6. Santiago
SANTIAGO
“Fucking hell, you ride a Ducati?”
Walking ahead of me, Ariyan placed his hand on his bike, slowly smoothing it down from the fuel tank to the black leather seat.
“Nice, isn’t it?” He glanced at me over his shoulder.
“Nice?” I got closer. “It’s gorgeous. Didn’t think you were a rider, though.”
“Is that so?”
Rubbing my hand over my jaw, I nodded. “Thought you’d drive a Lambo or some shit.”
“Not my style. Here—” He tossed me a helmet, and I caught it. “—put this on.”
“What about you?” I asked, noticing there was only one.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Nah.” I clicked my tongue, handing it back to him. “Ain’t no way we’re risking that pretty face of yours.”
He looked at me, one brow raised, before taking the helmet.
“Suit yourself.”
He put it on, and as he did, I took another minute to appreciate his bike.
“Red, though? I thought you’d go with white.”
Mounting his sweet bike, Ariyan turned the engine on, and the beast roared to life, the sound echoing around the parking lot like the belly of a hungry beast.
“There’s always an exception.” He nudged the helmet’s glass shield up, amber eyes locking with mine. “Besides, a bike should only ever come in red.”
“I wouldn’t know. I ride the fucking bus.”
Snorting a laugh, he cocked his head. “Come on, let’s go.”
I couldn’t have moved faster, practically running to get behind him.
“Ever been on one before?” he asked once I sat down.
“Does a scooter count?”
He grabbed my hands and wrapped them around his waist.
“You tell me.”
Next thing I knew, he kicked into gear, and the bike sped forward, accelerating from zero to a hundred in seconds. I held on to him tighter, shocked at the speed at which he rode.
“Holy shit, man,” I gasped, about to shit my pants from how fast we were racing.
Saying nothing, Ariyan got us out of the parking lot and into the street, where he continued maneuvering between cars like it was a video game, his hand milking the throttle to the end.
The bike’s engine roared in my ears, together with the whoosh of the wind that messed up my hair.
He was riding at the speed of light, so fast I’d never felt anything like it.
We were reaching a crossroad when the light was about to turn red. I thought he’d slow down, but the opposite happened. My eyes widened with shock as we approached the crossroad at full speed, fear clenching my throat at the moving cars.
“Watch out—” I gasped, gripping him harder.
Positive we’d crash, I squeezed my eyes shut, prepared for impact, when all that came was a string of honks. Shocked, I opened my eyes and glanced back at the receding crossroad, wondering how the fuck we were still alive.
My heart was racing, breath hitching as adrenaline surged through my blood like a drug. It suddenly brought me back to the ring and how I felt before a fight. It was pure rush, pumping my body with excitement, fear, and thirst. Thirst for blood, or in this case, whatever this feeling was.
Trying to push those thoughts out of my head, I looked down to see the barely there space between Ariyan and me.
Taking advantage of the situation, I bit my lip and slid closer until I was pressed to his back, my hands clenching his narrow hips while my mind filled with thoughts of fucking him.
The idea of having his hole dripping with my cum made me a bit excited, enough for my pants to feel slightly tighter.
“Enjoying yourself, are you, Mr. Rivas?”
I scootched closer, not shying away from the semi I was packing. “What makes you say that?”
Shaking his head, Ariyan’s shoulders moved with a slight laugh, and he continued riding like a motherfucking maniac. Although I’d give it to him—he was good. Very good. And all I could think about was if he rode this monster so well, how amazing would he ride my cock?
* * *
“Is this the right place?” he asked as he parked the bike across the street from the bar.
“Yeah.”
Once he killed the engine, I got off.
“Thanks,” I said, running a hand through my messed-up hair.
Ariyan took off his helmet and placed it on the gas tank. “It’s the least I could do after the way you helped me out today.”
“I mean, you’re the boss.”
His lips formed that mysterious little smile again. “If you don’t mind me asking… who are you meeting in this—”
“Shithole?” I offered.
“I would have picked a different choice of words, but yes.”
This area was where people like me came to get fucked-up, with cheap bars and bad crowds.
It sure didn’t look as glamorous as the Kallos, with its beachfront views, palm trees, and infinity pool.
