Page 15 of Texas Hold Em'
“We all are, sweetheart. Time to wake up and smell the roses. Let’s go.”
Carrie hesitated, but I didn’t look over my shoulder to make sure she was following. I marched toward the front door and heard her fall into step behind me. I grabbed a spare motorcycle helmet from the storage bench in the entranceway and handed it to her. She picked up her bag from the floor, which overflowed with shiny black material and something red, and slung it over her shoulder.
“Put it on,” I said.
Carrie sighed but did as she was told. She followed me out into the night and across the driveway. It was lined in solar-powered pocket lights that cast an eerie glow on the other parked bikes and painted long, spooky shadows across the pavement.
Carrie fumbled with the buckle under her chin but refused to ask for help. I pulled on my leather gloves and flexed my fingers while I waited for her to figure her shit out.
When she still didn’t have it done up properly a minute later, I swatted her hands away and did it up myself.
I gave the strap a sharp tug, and the helmet didn’t move around. It was a perfect fit.
“Thank you,” she said grudgingly.
After settling into the saddle, I put up the kickstand and nodded for her to get on the back. Carrie stepped on the foot peg, swung her leg over, braced herself with her hands on my shoulders, and sank down onto the seat behind me. She shimmied back and forth a bit to get comfortable and adjusted her bag over her shoulder, pushing it so it lay across her back instead of along her side. Her thighs hugged me as she inched forward to wrap her arms around my chest.
She sucked in a breath of surprise.
I turned my head to the side to look over my shoulder. “What?”
She ran her hand down my back until she felt the pistol tucked in the back of my jeans. “I didn’t know you were packing.”
“Always. Too much for you, princess?”
She wrapped her arms around me once more. “Just drive.”
Her breasts crushed against my back and I tried not to think aboutthe warmth of her body as I turned the bike on and pulled out of the driveway.
As soon as we left the residential area, I opened up the throttle. To my surprise, Carrie let loose with childish laughter. She held on to my jacket with one hand while leaning back and throwing her other arm in the air, riding the wind with her hand. I grinned into the wind and wondered who this woman really was.
Was she just the straitlaced Ranger? Or was there more to her?
What does she do alone in my bed at night when I’m sleeping in the next room?
She tightened her grip around my chest as we took a wide corner. She leaned with me, easing gently into the bend and coming back up. I knew instantly that she’d spent time on a bike before, either riding herself or on the back.
Her hands moved higher and slid inside the open part of my jacket.
What the hell was she playing at?
We came to a stop at a red light. No other cars were at the intersection, so the only noise was the rumble of my engine, and it wasn’t enough to drown out Carrie’s voice when she called my name.
“I think we’re being followed.”
I checked my mirrors. A pair of headlights two blocks back nearly blinded me with their high beams.
Odd.
“Hold on tight,” I called. “We’ll lose them up ahead.”
She inched a little farther forward and held me tighter with her arms and her thighs. I couldn’t deny that I liked the way her whole body held me. Her muscles seemed to tighten and coil like that of a snake as she kept herself tucked in tightly behind me to make us more aerodynamic.
She’d definitely spent time on a bike before.
The streetlight up ahead turned yellow.
Carrie pressed the heel of her hand against my sternum. “Go.”
