Chapter 10
Holt
I try to contain my smirk. This morning has been all about pushing boundaries with Piper.
I must admit, I’m having a good time. My brother and I are similar creatures.
We both have dominant personalities and love to push the envelope.
Sterling may be a bit more gruff, but at our core we are pretty much the same person.
I walk out the door first as I watch her pull another jacket on and follow my lead. She is chewing on her bottom lip, anxiety is written all over her face. I consider this ripping the bandaid off. Once I get her on the back of my bike, she will realize that she worried for nothing.
I couldn’t help myself this morning. My hand just needed to swat her ass.
She is lucky I didn’t turn her over my knee and do more than that.
She has no idea how much restraint I showed this morning.
All I wanted to do was spend the morning with myself inside her— well amongst other things. I know I need to pace myself for Piper.
As she walks out, I pull the door shut behind me and lock it with what has become my new key.
I already added it to my keyring. I feel her watching me but ignore it for a minute.
We head towards my bike, and I place my hand on her lower back.
She jumps slightly, but chooses not to verbalize her surprise.
I’m going to have to get her some riding gear so that she is comfortable, but that will come later. I straddle the bike and inspect her as I hand her my helmet. Tentatively she reaches for it.
“That helmet won’t put itself on you, Sugar,” I prompt her gently. She shakes her head for a second and quickly pulls it over her head. She fumbles briefly with the clasp at her neck but gets it on the third try.
I watch her take a deep breath, and then take a step closer. She looks at me and then at the area that she is supposed to occupy.
“Just swing your leg over and hold on to me,” I direct her.
I hear her huff quietly and then feel her hand tentatively touch my shoulder.
Using me for balance, she does as I tell her.
I pull the hand that is on my shoulder down and wrap it around my waist. The action pulls her forward and I hear her gasp.
“Hold on tight and mirror my actions,” I tell her as I start the bike, not giving her a chance to respond.
I ease the bike down her driveway. I feel her arms tighten.
Slowly I pull out onto the main road. I feel her thighs on the outside of mine and picture them wrapped around me in other situations.
Taking a deep breath of my own, I try to keep my overactive imagination in check.
I feel Piper relax marginally at my back and chuckle quietly. I knew she would enjoy it. Before I know it, we are pulling into the back lot of Doe’s. I shut off the bike, and Piper is still hugging me from behind.
Suddenly, she realizes that she is still holding onto me and she jumps back like I am on fire. If I didn’t know any better, I would be offended. She is off the bike before I can say anything and working at the clasp under her chin again.
I watch her struggle briefly before realizing this is a great opportunity to get close to her again. Getting off my bike I take one step and am in front of her. Inches separate us. She freezes. I reach under her chin, and slowly undo the helmet. I make sure to brush her neck with my fingers.
She shivers as I take the helmet off and hang it on the handlebar. Shaking her head again, I watch her pivot on her converse to head to the back door of her cafe. I follow behind her. I grab her hand before she goes to unlock the door.
“Let me go in first, I want to check it out,” I explain to her shocked face. She just nods quietly and hands me her key.
“Stay behind me at all times,” I tell her seriously.
I am having a hard time believing that she forgot to shut the door yesterday afternoon.
It may be my line of work, but I never take anything at face value.
She nods once in agreement. In that moment, I realize she hasn’t said anything since I walked out of her bedroom this morning.
“You okay,” I ask. Pausing for a second. I need to check in on her. She nods again. I take my right hand and cup the side of her face. My thumb starts moving back and forth along her soft cheek.
“Words, Piper,” I say quietly. She swallows audibly and I can see her cheeks turn pink from the glow of the streetlight.
“I’m good,” she manages to get out and looks away from my gaze. Satisfied with her answer, I unlock the door and flip the light on inside. Slowly, I make my way in. I do a quick sweep of the kitchen, feeling Piper sticking close behind me.
We move quickly through the rest of the building and in 5 minutes I feel confident that we are alone. I have no plans to leave Piper here alone. I will wait until the first few customers come in.