Chapter 3
LARK
Rook and Azrael make their way over to me.
When they reach me, I try to give them an out. “You guys don’t have to keep me company. I’m perfectly capable of waiting for the bike myself.”
“Nah, we don’t mind.” Rook places his hand on the small of my back and leads me out into the now fully dark evening. Even though he’s only touching my leather jacket, everything in me still lights up at the contact. I mercilessly shove the feeling down. “Wanna look at our bikes?”
I shrug. “Sure.”
Rook leads me over to a trio of black-and-red motorcycles with Azrael following like our silent shadow.
I huff when I realize what the bikes are. “Of course you have Ducatis. You three look like you’d ride Ducatis,” I mumble to myself.
Rook barks out a laugh. “What do you mean, we look like we’d ride Ducatis?”
My cheeks burn as I realize I muttered that a bit too loud.
“Um. It’s just that you guys scream money.
You’re either old money or came into money long enough ago that you don’t feel the need to have flashy branded everything.
Instead, everything you’re wearing, from your suits to your watches to your boots, is expensive as hell in an understated way.
While Ducatis aren’t understated at all, they’re exactly the type of flashy that pairs well with the kind of rich you are. ”
“You’re observant,” Rook notes as he sweeps his gray gaze over me.
I shrug and avoid eye contact. There’s a reason I’m observant, and it’s not anything I want to share with an equally hot and terrifying stranger.
“Wanna sit on my bike? Hal will try to tell you his Streetfighter V4 is better, but my Superleggera V4 is rarer and objectively the best.”
I can’t help the smile that crosses my lips at his bragging. “I won’t pick a favorite, but, yeah, it’d be cool to sit on it.”
He grins at me, which transforms his face from harsh and imposing to almost boyish. Rook gently steers me toward the red and black bike farthest from us. When we reach it, he takes my helmet from my hands and gestures for me to get on.
Cautiously grabbing the handlebars of the bike that’s worth more than everything I own many times over, I hesitantly straddle the beast of a machine. When I stand it up, I can barely touch the ground on both sides with how wide and tall the seat is.
“I can turn it on so you can rev it if you want.” Rook watches me from in front of the bike, not seeming worried in the slightest that I’ll damage his hundred-thousand-dollar motorcycle.
After getting an enthusiastic nod from me, Rook shoves his key in and flips on the kill switch before pushing the ignition button.
The bike thunders to life underneath me, and I can feel the vibrations thumping in my chest. I twist the throttle, and the bike roars so loud I’m pretty sure the entire city can hear it.
I know I have a stupid smile on my face as I rev it a few more times, but I can’t help it. Rook’s Ducati is something else.
Rook’s crazy loud motorcycle drowns out the sound of Hal pulling up on my ZX-6R. Noticing Hal, I shut off Rook’s bike. Once I’m off the Superleggera and have it safely on its kickstand, I beam at Rook. “Thanks for letting me rev it. That was super cool.”
His crooked grin causes butterflies to swarm in my stomach. “Anytime, Lark.”
Before I can respond, Hal bounds over. “Wanna get on my Streetfighter and rev it? It’s not as rare, and it’s tame until 9k rpm. Then it rides like it wants to rip your arms off and beat you to death with them, which is pretty fun.”
I snort at his description. “I feel like that shouldn’t make me want to ride it, but it definitely does.”
Hal bounces up and down on his toes in excitement. “I knew you were my kind of woman, wild girl. Hop on.”
I do the best to ignore the way him saying I’m his anything makes my heart skip a beat because that’s nothing but trouble. The last thing I need while I’m still trying to pick up the pieces of my life is any sort of trouble.
After settling in the seat, I rev Hal’s bike and enjoy the deep, throaty growl of his engine. While hearing the Ducatis will probably make my bike sound pretty lame, it was totally worth it to sit on such cool bikes.
Flipping the kill switch and twisting the key to shut off the bike, I clamber off, unable to hide my delighted grin. “That was fun. Thanks, Hal.”
“Of course!” Hal tosses a keychain to me.
I catch it reflexively and glance down at the black fabric with “Ninja” stitched in green.
“Here’s your key. I aired up the tires a touch and tightened the chain.
Other than that, everything looked good on the bike.
I forgot to grab your address, but, once that’s filled out, you should get the title in four to eight weeks. ”
He thrusts a piece of paper and a pen at me. I scribble down my apartment address and give it back to him.
“Thanks for checking over the bike for me. Don’t I need to actually pay something to own it?”
I’m confused how this entire transaction is happening. He’s giving me a bike from a random dealership without getting any money from me. That doesn’t seem super legal.
Hal’s lips tip up in a half smile. “We own the dealership. I can sell you the bike at whatever price I want. After the horrible customer service you received, I figured a little discount was in order.”
Of course they own the dealership.
Why would I choose a dealership owned by someone normal, instead of three dudes who are definitely involved in organized crime?
