“Well, aren’t you special?” I tease as I spin and eye up the cars lining the street. “Let me guess, that one?”
I point at an all-black sports car, which causes him to laugh. Glancing up at him, he reaches down and grabs my hand, rotating me till I’m pointing at a motorcycle.
“That one.”
My eyes widen as he drops my arm and walks up to his bike, grabbing a helmet off the back. It’s then that I notice he has two helmets, as if he was expecting—or hoping—to bring me home.
“Have you ever ridden one of these before?” He asks as I close the gap between us.
“Can’t say that I have,” I answer, folding my arms over my chest. “You know, we haven’t truly spent that much time together. How can I know you’re a safe driver?”
He looks at me with a raised brow. “As if I’d ever put you in harms way.”
I stare at him for a moment, fighting the blush from creeping onto my cheeks before I sigh and drop my arms. Levi smiles at me and reaches for my hand, pulling me against his chest as he holds the helmet in his other hand.
“You might have to lower your bun, actually,” he states, staring down at me.
I reach back and pull the hair tie out, letting my hair fall around my shoulders. As I pull my hair back to the nape of my neck, Levi turns and sets the helmet down before he holds his finger up and moves it in a circle, telling me to turn around.
I do as I’m told, confused about what he’s about to do. To my surprise, he grabs my hair, and I feel him tugging gently before I realize that this man is braiding my hair. He reaches over my shoulder with his free hand and slaps his fingers against his palm and I drop my hair tie into it. Once he secures the braid, I spin around and run a hand down it as I stare up at him.
“How in the world do you know how to braid?”
“I used to volunteer at this shelter and there was a single mom with a little girl. She took a liking to me and asked me to braid her hair for her once, but I didn’t know how.” My entire face softens as I listen. “So, I went home and watched videos. The next time I saw her, I offered to do it and next thing I knew, I was ‘the hair guy’ for all the girls.”
He shrugs as if it’s no big deal, picking the helmet off his bike as he turns back towards me. He looks like he’s about to slip the helmet on my head, so I hold out a hand, stopping him.
“You can’t just breeze past that story as if you didn’t just make me melt into a puddle,” I tell him, but he just stares at me. “That’s one of the sweetest things I’ve ever heard, Levi.”
“It’s really no big deal,” he says. “They didn’t have fathers to do their hair for them and the mothers deserved a break. Anyone would’ve done it.”
I shake my head, thinking about my daughter who doesn’t have a man in her life to do her hair for her. “No, Levi, they really wouldn’t. Trust me.”
Levi’s face heats, a dark blush appearing on his cheeks. I smile gently when he clears his throat, clearly surprised under my admiring gaze. It’s so rare to meet someone who is so humble. Someone who doesn’t realize the gravity of what they’re doing for others because they just see it as the right thing to do. For them, there’s no other way. But to those around them, it could mean everything.
“All right,” I say, giving him an out. “Tell me what to do.”
Levi releases a relieved sigh before stepping up to me and pushing the helmet down on my head. He lifts the visor so he can look me in the eye for a moment before he tilts my chin up, securing the straps. With his pointer finger still under my chin, he slips his thumb up to tilt my head down, staring at me with a smile.
He turns and grabs his own helmet, slipping it on and flipping up his own visor. He reaches a hand out towards me and pulls me to him before he leans against the bike.
“All right, quick safety lesson,” he begins. “You’ll want to have your hands around my waist and make sure that you lean with me on turns. Whenever we’re coming to a stop, it’ll be easier if you put your hand on the gas tank to brace yourself. If you bump your helmet into mine, don’t worry, it happens.”
I nod, taking in everything he’s saying when he gestures down to the bike. “You want to make sure that you keep your feet on these pegs here, but be careful of the exhaust because it can get rather hot. I won’t speed around cars this time since it’s your first time riding a bike, but for future rides, I’d give your leg a squeeze so you can be ready. If you want me to stop or slow down or just need my attention, either tap my chest three times or tap my leg.”
I nod again when he gestures to the helmets. “I have Bluetooth headsets and intercoms in both of our helmets so we can talk to each other, but it’s better to have something in place in case they disconnect. Last thing I want is you trying to tell me to slow down or something, but I can’t hear you. Any questions?”
“I don’t think so,” I say as I step closer so I’m standing between his legs. “I’m ready if you are.”
Levi smiles as he pushes himself to stand, towering over me as our bodies press together. I take a small step back so he has room to climb onto his bike before he extends a hand out to me.
“I’ll help you on,” he says as I slip my left hand into his. “Just put your left foot on that peg there and swing your other leg over.”
I do as he says, dropping onto the seat behind him. Making sure my feet are comfortable on the pegs, Levi leans forward and sets his hands on the handles. He turns his head back to look at me and I hear his voice in my helmet as he asks, “You ready?”
I nod and he starts up the bike, and I wrap my arms around his middle, interlacing my fingers together. When he pulls out of the spot, my grip tightens slightly, but being pressed against him in this way settles the nerves that are threatening to erupt.
We cruise through the streets, weaving in and out of cars that are going too slow, but he never goes over the speed limit. I separate my hands and rub my thumb on his chest, and I feel his breath hitch for a moment.
