“It’s a little-known fact that this is one of the major factors in motorcycle sales worldwide. If they ever invent a back seat that doesn’t require the passenger to hold onto the driver, the industry is doomed. Without a pretty girl’s arms around you, the ride down the highway is nothing but wind in your face and bugs in your teeth.”
Max shook his head and rolled his eyes, but his lips were twitching.
Simone walked toward Rafe, and he held out a hand. She looked at it for a moment, then took his hand and swung her leg over the big bike and settled on the broad leather seat. Rafe forced himself not to pay too much attention to the warm feeling he got when she put her arms around him and pressed her petite body up against his back.
Focus.
“You do need to tell me your address,” he said. “It will make taking you home easier.”
“What? A rescuer who needs inside information. How pathetic is that?” She told him the address. It wasn’t as far from Sam’s as he would’ve liked. With her behind him, and the warm night air around them, he would’ve enjoyed riding miles and miles.
He loved the fact that this episode hadn’t affected her sense of humor. A sense of humor could get you through a hell of a lot, and he was quite sure she’d have more trouble to get through before things settled down. It didn’t seem likely that Brad was done yet. Getting him to back off might take some doing. Not that he and Max were going to let this crap go on much longer. They’d find a way to stop Brad’s tantrum cold and protect Simone.
At her place, Rafe and Max walked her to the front door, and Rafe was trying to stay alert to the possibility that the lurker was nearby. Max was also on edge, but he imagined it was as hard for him as it was for Rafe. His entire being was aware of her. He could hear her soft breathing; he felt the warmth that radiated from her. She smelled of perfume mixed with the smells from work. The combination wove some erotic spell over him that he had no desire to escape. Something about her made him feel more alive than he had in a long time.
She opened her door and turned to face them, her mouth slightly open, sexy.
In that moment, it was all Rafe could do to keep from taking her face in his hands and kissing that mouth. He heard Max’s soft groan and figured his friend must be having similar thoughts. He wanted to taste her while pressing his body against hers. Something in her eyes suggested that, if he tried, she might even let him, but he held back.
The moment was magic but not quite right. They’d promised to rescue her if she needed it, with the implicit assumption that the offer came without strings, and now he’d be capitalizing on her troubles, taking advantage of the situation. That didn’t sit well with him, and he was sure Max would dislike it too. A younger version of Rafe might have given in. More than anything, he wanted to be with her tonight. He wanted to fuck her.
But he hesitated. Even if she didn’t stop them, even if she willingly took both of them to her bed, he wanted more than that with her, and he was sure Max did too. He didn’t know how it could last long-term with the three of them, but he didn’t want it to be a one-time thing, or a novelty for all of them. He wanted their night of passion to be the start of something. He wanted many, many nights of passion with her.
As hard as it was to restrain himself, he held back, and Max did the same. He wanted things right. That was something worth waiting for.
The ride homeon the back of Rafe’s motorcycle was a breathtaking experience. The raw power of the motorcycle under them, throbbing under his smooth control, the natural way Rafe leaned it into the corners so that her foot would be inches from the pavement, and then right again, was exhilarating. When he accelerated, for a brief moment, it felt as if he was catapulting them into the abyss, and then immediately the bike would settle into a groove that made it feel like it belonged and had been there forever. Its power gave it poise and traction.
Equally as exciting was the animal that was Rafe. She rode with her arms clasped around his hard-muscled torso, and she couldn’t help but be aware of the way they rippled under her hands. His masculine smell made her head spin. Her body pressed against his solid back, and she wanted to melt into him.
She wondered how it would feel if she’d accepted Max’s offer. Would it feel the same? She couldn’t imagine she wouldn’t find riding behind him equally exhilarating. What that said about her, she didn’t want to examine too closely. It had always been one of her secret fantasies to have two lovers worshipping her, and now that it was tantalizingly close to being a possibility, she refused to kink-shame herself.
And then it ended, bringing an abrupt stop to her inner musings. The whirlwind ride was over, and she’d been magically transported to her doorstep with her body still vibrating from the pulsing of the motor and, perhaps more, from her contact with the beating of Rafe’s heart.
She stood there, dazed, and looked up at him in wonderment before looking at Max, who stood right beside Rafe. She couldn’t imagine them any other way, except together.
Rafe beamed down at her and for a moment she thought he’d kiss her. She waited for it, not certain if she desired or feared it. If he kissed her then she’d never be able to resist him. If he kissed her, then Max would, and her fantasy would become reality. She knew now that she wanted them to come in, to stay, and to make love to her.
She feared it only because the nagging voice in the back of her head warned her that she still had Gemma depending on her, that bringing these men into their home suddenly, without warning, might alarm her. Gemma might be confused or bewildered by two men spending the night, if they didn’t leave early enough. She was old enough to understand there wouldn’t be a platonic reason to have two men sleeping in her older sister’s room, but she wasn’t necessarily emotionally mature enough to understand the concept of adult desires.
Maybe it wouldn’t bother Gemma if she had a guest, or even two, but she hadn’t done that since their mother had died. It was fearful, uncharted territory. Besides, she was vulnerable. If she let them have her, they would own her. She understood that instinctively, but it wasn’t because they were bikers. It was something deeper, a more innate awareness in herself that told her she’d want them to own her. She couldn’t trust her defenses. She was ready and willing to protect herself and Gemma against danger, against the villains of the world, but she was vulnerable to kindness, to affection.
In short, she was too damn needy. She wanted both of them too much.
And the moment passed. Something in Rafe’s strong face told her that he willed it to pass, that letting it slip by was not what he wanted. Was he being even more kind? Max seemed to hesitate on the edge just a second longer, but then his posture shifted too, and she knew the moment to act had truly passed.
“I’ll talk with Clutch about your car in the morning,” Rafe said, and she heard him through a fog of desire and confusion.
“Of course.”
“He’ll make sure the tires were the only damage, and then see what can be done to fix things. Would it be okay if we came over at noon to talk it over?” asked Max.
Breathing was difficult, but she needed to answer him. “Yes, fine.”
“One of us can give you a ride to work if you like,” said Rafe.
“It’s my turn,” said Max with a sizzle of attitude, as though staking his claim.
With no small measure of regret, she shook her head. “I have tomorrow off.” She felt like an idiot, talking in short sentences and using simple words, but it was all her brain could come up with while that fog filled her head.