“Let me give you a ride.” I’d never shy away from the chance to get a beautiful babe on the back of my bike. Some guys in MCs refused to carry a woman unless she was their old lady or current piece of ass. Since I never planned on settling down, it didn’t bother me one bit.
Bess bit down on her lower lip. “I don’t know.”
Damn, she was young. Being new in town, she probably hadn’t heard of our local MC, the Rebel Hearts. Made up of a bunch of ex-military guys like me, we were the good guys.
“If you’d rather stay here, I can take your tire into town, have it fixed and bring it back to you.” I wouldn’t mind. Plus, that would give me the chance to see her again.
“Do you think those dogs would come back while you’re gone?” She shaded her eyes and looked off in the direction of the Keller’s place.
“No telling.” I wasn’t trying to scare her but didn’t want to lie to her either. “Why don’t you jump on back and we’ll take your tire with us? I’m sure Tater can fix it up while you get your work done.”
“Who’s Tater?”
“He runs the garage. We all try to look out for each other around here.”
“Um, I guess that would work if you’re sure you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind at all. I’ve even got a helmet for you.” I grabbed the helmet I usually wore and handed it to her.
She put it on and struggled with tightening it under her chin.
“Let me help.” Our fingers brushed as I pulled the strap tight. Standing this close, I could see darker flecks of green in her eyes. We were from different worlds. It was obvious from the way her cheeks pinked when my fingers touched her skin. Somehow her innocence just stoked the fire burning deep down in my core.
With her helmet secure, I popped the front wheel of her bicycle off and secured it to the back of my Harley. Then I flung my leg over the seat and gestured for her to climb on behind me. Something told me I was going to enjoy my morning ride much more than I expected with Bess behind me.
CHAPTER2
BESS
My dad would groundme for life if he knew I’d ridden into town on the back of a huge motorcycle, especially while clinging to a man who was probably old enough to be my father. Triton was every bad boy biker in every steamy MC romance novel I’d ever read come to life. It was like he’d stepped right off the page and directly onto that dirt road.
I was surprised I’d even been able to speak once he hit me with the full force of his whiskey-colored gaze. Not that I knew much about whiskey. I’d just turned twenty-one a few weeks ago and except for the fruity cocktails my roommate had insisted on buying, I didn’t have much experience with alcohol and even less with men.
That’s just how things were as the only daughter of a small-town preacher.
The bike bounced over a bump in the road, and I tightened my grip around Triton’s waist. Everything about him screamed “off limits”, from how his lips quirked up in a suggestive smile to the way his jeans molded to his muscular thighs. If I hadn’t been pressed up against his back, I would have been fanning myself to keep from spontaneously combusting in his presence.
He pulled into the parking lot of Tater’s Garage way before I was ready to release my grip.
“I’ll be right back. I’m just going to run your tire in so he can get started on it.” Triton got off the bike and turned toward me, his mouth curved up in a contagious smile.
“Thank you.” I watched him saunter through the open garage door then pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Encounters with hot bikers didn’t happen to me.
He was back within a few minutes. “It’s your lucky day.”
I couldn’t agree more, though probably for different reasons.
“He’ll have it ready in an hour. Should we head over to the coffee shop so you can get your work done while we wait?”
As much as I wanted to close my eyes and pretend I lived in a world where I could get swept off my feet by a charming bad boy biker, reality set in. “You’ve already done so much. I don’t want to take up any more of your time.”
“It’s no trouble at all. I’m off today and don’t have anywhere to be. Besides, The Roasted Bean makes the best coffee in town. I was planning on stopping by there myself after my ride.”
He was making this too easy. I needed to work on a couple of designs for the summer internship I’d recently accepted, but the least I could do was buy the man a cup of coffee to thank him for saving me on the side of the road. “If you’re sure you don’t mind…”
“Not at all.” He settled back into the seat and the engine roared to life underneath us.
It was reckless of me to ride through the middle of downtown Maplewood with Triton’s backside sandwiched between my thighs, but I shooed away the worry that word would get back to my dad. No one knew me here, at least not yet.
