Page 2 of Finding Love

CHAPTERONE

Ryder sat in the sun and lifted his face up to the sky. His dog, Willy, whom he’d found as a puppy last year, was by his side. The little dog had been tied up in a bag on the beach just outside of San Diego and wouldn’t have survived if he hadn’t come along. Willy was now a spoiled dog and he happily snored away, unaware of his dark past.

He doubted there was anything better in the world than the sun and surf and a dog by your side.

For the past year, that had been his mantra.

Before then, he hadn’t had a code to live by.

In the past year, his life had changed so much, that most people he knew wouldn’t recognize him any longer. Then again, he no longer wanted to associate with most people he knew.

Which is why a little over a year ago, he’d packed a bag, bought a second-hand travel van, and hit the road, leaving everything behind.

The last straw had been the fight he and his then fiancée had gotten into.

Shortly after his father, Johnathan Ryder, had died, leaving James Ryder Gallant his multi-billion dollar investment company, Ryder, which he preferred to go by, had dropped everything and returned to Seattle to take over the company his father had built from scratch.

Ryder’s father had groomed him for the role his whole life. The man had been all business from the day James Ryder Gallant had been born and had never shown him an ounce of love or kindness.

Ryder’s mother, Grace, had been bought and paid for years before. Ryder couldn’t remember even what she looked like. According to his father, she’d only married him for his money anyway. Over the years, his father had let some information about her slip, but the only real thing he’d learned was that he’d come from “good stock.” To his father, that most likely meant that his mother’s family hadn’t been poor.

His parents had split shortly after Ryder’s second birthday, and his father had described it as fateful, unavoidable. He didn’t know who was at fault, nor did he care.

He had no doubt his father had paid the judge off to gain full custody of his one and only son. His prodigy.

Ryder had been shipped off to prestigious boarding schools. Nothing short of perfect grades had been expected of him. If he did slip, tutors were brought in to quickly get him back on track. After graduating from high school, he had attended the finest college, taking the fast track to a degree in business and another in law.

Over the years, he’d been provided many lavish vacations, none of which had his father attended. Instead, he’d been introduced to wealthy families and had been forced to wine and dine them on the slopes of Aspen or the Alps. All in the name of his family’s business.

At one point he had rebelled against it all and had done what his father had called some really stupid things. Putting himself out there in the spotlight for people to make fun of him went against everything his father wanted. Still, he’d enjoyed the attention it had gained him. At least for a while.

For most of his life, he’d been a pawn to his father’s sadistic game of staying one step ahead of the competition. His father had bought most of his competitors’ companies over the years.

Ryder had the best of everything money could buy. The only thing that had been missing was love. Not once in his life had he ever experienced a pat on the back or a hug. Hell, he would have settled for a “well done, son” or a “good job.”

He doubted that his father even knew what love was. Ryder had questioned if he even understood or felt it himself. Until he’d found Willy.

It hasn’t been any one thing that had caused him to snap the day he’d left everything over a year ago. But he’d known that, for his mental health, he needed to get away.

He’d given himself a month to sort things out in his head. And here it was a year later and he was still… sorting.

He likened his life to that scene in Forrest Gump where Forrest takes off running one day and just keeps running. Only Ryder had a van and a dog instead of a pair of sneakers.

He figured that he’d get tired of life on the road sooner or later, but so far, he was loving every minute of it. Even so, he knew it had to end soon. He may not have grown tired of the life, but he knew he’d pushed his limit, he’d been gone too long. After a year away from the business, his time had run out, no matter if he felt ready to go back or not.

He took a deep breath of fresh salty air and sighed, the weight of his responsibilities forcing him to scowl. It was time to return. He knew it.

But that didn’t stop him from wanting one last night. One last ride of freedom.

In the last year, when he’d needed money, he had stopped somewhere and worked odd jobs for cash. He hadn’t wanted to let on where he was by using his credit cards. When he didn’t need money, he surfed, slept, ate, or just enjoyed the sunshine, like he was currently doing, even though he could see the dark skies hovering over the horizon and moving closer.

He had let the road take him wherever it may and had no use for cell phones, maps, or even bank accounts.

He was a free man, outside of his commitment to Willy. The dog groaned and then jumped up from his nap to go sniff the sand where a crab had just disappeared.

“Shall we hit the waves one last time?” he asked Willy, who happily barked and did three fast little circles. Laughing, he took up his board and headed back out into the Pacific.

He’d found the best surf spot the evening before on his way back up the coast, heading back to his responsibilities, and today was set to be his last day of freedom.