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He flipped his helmet’s visor up and held out the spare he’d brought for her. She gave him a dubious look.
“I’m getting the sense that ‘no’ is your default answer to everything.” It was an aggressive thing to say, but he wanted to know what made her tick.
“Nah, just everything you suggest. And I’m getting the sense that you’re an adrenaline junkie.”
“Maybe.” Definitely. If there was one thing left over from his time in the service, it was his need for excitement—the kind you only got from physical risk. “I get it, you don’t trust me. But I got you this far safely, didn’t I?” He was serious-as-could be, but Carissa laughed. “And I brought you safety gear.”
“You did.”
“And you ride racehorses for a living! It's not any more dangerous than that.”
“That can't possibly be true, not when you have to share the road with cars. For another thing, a racehorse’s top speed is about 45 miles per hour. What’s your motorcycle’s top speed?”
“Want me to show you? It’ll be fun.” He meant it. His Ducati Multistrada topped out at 270 kilometres per hour, not that he’d admit to getting it up that fast.
But Carissa’s mouth popped open and he knew what she was going to say, so he said it before she could. “Yeah, I know, ‘absolutely not.’ I promise I won’t scare you. We’ll just have fun.”
When Carissa stayed rooted to her spot, he twisted to pat the seat behind him. “C’mon Ladybug. Put the helmet and leathers on and mount up!”
She let out a long breath, and that’s when he knew he had her, even before she shrugged into his old leather jacket. It looked damn good on her, even though it was way too big and hid all her curves. Once she’d zipped it up, she pulled her hair out of its messy bun. For the briefest moment it cascaded around her shoulders, a mass of golden waves, but just as quickly she finger combed it into a low pony tail at the nape of her neck before jamming the helmet on over it.
“We’ve got helmet-to-helmet intercom,” he touched where the small device attached and she mirrored the gesture, “so we can talk or listen to music or whatever you’d like.”
“Christmas music?”
“Sure. Your wish is my command.” He pulled up the playlist on his phone and as the first song,Joy To The World, started, she placed her hands on his shoulders.
He hoped she couldn’t tell how he stiffened as she threaded her leg between him and all her luggage, settling into the seat behind him. It did things to him, having her hands on him again, but when her chest pressed to his back, it sent a zinging current of pleasure straight through him. Having her front, from breasts to thigh, snug against his back made him feel like he hadn't been touched in a million years. He might as well have never been with a woman, that’s how good, how exciting her body was to him. And with her luggage blocking the passenger grip bars, she had no choice but to hold onto him. The instant he realised that fact, she slipped her arms around his waist, gripping tight.
“Keep holding on like that, because that’s going to keep you on the bike.”
"You better not get me killed, Big Nick.”
“The important thing is you keep your centre of gravity matched to mine. I imagine in your line of work, you get plenty of practice with that.”
He started the engine and as it rumbled to life, she grabbed him even harder, crushing herself to him. “How far is it?”
“About forty minutes.”
He took it slow through the airport, so she could get used to the feeling of riding the motorcycle and he could calibrate to the added weight. As she eased into him, he edged the speed a bit higher, loving the feel of her making adjustments as he shifted his position to follow the curve of the roundabout.
From there it was a short ride at relatively slow speeds to get out to Tamworth Road, which would take them north to Bindarra Creek. He stopped at the turn off, putting his feet down to balance while he checked on Carissa. “You doing all right? Having fun?”
“Sure. It’s fine.”
“Good, because now we get to really ride.” He hoped she could hear his smile, even if she couldn’t see it. “And don’t worry. I’ll be careful with you.” And then he opened up the throttle.
5
PLEASE DON’T HURRY
Carissa wasn’t sure if she was laughing or screaming. All she knew for certain was that she was clutching to Lachlan for dear life as he sped out onto the narrow highway and they flew down the road.
“Too fast!” She couldn’t hold onto him any tighter, and ordinarily she would never cling so hard to anyone, let alone a stranger.
“Yeah, but nah. I’m going the speed limit, Ladybug.”
“What’s that? A hundred miles per hour?”
