Page 120 of Hold On

“Choo choo,” Ren whispered.

Dominic came to a halt at the top of what looked like Mount Everest. It hadn’t looked this steep from the bottom.

“Want to follow me down?” Ren asked. “Copy what I do?”

Dominic wondered why he was so nervous. If he fell, the only thing that would hurt was his pride. But he didn’t fall, he copied Ren and though he was slower, he reached the bottom with such a sense of achievement, he wanted to whoop.

Ren’s eyes were shining. “I am such a brilliant teacher. I missed a calling.”

Dominic laughed.

By the end of the session, Dominic was exhausted but ebullient. He wanted to ski in real mountains, be good enough to manage more difficult slopes. For a few wonderful moments, he could see him and Ren in France on holiday before reality hit and his joy disappeared. Skiing wasn’t for the likes of him. He’d be lucky if he could afford to go anywhere on holiday.

Fucking stop it!Ren had come up with the perfect distraction today. He’d not thought about Kilic. There was no way Dominic was going to spoil it by moaning to himself about anything, including his lack of money.Grow the fuck up.

Chapter Seventeen

When they reached the bike, Ren pulled Dominic into his arms. He’d intended it to be a quick kiss but quick was never enough once their lips were together. In the past, Ren had never considered kissing a guy in public, nor even holding hands, but Dominic made him want to break all his rules. Except, was it his imagination that Dominic was clinging harder than he’d expected? Was there something wrong?

Dominic pulled away first. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “Thank you for everything you’ve done from the moment we met. You knocking me over with your bike was the best thing that could have happened to me. You’ve brought me back to life. The bike, the beach, picnic, plane, this place… Just being with you has been more than I could have hoped for. And accepting me after you learned…” He swallowed hard. “That was the greatest gift of all.”

Ren swallowed. Why did that sound a little like agoodbye?“I have plenty more planned. Horse riding, teaching you to drive, climbing, scuba diving, lying in the sun, riding a zip line…

“Finding jobs.”

“I had second thoughts about that.”

Dominic laughed.

“I was figuring we could win the lottery.”

“That’s such a well-thought-out plan.” Dominic took Ren’s hand. “I just wanted you to know how much you’ve helped me. Even when I couldn’t get my head around what Kilic said, you didn’t yell at me or tell me I was an idiot. Thank you.”

“This sounds like a speech given before going into battle, like you’re not expecting to survive. All the issues are gone now. We can make plans.”

“Just let me thank you, okay? You made it snow. I’ve realised you can do anything.”

“You can show me later in bed how grateful you are.” Ren pulled on his helmet.

“More Marmite on toast?”

“Well, obviously.”

They set off, Dominic’s arms around him, his thighs against Ren’s and it felt so…right, that a little bit of him wanted not to turn towards Asquith but to head north and keep going until they ran out of land. Find a place just for them. Then common sense kicked in and he headed back.

Everything was fine until he registered the black Discovery that had been behind them when they left the ski centre, was still behind them a couple of miles later. It had followed them through the town and was still there after they’d reached the countryside. It didn’t have to mean anything. Someone heading in the same direction wasn’t a crime, but Ren didn’t ignore his instincts.

“I’m going to do a U-turn,” Ren said. “Get closer to me and hold tight.”

Ren knew bikes—their capabilities and his. As a teenager, he’d learned how they worked, understood how he could make them work better, that he and the bike needed to work together. He’d cherished every bike he’d had until his heart beat in tune with them. But some manoeuvres were more dangerous than others and he needed this to be a very fast turn.

The Discovery was two cars back now and moving closer. Ren waited until he could see the next bend coming up, then accelerated until they were around it, only to find too many oncoming vehicles for him to do what he intended. He needed an open road. He weaved around traffic, narrowly avoiding collisions, ignoring the blare of horns, until the road was clear. He pulled close to the edge of the road, squeezed the front brake, and as he felt the back wheel slide, he turned the bike. Brake off, back on the throttle and they were speeding back the way they’d come. The driver of the Discovery glared as they passed. Ren recognised him and his heart sank. Herb from the dig.Shit.One question answered, though a larger one remained.

As soon as he could, he turned off the main road onto a smaller one, going as fast as he dared along a country lane, checking his sat nav for ways back to a town. Any town.

“Are we okay?” Dominic asked, the first words he’d spoken since they’d started back.

“I can’t figure out how someone would be following us. I was sure no one trailed us to the snow dome. But it was Herb from the dig driving that Discovery.”

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