A childlike grin slowly stretches across his face. My breath hitches at the sight.He can’t get any more gorgeous.
‘And what do you think?’
‘I think you have a death wish!’ I laugh, placing my hand over my poor heart. ‘But I see why you do it.’
‘Why?’ He throws one last rock before turning to me.
‘You get to feel free.’
He nods in approval. ‘See down there?’ He jerks his chin to the lights below. ‘All those people. All those stories. Most of them follow the same routine every day. They’ve forgotten what it feels like to live, how lucky we are to breathe, to experience how fun life can be. They’re too worried about something they can’t change, or something that hasn’t even happened yet. We’re not promised tomorrow, so we have to take chances and press our luck every day.’ He pauses before looking right into what feels like my soul. ‘I know you’re like this, Gianna. We’re the same. You question the things that are so easily accepted by others. And you can go beyond only questioning. You don’t have to live the life that others want from you. You can do what you want. You’ve got fire. Don’t ever lose that.’
I feel the heat rise to my cheeks. Ma hates how I always question things. ‘My fire’s probably just one of my many red flags.’
He lifts a shoulder and scrunches his nose. ‘Life’s about seeing how red the flag can get. It’s kind of like a car in that way. You have to take it to the red line to see what it can do.’
I frown. ‘What’s a red line?’
He hums thoughtfully. ‘You know at the speedway yesterday, how the truck struggled when you took it up a gear before it was ready?’
I nod and he continues. ‘A red line is the opposite. It’s like a warning when an engine is reaching its limit. It’ll scream and howl, begging for you to either change gears or pull back completely.’ He scoffs. ‘See, even a machine thinks it’s got a cap on what it can do. But if you know it well, you can push it a little further, and instead of a limit you’vegot freedom. We’ve all got a lot more to give than we think, and sometimes, we don’t realise until we’re pushed.’
Ryker’s eyes lock on mine and his fingertips trace down my cheek and across my jaw. He leans in close, so close I feel his breath across my face.
‘You’re not caged, Little Suspect.’ He smiles. ‘Not if you don’t want to be.’
His lips brush against mine, as if testing the waters, and when I close my eyes, he comes crashing in. His mouth claims mine and my body shivers as his hand wraps around the nape of my neck.
My fingers trail up his body, feeling every hard muscle before my nails bite into the leather. He sucks and nibbles at my lower lip and my body completely gives in to him. I melt into his arms, and I’m sure if he wasn’t holding me, I’d be a puddle on the ground. My lips part in a whimper as his tongue skims their seam. He pulls back, only a fraction. He’s still close enough that our lips graze.
‘You taste like the sweetest lemons I’ve ever had,’ he groans against me.
I feel his smile and he kisses me. His hot, relentless tongue swirls around mine and that fleeting feeling of leaping over the edge feels as if it’s becoming a reality.
I’m lost. I’m falling. I’m flying.
I’m his.
I’m completely sucked in by everything that is Ryker. His strong and powerful hands holding me captive. And his lips, these damn gorgeous lips. I’m addicted. An annoying thought nags at the back of my mind that this is wrong and I push it away.
I won’t let anything ruin this.
My body tingles straight to my core. Never in my dreams did I think Ryker Edwards would kiss me like I’m the oxygen he needs to breathe. We break away, both sucking in air. His eyes travel across my face, and then there’s that smile again.
‘Let me call the guys and tell them to meet us.’ He pulls out his phone, and I squint at the bright light. The faint sound of a ringtone sounds until it hits voicemail. He tries a few more times, getting Tyler’s, Renny’s and my brother’s message banks.
‘Hmm.’ He frowns. ‘You heard from Monz?’
I shake my head. ‘My phone’s in her car.’
He clicks his tongue a few times, tapping his phone against his chin before pocketing it.
‘Come on.’ He links his fingers back with mine. ‘The plan was to be at The Tropics for a quick race or two and then go to Lucifer’s Dream. I don’t see a reason to veer from that plan.’ He waggles his eyebrows.
Unsure, I purse my lips. ‘ButIwas never part of that plan.’
‘Maybe, but you’ve gotta be adaptable. Plans always change.’ He shrugs. ‘What do you say? We could go, check out the Tropics for a bit, maybe even watch Jace race, then head to the carnival.’
Back at his bike, I snatch up the helmet, feeling high on life.
