“Yes,” I answer. My tone must sound confused. Holt chuckles and crosses his arms over his chest. His biceps flexing and bulging as he does it.
“It’s almost 4:30. Don’t you need to be at the cafe in an hour,” he asks, knowingly. His statement gets me moving. I roll out of bed so fast, I almost fall on my face. I quickly right myself.
“Mind if I jump in your shower quick,” Holt asks me as I am heading to my small closet to find something to wear.
“Go ahead, there are extra towels under the sink,” I mumble. Trying to ignore the fact that I was naked in there less than 8 hours ago, and now he will be too. I’m so annoyed with my train of thought that I could smack myself. My internal ramblings sound so juvenile.
It’s only after Holt has left the room and I am still debating about my pathetic wardrobe choices, does it dawn on me that Holt spanked me. Spanked! My cheeks warm, and I run my hands through my hair before I rub my face.Get it together.
I reach for another oversized sweater and grab a pair of black leggings from my dresser. Listening out, I still hear the shower running so I strip off my pajamas, and pull on a bra and the clothes quickly.
A few minutes later, i’m slipping a pair of mismatched socks on my feet when Holt walks back into my bedroom. Shirtless, with his jeans unbuttoned. His hair is damp and there are still a few droplets of water glistening on his torso.Is he trying to give me a heart attack?
“I can drop you off at the cafe this morning,” he states as if we do this all the time. I open my mouth to refuse, he doesn’t need to chauffeur me around, but he cuts me off.
“I’ll do a security walk through at the cafe, and then I’ll head out to grab some shit from the office to install here tonight,” he finishes before walking out. My mouth is hanging open.
“Good talk,” I mutter quietly, rolling my eyes. Taking a few deep breaths to center myself for this day, I stand and walk out to the living room. I’m not sure if I should be relieved or disappointed, but Holt has pulled his shirt over his head and is bending down to grab his boots.
I am internally debating whether or not to try to argue with Holt about this, and wonder if I should call Meg later today. Maybe she can help me convince him that he doesn’t need to do this.
I sit on the couch and start putting my converse on. I can feel Holt watching me and I try to ignore the feel of his stare.
“You’ll need another jacket. It will get chilly on the back of my bike,” he states simply. I freeze in the middle of tying my shoe. Suddenly, I realized I haven’t ever been on a motorcycle. Thinking of the logistics makes my blood pressure spike.
“You’ll be fine, just hold on to me and follow my lead,” Holt says in a relaxed tone. He doesn’t realize that not only am I thinking of the potential of my imminent death, but also if I’m going to fit on it.
I swallow hard and just pray to all the gods that it will work out. I nod my head quietly and go back into my bedroom to grab a jacket. I come back out putting it on, and see that Holt is standing by the door.
“Ready,” he asks me, as he pulls on his leather riding jacket. He looks the part. Me? Not so much.
“Sure,” I say as I follow him out.
Chapter 10
Holt
I try to contain my smirk. This morning has been all about pushing boundaries with Piper. I must admit, I’m having a good time. My brother and I are similar creatures. We both have dominant personalities and love to push the envelope. Sterling may be a bit more gruff, but at our core we are pretty much the same person.
I walk out the door first as I watch her pull another jacket on and follow my lead. She is chewing on her bottom lip, anxiety is written all over her face. I consider this ripping the bandaid off. Once I get her on the back of my bike, she will realize that she worried for nothing.
I couldn’t help myself this morning. My hand just needed to swat her ass. She is lucky I didn’t turn her over my knee and do more than that. She has no idea how much restraint I showed this morning. All I wanted to do was spend the morning with myself inside her— well amongst other things. I know I need to pace myself for Piper.
As she walks out, I pull the door shut behind me and lock it with what has become my new key. I already added it to my keyring. I feel her watching me but ignore it for a minute. We head towards my bike, and I place my hand on her lower back. She jumps slightly, but chooses not to verbalize her surprise.
I’m going to have to get her some riding gear so that she is comfortable, but that will come later. I straddle the bike and inspect her as I hand her my helmet. Tentatively she reaches for it.
“That helmet won’t put itself on you, Sugar,” I prompt her gently. She shakes her head for a second and quickly pulls it over her head. She fumbles briefly with the clasp at her neck but gets it on the third try.
I watch her take a deep breath, and then take a step closer. She looks at me and then at the area that she is supposed to occupy.
“Just swing your leg over and hold on to me,” I direct her. I hear her huff quietly and then feel her hand tentatively touch my shoulder. Using me for balance, she does as I tell her. I pull the hand that is on my shoulder down and wrap it around my waist. The action pulls her forward and I hear her gasp.
“Hold on tight and mirror my actions,” I tell her as I start the bike, not giving her a chance to respond. I ease the bike down her driveway. I feel her arms tighten. Slowly I pull out onto the main road. I feel her thighs on the outside of mine and picture them wrapped around me in other situations. Taking a deep breath of my own, I try to keep my overactive imagination in check.
I feel Piper relax marginally at my back and chuckle quietly. I knew she would enjoy it. Before I know it, we are pulling into the back lot of Doe’s. I shut off the bike, and Piper is still hugging me from behind.
Suddenly, she realizes that she is still holding onto me and she jumps back like I am on fire. If I didn’t know any better, I would be offended. She is off the bike before I can say anything and working at the clasp under her chin again.
