White Knight

As soon as I get up to Ryan's room, he yanks my clothes off and tosses me onto his bed. I hardly got to say hi to him before his lips were on mine.

After enjoying each other under the covers, we lay there catching our breath as I say, "Somebody missed me."

He rolls onto his side and looks at me as he says, "I have missed you. I've barely seen you this past week."

I trace a finger along the edge of his face as I say, "I know, for once we've both been busy."

"How's the party stuff coming?" He asks and I sigh, "I'm still waiting for a final number of guests but other than that, it's pretty much done."

"Did you find a dress with A.B today?"

"I did. And I found you a matching tie."

He looks about as excited as I thought he'd be. I found a nice silk tie with just a thin stripe of the same color red so it will still look classy, but not too matchy-matchy. I smile as I say, "But actually, I heard something while I was at the store that I thought might interest you."

He raises an eyebrow and says, "Go on."

"I ran into Tinsley and she said that the Penderghasts owed sixty-thousand dollars in back taxes. Which happens to be right around the same amount that Arthur Huxley possibly weaseled out of the Historical Society. So maybe Poppy blackmailed Arthur into giving her the stolen money?" I suggest and Ryan frowns. I shake my head, "What? I thought that was interesting stuff."

"You shouldn't be sleuthing around," he says as he rolls onto his back. I pop my elbow up and rest my head on my hand. Looking down onto Ryan, I say, "I wasn't sleuthing around. Tinsley just told me when I asked about the winery selling."

"Alright, well thanks for telling me," he says but the way he said it makes me frown.

"You already knew, didn't you?" I ask and he looks to me before nodding his head. I snap my fingers, "Damn! I thought I had something good there."

He grins and pulls me into him. I rest my head against his chest as he says, "It's good information. Just know we already have worked a few things out that you don't need to worry about."

"It's Arthur, isn't it? It all makes sense. He was skimming off the top of the funds and Poppy caught on. She blackmailed him into giving her the stolen funds to help her family and he whacked her. He was a golf pro, so he had access to the club after hours. It all makes sense," I ramble out but Ryan stays silent. I know I'm right. It's the only thing that makes sense. It's the only person who makes sense. I prop myself up on my elbow again and look at him, "Can you just tell me if I am kinda right? I won't tell a soul."

He locks eyes with me as he answers, "Just know we are getting the last piece of the puzzle sometime this week. We think we have everything else we need to make an arrest."

I narrow my eyes at him but it only makes him laugh. I'm surprised we've managed to be in his room together this long with neither of our phones ringing or something or someone pulling us back to reality. I am enjoying being locked away with him and am trying to soak up the moment. I also know that's all I am going to get out of him about Poppy so I change the subject.

"How was Sir Theo Rigsby's private party last night?"

He laughs my favorite loud laugh and I swoon. He looks to me and says, "I rather enjoyed myself actually. I will probably go to the next one."

I swat my hand at him.

"Tell me more than that. Who was there? What did you do? Who did you see?"

He shrugs his shoulder.

"I dunno. The usual I guess plus a few more. Gus, Jackson, Tate, Austin and I. Obviously Theo, Garrett Anders, a few of Theo's Oxford friends. There was probably like, I dunno fifteen of us."

"Decent turn out. What did y'all do?"

He brushes a piece of hair away from my face as he says, "Smoked cigars, drank ridiculously expensive alcohol. Played pool and a few other secret things."

I look to him suspiciously and he grins.

"It's a secret club for a reason."

I roll my eyes before asking, "Did you talk to Gus at all?" Something falls over Ryan's face and my heart plummets. He frowns and says, "Yeah we talked a bit. I think he's a bit freaked over the baby though."

"Annabeth is too. I kinda got pissed at her for a millisecond last night. She made it seem that she was settling. That maybe Gus was supposed to be a stepping stone to someone better."

Ryan looks confused as he says, "That's a shitty view on it." I let out a light laugh.

"Yeah, I had to remind her what a gem Gus is. Which is so something I should not have had to do."

He rolls onto his side again and then props his head up onto his elbow too. Our eyes are locked as he says, "Gus was talking about proposing. He said it's the right thing to do."

I'm silent for a moment. I wonder if Gus feels the same way Annabeth does. That he thought maybe they were going to be a temporary thing instead of something permanent. I look back to Ryan.

"Did he say when he thought he was going to do it?"

