Stormy was right that Brooklyn blended right in. She was freshly spray-tanned and wore skinny jeans that showcased her mile long legs. Her creamy sheer button-down tank top and her brown, leather thong sandals finished off her outfit. Brooklyn’ sleek, platinum blonde hair was in a perfectly smooth and shiny angled bob and her lips had the shiniest red gloss Stormy had ever seen. Brooklyn always liked to make a stunning first impression wherever she went.
“Brooklyn, meet Ryder,” she said. “This was the guy in my driveway the other night.”
“I see,” Brooklyn said as she stared him square in the face. “Nice to meet you.”
Brooklyn then smiled and her entire face lit up.
“Thanks so much for flying me out here,” she said. “You really didn’t have to do that, but thank you.”
Ryder offered a courteous grin. “It’s not a problem at all. Whatever makes Stormy feel happy and comfortable, I’m going to do it.”
Brooklyn raised her eyebrows at Stormy, indicating that she was pleasantly surprised, and Stormy couldn’t wait to be alone with Brooklyn so they could dissect and analyze everything.
Ryder dropped them off outside of his condo about an hour later.
“You have keys, right?” he asked Stormy.
She pulled them out of her pocket and dangled them in front of his face.
“I’ll be back in a few hours,” he said. “Just be ready to go when I get back.”
Stormy kissed him goodbye as she and Brooklyn climbed out of the Audi and headed inside.
“Where are we going in a few hours?” Brooklyn asked.
“You, me, Ryder and Zander are going out tonight,” she said. She tried her hardest to be casual about it. “Some biker bar. You know how those places are. We’ll have fun!”
“Wait,” Brooklyn said as she stopped dead in her tracks. “This isn’t some double date thing, right? You know I hate being set up.”
“Oh, no, no, no,” Stormy half-lied. “This is not a double date at all. We just didn’t want you to feel like the third wheel or anything so we’re dragging Zander along to make it an even number. Don’t read into it too much.”
“Better not be,” Brooklyn snuffed. “I came here to hang out with you, not to be some California biker dude’s flavor of the weekend.”
“You’re going to love their place,” Stormy said as she changed the subject. “It’s amazing.”
They traveled up the elevator to Ryder’s floor and shuffled their feet down the hall to his door. Stormy watched Brooklyn’ reaction as she opened the door to the condo. Brooklyn was from a modest, working class family too, and she knew she’d never seen anything like it before.
“Oh, my, God,” Brooklyn said in a disgustingly impressed manner. “Is this real life?”
“Yep.” Stormy beamed.
“Are you sure two guys live here because this place is pristine,” she said as she walked around. “Like I went to my brother’s place once, and I couldn’t get the smell out of my hair for days. This is incredible.”
“That’s Zander’s side and that’s Ryder’s side,” Stormy said as she pointed. “Living room and kitchen. That’s pretty much it.”
“That view,” Brooklyn sighed as she walked towards the floor to ceiling windows in the living room. “And there’s a balcony?”
She slid the door open and stepped outside and placed her hands on the railing. The breeze blew through her sleek, flaxen locks as she looked down below at the passing cars.
“I could get very used to this,” she said as she smiled.
“I knew you’d love it here,” Stormy remarked. She knew Brooklyn too well, and she couldn’t wait to see her reaction to Zander later. “Just wait until you see Ryder’s bathroom. It’s like a freaking palace.”
Stormy led Brooklyn to Ryder’s suite and gave her the full tour. They collapsed side by side on his bed in the quiet condo.
“So, thoughts?” Stormy asked. “I know you’ve been taking in every little thing since you stepped off the plane. I’ve been dying to pick your brain.”
Brooklyn popped up. She loved sharing her opinion on anything and everything.
“Okay, for starters,” she began. “Ryder seems great. Almost too great, but that’s all I’m going to say because I really don’t know him that well yet. The fact that he flew me out here to make you happy speaks volumes. Not a lot of guys would do that.”
Stormy beamed. She loved that Ryder was already making a good impression on Brooklyn. Brooklyn was a hard girl to impress.