“Want to burn his entire place down, Rebel?”
His eyes met mine when I turned, and I felt a rush of relief. “With you? Yes.”
Forty-Three
Rook
1Month Later
Regan climbed on my bike again, her toes straining to touch the ground. The R6 was the slightest amount slower than my normal bike, but it would have to work for now.
“I think you are forgetting that this thing could crush me if I fall over.”
“It won’t crush you if you don’t fall over, and I’m more concerned with you accidentally hitting the gas and launching yourself across the driveway.”
“Can’t I just ride with you? Evie said she doesn’t drive one.”
“No, but she knows how. There’s a big difference. I need to know that if everything goes wrong, you know how to not only defend yourself, but how to get away.” I held the bike as she adjusted herself on it for the thousandth time. I knew she had to be nervous, but it wouldn’t be hard to learn the basics.
“Why would I be leaving if you are still there?”
“How sweet, Rebel. I meant if I was dead.”
Her mouth dropped open, and she smacked at my hand. “Why would I leave, then?”
“So you don’t die, too. Can you please try to drive it down the driveway? It’s a long, straight line, Rebel. You will be fine.”
“Maybe we should go back to the bicycle. That felt safer.”
“That was so I could make sure you could keep upright on two wheels. You did great. Now go.”
She hit the bike into gear like I had shown her a hundred times already. I didn’t need it to be perfect, but I needed to know she could get out if I needed her to. As much as I loved her, my life wouldn’t be slowing down, and I knew there would be plenty of chances for this to be a possibility.
She pulled in the clutch, hit the bike into gear, and eased forward.
“Perfect, Rebel. You got it.” Finally, the clutch let out and she rolled down the road in first gear. I walked alongside her.
“I like this pace,” she breathed. “This feels nice.”
“This won’t get you away any faster than running would.”
“Maybe not, but I can’t run very far. Slow and steady would be better with this.”
“Or fast as hell, so you don’t get shot.” She huffed, glancing over at me and making the bike wobble. A scream escaped her. “Eyes on the where you are going. And I’m thinking of worst-case scenarios. Then I know no matter what, you will be safe. Now, clutch in again and shift it into second gear. We need you to get to third at the very least.”
“Why?”
“Because if you try to outrun anyone or anything in first gear, you are going to lift that front and crash. Get yourself into second at least.”
“I would prefer a scooter or something.”
“First, I will not be letting you ride a scooter with us. It wouldn’t even keep up,” I said, scrunching my nose. “And second, how the hell would that work? I tow it behind my bike in the rare case you need to get away without me?”
“I think that’s a great idea.”
I smacked her ass as she adjusted. “Go. I want you to hit thirty miles an hour at least, get to the end of the driveway and turn around, and then thirty again. You’re not getting off the bike until I know you can do it.”
“You are mean,” she said, picking up her pace.
