"Jaylyn?" Ryker had his door open and I hadn't heard it.

I frowned to myself before I turned to look at him. "Yeah?"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry." He approached me and I calculated his distance.

"For?"

"I didn't mean to assume earlier." He stopped in front of me, one step and he would be against me.

"It's fine." My breath hitched trying to ignore the burning that spread from my stomach straight down between my legs.

Burnt cinnamon.

"It did seem like..." He inched forward, his gaze never leaving mine, and the desire that pooled between my legs expanded. "...you and I..." He trailed one hand carefully up my knee. "...had a moment..." He stopped between my legs; his chest pressed against mine.

I was lost. Every brick I was using to build a wall was dismantled in a second. The swirl of spice dazed me over and when he bent forward and paused right before his lips would touch mine, I wanted to moan out my frustrations. He waited patiently, but the burn inside me pushed me up to close the distance, consequences be damned. His lips dominated my own in a battle of wills. One of his hands gripped me by the nape of my neck and forced me up into a higher state of being, his other forcing my body to crush against his, refusing to let me inch away.

I wanted him more than I wanted to admit it.

I couldn't keep my hands from exploring up under his shirt, feeling the solid planes of his back as his muscles rippled under my touch. But when his hand wandered from my back, his fingers trailing the line of my jeans, I panicked and pushed him slowly away at his chest.

"We can't." I panted, trying to ignoring the longing coming from my own body.

"Jaylyn." That damned rumble.

"No." I said firmly and slid off the counter. "No. No Jaylyn. We can't. Regardless of the circumstances, you have Emma. This is wrong." My body protested as I walked away, forcing myself into my room.

I collapsed on my bed, a heated mess. I ran my fingers across my bottom lip, feeling the swell of his harsh and demanding kiss. I didn't want to acknowledge it, but somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it had meant something. I tried to force it from my mind and between the internal argument, I could feel myself drifting, the lull of sleep calling.

I woke up coughing, which didn't make sense because I was laying comfortably in my own bed. I sat up and covered my mouth with my hand, just like mom said to do. It's not polite to not cover your coughs. I looked down at the smoke billowing from the crack underneath my door and my eyes widened.

Something was wrong.

I gathered up my nightgown and hopped out of bed, my bare feet hitting the floor with a thud. That's weird. Usually the floor was cold. It was really hot now. I reached for my doorknob and pulled my door open. A wall of smoke greeted me and almost knocked me down.

I didn't know what to do.

Mom and dad would know.

I walked down the hall, searching for where the distant roar was coming from. The hallway was nothing but smoke. It was hard to breathe. Their door was hard to see, but the roar was coming from inside their room. And then I could hear it, just above the loud thunder.

Mom and dad were screaming.

The smoke didn't cause the tears as I pounded my fists against their door.

"Mommy!" I cried. "Daddy?"

"Get out, Jaylyn! Run! Get your brother!"

I awoke to Ryker shaking me awake, yet again. It was becoming a twisted routine, but he never complained. He simply stayed until my body calmed down and would wait until I fell back to sleep. It was the only real thing he knew about me, and I didn't want to let him in any further than I had. But when I woke the next morning, I was surprised that he had never left.

He was stretched out on what was usually the empty side of my bed asleep. His snore; the only sound in my room. I was even more surprised that I had curled up against him, yet again. His arm was wrapped loosely around me and I tried to move out from under, but he pulled me tight against his chest and I gave up. Listening to his heartbeat stirred something inside of me.

"Stop moving." He murmured sleepily. "It's comfortable."

"I have to get ready to leave."

"Absolutely not." He yawned, refusing to open his eyes.

"I have lunch plans with Elsie today."

His chest vibrated with a low growl of annoyance. "Cancel them."

"No." I forced away my growing smile. "She'll come looking for me."

Defeated, he lifted his arm granting me freedom. I grabbed my clothes and left Ryker laying in my bed. It was going against everything my body wanted, but my mind was practically made up. Dressing quickly in the bathroom, I made a quick escape from the apartment.

"See you later!" I belted out right before the lock hit home.