Page 20 of Nash
"Ready?" I say from the door.
"Born ready. Currently exhausted. Emotionally compromised. Physically stunning." She slings her bag over her shoulder. "But mostly exhausted."
"You talk this much when you're tired?"
"I talk this much all the time. You're just usually better at ignoring it."
"Who said I'm ignoring it?"
Her step falters. One beat. Then the grin comes back, wider than before.
"Sergeant-at-Arms. Was that banter? Did you just banter with me? Frankie, did you hear that?"
"Goodnight, Ruby," Frankie calls from the back.
"He bantered, Frankie. Mark the calendar."
The Harley is at the curb. She climbs on behind me, arms around my waist, looser than this morning. Tired. Her chin settles against my shoulder blade and stays there.
A block from the clubhouse, I slow for a turn. Her weight tips left. My hand releases the handlebar and reaches back toward her hip to steady her, to pull her closer, and my palm hovers two inches from her body. I feel her heat through the gap. The fabric of her shirt shifts with her breathing.
My hand hangs there.
Fuck.
I grip the handlebar and accelerate through the turn.
Chapter 6
Nash
Therestoftheride to the clubhouse passes in silence.
I pull into the lot and kill the engine. Her arms stay linked at my stomach. The engine is off. The ride is over. She doesn't move. Her fingers curl into the fabric of my shirt, holding, and the pressure of each one registers against my abdomen.
She climbs off. Stands on the curb. The flannel hangs off one shoulder. Her bag off the other.
"Nash."
"Yeah."
She opens her mouth. The grin starts to assemble behind her eyes, then it stalls. She stands there with her mouth open and nothing comes out.
"I've got Vesper tonight." My voice comes out quieter than I planned. "Security rotation. I'll be back in the morning."
"So you're leaving me." She aims for light. Lands close.
"Malachi's here. Rider's on the door. Arden will be around."
"That's not what I asked."
My hand flexes on the handlebar. My eyes drop to her mouth. The red lipstick worn down from the day, softer at the edges. Then her throat. The pulse there, steady.
"I'll be back."
"You keep saying that."
"Because I keep meaning it."
