A Reason to Leave

by Melissa Ellen

  I gave him a meek grin, “I don’t know….I’ve never been on a motorcycle before.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll take it easy on ya,” he winked.

  Frankie laughed, patting Liam on the back. “I’m turnin’ in for the night. You kids be careful.”

  “Happy birthday, Frankie,” I said, giving him a hug as he moved to leave. He glanced back at the bike one more time before disappearing back into the house, leaving us alone in the garage.

  Liam walked over to a table, pulling two helmets out of a box. I stood by the bike, running my hand over the smooth frame.

  “This may be a little big. I got it for Frankie,” Liam explained as he stepped beside me, holding both helmets in his hands. He laid one on the seat as I turned to him. He looked down into my eyes, grinning excitedly. His eyes dropped the length of my body as his teeth captured his bottom lip.

  “Fuck, princess….having that tight little body wrapped around me on this bike is going to do things to me. This may be a short ride.”

  He used one arm, tugging my body so it was pressed firmly against him. His heated stare and the thought of being wrapped around him on the bike had me feeling like a bundle of nerves. He kissed me fiercely, putting me in a heady trance, only adding to my frenzied state of mind. I moaned my pleasure, suddenly thinking we should skip the ride all together, preferring to take a different kind of ride.

  Liam promptly ended our kiss. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before opening them back to look at me.

  “Pull your hair back,” he commanded gruffly.

  I did as I was told, pulling it back in a low pony tail at the base of my neck, holding it with my hand. I smiled knowingly at him. It was obvious he was trying to control his own urges. He lifted the helmet above me, slowly sliding it over my head until it was secured snuggly on me. He lifted the face guard, so he could see my eyes.

  “Does that feel okay?” he asked softly.

  I nodded, unable to verbalize a single word. His innocent movements feeling more sensual than they should. My chest tightened as the pulsing in my body increased.

  “Okay. I’m going to climb on first. You’ll climb on after me. Keep your feet on the pegs. You’re going to want to hold onto me. Tight.” He smirked. “Just follow my lead. When I lean, look over my inside shoulder. Okay?”

  I nodded again.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to you, princess,” he assured me, interpreting my silence as fear. “Do you trust me?”

  “With every part of me,” I nodded. He smiled but his eyes flashed with something I couldn’t comprehend.

  Liam pulled his own helmet on before taking a seat on the bike. He tilted the bike into an upright position, lifting the kick stand with his foot. He looked back at me and nodded for me to get on.

  I hesitated a moment, trying to figure out my footing before lifting my leg over the bike while holding onto his shoulders for balance. I straddled the seat behind him, sliding forward until my front was pressed to his back. He moved my hands from his shoulders, guiding them around his waist where I squeezed him tight.

  He lifted his face guard, glancing over his shoulder. “Lower the guard. Keep it down while we’re moving.”

  I nodded again, lowering my face guard.

  He cranked the key of the motorcycle. The engine roared and the bike vibrated between my legs, sending a shiver down my spine with excited anticipation. Liam raised his feet as the bike began to roll forward out of the garage. I instinctively gripped him tighter and felt his firm stomach beneath my palms rumble with laughter.

  Turning onto the residential street, my heart rate tripled its pace. The thrill of the powerful machine below me and the powerful man in my arms, had me feeling exhilarated and alive. Liam drove the motorcycle skillfully through the streets of L.A. With the increased speed of the motorcycle, the wind bristled against my skin, sending goose bumps up my arms.

  The miles passed by in a flash. The motorcycle slowed as we pulled up to Angel’s point. Liam killed the engine, leaning the bike slightly to the side onto the kick stand. He removed his helmet, hanging it on the handle bars. I removed my own helmet, shaking out my hair after resting the helmet behind me.

  Liam twisted at his waist, pulling me onto his lap. I burrowed my cheek into his chest. The whole ride had constantly plagued my hormones. The blood in my veins were ignited by the ride like a trail of gunpowder, making my body combustible. I tried to slow my breathing from the exhilarating experience as I stared out at the view before us.

  The twinkling lights of Los Angeles glowed, contrasting with the black sky, creating a breathtaking view of the city. I felt his lips touch the crown of my head. I lifted my head to stare up at him. His painfully beautiful smile inched across his face as he tucked my wild hair behind my ear.

  “What did you think?” he asked.

  “I loved it. Best ride of my life.”

