Page 8 of Loving Her

Ruby shrugged. “I mean, the broken wrist is the most exciting part of it all. I was the sparkly beard for my gay bestie, Michael Colangelo. You’ll meet him at the wedding, Sash, he’s anoldfriend of the family. Like I call his mom Aunt Gabriella old. Anyway. He went to public school, and I went to prom with him. That’s it.”

“And the wrist?” Sasha asked.

“I’ve never worn heels much.” She extended one foot out and pointed at her battered black combat boot. “It turned out to be a wet night, not a good one to be wearing rhinestone sandals with toothpicks for heels. I lost my balance, missed a step, and went right down. They’re concrete steps and I probably should have broken more than my wrist, but I was lucky. Although the nuns did make sure to let me know I deserved what I got for going to a sinful public high school prom.”

“Well, that’s fucked up,” Holly remarked. She propped her chin in her hand and slid her gaze over to Sasha. “Your turn, Ms. Top Chef.”

Sasha stifled a chuckle as she picked up a cocktail glass and began to mix Holly and Ruby a pair of sparkling hard cider cocktails that she liked to call Fletcher Fizzes. “Buckle up, ladies. It was 2004 and I was in a floor length, hot pink zebra-print gown. And yes,” she grinned, sliding the drinks in front of them and enjoying the dropped jaws, “my hair was long enough to put in an updo, and I wore platform heels…”

“It’s less than a month to the wedding,” Ruby stated, turning the shiny lipstick-red motorcycle helmet around in her hands. Her stomach was bubbling up with nervous acid. “Is it a good idea for us to go riding a motorcycle like this? What if we crash somewhere?”

“Don’t you trust me, Rubes?” Sasha’s eyes were wide and earnest under the curly cloud of her bangs. She held up herown helmet, a shiny dark blue thing that reminded Ruby of astronauts or science fiction movies. “I’ve been riding for years. You’ve seen me riding with Dykes on Bikes.”

“I know, but…” She’d never been on a motorcycle in her life. But she had known that Sasha loved riding hers, and anyrealgirlfriend would be able to talk about sharing that great love at least a few times. To talk about what a thrill it was, and how nice it would feel to be so close to yourlovedone…

But also, she could hear her mother in her head, screeching,Irresponsible! Reckless! Dangerous! Don’t you remember the Greenfield kid from two blocks away that bought a bike and crashed it the same day? Horrible tragedy, the family moved away, never the same.

“We’re gonna stick to low speeds, residential streets. It’ll be all right, Ruby.” Sasha’s voice was soft and reassuring. “I promise. I’ll keep you safe.”

Ruby believed her despite her nerves. Sasha was experienced. They would be fine. She took a deep breath. “Be brave, Rubes,” she muttered to herself. With a firm nod to Sasha, she started to buckle her helmet on. Her fingers fumbled with the clasps.

“Here.” Sasha stepped up close and helped her out, her short fingers warm under Ruby’s chin. She looked focused as she adjusted the straps, making sure they were snug but not cutting into Ruby’s skin. It was nice, Ruby thought. She always felt like she was being fussed over, taken care of by Sasha. If this is what Sasha treated her friends like, then surely any girlfriend would be lucky.

Once they both had their helmets on, they stepped over to the motorcycle and Sasha mounted up. “You remember what I told you? What was in that video I showed you?” she asked.

“Yes.” With care, Ruby put a hand on Sasha’s shoulder and a foot on the peg she’d been shown. She boosted herself up onthe cargo box, swung her leg through and over, and sat down. Not the smoothest motion, she thought, but not bad for her first time. The bike was still upright, that counted for a lot in her book.

Ruby grabbed Sasha’s waist, enjoying the scent of her friend’s worn black leather vest for a moment before she pulled her visor down. Sasha lifted herself up and bore down on the kickstarter a few times, bringing the bike to rumbling life beneath them. A thrill of excitement rattled through Ruby as they took off.

She felt the wind as it made the low red ponytail at the nape of her neck stream out behind them like a banner.I should have braided it up, she thought, her hands absently squeezing Sasha a little tighter.It’ll take forever to comb all the tangles out.

Yet somehow, she couldn’t bring herself to care. Even though they were cruising through the residential streets of Lincoln Heights at a nice and leisurely 25 miles per hour, there was still something exciting and even a little romantic about this whole experience.

And it was a little erotic. Ruby’s face went hot under the helmet as the engine of Sasha’s vintage Kawasaki throbbed between her legs. She’d always been a girl who liked a big, powerful vibrator, something that made her whole pussy hum. She squirmed in her seat as arousal began to wash through her.

Although she had to concentrate and move with Sasha as they turned corners, Ruby couldn’t get her mind off of what was happening in her core, her pussy warm and heavy as the motorcycle’s vibrations worked her over. “Can we go faster?” she shouted, hoping Sasha could hear her.

Sasha kept her eyes on the road but yelled back, “Only if we get on the freeway.”

“Do that. Go there,” Ruby commanded, biting her lip. “Get on the freeway.”

She could sense that Sasha was surprised, but all the same, she began to point the bike towards Highway 5. Smoothly, they merged onto the on-ramp and then into the traffic. Sasha weaved the bike in and out amongst the cars and trucks that surrounded them. The sudden increase in noise and danger around them should have made Ruby panic, but all she felt was the waves of beautiful, rumbling vibrations rippling through her.

An intense feeling began to build up as they danced their way through Los Angeles traffic, a mounting tide that ebbed and flowed through Ruby and made her breath begin to hitch. She swallowed hard, her fingers tangling up in Sasha’s vest as all she could think about was the closeness, the vibration and the tingle that arose within her.

A sharp release waved through, a slight orgasmic shrill as the bike pulsated below her. Ruby had to bite back any moans that tried to emerge from her throat. She’d never been quiet in bed, but she couldn’t let Sasha know what was going on in the Kawasaki’s passenger seat. With Herculean effort, for the first time in her life, Ruby managed to moan quietly, her fingers white-knuckled and her calves almost cramping with the intensity of the experience.

She became aware that Sasha was steering the bike back off the freeway, aiming for a gas station just near the off-ramp. As the Kawasaki came to a halt, Ruby began to take stock of herself. Her face always flushed, so she was happy to keep the helmet on and the visor firmly down for a minute until that subsided. And she wasn’t about to get off the seat while Sasha was in sight; if there was a damp impression on the leather, she wanted to dry it off surreptitiously.

And she had no idea how she was going to look Sasha in the eyes for a while. She’d never once had any kind of sexual thoughts or vibes around her dearest friend, and she needed some time to unpack what had just happened. And, Rubythought, a delicious shiver rippling through her, to relive some of it with her Hitachi wand at home.

Sasha turned the bike off and dismounted, turning to look at Ruby as she pulled off her helmet. “I didn’t want to go too long for your first time,” she said, and once again Ruby was grateful for her own helmet and visor as her face flushed. “And I’m thirsty. You wanna come with me to get a drink?”

“Um, no, I’m a little…” Ruby’s mind whirled. How to describe her current physical stateinnocently? “My legs, they’re…”

Sasha chuckled. “Ah yeah. I remember my first passenger ride. And I didn’t even get taken on the freeway. Sit, recover. You want a Diet Coke?”

“Yes, please,” Ruby replied in a mildly strangled voice. Sasha looked at her a little oddly, but then just offered her a friendly little smile and turned to disappear into the convenience store. As soon as the door shut behind her, Ruby scrambled—carefully—off of the motorcycle and lifted her helmet visor a bit to peer at her seat.

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