a clear vase.
He followed and watched her nervousness as she filled the vase with water and stuck the stems inside. She was wearing tight black skinny jeans, a tank top, and her hair tied in a messy bun. He stayed still while he analyzed her every move. Then, slowly he moves behind her and places his hand on her hips.
She gasps.
"Why so tense?" He turns her gently and traps against the counter.
Her eyes roamed everywhere except his face. She swallows and kept opening her mouth to say something but couldn't let it out. "Well, I..."
"Well, you?" He clears a few strands of hair from her cheek.
He lets his fingertips touch her gently like she was the most delicate thing. He was always soft. It was a part of his magic. Even with all those magical powers he had though, he couldn't get her under his spell.
"Okay. I get it. It's serious." He rubs shoulders with reassuring pressure. "Come on now, spit it out. What's the matter?"
"I..." She begins again. "I... I misplaced my ring." She holds up her left hand guiltily. She misplaced it in Ryan's pocket.
His focus narrowed on her bare finger. His expression read disappointed shock. This hurt him. She has never actually seen something affect him. Like she was letting him down. It made her feel terrible. "Don't worry I know where it is." She bites her lip. "I'm going to get it back." She had to say something to change that look in his eyes.
His brows drew together. "You know where it is?"
Oops. "I mean, I know I lost it in my room somewhere." She lies. "I'll search until I find it, I promise.." Eww, the feeling she was getting as she lied was just eww.
He nods. "You wouldn't be River if you didn't have some sort of incident." He kisses her cheek before taking a step back. "Come, ill help you look."
"No." She bumps his shoulder before moving past him. "I've been looking all day. I need a break." She walks quickly toward her bedroom. "I'm gonna go change."
~~~~~
Later, during dinner, things became uncomfortable. Ryan, instead of his normal seat near his mother, chose to sit across from her and stare
She forcefully drops her head to her filled bowl. It was this weird peas and carrots dumpling soup that Angela was making everyone try. She found it some magazine River just learned. It was a meaningless dinner conversation at the moment.
She dips her heavy silver spoon into the bowl and lifts some to her lips. She could feel eyes penetrating into her and pulling her to meet, but she forces herself not to look. It became the hardest thing, but she wouldn't. He was being a jerk by sitting across from her. He was making her lie, and feel like she was a cheater.
Landen's gentle handsets on her upper back. Everything okay?" He was sitting right beside her and hopefully not noticing his brother's non-subtle body language.
"Yeah. Of course. Why wouldn't it be?" She responds. There she goes again, lying, and all because of Ryan. The air was starting to get thick in there.
Unexpectedly he leans close to her ear and whispers. "It's not a secret you know."
She freezes the spoon halfway to her mouth. Her face scrunched up with confusion and a dash of fear. Does he know? Could he know? "Wa- what?"
"That you don't like the soup." He answers jokingly. "You can just admit it."
"Oh." She couldn't laugh, not even a fake one.
After dinner, she gives her mom and Landen the lame of an excuse of a headache and rushes home.
~~~~~
Landen reluctantly lets her leave. I'll be over soon." He tells her. It was not even two minutes later that he notices his brother also leaving in a hurry. He follows him out of the front door and onto the porch. "You're making this way too obvious." He yells to his back as he was about to take his second step down the curved stairs. "Sitting across from her, running out right after she does."
His brother turns back. Immediately, his hands go into his pockets. His chest deflates an annoyed breath. "Good, I wasn't intending on being subtle."
"How did it feel?"
The question rang into the air but Ryan didn't answer.
"That she didn't even glance at you once? How does it feel, that when she did look up, it was at me? How did it feel, that when she smiled, it was at me?"
Ryan shakes his head. He had nothing to say. Nothing was worth speaking.
Landen laughs. "You know, that indifferent look in your eyes only tells me one thing, and that's, that you're losing."
"I thought River was not a game to you."
"Oh, but you're playing, so I have to play." Seeing fury build in his brother just as he wanted it to, Landen smiles. He turns around and reaches for the door handle. "I should go. My fiancé is in her room waiting for me as we speak, and id much rather is there."
"Wait." Ryan reaches into his chest pocket and takes out River's engagement ring. He takes the steps necessary until he reaches in front of his brother. "Here." He holds out his hand as if to place it into his palm.
When Landen sees the ring drop into the center of his hand, any words he has left we're gone.
"I didn't want t do this the hard way. Ends things before I bruise more of your ego little brother."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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