Chapter 40
forty
do you want to get out of here?
R yan’s heart leaped as Elissa burst in, disheveled as if she’d taken on a dust devil and lost. She had an extra button undone, showing off her cleavage, not that he was complaining.
Her unruly hair made him want to muss it even more.
He hadn’t seen her since her last visit to the office, and she was the most beautiful thing to walk into his life. Today and every day.
Red-rimmed eyes stared wildly around the office until they found him.
“Elissa, what’s wrong?” He dropped the files on his desk.
Trinity and Alex were silent, their mouths open in surprise and their gazes like laser pointers on his back.
But he didn’t care one rat fuck about what they thought or who they might tell.
The only person who mattered right now was standing in front of him with a tear-streaked face, looking nothing like herself.
Why had she come here? Oh God, was her mom’s cancer back?
“Do you want to get out of here?” Her voice was rough, but she kept her eyes on him. Those beautiful, lake-blue eyes shimmered with unshed tears. He was a complete goner. “I-I need to get out of here.”
Elissa needed him, needed an escape, needed freedom.
Fuck, and he needed her, needed escape and freedom, too.
A wicked smile lit his face, and he loosened his tie.
He balled it up and let it fall on top of the files he’d been holding a minute ago.
She was offering him freedom, and he was taking it, taking her. It was his dream come true.
“Let’s go!”
He grabbed his helmet from where it sat under the desk. In a few quick steps, he stood in front of her. She wobbled back and forth on her feet, and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, spinning her around gently. Elissa leaned into his side and allowed him to steer her to the door.
“What am I going to tell your father?” Trinity called.
“I don’t care. Tell my father whatever you want,” he said over his shoulder.
“I’ll handle it,” Alex said.
The door shut between them, finalizing the conversation. Whatever the consequences of this action, he would have it no other way. His girl needed him, and he wasn’t going to put some ridiculous job above her. Hell, he’d been thinking of quitting since he took the position.
Ryan led Elissa to his motorcycle, sitting under the shaded parking area. With every step, his mind lightened. This was the right call. Everything about this woman screamed it deep in his soul. He was hers, and god willing, she’d be his.
It was fucking hot for mid-March, so he rolled up his sleeves and handed her the helmet.
“Put it on.”
“What about you?” She took it from him with a crease between her brows.
“You’ll be with me. I’m not taking any risks. We’ll stop at my place for an extra.”
Elissa put on the helmet and mounted the motorcycle behind him.
She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her body into his.
He tried not to think about how it felt.
He’d need those brain cells to drive them safely to his apartment.
As they drove out of the parking lot, his brother stood outside the door, watching them.
The smallest of smiles crossed Alex’s face.
Ryan pulled into a parking spot at his apartment complex. As soon as he killed the engine, her grip loosened, and she slid off the bike. She took off the helmet and handed it over.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Ryan grabbed her hand, pulling her close. She buried her face into his shirt and shook her head. “Okay. We won’t talk about it. Lemme grab a couple things and we’ll get the fuck out of town. Does that sound good?”
She nodded and stepped back. He didn’t let go of her hand, though, and tugged her along after him. He’d make this quick.
First settling her on the couch with a glass of ice water, Ryan went to his room and changed into riding gear.
Digging in his closet, he found the spare helmet, a spare leather jacket, and a set of saddlebags, already packed with a simple toiletry kit and a change of clothes.
Ryan grabbed an extra toothbrush from his bathroom and tossed it in.
He strode into the living room and handed Elissa the jacket. Ryan resisted the urge to ask her why again, afraid of breaking the spell. He liked this side of her, wild and ready to fly.
“Where to, gorgeous?” he asked instead.
“Just away. Anywhere but here.”
“Gotcha. Been there. Done that. Have about a dozen T-shirts. Think I know the perfect place.”
He pulled out his phone and called his cousin.
“Ryan! How are you?”
“Good, man. You?”
“Can’t complain. Had a profitable winter, and this spring has been fantastic.”
