His dark eyes locked on me. His lips curve into that maddening smirk. The thought sends a jolt of heat through me, my pulse racing faster than the bike beneath me. We hit a stretch of open road, the city giving way to the industrial outskirts. The commuter train tracks loom ahead, the crossing arms beginning to lower.
The black rider surges forward.
I match him. The need to win, or at least not lose, overrides all common sense. The train’s horn blares. Its headlights pierce through the darkness.
I don’t slow down.
My heart slams against my ribs as I lean forward, the world narrowing to the stretch of track ahead. The train barrels closer. I blast past it with seconds to spare, the heat melting into my leathers. The rumble of its engine is deafening to my ears.
I glance back, breathless and alive, only to see the black rider on the other side of the train, separated from me by the speeding metal behemoth. His silhouette is a shadow, his bike idling as the railcars blast by.
My blood sings with the thrill of it.
My body is alight with adrenaline.
And something darker.
When the train finally passes, he’s gone, swallowed by the night. I sit there, the engine of my bike purring beneath me, my chest heaving as I suck in the air. My skin tingles, my heart pounds, and I feel more alive than I have in months. Years, maybe.
5
DIEGO
Pure, unfiltered chaos. The first mixer is already a full-blown rager with more alcohol and people than the off-campus house can hold, despite its massive size. Emilio stands on the diving board, waving a bottle of whiskey in the air as he screams lyrics to some god-awful remix blaring from the speakers.
His dick swings between his legs for all the world to see without a damn care in that empty head. His babysitting brother is nowhere in sight, or he’d at least have some trunks or underwear on.
The pool glows neon blue, littered with plastic cups, more naked people, and a rogue pool float that bobs along, trying to escape the germ-infested madness.
Dom is perched on the retaining wall by the fire pit with his usual exasperated expression. I grab a beer from a nearby cooler and make my way over, shaking my head as Holli saunters past. His arm is slung around some topless, well-endowed girl. A whiskey glass dangles from his other hand, sloshing over the rim as he climbs the stairs to the balcony.
“Where the hell is he going?” I mutter, dropping onto the retaining wall beside Dom.
“Probably to ‘show her the view.’”
His voice is loaded with sarcasm as he drags from the joint. It’s not the smartest idea to smoke weed and ride bikes, but if anyone can keep it under control, it’s Dom.
Honestly, if he didn’t have his medley of vices, he’d probably kill a guy just for the release. He chases it with a slow sip of his drink, his gaze fixed on Emilio, who’s now attempting to backflip off the diving board.
Emilio leaps, his legs curling into a sloppy cannonball midair before he crashes into the water, sending a tidal wave over the pool’s edge. The crowd in the pool erupts in cheers. Some swim toward him while others stand around the pool, laughing and filming the chaos.
“That’s going viral tomorrow.”
I tip my beer toward the soaking wet crowd.
“Viral for all the wrong reasons,” Dom mutters, rubbing his temples like he already has a headache before taking another drag. “I don’t get how the twins haven’t been banned from hosting parties yet. This is a nice ass neighborhood.”
“They’re too rich to ban. Their dad pays for the guard shack at the front gate for the neighborhood,” I point out, taking a swig of my beer, both of us watching this hot Latina undressing by a pool lounger. “According to Emilio, they’re creating memories. Stupid, drunken memories if you ask me.”
“Memories that usually end with an ambulance or the cops.”
“Or both.”
I laugh, leaning back against the wall and watching the naked chick slip into the pool. After seeing her goods on full display, a couple of guys swim her way.
“Remember the time Em tried to light that firework while holding it? Thought he was going to lose a hand.”
“And instead, he just lost his eyebrows,” Dom says, shaking his head and dragging the last bit from his joint before flicking it into the fire.
