Chapter Fifteen
In the past 24 hours, I’d been a breath away from fucking Maisie twice. I’d also watched my best friend get married. And now, I had the woman I’d vowed to hate clutching me on the back of my motorcycle as we fled from a cop. It was safe to say, life was throwing me a curveball.
After fighting with her and saying what I’d thought was my final goodbye, I’d needed a long drive to wrangle in my rage. I’d never forget the fearful look in her eyes when she’d run up to me behind my shop. I’d heard her say, Boyd is after me , and that was all it’d taken. I’d gone into defense mode.
Maisie was fearless. If she was scared, there was a reason.
We hauled ass down the freeway, Pine Bluff at least a half hour in our wake. I took an exit, feeling her inner thighs releasing on my legs, her body pulling off my back. I didn’t want to admit that I already missed the sensation of her being that close, that vulnerable. All wrapped up in me.
I coasted to the rest stop, parking it to signal we needed to talk. Her little hands braced my shoulders as she got off my bike. I closed my eyes, steeling myself to not give into her sway, the hold she had on me. Not even an hour ago, we’d been at each other’s throats. She’d bent herself over the car, begging me to fuck her, not giving me the dignity to look her in the eyes when I did it.
Fuck. No.
Even I had my standards.
I took off my sunglasses as she took off her helmet. “Thanks for the rescue.” She slid out of my jacket, holding it up for me to take.
“Care to tell me what the fuck is going on?” I asked, shrugging it on.
She gnawed at her bottom lip, shifting her weight from foot to foot while she looked around the rest area.
“He didn’t follow us here. You’re safe with me.”
She continued to eye our surroundings.
“He left the note on your car, huh?”
Her eyebrows pinched as her upper lip pulled in a way that looked like she was holding in a sob. “Can we just head back? I don’t think I’m ready to talk about it.”
“No.”
“What do you mean?”
I crossed my arms, hearing my leather jacket creak. “You wanted a rescue. It came at a cost.”
“You can’t hold me hostage!”
“I’m not. You said you needed to hide.” I gestured to the highway. “Hide out with me. Let’s have an adventure.”
“No.”
“Maisie . . . ,” I chided.
“There’s a clear power imbalance here. You have the transportation, lay of the land, and overall brute strength.”
“Brute strength?” I echoed skeptically.
“Yes, you and I both know it. You know I’m in a precarious situation and now you’re pressuring me into something I don’t want to do.” She gave me an offended, little sniff. “It’s quite rude, actually.”
“Oh, so now you believe in manners when it doesn’t involve my taint?” I asked, causing her to snicker.
After a few moments, she whispered, “I hate that.”
“What?”
“That you can still make me laugh.”
I gazed at her, trying to gauge if she was really softening. We were in this invisible duel. I reached out, taking her hand in mine, my thumb sweeping over her knuckles. “I will keep you safe. Let’s go.”
“We already went. We’re damn near to New Hampshire.”
“Let’s keep going. Stay the course. You’ve been flipping and flopping on me for days.”
With her free hand, she clawed at her roots in anguish. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to. There’s just so much happening and I’m juggling everything.”
I fought the urge to wrap her in my arms. I had to hold my own line. “Maybe you just need to calm the fuck down and let someone else worry about things for a bit.”
“You really want to run away with me?” she asked, completely incredulous.
I let go of her hand as I took a step back, needing my own space to remain unaffected. “Yeah, see where the wind takes us. We have a lot in common. Maybe some time on the road will help us clear our heads.”
She tilted her chin. “What do we have in common?”
I ticked them off on my fingers. “We both want to be away from Pine Bluff. We both watched our best friends get married, and even though we’re happy for them, it’s emotionally exhausting and a big change.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“We both run our own businesses, so in theory, we can make our own schedules, but we just overwork instead. I’m a Leo, you’re an Aries, so we both have chaotic fire sign tendencies.” That one got her mouth to twitch. “And to be frank, I really want more time with you.”
“More time with me? The girl you said was a mindfuck?”
“You are. That’s why I want more time with you.”
She slumped her shoulders. “What about what I want?”
Opening my arms wide, I shot back, “I’m all ears, tornado.”
She tucked a whisp of hair behind her ear and checked her phone. “This is a bad idea.”