Chapter 16

Cassie asked Ryker wearing smile on her face. “What the hell you want from me?”

Ryker moved a hand behind his head. A warm smile crept across his face as his cheeks turned a gentle shade of pink. He stated, "I just want to be your friend."

Cassie kept her hand under her chin and her elbow resting on the table. “Okay, we are friends, now what?"

Ryker checked his phone when it buzzed and got to his feet. "Come on, I'll show you now what."

Cassie squinted. “What does that mean?”

Ryker held out his hand. “Come on, wrap your stuff we are kind of a little behind in terms of time.”

Cassie shook her head. “I am not going anywhere.”

Ryker slump his shoulders. “For the record no one knows about the thing I wanted to show you..”

Cassie sighed because she started to feel a bit rude towards Ryker. “alright I am going with you if you promise to behave?”

Ryker started to help Cassie putting stuff in her bag. “Ofcourse I won’t do anything to hurt you.”

Ryker had entirely put on a false character in front of Cassie to gain her trust. His charm and kindness were nothing but a deception. He couldn't stomach that a new girl, on her first day, had the nerve to stand up to him and get him suspended for a week.

Ryker was angry beneath his apparently friendly attitude. He planned to strike back when she was least expecting it, catching her off guard while she was entirely unprepared. His plan was fueled by a desire to mend his wounded ego and show his dominance, ensuring that Cassie would never oppose him again.

Ryker opened a door of his car for Cassie and then came to his side and climbed in. Cassie looked at him. “Where are we going?”

Ryker started his engine. “Just wait and watch.”

Ryker drove Cassie to a covert racing track away from the city. The vibe was thrilling, with the sound of engines and the smell of burning tires filling the air. Cassie had never been to a place like this before; it was a world of adrenaline and danger, totally different from her daily life.

Ryker led her to a control room where they could see everything—the starting line, the track's turns, and the finishing line. Inside, two men were already monitoring the race, their gaze focused on the screens. Ryker waved Cassie to sit with them. Ryker leaned near to her earlobe, whispering, "I'll be back in 15 minutes." A shiver ran down her spine at his touch, and she couldn't gather the nerve to ask where he was going.

Cassie saw Ryker get into one of the cars standing at the starting line. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized he was about to race. The starting lights flashed red, yellow, and green, and the cars accelerated with a loud noise. Cassie couldn't take her eyes off the screen that showed Ryker's car. He drove so skillfully and with such confidence that she was out of breath. He took the turns with ease and sped up on the straightaways. Cassie got caught up in the excitement of the race.

As the race came to a close, Ryker's car was tied with another car. In the last few hundred yards, Ryker made a risky move by darting to the inside of a tight turn and pulling ahead just in time to cross the finish line first. Ryker's car stopped in the winner's circle, and Cassie jumped to her feet, dashed out of the control room and headed straight for the track.

As soon as she got to Ryker, she threw her arms around him. The thrill of the win made her excited for a moment. After that, she felt shy, her heartbeat quickened, pounding in her chest like the engines of the race cars. She tried to pull away from him when she realized how electrifying the moment had become. Her cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

She was in the midst of withdrawing herself when Ryker grabbed her by the shoulders, slid his hands to her neck, and then cupped her face. At that point, his eyes met hers and Cassie saw fire in them that captured her. When he leaned in, their lips came together in a fiery kiss. The noise of the world around them faded, leaving just the two of them in that perfect moment.
Ryker was biting her lips with his teeth, and Cassie experienced a surge of adrenaline as his teeth sank into her lips. At first, his hands cupped her face, and then he gradually formed a solid grip around her neck.

It was not shyness or excitement that caused Cassie's blood to rush in her veins speedily rather, it was the complete craziness of their shared kiss. Cassie started feeling choked and Ryker also got outta breath. Ryker's eyes glittered with the same thirst and desire that she felt, and when they eventually parted kiss, Cassie was thrilled.

"How was the race?" Ryker asked, his voice soft and filled with emotion.

Cassie smiled, as she looked up at him. "It was ecstatic."

Ryker and Cassie had lunch together and then Ryker dropped her home. Cassie started to think is this her hormones that only want to have sex. Ryker is the third guy she kissed and felt a rush in her heart and soul. She twisted and turned all night didn’t know when she drifted off thinking about her needs and desires.

The next morning when she got into a class one of the guys in her class called her. She turned to see what is the matter. Ricky asked. “Can I borrow your notes of Lit?”

Cassie nodded and handed him after retrieving from her bag. “But I need them back at the end of the day.”

Ricky responded. “Sure.” and when he took from her hand their fingers brushed but Cassie felt nothing that she felt for Daniel, Steven and now for Ryker. She sat in her seat and in her head mark cancel on Ricky’s name.