Page 24 of Wild Dreams

"You don't need to wear a helmet just to ride on the sidewalk."

"I wouldn't want to break any laws," Marigold practically purred as she slipped between me and the bike and threw her leg over the frame. When she did that, her ass brushed against my thigh. Everything inside me tightened at the move.

She threw a look over her shoulder at me. "You want me to ride it back and forth?"

"Yeah, that's good." I swallowed over the dryness, wondering when Marigold learned these sexy moves. I didn't think she was doing any of them on purpose. She exuded innocence. A librarian who just wanted a husband and kids. But she was so much more. It made me think she would be more than a little wild in bed. And I was desperate to find out.

If she were my girl, I'd palm that ass and squeeze. The sweats she wore were soft looking and clung to her curves.

She placed her feet on the pedals and pushed off, easily gliding down the driveway and onto the sidewalk. I followed her so I could watch her progress. A small smile played on her face, her hair flying behind her in the breeze.

She skidded to a stop in front of me. "That felt good. I'm looking forward to tomorrow."

"How are the brakes?"

She grinned, and her eyes practically sparkled. "It stopped on a dime."

"That's good." How was I going to survive riding behind her on a trail tomorrow, watching her ass in tight pants?

She got off and wheeled the bike into the garage.

"I think it's good to go for tomorrow. What do you want to do? A scenic trail, mountain biking?" I asked, eager to see her smile again.

"I want to take the one around the lake. It's so relaxing. But if you want to do something more adventurous like mountain biking, we can do that too."

"Let's do the lake trail."

"Yay!" She shimmied her butt.

Was that all it took to make this woman light up? Someone who was tuned into what she wanted to do? I wondered who these guys were that she was dating. I had a feeling they spent the whole date talking about themselves.

I threw a thumb over my shoulder. "I should head out."

We'd eaten, discussed books, and I tuned her bike. There was no reason for me to hang around. And I knew if I did, I'd break all my rules and kiss her. But this wasn't a date, and I'd already pledged my life to my job. There wasn't a room for a sweet woman who wanted a simple life. I couldn't give her that.

7

MARIGOLD

Istayed up way too late thinking about my unexpected evening with Chance. He occasionally stopped in to talk about books or even about his sister when we were working together to convince her to stay in Telluride. But he'd never offered to pick up pizza and come to my house.

His offer to tune my bike was nice. I'd never gone on a bike ride with a date before, and no one I'd ever dated had offered to fix anything.

I usually attempted to fix anything that was broken myself, hire someone to fix whatever I couldn't, or bought new. I wasn't particularly handy and neither were my parents. Not that either of them was around or would have offered to help if they were in town.

Then there was that moment next to my car when he leaned in close. It felt like something a date would do. He was so close; I could have pulled him against me with a finger in his belt loop. But I resisted.

I justified it to myself by saying he was offering to help me like any friend would have done. But it didn't feel friendly. My entire body tingled with awareness, and my heart raced.

I'd had to spin away, to break the moment. It was overwhelming, especially when I was convinced I was the only one thinking it meant anything.

Then he'd come over, eaten pizza and talked books on the floor of my living room. I'd had so many dates tell me I was boring because I enjoyed simple pleasures. An evening at home. A good book on a rainy day. A walk around the neighborhood. I didn't need fancy or expensive.

It seemed that Chance was similar. It was too bad he didn't want to be in a committed relationship. So far, we seemed compatible, and the chemistry was electric.

We were meeting early, so I set my alarm for six and jumped in the shower as soon as it went off. I took my time drying my hair even though it would be a tangled mess from the wind after our ride. Then I whipped up eggs with tomatoes and onions, wrapping them in tortillas . I covered the burritos in tin foil to keep them warm, then poured two to-go cups of coffee for us. By the time Chance rang the doorbell, I was more awake.

I pulled on a fleece jacket before I opened the door. "Good morning."

---