I wonder why he downgraded in bikes. Maybe he didn’t have the money to fix the one he wrecked. He looks out of place on such a small, beat up bike.
“Are we almost there, Mama?” Charlie calls from the back seat after what seems like hours of silence, and it startles me a bit.
I chuckle. “I have no idea, babe. I’m following the guy in front of us.”
We drive down back roads and roads I didn’t even know existed before we are traveling down a deserted dirt road. We are so far away from the house now that I don’t even know where we are anymore. I watch as he rubs his left knee every so often, kneading into the muscle. He had a limp earlier, too, so his knee must be giving him issues.
He probably needs a break to stretch, and we are far enough away now that my panic has settled down a bit. I beep my horn to grab his attention, and he begins to pull off to the side of the road.
Before getting out of the car, I reach behind my seat and grab my go bag. I take the gauze from my bag and get out of the car..
He is already off his bike and walking my way by the time I grab my door handle. “What’s wrong?” he asks as soon as I'm out of the vehicle.
I reach my hand out and hand him the pouch.
“What the hell is that?” he raises his brow.
“It’s a dressing for your leg.” I inch it closer to him.
“Why the heck do I need that?”
I point down to his knee. “Because your knee hurts and this will help it feel a little better.”
He looks down where I’m pointing and then scrunches his brow. “How do you know my knee hurts?”
I shrug as we walk toward his bike. It looks even worse for wear the closer I get to it. He leans against his bike and pulls outa cigarette.God, I haven’t had one of those in so many years. I still crave them.He sees me watching him as he places it in his mouth and lights it.
Then he holds it out to me butt first. “Want a drag?”
I shake my head and sink to one knee as I unravel the wrap and place it on his leg. When I look up to make sure I am not hurting him, the gaze that meets mine is smoldering. His mouth is hung partly open, his eyes are half closed, and he looks like he wants to eat me for breakfast.
My mouth is suddenly dry, and it’s hard to speak. I shift my eyes to my hand and attempt to focus on wrapping his knee tight enough. Once I see that it is going to stay, I clear my throat and stand. “There, that should be okay until you are ready to ride again.”
I chance a look at his face, and he still looks like he wants to devour me. “Trust me, Crash, I’m always ready to ride.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “Crash?”
He smirks. “Yes, that’s the new nickname I’ve given you.”
“Why the hell is it that?”
“Because you almost crashed into me twice now! I think the name is fitting.” He shifts his body and the gauze starts to slide. I quickly grab it before it falls to the ground, but he does the same and now our hands are touching. I try to pull mine back fast, but he grasps my wrist and pulls me closer to him. “Do you not like your nickname,Crash?” His face is only inches from mine.
I shake my head. “It’s fine. It doesn’t matter anyway.” I try my best to pull my wrist from his grip, but it’s no use.No one has ever given me a nickname before. Not one that I actually could stand, anyway.I kind of like the way his smirk on his face inches higher at my annoyed tone.
Reluctantly, he frees me as his smirk turns into a slight frown. and I take a couple of steps backward to put space between us, but then I notice the gauze slipping even further down his knee.
Without thinking, I drop back down to my knees in front of him, pressing my hands gently against his leg as I carefully tape the wrap back into place.
His breath hitches
The warmth of his skin seeps through the bandage, and I’m painfully aware of how close we are—of the way his eyes follow my every movement. My fingers brush against his knee as I secure the last piece of tape, my pulse hammering in my ears.
“There,” I murmur, finally looking up at him.
Something dark flickers in his gaze, something unreadable. My stomach twists.
I clear my throat and quickly push to my feet. He watches me for second longer before he turns his hat backward, smirk returning. “Thank you for the compress. We’re almost to where we’re going, so just continue following me.”
