6. It Comes to a Head

Noah

“Shit! Your dad is really running us through all the hardest drills today,” Ryder groans as he wipes the sweat from his brow and reaches for his water bottle.

“He’s always pushing us, but it might be easier if you weren’t imagining Elena fighting in a tank and no bra last night,” I chuckle.

“Don’t lie. You were thinking about it too,” Ryder retorts.

“I will not confirm nor deny the allegation,” I say with a chuckle. “Let’s go to my place where we can work out a bit more and maybe go over some of those tougher moves.”

“Sure why not,” Ryder replies. “Meet me at my truck in about ten minutes. I gotta piss and tell my dad where I am going because he wants to talk to me about something tonight.”

“Okay, I’ll go wait by the truck,” I reply with an amused snort before heading out to Ryder’s truck. 

If Ryder only knew how I truly feel…no, I can’t.

“Noah!” Melanie calls out, bearing her cleavage. “Aren’t you getting tired of waiting around to find your fated mate? I could be your chosen, or at least warm your bed.”

“Mel, you know Noah has a fated mate out there and you know you do too,” Ryder says as he comes up behind her. “No shove off. You know your father told you to leave me alone and that goes for Noah, too. I told you I won’t accept less than who the goddess has planned for me. It’s up to Noah what he does, but it sure isn’t going to be you.”

“A little harsh, Ryder,” she snaps.

“It’s true, now if you would remember, I turned you down just last week and nothing has changed my mind,” I reply.

“I’d like the chance to try to change it,” she offers. 

“Nope. If anything, I’ve gotten more firm in my resolve,” I reply.

“You’ve gotten more firm in something for someone,” Ryder laughs as he unlocks his door. “Melanie, you are barking up the wrong trees. If you want a ranked wolf to fuck you, you know there are one or two who mite bite, but it’s neither of us.”

I climb in and shut the door before saying, “I’m not into slut shaming, but when you throw yourself at every ranked wolf who isn’t already mated, you deserve some sort of shaming. She wants status and power.”

“She has always had a thing for you, though,” Ryder scoffs. “It’s annoying and her father is my father’s best friend so I have to deal with her asking me about you while flirting with me. She’d take us both if she could.”

“There’s nothing wrong with us sharing a mate if she’s fated to us both, but you know that’s never going to happen,” I scoff.

“What if…you know what I said yesterday, bro,” Ryder says with a smirk and an adorable snort.

Shit! I can’t think his snort is adorable!

“Just think about it…Elena is what? Eighteen? Or is she still seventeen? Sorry if she is seventeen, bro. But she’s fucking sexy as shit and…yeah…I’m gonna shut up and not finish that thought,” Ryder says, turning from looking at me to watching the road as we rumble down the dirt road towards my house.

What was Ryder about to say?

A strange tension settles low in my abdomen. It’s a tension I am familiar with, but it feels like we might be on the verge of something. 

No!

I can’t afford to think that way, especially with my best friend!

We get to my place and refill our water bottles then go to the training room. I prefer training here, truth be told. We don’t have to deal with people staring or flirting or commenting on our form. It’s just us and the mats and the moves we want to improve. 

“So, that roll, dodge, flip the opponent thing…ah…you rocked that and I can’t quite get it, can we start there?” Ryder asks. 

“Sure. first, you come at me and I’ll block and flip you, then you try it and I’ll tell you what to do to improve it and we will run through it until you get it or need a break and you can help me with that cool kick and flip to a squat,” I reply. 

We go at it for an hour and I think we are making progress, but we break to rehydrate and a subject comes up that makes goosebumps prickle my skin and my nipples harden into little pebbles.

“I’m serious, Noah. You and I think we aren’t mates, but Elena…I’m not attracted to many people like I am to her. She is fucking gorgeous in that way that only girls who aren’t trying too hard are and she is a damned good fighter…” Ryder starts and for some reason I drop my bottle and pin him to the wall.

“Don’t! She’s my stepsister! I can’t think like that, even if…” I let my words trail off.

“Even if you want her as much as I do?” Ryder asks. “There is only one other person I have ever wanted as much, Noah and I shouldn’t…I shouldn’t say anything because it could change everything.”

“Ryder?” I ask, my voice a shaky whisper as I inhale his sweaty, musky, enticing scent and I don’t know who moves, me or him, but our lips meet and suddenly the world around us seems to freeze.

Holy shit!

I moan into the kiss and I feel Ryder cup my face gently, while my hand slides from his shoulder to the crook of his elbow and the other wraps around his head into his hair and pulls him even closer. This is heaven and hell at once and I may be about to tip into a sea of despair, but it feels so fucking right.

Then, I hear a door slam shut behind me and smell Ellie’s perfume.

Fuck! 

I pull away from the kiss.

“Ryder, don’t take this the wrong way…I want to do that again, but I have to do some damage control with Elena. She just walked in and then the door slammed…this could be…I dunno,” I gasp, nervously.

“Go to her. We’ll discuss what this is and what it means later. Always bros even if you don’t want to continue exploring whatever that just was,” Ryder says with a bashful grin that is so unlike him.

I quickly peck his lips and run after my step sister.

Following the scent of her perfume, I find her sitting on the dock, curled up in a ball and looking out at the lake.

“Wanna talk about that?” I ask as I sit next to her.

“What? Boys kiss boys all the time,” she snorts.

“Wanna talk about what you saw and why you hate me?” I ask.