Before jail, he’d had a souped-up Escalade, the whole deal with tinted windows and chrome rims. For a minute, he had a Dodge Charger, but a rival crew shot it up before it met its first birthday.
When he got out of prison, he’d been flat broke and couldn’t afford more than a bus pass. Once he settled in Portland and found a couple of jobs, he’d relied on public transportation until he scraped together money for a bicycle, one that was sturdy enough for city commuting butcould take him off-road when he needed space, needed to be alone.
It wasn’t until he began working for Morgan Enterprises that the money came in faster than he’d expected. Joel paid well. With limited expenses, Jordan’s savings piled up quickly. Three months ago, he’d walked into a dealership and paid cash for the Harley. That was after he’d closed on the cottage in the town of Cannon Beach.
Proof that he wasn’t scraping by anymore. Wrapping his head around that was still hard.
When he took a sharp curve and Vanessa’s arms tightened around him again, he couldn’t help but smile. Her warmth and trust filled an empty part of him he hadn’t known existed. The part that wanted to protect. To cherish. To hold forever.
Without thinking, he reached back and squeezed her thigh reassuringly.
You’re doing great, princess.
He’d meant it to settle her, but instead, her whole body went taut, her fingers tightening on his jacket, breath catching by his ear. A spark of heat flared between them, impossible to ignore, before she finally melted against him.
Maybe taking her on his bike wasn’t the best idea after all. The proximity alone might kill them both.
He forced his attention back on the road, his jaw as tight as the rest of him, doing everything in his power not to think about how snug her body fit against his.
There wasn’t much traffic going to the coast. In summer, this highway was packed with vacationers heading to beach homes, but mid-winter kept most people away. The snow, ice, and freezing temperatures weren’t exactly inviting.
Which was exactly why he loved this time of year. The quiet. The solitude. He could be alone with his thoughts,tucked away in nature. Close enough to Portland if anyone needed him, but far enough to disappear. Which was what he planned to do with Vanessa for the next few days.
Twenty minutes later, the forest thinned, and the Pacific Ocean shimmered in the distance. He slowed as he merged into another lane of traffic heading the same way.
When he turned onto Hemlock Street, the main drag of the small resort town of Cannon Beach, Vanessa tapped twice on his chest, right against the tattoo and scars etched across his heart. Shoulder checking, he pulled onto a side road with a few modest beach houses on either side. The road tapered off to a narrow, sandy path leading to the ocean.
He stopped and killed the engine. Turning halfway on his seat, he glanced over his shoulder at her. “You good?”
“It’s just—” She clambered off the bike, and he had to grab her elbow before she tripped over herself and toppled the bike along the way.
They’d have to work on dismounting.
Without waiting for him, she hurried toward the path. He kicked down his kickstand and jogged to catch up with her. As they crested the small hill on the path, the ocean grew wide and open.
“It’s beautiful,” she breathed.
It was. Especially at twilight. The water stretched in the distance until it collided with the hazy winter gray sky. Seemingly endless miles of empty, sandy beach spread out on either side. Haystack Rock sat like a king on a throne, a mile or so to their left.
Vanessa gaze remained fixed on the ocean. “San Francisco is so busy. The Bay Area is a mess of buildings and overcrowded beaches. Even in the off season, there’s always something in the distance distracting from the view. But this—”She lifted her hands, palms up, then let them drop to her sides. “I know people are around, but it’s so easy to pretend they aren’t.”
He stared down at her. They stood shoulder to shoulder. She wasn’t wearing her signature heels, so she appeared smaller, more innocent than she usually did when she was dressed up in her designer clothes and expensive shoes.
Her hair was in a loose braid, strands tugging free in the wind, the helmet still firmly planted on her head. And still, she was stunning. He couldn’t imagine a single version of her that wasn’t absolutely breathtaking.
He was so royally fucked.
“Come on.” He nudged her with his shoulder. “We should go.”
She glanced up at him. “Where are we going?”
He purposefully didn’t answer her as she trailed after him back to his bike. Moments like this, where he got to surprise someone in a positive way, were rare, and sharing this one with Vanessa was special.
This time, she slid onto the bike like she belonged there, hands settling around his waist without hesitation. No stiffness, no nerves. Just Vanessa, molded comfortably against his back like she had nowhere else she wanted to be. And it sent a bolt of heat right through his body…and heart.
And, God, he didn’t deserve it, but it was the best feeling in the world.
“You’re not telling me where we’re going?” she purred below his ear.
