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Braeden put a hand to her forehead and pretended to swoon. “Be still, my heart. A man who fixes things makes me all aflutter.”

Janae snorted at her sister’s antics. “You have two days.”

“Bet,” Braeden replied. “I actually do have business in Atlanta, but I figured I’d come by and see you today and tomorrow and then head back up to handle some things. I’ll be back after to spend time with you, so don’t even think about trying to escape.”

Janae sighed and shook her head with a smile. “Wouldn’t dream of it. I do have plans today though, if you want to tag along.”

“Hell no,” Braeden said with a smile. “I’m going to get out of this bra and sleep for, like, five hours. Wake me up for dinner.” She gave Janae a smacking kiss on her cheek before calling out to Aiden and following his previous path to the hallway.

Janae stood there for a moment, just breathing deeply. Despite her jokes, she was happy to see her sister. And she knew if Braeden said she was going to sleep, she really would be passed out for hours with her ear plugs in and a sleep mask on her face. It meant she didn’t feel bad about continuing with her own plans. She walked over to the bathroom to talk to Aiden.

“Hey, Braeden is going to be napping for a good long while so I’m going to head out to the farm to check out their pumpkins. Do you need anything?”

He shook his head. “Nah. I surprisingly have the day off, so I’ll probably just chill. Have fun though.” He hesitated for a moment before leaning in farther and brushing his lips over her cheek. The feeling sent warmth blazing down her body, but Aiden had moved and gone before she could recover enough to say anything. With a hard swallow, Janae left through the back door, closing it carefully behind her as she headed to her car.

It was in her car that Aiden found her fifteen minutes later. She watched him as he walked over to her. She got out just as he reached the driver’s side door.

“What’s wrong? I thought you were headed out?”

She nodded before sighing. “I was, but my car won’t start.”

“Oh. Well, good thing you have your friendly neighborhood mechanic onsite already. Let me take a look at it.”

Janae looked at her watch. She wasn’t sure if it would be a quick fix and she didn’t want to throw her plans off too much. Joseph, one of the co-owners of Taylor’s Organic Farm wasn’t exactly a stickler for time, but it was getting darker earlier every day and Janae didn’t want to be gone too late even if it was Saturday. She watched Aiden lift the hood and take a look. What he was looking for, she had no idea. She had never bothered to learn much more car maintenance than how to change her tire. Her best plan of attack would be to call AAA and get a tow to someone who understood what the mass of gray cylinders and blocks meant.

“What do you think is wrong?”

Aiden shook his head and stood up. “Did the car make a noise when starting it? Did it start at all? I wasn’t listening, so I didn’t hear if you got the engine to turn over or not.”

Janae frowned as she thought. “It didn’t want to start at first, then it almost did but made some weird tut-tut noise before failing again.”

Aiden nodded. “Sounds like a dead spark plug, but I need to bring your car to the shop to check and see.”

“Oh. Crap,” she said. “I have an appointment at Taylor’s Farm to finalize this pumpkin order for the school’s fundraiser. How long do you think it would take to diagnose and fix?”

Aiden winced before shrugging. “Well, I’d need to call Vini to bring the tow truck, get the car to the shop and then . . . Yeah, longer than you have.” Janae’s expression fell. All of that sounded like an afternoon gone to waste. “How about this. I’ll call Vini to come tow you and ask her for a favor to check your car. Then I’ll give you a ride out to Taylor’s. I’ve been there plenty of times, so I know exactly where it is. There’s even a nice little coffee shop going out that way.”

Janae raised her eyebrows in surprise. “You know about that café? I’ve never seen you there before.”

“I don’t get to go often, but the apple cider donuts are heaven in your mouth.” His smile widened and he looked away for a moment before looking back at her. “Have you ever been on a motorcycle?”

Janae frowned for a moment before her eyes widened. “Wait . . . you’re not suggesting we get on that crotch rocket, are you? How do you even balance on that thing without falling right off?”

Aiden laughed before holding out a hand. “It’s a Harley, Janae.” The corners of his mouth twitched. “And besides, you’d be surprised what I can balance on there. We’ll take it real slow so we can enjoy the scenery.”

She had more protests, but all of them faded away when he took his hand in hers. Without thinking, she followed him around the house, thoughts still scattering like fallen leaves on the breeze until the next thing she knew, she was seated behind him on the bike, a helmet strap clasped below her chin. Aiden looked over his shoulder and grinned at her.

“Don’t be nervous. I promise I’ll go slow.”

“That’s what everyone says before they end up on the news,” she muttered, making him laugh. When he turned the bike on and the seat below her started vibrating, she let out a yelp and wrapped her arms around him, gripping the front of his jacket tightly.

Her stomach fluttered as she realized she was pressed tightly against his back. Like this, she could smell his cologne and feel his muscles expand and contract with each breath. It was a lot like last night when they’d lain together, chests rising and falling as they caught their breath.

When the bike moved below her, she jerked in place. Aiden turned his head slightly as he walked the bike backward. When he spoke, his voice was low and teasing. “You okay back there?”

“Fine,” she replied quickly, though her pulse was ratcheting furiously. “Don’t forget what you said about going slow.”

“You can trust me.” Even in his teasing tone, the words hit Janae square in the chest as she realized that wasn’t even a question. She did trust him. “Hold on tight and feel free to lean on me if you get scared.”