Can't Touch This (Can't Touch This #1)

Even the happy dogs didn’t mellow him.

His voice remained cold but Michelle put on the best freaking act of the century.

“Oh, Ryder,” she cooed. “You have so many. You always did like to fix things.”

He didn’t reply.

Scooping up a Yorkiepoo, she smiled. “Remember my mum had one of these? Remember that night it got into bed with us when we were—”

“Enough,” Ryder snarled. “Your kid is present.”

She waved Nate away who was still obsessed with the Chiweenies. “He’s too young to understand the birds and the bees.” Moving toward Ryder, Michelle murmured, “But we weren’t too young, were we? We understood.”

Ryder didn’t move but his body language turned colder and blacker the closer she got. “I’m not here to reminisce, Michelle. Your time is running out. I want to get back to—”

“Your hussy?”

“Fucking excuse me?” Ryder’s voice slipped into a menacing growl. “Don’t you ever—”

“Oh come on, already. You were screwing her in the corridor. If you loved her, that’s not something you’d do. You’d treat her with kiddie gloves; just like you treated me. You protect those you love, not use them.”

“Stop it.”

“No, not until you admit it. You still think about me. Think about us.” She had the audacity to reach out and touch his chest. “I do. I think about you often. How good we were together. How you took a part of me just like I took a part of you. I miss how gentle—”

Ryder grabbed her wrist, tearing her touch from his body. “You always did live in a delusional world. Don’t touch me. Don’t speak to me. You don’t know a thing about me. You never did. Time to leave.”

Michelle bounced on her high heels, swaying into him. In one awful horrifying moment, she kissed him.

She. Kissed. My. Man.

The bitch.

The cow.

The shock of what happened made time freeze.

He shoved her away and wiped his mouth. “Pick a dog and go.”

How could he even consider giving a dog to her?

“Only if you promise to come to check on us next weekend. We’ll pick up where we left off…for old times’ sake.”

Ryder prowled toward her, grabbed her shoulder, and whispered something violent in her ear.

I couldn’t hear.

I strained to hear.

But all I got were doggy whuffles and curious barks.

And then he let her go, storming from the barn in the opposite direction. I stood there in shock as Michelle gloated, rubbed her lips, and bent over her son. “You like those two, baby?”

“Yes, yes, yes! They’re the best. Can I have two not one? Please?”

“They do look adorable together and the best things come in pairs.” She grinned. “Done. Let’s take them with us before that grumpy man changes his mind.”

Nate nodded, hastily scooping up Chip while Michelle grabbed Corn. My heart cried, but I didn’t move fast enough, and Michelle strode toward the door where I was hiding.