“What?”
“If you want to see the sunset, hop on.”
“But…” I glanced toward the castle.
“Away from the crowds.”
“Don’t you have a ferry to catch?” We were volleying back and forth over the stream of people.
“I do.”
We both had things to do, places to be, and yet…
I took a step toward him. Then another. “I should go find Isabelle.”
He waited, blue smoke spewing from a pink scooter.
“Is this thing safe?” I poked the cracked leather seat.
He didn’t answer.
“No helmet?” I handed him my umbrella. He reached into the cargo basket and slid it into his backpack.
“I can’t just take off.” I hoisted one leg over the saddle.
“They’ll worry…”
My words trailed away as the scooter took off with a lurch.
I shrieked and grabbed Alex tight.
“Where are we going?” I yelled, my hair flapping in the wind.
“Imerovigli.”
“Where?”
“Another ten minutes and we’ll be there.”
Ten more minutes.
I clung tighter.
My first motorbike ride was nothing like the high-powered thrill I’d expected. The scooter struggled and sputtered to keep up with traffic. We got honks and dirty looks as cars and trucks whizzed by. Each time, I prayed we wouldn’t get nudged off the narrow winding road. It clung to steep cliffs, with guardrails at only the most dangerous spots. I squeezed my eyes as a bus carrying a shitload of sunset-chasers whooshed by us around a blind curve.
“Spectacular, isn’t it?” Alex tilted his head toward the jagged coastline.
Spectacular, my ass. Spectacularly dangerous. The sheer drop, the cobalt sea, the sun low in the caldera.
With my arms snaked tight around his waist, I pressed my cheek between Alex’s shoulder blades. It was a nice spot. Warm and solid. It kept the wind from my face. Through the thin fabric of his T-shirt, his muscles felt indecently firm and toned.
Not fair, considering he’s around food all day.
The tighter I held on to him, the more his stupid abs got on my nerves. Good. He was being annoying again.
“Better,” I muttered, feeling his core flex as he navigated a hairpin turn.
“What did you say?”
