Next to me, if Maverick was bothered by any of it, he didn’t show it. In fact, he seemed quite content to just lie there in the dirt and watch the clouds. Who knew? Maybe he was.
Or maybe I’d killed him when his head hit the ground.I scrutinized him closely, looking for some sign that I’d killed my only real friend. That stupid, happy grin on his face when he glanced at me told me he was just fine. It also made my stomach do a ridiculous flip, but we weren’t going to talk about that.
“Do you think we should wear helmets?” I asked.
“Do you plan on killing us?” Maverick shot back.
“No!”
“Then you’ll do better,” he said as he sat up. The words came so simply out of his mouth that I laughed, the sound high-pitched and a little pathetic. He said it like the task was easy, like I could just flip a switch and we’d be fine. He whispered, “Deep breath, princess. I trust you.”
Sitting up, I stared long and hard at him, trying to judge his sanity.
“That’s a dumb idea,” I informed him and enjoyed how he laughed all over again.
My heart pounded wildly as the rush of wind tugged on my clothes. The engine vibrated between my thighs, sending a cascade of sensations over my nerves that I couldn’t quite describe.
Not that I wanted to.I reveled in the rolling waves it offered. They soothed the ever-present anxiety in unexpected ways, smoothing out the barbed wire in my chest that was usually wound so tight that I could barely breathe. For once, my thoughts weren’t chasing each other in endless circles. They were quiet and drowned out by the roar of the bike along the open stretch of road ahead of me.
I chased that high as I sped after Maverick, the distance between us stretching as his expertise made it easier for him to ride. A bubbling laugh spilled out of me, a mixture of excitement and relief. This was reckless and exhilarating—a thing I didn’t know I needed.
I wasn’t thinking about expectations or consequences or the weight of everything waiting for me at home. Out here, nothing was holding me down.
For the first time in my life, I felt free.
CHAPTER 07
maverick
The smile on his face was easy. Carefree. Simple.
For the first time in his life, I had a feeling that Harley was actually happy. Like the real kind of happy that wasn’t forced or practiced. He was covered in dirt and sand with scrapes on his elbows and forearms from tumbling off the bike. There was a smudge of mud on his cheek, and his wind-blown hair had him looking a little bit feral. I liked him like this, and seeing himlike this felt like being privy to something special—something he refused to give to the world.
It had me feeling a kind of way that I couldn’t quite explain.Not that I was trying real hard.I was too busy watching Harley practically splash through the lake, wet and beaming. We’d taken dirt tracks through the forest—not my best idea after he hit a branch and damn near killed himself—and followed them to my favorite spot by the beach. There were a lot of commercialized, touristy beach spots meant for swimming and family pictures. The spot I went to was ignored because its jagged rocks, low cliff peaks, and quick drops in water depth made it unsafe.
I didn’t mind. I found peace here. And clearly, so did Harley from the way he grinned as he walked toward me.
“You act like you’ve never been in water,” I commented. He shook his head, sending water flying everywhere, and I made a face when I got hit with droplets.
“I haven’t,” he said. The words were so casual, as if he meant it. I scrutinized him, unable to tell if he was serious or not.
“You’re fucking with me.”
“I’m not.”
“We live on a lake!” I exclaimed. Everything in Wilde Bay was water-themed, and we even had entire festivals dedicated to the goddamn lake. “We’re in a lake town!”
“I know! I don’t know how to swim.”
“Okay, well, maybe you shouldn’t go in the water again,” I said quickly and ushered him closer. I didn’t need one of the hidden drops to catch him off guard. Sure, I knew how to swim, and I was fairly certain I could save him, but I didn’t want to tempt fate. “Get your ass over here—sit! No more water for you. Jesus fuck. I can’t have your dumbass drowning. I’d go to jail.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” Harley dismissed with a roll of his eyes. He dropped down next to me and let out a content sigh. Moresand clung to him, sticking to the water that soaked his clothes. He was a mess—a really attractive mess. “My mother… she has rules about everything. And swimming isn’t graceful or useful or something about how we don’t tromp through the water like an elephant.”
I snorted because that was a dumb thing to say.
“My brother has rules,” I offered up. And then I found myself saying something I hadn’t told anyone aloud. “All his rules come down to how much he can control me… he’s always had control over me.”
And I hated it.Even admitting it made my stomach turn.
