Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 117494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Shane could’ve been the popular asshole. He’d chosen not to be. He chose to be my brother’s friend.
That, right there, started it all.
Sitting behind him now, I wasn’t thinking about Aly or Harper. I wasn’t being the responsible adult I should’ve been. I just wanted to rub against him the entire ride to wherever we were going. I suppressed a shiver, pressing my cheek against Shane’s shoulder.
I felt him look back. I didn’t move.
It was dark, and the wind whipped against us. I could smell the grease and oil from the bikes.
All of it was heady, freeing in a way. I hadn’t felt free in a long time, maybe ever.
But I did right now, and I couldn’t comprehend that. Why now?
I should’ve been worried about Aly and Harper. But instead I was with Shane, going wherever he was taking me.
This wasn’t me. I’d grown up cautious—you had to be in this world. I’d grown up smart. I worked hard all of my life. Now here, on the back of a bike, I was someone else.
I scooted even closer to Shane, my front and the sides of my legs molded against him like glue. If he’d stopped and stood, it felt like my body would’ve lifted with him.
A shiver went through me.
Shane must’ve felt it, as he glanced back again.
I didn’t move, just took a breath in and burrowed my head into his back.
He reached down, took my hands and moved them up to his chest. I flattened my palms there, my fingers spread out. I moved one hand to his stomach, and he squeezed my leg, leaving his hand to rest there. He kept it there for most of the drive, leaving me when he needed to touch the handles.
I wasn’t watching where we were going, but I knew we were leaving civilization and headed elsewhere.
I should’ve been scared, and a part of me was.
But if Shane decided to ride all night, taking me away somewhere, a part of me would want that too.
It seemed both too long and not long enough when Shane started slowing down.
For the last part of the drive, there’d been no one else on the road. I didn’t know California well, but I was learning that this state had everything—rivers, the ocean, mountains, forest, desert, valleys, plains. If I saw a kangaroo hopping by, I would react, but I wouldn’t be that surprised.
I looked up when we turned onto a gravel road, and there were three guys there, guns in hand. We slowed, and when they saw Shane, they waved us through. From there, the driveway went another mile. It was dark, but I could see multitudes of light up ahead. When we neared, it was some sort of ranch. There were bikes everywhere.
A large, three-story house sat in the center, with some campers set up on one side. Behind it was a barn, and beyond that, there were more barns and sheds.
On the other side was a long, extended barn with fences set up around it. I heard horses neighing, and some guys came out to the house’s front porch as we drew near. They waved us past and around to the side of one of the barns. More guys opened the large doors, and we drove inside.
I didn’t know what I’d been expecting, but this wasn’t it.
Shane drove all the way through, parking right in front of the back doors. The two guys parked behind him, and I heard the roar of more engines. More guys were coming inside to park.
A few came over to greet Shane before he was called to the side to talk to another group of guys.
This left me on the bike, and yeah—I had no clue what to do.
I waited, climbing off the bike and stretching.
It was then that my sanity came back to me. I’d left my two best friends—two friends who were family to me, who had taken this entire road trip here to get my sister. I’d gotten a text and left them high and dry behind me.
Shit, shit, shit.
I fished out my phone, seeing the first of a whole chain of texts.
Aly: um, hello.
Aly: Brandon -- his name is BRANDON -- said you took off with some bikers. Guessing that was Shane?
Aly: We’re heading back to the hotel. Brandon is taking us.
Aly: Officially waiting for him to finish closing up. I like him. He’s hot. But I’m with Scott. Am I being stupid? He’s a baby. Brandon is not a baby.
Aly: Harper asked and HE’S OUR AGE! I’m officially not a cougar. Gah. Girl. Where are you? Okay. Putting on a responsible friend hat here, are you safe? I get it. It’s Shane. You know Shane. We know Shane, but still. Brandon is not happy you went with those guys. He doesn’t know we know Shane. Wait. He’s giving me a look. He’s flirting with me, hon. Flirting. Sigh. I don’t feel old tonight. Is that wrong? I should feel ancient, but he’s making me not feel extinct.