Page 50 of Moving to Love
Joci’s heart thudded in her chest. She could have dumped her bike there. What the fuck is going on with those two?
They got out on the road, and Jeremiah looked back at Joci. She gave him the thumbs up, and he nodded at her, but she could tell he was pissed. She was pissed, too, and it left Joci at the back of the group again, which Jeremiah had specifically told everyone not to do.
Jeremiah slowed down until he was alongside Joci in the inside lane. They were on a two-lane road, but it was still early on Saturday morning, so there wasn’t any traffic at this time of day. Jeremiah nodded his head to Joci to follow him, and he took off, passing Boyd, Frog, and Janice, and then Gunnar and Ryder. Joci looked up the road and still saw no traffic, so she followed Jeremiah. Gunnar and Ryder slowed down to give them room to come into the lane. They safely slid into formation in front of Gunnar and Ryder. Joci gave them the thumbs-up as she moved in front of them.
The roads were curvy, and the weather was warming up. It was beautiful riding weather. The sun started warming the day; traffic was still light. It was late June, and the temperature was supposed to be in the low 90s today, perfect for Joci.
About an hour and a half into their ride, they were looking for a gas station to gas up again. Bear found one on the outskirts of a little town near Tomah. They pulled in, but there were only two pumps, which meant most of them had to wait for others to finish up. Joci got off her bike, and so did Jeremiah. The others got off their bikes as well for a leg stretch and to get gas. Jeremiah walked over to Joci and hugged her.
“Are you okay, baby?”
Joci smiled. “Yes, I’m fine. But, what the fuck?”
“Exactly. I’ve had enough.” Jeremiah stalked over to Boyd, and before even stopping in front of him, he punched him in the mouth. Boyd went down hard. LuAnn screamed, and everyone came running over to see what was going on.
Jeremiah stood over Boyd and glared at him. “I told you, Joci was not to be left at the back of the group. Not only that, but you cut her off. She could have dumped her bike, you ignorant fuck. Get the fuck out of here. You’re not welcome.”
“Fuck, man, I didn’t know it meant today, too. LuAnn said it didn’t matter.”
“It does matter. It matters a hell of a lot. When I give an order, I expect it to be followed. Even if that hadn’t been an order, you never, ever cut anyone in my group off. Get out.”
LuAnn stood with her hands on her hips. “Dog, that’s bullshit. Joci shouldn’t be riding if she can’t handle it.”
Jeremiah glared at LuAnn. “Since you don’t fucking ride yourself, you shouldn’t open your fucking mouth. Get the fuck out of here, both of you. Now!”
Boyd got up off the ground and walked over to his bike, rubbing his jaw. He nodded for LuAnn to get on, but she stood with her arms crossed.
“Get out, LuAnn; you have no one else to ride with, and you’re not welcome anymore.”
LuAnn started with the waterworks. “Dog, please let me stay. I can ride with Chase.”
Chase spoke up. “No, you can’t, LuAnn. I asked you last week, and you said no. Now I don’t want you on with me.”
LuAnn walked over to Boyd’s bike with tears in her eyes. She looked back at Jeremiah. “I don’t have a key to get my stuff.”
Jeremiah shook his head. “Someone will bring it back to the shop. You’re not welcome at the house. Especially when there isn’t anyone there to watch you.”
Jeremiah turned his back on LuAnn and walked toward Joci, hugging her to him. Joci could feel him shaking and breathing hard. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight. “Thank you for sticking up for me.”
Jeremiah looked down at Joci and slowly shook his head. “I’ll always stick up for you; don’t you understand?”
Chapter 20
LuAnn and Boyd took off, and the rest of the group continued to gas up and talk. The rest of the day went along smoothly. The ride was fabulous, and the weather was even better. Jeremiah watched Joci ride, and his heart swelled. She was amazing. Most women would have freaked out yesterday when those assholes got so close to her, but she kept her cool and knew what to do when he pulled over. She was a great rider. Today was the same. Boyd had cut her off, and she hadn’t bitched or made a scene. She just fell in line where she could and rode along.
She looked fantastic on her bike, too. She rode a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy. She had it custom-painted, pearl white with gold ghost flames. She sat with a small lean forward and looked sexy as hell. He couldn’t blame the guys for admiring her yesterday. Jeremiah had a hard time taking his eyes off her. He was a lucky man.
Joci looked over and saw him watching her. She smiled at him, and his heart skipped a beat. She winked and looked back at the road. This was, without a doubt, the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
They pulled in the driveway at the house around 5:45 and everyone rolled their bikes into the garage.
* * *
Joci got off her bike and said, “If someone wants to go to the store and pick up some chicken and potatoes, I’ll be happy to cook.”
“Joci, I don’t want you to have to do that. We should be relaxing,” said Jeremiah.
Joci smiled. “Not having LuAnn here is relaxing. Besides, we can have drinks and no one has to drive.”
