“I was just giving it a bit of a push. That’s what you do when you test drive something, right? Check out how fast it can go? How it handles?”
“Have you ridden many motorcycles?” Duncan asked her.
“One of my aunt’s boyfriends was a motorcycle fan. He taught me to ride.”
“How old were you?” Duncan asked.
She didn’t know what was with all the questions but answering them was better than worrying Jake was about to explode.
“Oh, about sixteen.”
“How much have you ridden since then?” Duncan was frowning slightly.
“Umm, not much.” At all.
Jake let out a low sound. Half-growl, half-sigh.
She watched him worriedly. “Is he okay?”
“Nope. Nope, he’s not okay at all. He’s just realizing he doesn’t have as much control as he thought he did, and it’s killing him.”
“What do you mean? Jake has more control than anyone I know.”
“Under normal circumstances I’d agree. Give me your helmet. I’ll take it back to the dealership and get your car.”
“I don’t know if they’ll like that you’re taking it back instead of me.” But she handed over the helmet and started to pull off the jacket. “They gave me this as well. The guy at the dealership was worried I’d get cold. He was really sweet.”
Another of those noises escaped Jake.
“Are you sure I shouldn’t go with you?” She snuck more glances at Jake. He hadn’t moved in the last five minutes. Part of her was worried he wasn’t even breathing.
“Oh, I’m sure. Don’t worry they won’t blink twice at me returning the bike once I tell them who you belong to.”
“Who I belong to?”
“Duncan, go,” Jake growled.
Duncan lightly patted her arm.
“Oh darlin’ for the sake of your ass, I would stop pushing him.”
He put the jacket and helmet on, then with a wave took off the way they’d come. Molly’s stomach danced with nerves as she looked over at Jake.
“So of all the gravel roads in the county we just had to meet on this one, huh?
” That was some rotten luck. Why hadn’t she asked him where exactly the Malone ranch was? She’d chosen this road because Savannah and her men lived close by and she figured if she got into trouble she’d be able to call one of them.
Only she hadn’t figured on landing herself in this sort of trouble, had she?
“This isn’t a joke, Molly,” Jake told her. He wasn’t looking at her, and it made her even more nervous. Was he so angry he couldn’t even stand the sight of her?
“Jake, it was just one ride. I know what I’m doing.”
Nothing. Just that tic beating its own little tempo above his eye.
“I didn’t know you had such an objection to motorcycles.”
Okay, this was getting ridiculous. He wasn’t even talking to her at all now. The thought made her temper stir. Richard had loved giving her the silent treatment as a form of punishment when she did something he didn’t approve of.