Here, all you had were plastic chairs, run-of-the-mill clubs, and a hell of a lot of trouble.
Truthfully, I was annoyed I’d dragged Ariyan to such a dark place to begin with.
Looking at him, sitting on this gorgeous bike while wearing a neat white suit, he sure didn’t fit the slums.
I poked the inside of my cheek and looked around, my eyes pinning on a bar across the street with an open terrace. I spotted Nacio in seconds, sitting at a table between Ace and Ricky, among the other trash I used to hang with.
Fuck.
“I came to pick up my brother,” I said, eyes still on him. He was just offered a shot of tequila, and the idiot took it. Just seeing Ace’s arm draped over Nacio’s shoulder, the ugly grin on his pale face, pissed me the fuck off, making my muscles turn rigid.
I always hated that hijo de puta.
“Are you close to your brother?”
Ariyan’s sweet voice burst into my thoughts, and I glanced at him.
“I am.”
“Is he the one with the red hair?”
I grimaced. “Hell no. That dick-face’s name is Ace.”
“Ace?”
“His real name’s Montgomery. He goes by Ace, thinking it sounds scary. What a dumbass.”
“I see.” He hummed. “Your brother, how old is he?”
“Nineteen.”
“How young…” Ariyan turned his head to look at the bar, where they were still partying like morons. “And I take it he’s mixing with the wrong crowd?”
“You bet.”
“Isn’t that the nature of being young, though?” He returned his eyes to me, leaving me baffled by their intensity.
“Stupidity?” I huffed.
“Making mistakes.” He clarified with a small smile. “Didn’t you make any mistakes while you were his age, Mr. Rivas?”
That made me snort, because I sure as fuck did. Looking down at the ground, I kicked some dirt. “How do you think I ended up in prison, huh?”
Just thinking about that night over three years ago made my gut turn. I wanted to blame it all on Ace and Ricky, saying they pulled me into that mess with the robbery and all, but I knew it was bullshit. That night, it was all my fault. They, as loud as they were, were just background noise.
“I see why you’re worried, then,” Ariyan said, pulling me back.
I lifted my gaze to see him staring at me, and the look in his eyes somehow reached my soul. I’d never felt such a strong attraction to a person while knowing so little of them, and yet Ariyan had that effect on me. At times, it felt more like a spell than an attraction.
Silence followed his words, and I struggled to think of a way to make him stay. I knew I needed to go in there and fetch Nacio, but my body ached to spend more time near Ariyan. But then, a burst of laughter coming from the bar interrupted it, and I knew it was time.
“Thanks for the ride,” I said, forcing a smile that Ariyan returned.
“Of course.” He glanced back at the bar, his stare locking in on the men sitting there. “Be careful, okay? I expect to see you at work first thing tomorrow morning.”
His words made my chest slightly tighter, and I nodded. “Count on me, boss.”
He replied with a smile, then put on his helmet. The bike’s headlight lit up the dark street, the roaring sound mixing with the noise coming from the nearby bars, and then he drove away, out of this place that didn’t at all suit him. I watched him until he was gone and then let out a deep sigh.
There we go.
“So it’s true.” Ace giggled as soon as he saw me walking in. “You really are out. Tell us, Santi, how long were you in for? Two? Three years?”
Ignoring his remark, I focused on my brother.
“Vamos, Nacio.”
“Ace was about to order more booze—”
“I said, let’s go,” I repeated louder in Spanish.
Nacio cursed under his breath and started to get up, but Ace slammed his hand on his shoulder, keeping him down.
“Why the rush?” Ace snarled.
I glanced at his hand that was placed on my brother’s shoulder, my jaw going rigid before I moved over there, not giving a shit about the whispering around the table.
Pushing Ace’s hand away, I then clenched Nacio’s shirt in my fist and forced him up.
The plastic chair he sat on fell back to the sound of Ace clicking his tongue.
“You should have told me you were out sooner,” he said, reaching for a new bottle of booze. “If I knew, I’d’ve invited you to hang, yeah?”
Ignoring him, I nudged Nacio to move.
“Let’s go—”
“Not so fast,” Ace said as he got up and stretched his lanky body.
My eyes locked with his, pure rage steaming through my veins.
“The fuck you want, Ace?”
