Page 51 of Sparks Fly

Sawyer: You’re so fucking sexy when you’re honest.

Sawyer: Can’t wait to make you come apart.

I stared at the screen while my heart pounded and my skin felt overly sensitive, the feeling of being wanted and seen settling deeper than the alcohol ever could. I set the phone beside me but reread the last message twice before locking the screen.

My hand rested lightly on my stomach over the soft fabric of my dress. I didn’t move it any further because I didn’t need to.

You’re so fucking sexy when you’re honest.

I smiled to myself, flushed and wrecked in the best possible way, knowing I had no idea where any of this was going and wanting it anyway, messy and complicated and real.

* * *

17

Sawyer

Sunday mornings were for two things: good rides and no bullshit.

By ten I was already at the edge of the city with my helmet tucked under my arm and my boot braced against the curb of the gas station lot.

The air was cooler than it had been all summer. Sunlight cut through the trees in long streaks of gold while the leaves shifted overhead. A few had already started turning, patches of orange and red mixed in with the green.

Engines hummed around me, low and steady in a way that always felt familiar. Across the lot, Nina revved her bike like she had been vibrating with energy since dawn, her grin sharp and impatient, while Vic stood beside theirs gesturing wildly as they talked about something involving getting destroyed in Mario Kart by a ten-year-old. I shook my head and smiled despite myself.

Jay leaned against his matte black bike with a water bottle in his hand, calm as always, and nodded once when I rolled up beside him.

I took a slow breath and let the moment settle around me. The tension in my shoulders loosened a little as the familiar energy of the group settled in. This was why I came out every Sunday. For a few hours, all I had to worry about was the road.

Tasha jogged up with her helmet tucked under her arm and maps open on her phone.

“Where we headed?” I asked as I swung a leg over my bike.

“Up north,” Tasha called back as she glanced at the screen. “Amesbury for lunch, then down along the coast.”

I grinned. “ Sounds perfect, let’s go.”

We took off together, tires biting into pavement as engines rose in unison. The city disappeared behind us quickly. The steady pull of the road ahead. It was exactly what I needed.

We rolled into Amesbury just after one and pulled into the small gravel lot behind the diner we always stopped at. The place had peeling red paint and handwritten specials on a chalkboard outside.

I lingered beside my bike for a moment with adrenaline still humming through my arms before pulling out my phone and snapping a quick picture of the six bikes lined up beneath the trees, chrome catching the sunlight while shadows cut across the pavement.

Before I could overthink it, I typed a message.

Me: Next time you’re coming with us.

I hit send.

Her reply came faster than I expected.

Addison: I actually would really love that.

My mouth curved before I could stop it.

Me: Noted.

Me: could you be any more perfect?