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“How did you even hear me?” She grabbed his outstretched hand and allowed him to draw her close.
“Don’t you know by now, baby?” He kissed her for a good thirty seconds. “I know all.”
With a snort, Toni followed him out of the diner. Arrogant man. Of course, he had the goods to back it all up, but still…
He snatched the diner’s keys out of her hand and secured the building. He had a thing about being the one to lock the house if they left together and the diner when he was taking her home, which was pretty much all the time. Said if he wasn’t the one to lock it, he stressed over whether or not it was done properly. Not that he didn’t trust her to take care of it, it was just a thing for him.
So, she indulged his quirk and let him lock the doors. Such a small concession for his peace of mind.
“Where’re we going?” Toni asked, accepting her helmet.
“Foothills Parkway.” After another kiss, Zach straddled the bike and waited for her to climb on.
“My favorite.”
“I know.”
“I forgot to tell you,” Toni said as she swung her leg over the bike. “I received an envelope from Mark in the mail today. On the back it said not to open it unless you were with me.”
“Huh. Guess we’ll open it when we get there.” Zach sounded almost disinterested in whatever it was she’d received from her uncle, but Toni got the impression that wasn’t actually the case. It sounded more like he already knew what they’d find when they opened the package.
What were those two up to?
She settled in behind him and took a moment to enjoy the feel of Zach in the circle of her arms. The strength of his firm back and shoulders. The hills and valleys of his abs beneath her fingertips. The smooth feel and earthy smell of his leather cut. Combine it all with the power and rumble of the bike between her thighs and it was a sensory experience to be savored.
As Zach maneuvered the motorcycle through town and out onto the Foothills Parkway, the view changed from storefronts and businesses to the gorgeous scenes mother nature gifted the area.
The farther from town they rode, the more a feeling of peace spread through Toni. There were a few weeks in there that she’d worried she’d never climb out of the darkness that had slowly enveloped her after she killed Shark. It had only been within the last seven days that she’d been able to sleep through the night without nightmares and stopped experiencing a heavy, almost suffocating, sense of guilt throughout the day.
There was no blowback on the club, or her. The Handlers saw to it that the evidence would never lead back to them, so she hadn’t really been worried about any legal repercussions. Taking a life in and of itself had messed with her head in a way she never saw coming. Even though there was a good chance she’d saved not only her own life, but Maverick’s and Stephanie’s as well, it had been hard to move past.
Zach was amazing. Patient when she needed to talk it out. Calming in the middle of the night when she woke up shouting and gasping for breath. Tolerant when she just needed some space to process. He’d been the epitome of a gentleman, except in bed where he tended to be more of an animal.
Just how she liked it.
After about forty-five minutes, Zach pulled off to an overlook they’d yet to visit. Viewing the sunset from different locations had become their thing over the past few weeks. This was a new one.
“Just in time,” Zach said as he dismounted and helped her remove her helmet.
The giant auburn glowing orb was just hitting the horizon line.
“Wow,” she said as she grabbed Mark’s letter and walked away from the bike. “It’s beautiful tonight.”
Zach sat on the ground with his knees bent, legs spread. He snagged her and drew her down between his thighs. “Sure is,” he said. “Second most beautiful thing here.”
She leaned back against him, loving his strong arms around her. “Quite the silver tongue you have there.”
“Damn straight. But that shouldn’t be news to you.” He tightened his hold on her and ran his tongue up the side of her neck.
Toni shivered and snuggled deeper in his embrace. With the altitude and setting sun, the air held a chill. “No, it’s not. I’ve been a fan of your tongue for a while now.”
“You know what day it is?” Zach brushed his nose along the shell of her ear.
“Yes, it’s Wednesday. Why?”
He chuckled. “It is Wednesday, that’s true. It also would have been the first day of school for you.”
“Oh, wow. I can’t believe I didn’t realize it. Guess someone’s been keeping me distracted.” How different her life was from the first day of school last year. Night and day. “I’m so glad I stayed,” she whispered.
