HeroRising Read Free Page B

him the bag with a smile.
    His eyes widened, as if surprised to see her comply so
readily, and he took her satchel, securing it in one of the saddlebags before
handing her the full-face helmet.
    “Will you need help with the latch?”
    “I’ll manage.” She tucked the knife under her arm as she
strapped the headgear into place. She felt as if she had placed a jack o’
lantern over her head, but at least her brain would be protected. Fat lot of
good it was doing her now.
    “Here, take my coat.” He removed the denim and held it out
for her to slip her arms into the sleeves. “I’m not certain it will keep you
dry, but it will at least add a layer of warmth.”
    “I don’t want to leave you with nothing.”
    “I’ll have my sweatshirt. Wear it, please.”
    She slid an arm into one sleeve and sighed, quickly sliding
into the other and pulling the edges over her torso. The coat was two sizes too
big, but the residual heat from his body on the fabric felt as if she had
slipped under an electric blanket. Oh, the sensation was heavenly.
    Bale threw a leg over the seat. “Climb on.”
    Suddenly her lungs refused to work as she eyed the scant
space left on the seat behind his butt. Her grip on the knife tightened and she
forced a lump down her throat. Gingerly, she swung her leg over the bike and
sat. She had intended to rest her free hand on his waist, but the moment his
heat touched her chilled bones she wrapped her arm around his middle and
snuggled closer. If not for the helmet, she would have rubbed her face into his
back.
    “You are so warm,” she moaned without thinking.
    His stomach clenched under her forearm. “Here we go.”
    Ooo, Nelly. She snapped her teeth together as he kicked the
engine into gear. With the mouth of her sex pressed over the vibrating seat and
his hips wedged between her open thighs, arousal hit her unexpectedly hard.
When he sent the bike into motion, she grabbed on to his belt for purchase.
Against the backs of her fingers his cock pressed hard and hot through his
jeans. Man, he was built big all over.
    Hot guy. Motorcycle that doubled as a giant sex toy. She was
in hell. This had to be more punishment for her sins. Who the hell had she
pissed off so greatly to be tormented in such a manner?
    Breathe, Ari girl, just breathe. It was only a short
bike ride. She could manage to keep it together for a few miles.
    The rain tapered off to nothing and Bale kept their speed at
a steady clip but slow enough to minimize the wind tearing through her wet
clothes. His consideration for her comfort drew him one more mark away from
scary to pretty decent.
    As the road passed under her knees, and with nothing else to
do but hang on, Ari allowed her mind to wander. And why not? Her life had taken
a turn toward Crazyville and it was healthy to cope with a little indulgent
fantasy.
    In her imagination they were just a boy and a girl out on a
Sunday drive with a picnic lunch stashed in the saddlebags. Instead of
searching for a roof and hot water, Bale was whisking her away to a secret
location in the woods where he would lay her out on the grass and kiss her
senseless with his firm lips. Of course with her luck, his favorite make-out
spot was probably a quarry he used to stash the bodies.
    God, when had she become so cynical? Except for the way he
had dealt with the creeps he’d been a nice guy so far. It wasn’t his fault she
was terrified of him one moment, then felt the burn to ride him like a bronco
the next.
    She was so fucked in the head.
    Around the next bend the glow of a gas station broke through
the ever-increasing darkness of night. Attached to the station was a fast-food
restaurant and the promise of hot water to wash her hands and face with. The
front of her body was nice and toasty from being molded to Bale’s back, but her
rear was freezing and felt as if ice had formed along the edges of her dress.
    Bale brought the bike to a stop and held out his hand for
her to use as a brace. She was