He flashed me a big smile that showed off his rotten teeth.
Everyone knows he’s an addict.
“Is that the way you treat your friend?”
“You wanna get beat up again? Was one time not enough?” I challenged him, voice low.
He walked closer, pulling up his shirt to reveal the gun tucked in his pants before covering it again. “I’d be careful with my words if I were you.”
I bit my lip, trying hard not to bust his head open.
“So, Nacio, give me a call, yeah?” Ace winked in my brother’s direction. “I’ll hook you up with some easy gigs.”
My blood was just about to boil.
“Call him, and I’ll fucking kill you,” I hissed through gritted teeth, meaning every word.
Ace’s eyes widened before they zoomed in on me.
“Hey now, we’re all friends here, aren’t we?”
I didn’t bother to reply. Pushing Nacio, I forced him to move his stupid ass faster.
“The fuck’s your problem, Santi?” my brother whined the second we were out of that nasty place.
In return, I smacked the back of his head.
“You’re my fucking problem,” I barked while he rubbed the spot I hit him. “Now, keep on walking. I wanna get home and take a fucking shower.”
“Fuck you, Santi. You can’t tell me what to fuckin’ do.”
I stopped and turned to face him.
“What didja say to me?”
His jaw tensed. “I said, fuck you. I’m not a kid. I don’t need you babysittin’ me.”
“Oh, really?” Grabbing his jaw, I squeezed it tight. “’Cause you sure act like one.”
“You’re the one who told me to earn my own money!” he shouted as he tried to free himself. “F-fuck.”
I gripped him tighter until he winced, then pulled him close so we were an inch apart. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re that stupid or just pretending to be.” I shoved him away, and he stumbled back.
“Well, sorry for not wanting my girl to break up with me for being a broke loser.”
My brows pulled close. “So you’re doing this shit for her?”
“Yes. No, fuck.” His face twisted. “I did it cause I hate being so fuckin’ lame. I wanna be able to buy shit without begging for it.”
“So you go to that fucker Ace?” I hissed, anger steaming through my voice.
“You did the same!”
“I ended up in prison, you dumb fuck!” I screamed, not giving a shit we were still out in the street. “Is that what you want for yourself? You think Mamá and Papá would approve?”
Finally, Nacio shut his mouth and looked at me with those damn puppy eyes of his that made me feel shit for raising my voice. And when his bottom lip quivered? Yeah… that was my brother in a nutshell, a fucking crybaby.
“Shit.” I clicked my tongue, then, despite still being pissed, grabbed his shoulder and pulled him into a half hug. “I didn’t mean to snap, okay?”
With his head shoved against me, he nodded.
“I don’t want you to fuck up your life like I did. Got it?”
He sniffed. “Yeah.”
“So you stay the fuck away from Ace from now on, ’kay?”
He nodded.
Ruffling his dark hair, I kissed the top of his head. “Vamos, pendejo.”
I let go of him, and we began walking.
“Santi.”
“What?”
“Did you mean it… when you said you’d kill him?”
“What d’you think?”
Holding my stare, he swallowed hard, then looked down at the ground.
“You were kinda cool, though,” he then added, a grin on his face that showed off his dimples.
“Just cool?”
“A total badass.” He bumped his shoulder with mine. “Bet he was shitting his pants.”
My brother’s ability to bounce back like a fighter was one of the things I liked most about him.
Nothing kept him down, and even though he was whining just a moment ago, it was all about smiling now.
And so, he continued joking around all the way back home while I stayed quiet and listened to him talk.
He was a good kid, and I wanted to keep it that way, only it wasn’t that easy with me being away most of the day.
I’d probably have to give him more of my attention.
“How about we go to the gym Saturday?” I asked.
“Dad’s old gym?”
I nodded.
“Seriously?”
“Yeah.” I rubbed my neck. “It’s been a while since we sparred together.”
“I thought you hated that place since Carlos took over.”
I sighed. “We don’t have to—”
“Fuck no,” he cut in, laughing. “I’d love to kick your ass.”
I side-eyed him, ready to tell him off when something caught the corner of my eye, and I looked ahead.
“What the fuck?” I stopped and placed my hand on Nacio’s chest to make him do the same after seeing the cop car parked in front of our house.
Great. Fucking great.