“Excellent. Listen, I know this is last minute, but something came up, and my girl and I need a break. Got a room available?”
“Yeah, you lucky bastard, as long as you’re gone by Saturday. Got a cancellation a couple hours ago.”
“Perfect, we’ll take it! Thanks, I owe you one. We’re on our way.”
“Anytime. See you soon.”
Ryan turned to Elissa. “My cousin runs a bed-and-breakfast in Bisbee. Is that far enough for you?”
“Yes?” She sounded like she was trying to convince herself.
“It’s less than two hours away and we gotta leave on Friday. What could happen in two days?”
“Let me call work.”
He rolled his eyes. “Fine, but call work, text your family so they know you’re okay, then turn the fucking thing off.”
“Deal.”
He could have sworn her fingers trembled as she called. A look of relief crossed her face.
Voicemail , she mouthed.
“Hi, Karina, I’m gonna take the next couple of days off. I’ll be in on Monday.” Her words were soft and even.
She tapped for a few minutes while he texted Iz.
“Is it off?” he asked.
She showed him the blank screen. He took the phone from her and tucked it, along with his, in the saddlebags.
“Are you going to be okay holding on for two hours, or should we get your car?”
Elissa sniffed. “Bertha’s not going to make it two hours. We’re in no rush. How do I let you know when I need a break?”
“Tap my shoulder three times, and I’ll find a safe place to pull over.”
“Okay.”
She slipped on the too-big jacket and walked out the door. Ryan followed and locked the door. Elissa settled onto the motorcycle behind him and wrapped her arms around him once again. A shiver traveled up his spine. She would be this close for two hours, and he’d be unable to do anything about it.
It was two hours of torture and bliss, the only relief coming about halfway through, when Elissa tapped his shoulder three times.
They took a short break, but his nerves were on fire.
The only thing he could think of was getting her out of those clothes as soon as humanly possible.
While she stretched her legs, he counted to ten over and over so he could focus.
In order for him to see her naked again, they first had to arrive at the B and B safely.
They pulled into the parking lot. Elissa smiled as she pulled off the helmet, her cheeks flushed. Her body seemed looser, less tense, and her eyes were no longer puffy.
“You good?”
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “So much better now, here, with you.”
He kissed her cheek and slung the saddlebags over his shoulder, then led the way into the building. A young man about the same age as Ryan sat behind an old-fashioned wooden desk. He looked up with a smile as they entered.
“Ryan! Long time, man.” He came around and pulled Ryan in for a back-thumping hug.
“Durante. Good to see you, too.”
A year was too long. He usually made it a point to come down to Bisbee a few times a year to see Durante and his family. It was a nice break from Tucson, especially since this part of his family, his Nonna’s family, wasn’t nearly as self-important as his grandfather’s.
“Hi, I’m Durante, Ryan’s—what did we decide we were?”
“Second cousins, I think. I don’t know.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Elissa said, shaking his hand.
“Same. It’s not often Ryan introduces his girlfriends. Oof.” Durante rubbed the spot where Ryan had stuck his elbow in the idiot’s ribs. “Keep it up, asshole, and I won’t give you the keys to the jacuzzi suite.”
“The suite? Really?”
“All yours. It’s reserved for the weekend, but it’s yours for the next two nights. Breakfast is usually from seven to ten, but if you want something before or after, help yourself. You know where the kitchen is. Just clean up after yourself.”
“Awesome, man. Thanks.”
Durante handed over the key. “I’d say don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, but we both know that’s bad advice.”
Ryan laughed. It was true. As much as Ryan had seemed to find trouble on his own in their teens, Durante had trouble falling on him like rain without even having to look for it.
He grasped Elissa’s hand in his, cradling it as though he could crush the delicate bones under her skin.
With him in the lead, they walked through the B and B and out into a courtyard.
He led her past palms in pots and a tiled fountain burbling happily in the middle.
On the far side of the courtyard was the other part of the house, white stucco with a terra-cotta tiled roof.
Ryan unlocked the French doors with the key and held his breath.