Page 75 of That Girl is Trouble

What’s the harm?

The grin that slides over my face is involuntary, and I’m reaching for my helmet and tossing a second to Kat before I can stop myself. “Tuck in your hair.”

She complies, throwing it in a quick braid and then tucking the plait into her leather jacket before pulling on the helmet.

Tugging at the strap under her chin, I make sure it’s secure, then pull her into my chest by the base. “Keep this visor down. And your jacket tight, yeah?” When she nods, I clack my helmet against hers and then release her.

Faded jeans cling to her legs like a second skin and shape around her perfect ass. Her black boots come up to mid-calf. A hint of cleavage pops out from the top of her leather jacket.

Goddamn. It’s like the woman belongs at the back of my bike.

Because I can’t fucking help myself, I grab at the zipper of her jacket and pull it up higher so it’s flush with her throat. “I said keep this tight. We’ll be going fast.” She rolls her eyes at me and then slams her visor down. It’s tinted black, so any other faces she’s making at me are hidden.

I kick my leg over the bike, and the second the engine rumbles to life, a shudder moves through me, the vibration feeding the hunger that’s been swirling inside me since the moment the machine appeared in my garage. Kat slips behind me but doesn’t make a move to hold on to my waist.

“Hold on, Kitty,” I tell her, my voice practically drowned out by the sound of the bike. I wait for her arms to circle around me, but she either didn’t hear me or she’s decided not to listen. Two guesses which one.

Cranking the throttle, I jerk the bike forward and then immediately grip the brake, sending the back wheel of the machine popping up. She lets out a yelp as her body jolts forward and slams into mine, the front of her helmet knocking hard against me.

“I said hold on,” I bite.

Immediately, she’s got her arms looped around my stomach and the muscles of her thighs tight against me.

“Don’t let go. Understand?”

“God, yes,” she says, her voice practically a shout over all the noise. “What are you waiting for?”

Shaking my head, I once again hit the throttle and, faster than necessary, maneuver the bike out of the garage, through the parking lot, and onto the street. I gun it, blowing through a stop sign, and then another, and then head towards the road leading to the highway.

Kat clutches me harder, and I speed up, as if her grip around me is prompting me to move faster. Every time I kick into a new gear, she shuffles closer, even though she’s already pressed so tight against me there’s no space left between us. Her arms tighten around my torso as I take the turn leading to the on-ramp too fast, and as I hit the smooth double-laned pavement of the highway, I give the throttle another twist.

And then I don’t hold back.

I hit one-ten. One-twenty. One-thirty. And Kat’s body tenses against mine as I feel her kick back her head and let out a long, wooo-hooo. I can’t help but edge up my speed, just a little more.

This goddamn bike, this ride, is fucking invigorating.

Wind in my face. The world whipping by. Kat’s body tight against me. This beast of a machine propelling me down the highway.

“Faster!” she yells, her body shaking against my back as she laughs. She tightens her grip around me, urging me to go, to move, to get her pulse racing.

One-seventy now.

Weaving through traffic, I dip on and off the paved shoulder. It’s too fast, I know, but I swear I can feel Kat’s heart beating against my back, and it only makes me want to accelerate. Whatever she’s feeling, it’s definitely not numbness.

One-eighty.

A set of cherries flashes in my side mirror, and my heart jackhammers in my chest. Shit. Fucking cops.

Kat taps my stomach to warn me, but I’m already working on my exit strategy. I give her hand a squeeze in return so she knows I’ve got us covered.

“Hold on!” I yell.

The bike roars as I pull back the throttle, and Kat’s arms curl tighter around my middle, the vise grip reminding me that it’s not just me on this bike. It’s her life if I kill us. Her life if I get us caught.

But I won’t be getting caught.

Zipping up the centreline of the road, I rocket in front of a black pickup and then quickly rip over to the shoulder before moving in front of a transport hauling a huge trailer. Hidden from sight, I take the first exit I see, barely reading where I’m going and hoping to fuck I can outmaneuver the two cop cars trailing me.

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