It makes me wonder what they were threatening Dave for if he works for them, though.
I open and close my mouth a few times, trying to figure out what to say to him calling it a small price cut. “A discount is a thousand off, not selling it for twenty percent of the price.”
Before Hal can respond, Rook chimes in. “Hal’s not going to let this go. Just take the discounted bike. As you’ve pointed out, we have enough money. Selling this bike for a couple grand isn’t a big deal for us.”
I roll my lips between my teeth as I contemplate what Rook said. There’s just one thing holding me back from accepting Hal’s generosity. “Do I have to do anything in exchange for the price cut? Because I’d just prefer to buy it outright if so.”
I know better now than to accept anything from anyone other than the few people I trust at this point.
I’m pretty sure I hear Rook hiss, “Fucking hell.”
But I’m too hypnotized by the emotions crashing through Hal’s mint green eyes to check. Anger and heartache war for dominance in his gaze for a long moment before he smooths out his expression.
Without his ever-present smile, Hal assures me, “No, Lark. There’s nothing you have to do in exchange. I know you don’t know me, but I swear there aren’t any strings attached.”
He’s right. I don’t know him, but for some reason, my gut says I can trust him.
Blowing out a breath, I hope I’m not making a massive mistake. “Okay. I’ll take the discount. I can write a check now or get cash to pay later. Which do you want?”
“Check works, but wait until you get the title, just in case there are any issues.” Hal looks over my jacket and pants before his lips flatten into a harsh line.
“Did you bring any protective gear with you? I know you’re a shifter, but road rash still hurts like a motherfucker.
Trust me, it’s not something you want to experience. ”
One side of my mouth turns up in a half smile at his concern. “My jeans are Kevlar lined, and my jacket is armored, so I should be protected if I go down.”
Here’s hoping I don’t, though. I’ve been practicing on Charlie’s and Coop’s bikes, but I’m still not super confident in my riding ability. Riding on the street is a whole different beast than dirt biking.
Him mentioning that I’m a shifter makes me wonder again what the three of them are. While they all have a scent, it just smells like general magic. So, I know they’re supernatural, but I have no idea if they’re shifters, fae, or even mages. My bet is on shifter, but I really don’t know.
“Really? That’s so cool!” Hal steps up next to me to get a closer look at my gear. “The jacket looks just like a regular leather one. We wear armored base layers under our street clothes so we don’t look like MotoGP racers all the time.”
I grin at his enthusiasm. Shrugging it off, I hold it out to him. “You can take a look at the armor if you want.”
Hal takes the hefty black leather jacket from me. He turns the garment around and inspects the shoulder and elbow protectors curiously. When he’s finished, he hands it back to me.
I put it on and notice he’s holding a phone up to my face.
My phone.
By the time I realize what happened, Hal already unlocked it.
My eyes narrow on him. “What are you doing?”
“Texting myself so I have your number and you have mine,” Hal informs me without glancing up from my phone. “That way, if you have any problems, you can reach me. And if I need anything else for the bike, I can reach you.”
I huff, surprisingly unbothered by him using my phone. I usually hate when people take my stuff without asking. For some reason, it doesn’t irritate me when Hal does it. “You could’ve just asked.”
I don’t know what good him having my number will do, though, when I have to switch it so often. I refuse to let the past drag me back, and changing my number monthly is a small price to pay for keeping my freedom.
He flashes me a cheeky smile. “Where’s the fun in that?”
Hal hands me my phone, and I put it back in its zip pocket. Realizing I should probably head out, I collect my helmet from Rook with a soft thanks.
When I reach my bike and get on it, I see Hal standing in front of the handlebars. “Thanks for your help, Hal. And thanks for the discount. It helps a lot, honestly.”
While I have enough money to buy the bike, I’m still a bit more cash strapped than I’d like to be. But for starting over completely six months ago, I think I’m doing pretty well for myself.
“Yeah, no problem.” Hal shoves his hand through his unruly brown hair as he rocks back on his heels. “So, you wanna go on a ride with us?”
A startled laugh bubbles up, but I know better than to try to ride with liter bikes. “Thanks for the offer. But we all know you guys are gonna smoke me on my lil 600. Plus, I’ve still got work I have to finish up tonight.”
Working for myself means I have a lot of freedom, but it also often means unpredictable and long hours. I’ve already spent too much time at the dealership as it is.
Hal pouts a little before giving me a genuine smile. “Well, if you ever do want to ride together, you have my number. I promise to not go too much faster than you. And if you have any problems or questions with the bike, shoot me a text, okay?”
“I can do that,” I agree before putting on my helmet and gloves. “I’ll see you around, Hal.”
“See you around, wild girl.”
Once Hal backs up, I shut my visor and turn on my music. “Turn out fine” by Henrik starts playing as I carefully pull out of the dealership, trying my hardest not to embarrass myself in front Hal, Rook, and Azrael.
As I ride home, I can’t get the three men who make me wish things were different off my mind.