"He mentioned the party, but Austin told him he had planned to ask Margot. Now I may not know much about women, but I'm thinking they don't want to be proposed to right after some other girl gets engaged."

"Especially Austin and Margot. Annabeth had a crush on Austin since she met him twenty years ago. I truly think deep down she thought he'd fall for her one day. The whole brother loving the best friend thing."

Ryan eyes me and says, "Well, it may not have happened to Annabeth, but I think that may have happened to you."

I realize he's right. Annabeth probably hates me. All she wanted was for my brother to fall in love with the nobody. The white knight in his castle rescuing the poor damsel and putting her into a mansion where they lived happily ever after. Where instead, the princess fell for the prince's pauper best friend. It's not how I see it, but I'm sure that's how she feels. That if I could marry someone that's not a founding family member, Austin could have too. And he chose not to. He never chose her and money had nothing to do with it.

I look at him with a soft smile, "I can't help that I fell in love with my brother's best friend."

He quickly shakes his head no.

"No not me and you. Gus and you. I think Gus thought after you and Jackson split up, that he'd come in and show you the person you should be with has been right under your nose."

I look to Ryan in shock.

"Annabeth told me that once back when you and I were sneaking around. That Gus thought he'd white knight me."

He shrugs.

"I think Gus and Annabeth feel like they are settling for each other because they both lost the Sweeney's."

"Did Gus say that?" I ask him but Ryan shakes his head.

"Not in so many words. But he wanted to make damn sure that you and I were serious."

I suddenly feel sick. I lay back on to Ryan's fluffy pillow and he can tell I am bothered by what he's saying. He pulls me into him as I say, "How can they think that way? They are going to have a baby together!"

"Sawyer love, you don't fall out of love with someone overnight. And I truly think Gus has loved you for a long time. He knows with Annabeth now pregnant, there will never be a him and you. There will never be an Austin and Annabeth. I think that's what they are struggling with."

I look to him and ask, "Before you knew my whole story, did you even think I was into Gus?"

Ryan looks toward the ceiling and is quiet for a moment. I've never asked anyone that question before. Still looking away from me he answers, "I never thought you were into Gus that way. I always saw that you treated him in a friendly way. But...I will say I think you can manipulate Gus's feelings towards you to get what you want. And I think he may have taken that the wrong way."

I glance to him curiously.

"How?"

"Sawyer, I know you and I have had our ups and downs. And when we had our downs who do you run to? Who would hold you while you cried? Where did you always go?" He asks but I know he's not expecting me to answer out loud. I swallow hard as he says, "When you and I had our falling out after Founder's Day and you called Gus over to strip you out of your big ol' dress, he probably thought that was his chance. You were vulnerable, you were asking him to undress you and then after he did, you sent him away."

"Oh god, you make it seem like I am a terrible person," I say grimly. Ryan smiles to me and says, "I'm not meaning to. But you have to look at it from Gus's, or hell any guy's perspective. A girl that's crying is asking you to come over and help her out of her clothes, at night time. It has to get your hopes up a little bit. He standing there undressing the woman he's been in love with for years and you find nothing sexual about it at all."

"Gus is a real gentleman, ya know? I never even thought about that that night. I just thought he was being a friend," I whisper.

"Gus is a good guy, Sawyer. That's why it's a real shame if Annabeth doesn't see what she has," Ryan agrees. He holds onto me while I process everything and I feel my heart sinking further. I had no idea what I was doing. I was so oblivious to Gus because I was so consumed with Jackson and then Ryan.

Gus never even bleeped on my radar. Austin and I are real assholes.

I glance back to Ryan, "I hope I never make you feel that way, Ryan. I hope you know I am so in love with you and you make me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. Money and last names don't matter to me. I love you for you and I certainly would never feel like I am settled for you in any way."

He gives me a squeeze and kisses my forehead.

"Oh, I know I won the real prize here. I ain't worried about anyone else and you shouldn't be either."

He pulls my face up so our lips meet and I feel my heart squeeze as he kisses me. He moves to my cheek, then down my neck and when he gets to my collarbone, he looks up to me and says, "I don't want this on your mind. You need to focus on the party and getting that winery."

I grin and nod to him in agreement.

"Oh, I have my eye on the prize, don't you worry. But right now, I am only focused on one thing and that's getting you back on top of me."

He laughs again and continues to kiss my collarbone. Even though my mind was overwhelmed with heavy stuff, I let everything float away and just enjoy Ryan and me in the moment.