AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And be brave,” she finished for him. “I will.” Covering his hand with her own, she grinned. “You’re making me late, Law.”
“Heaven forbid,” he exclaimed, spinning away. “I can’t wait to hear every detail, Dr. Taylor.”
“I’m not the kind of girl to kiss and tell, Dr. Taylor, but you’ll be my first call either way.”
“I can conference Karen in. No need to hurt the poor girl’s feelings. We’re both your besties, I know.”
Mya was still laughing as she buckled her seat belt and started the car. She caught a glimpse of herself in the rearview mirror and paused, staring at the sparkling eyes and upturned lips that faced her.
“I remember you,” she said softly, then threw the car into Reverse and checked her mirrors before backing out of her spot.
Twenty-five minutes later, Mya was nervously standing at the end of the sidewalk in front of her house. Shifting her weight from foot to foot, she froze in place as soon as she heard the rumble of motorcycle pipes in the distance. The roar gradually grew louder, and Mya turned to face the direction she intuited Kade would come from. A moment later, she found out why the noise was so loud when four bikes swept around the corner at the end of the block. They were in an obvious formation, and she recognized Kade riding at the front of the staggered line configuration.
He angled towards the curb, the other bikes spreading out and coming into a single line behind him. Focused on Kade’s face, she didn’t pay attention to the other men. Behind the clear windscreen on his helmet, she could see his wide smile aimed directly at her. Mya gave him a little wave low, then mentally rolled her eyes at how dorky she was acting.
Shaking off her nerves, Mya strode to where Kade sat astride his idling bike.
“Hi.” She spun in a tidy circle. “Is this okay?”
“You look great, Mya. That’s perfect. Let’s get the helmet on, and I’ll show you how to ride behind me.” He made a gesture, then reached for the handlebars of his bike. The sound cut off suddenly, and Mya looked up as one of the other men approached. “That’s Torch. His old lady keeps a helmet at the clubhouse, so we’re gonna use that today.”
“Hey,” Torch said, handing Mya the helmet. “Glad you’re gonna be K-Man’s backpack today.” He turned and walked away, already talking to one of the other men.
“K-Man?” She studied the helmet for a moment before settling it on her head. Kade reached up and fastened the strap underneath her chin, then patted the top of her head.
“He’s an idiot, but we love him.” The smile Kade wore was muted but affectionate. “I think you’re set, honey.” He pointed down to the side of the bike. “Put your foot on that little peg and swing your leg over to get on behind me. Find the peg on the other side, then slide up close and hold on to my belt or around my waist.”
“Okay.” She rested a hand on the seat and leaned slightly to look down the other side, where she saw a matching footrest. “Got it.” Once she had both feet firmly on what he’d called a peg, she gripped his belt on either side. “Like this?”
Warmth wrapped around each of her calves, Kade’s hands curling and gripping. Then he tugged her knees out and up, and Mya slid across the supple leather of the motorcycle seat until she was wrapped directly around Kade’s hips.
“No, more like this.” His response was belated but threaded through with humor.
“Got it,” she told him, resettling her feet on the pegs. “And my hands?”
“Go ahead and wrap ’em around me, honey. Hang on tight. Once we’re underway, just move with me. This is an easy run, but don’t worry. I’ll take care.”
Mya leaned against his back and slid her hands around his waist, letting them overlap across his stomach. The bike rumbled to life underneath them, and Mya’s arms tightened in response, gripping tighter.
Kade turned his head slightly, and she could see the open-mouthed grin he wore. “Ready?” He called the question over his shoulder while making a gesture with his right hand. Mya nodded, and he made another gesture. Facing front, she saw him check his mirrors and did the same, seeing a thumbs-up from each man behind them.
The bike moved away from the curb slowly at first but picked up speed quickly.
It didn’t take long for Mya to appreciate Kade’s advice of wearing jeans and a jacket, because the wind whipping past would have been chilling otherwise. She realized Kade’s body blocked most of the wind, and she focused on staying tight against his back.
A couple of miles into the ride, the four of them met up with a much larger group. Kade maneuvered into a spot at the end of the existing line, the other riders falling into place beside and behind him. Mya peered forward over his shoulder and saw the double line of motorcycles stretched out quite a distance. There were probably forty or fifty bikes in total.
“Where are we going?” Mya shouted her question, unsure how loud she needed to be for Kade to hear her.
“It’s a charity run, so there are quite a few stops. The first one should be in about twenty minutes.” Kade took his left hand off the handlebar, and his palm curled around her calf. He gave her a squeeze that made her belly warm. Ignoring that. “How ya doin’, honey?”
“I’m good.” She tightened her grip on his waist, returning the squeeze.
“All right.”
He didn’t say anything else, which wasn’t surprising with the difficulty in holding a conversation with the wind rushing past, but his hand stayed on her leg. Kade’s palm slipped down and back up, the stroking motion firm and comforting.
At the final stop of the ride, which she’d found out was a fundraiser for a local family with a very sick child, Mya stretched her arms as Kade killed the bike’s engine. Gripping his shoulder, she stood on the pegs and swung off to the left side of the bike. He’d explained that to her at the first stop, showing how it kept her away from the hot exhaust pipes running down the other side of the bike.