  He raised a cocky eyebrow with a smirk.

  “Well… besides the one I hope you’ll be taking me on later tonight,” I grinned slyly. His head fell back with a short stint of laughter. I loved seeing him laugh. I loved hearing his laugh. I wanted to be the one to always make him laugh.

  “God, princess…” He let out a breath of air as he looked back down at me. His eyes dimmed with unexpected grief. “You make me so happy,” he whispered as he rubbed his thumb across my bottom lip.

  My heart sunk with the tone of his voice. He spoke the words as if he didn’t deserve to feel that way. As if he didn’t deserve me. The thought killed me. It made me want to dive into the depths of his pain, discover his secrets and take the anguish they caused him away.

  I moved in slowly, caressing my lips against his throat. His grip on my hips tightened as his body became tense with desire. I ran my hands up the contours of his chest, sliding them over his broad shoulders, linking them behind his neck as I worked my way up his jawline.

  My movements were purposefully unrushed with the objective to make him feel every touch. Every motion. I needed him to feel me. Feel how much I wanted him. How much I needed him. Feel that every part of me was his to keep. He groaned as my lips met his. I pressed my body to him, leaving no room for anything to ever become between us.

  “Valerie,” he pleaded against my lips, trying to resist everything I was giving to him. I didn’t relent. Forcing him to accept. There was no room for him to have any doubt about us. I wouldn’t allow it.

  He crushed his lips against mine, surging deeper into the depths of my soul. Finally accepting everything my body was telling him. I twisted my legs around his hips, needing every inch of my body to be wrapped around him like a boa constrictor.

  I ground my hips into him, releasing a moan. I needed more, and I could tell by his own aggressive ministrations he needed the same. He abruptly ended our make out session, pulling his head back from mine.

  “We need to go.” His labored breathing matched mine. “I need to be inside you, and I’m not doing that here.”

  I nodded my agreement, not wasting anytime to resume my position behind him on the motorcycle. I clung to his body as he drove us back to his place, unwilling to release him for the rest of the night.

  CHAPTER 12

  “Frankie, are you sure you don’t want to come with us to the beach?” I asked as Liam loaded my car with the items we would need for our overnight camping trip.

  Frankie shook his head. “Nah, I’m too old for that shit. You kids have fun, though. While you’re sleepin’ in the sand, I’ll be sleepin’ like a baby in my own bed.”

  I laughed. I couldn’t blame him. The idea of sleeping on the ground in a tent, didn’t sound too appealing to me either. Dax came up behind me, throwing his arm across my shoulders. “You sure old man? You’re gonna be missin’ out.”

  Frankie grinned. “Watch who you’re callin’ old,” he warned with a humorous tone.

  “And get your arm off my girl before I break it,” Liam said with less humor, coming up behind us.
/>   “Shit, Val…how do ya deal with these two grumpy bastards?” He winked, removing his arm from my shoulders.

  Liam quickly replaced it with his own arm, pulling me in possessively. It made me curious if he was ever made aware that mine and Dax’s previous flirtations were all a ploy.

  A loud honking and a raucous group distracted us all before I had a chance to respond. We turned, looking down towards the street to Blaine’s SUV, pulling up at the end of the drive already packed with a car load of people. Trent was hanging out the window, hollering and pounding his hand on the side of the door.

  I laughed at their rowdy excitement. Liam and Dax, on the other hand, seemed less amused with their behavior.

  “Hey, Dax,” a blonde girl seductively purred, hanging outside the rear passenger window, revealing way too much cleavage. Dax gave her a quick lift of his chin in acknowledgment before turning his back to her.

  “Shit,” he scowled under his breath.

  “Aren’t those the girls you guys took home a couple weeks ago? Liam asked, squinting his eyes towards the car.

  “Yeah, and the blonde is fuckin’ nuttier than shit. Fuckin’ hot. But fuckin’ crazy.” He smirked in dismay. “Fuckin’ assholes probably invited them cuz they’re angry about me takin’ all their money in poker the other night. Bunch of sore losers.”

  Liam and I laughed at his obvious distress.

  “I’m riding with you guys,” Dax decided.

  “Like hell you are,” Liam retorted.

  I rolled my eyes at Liam. “You can ride with us Dax.”

  Liam glowered. “You keep your fuckin’ hands to yourself.”

  He raised his hands up in the air with his palms out. “Promise,” he grinned, his eyes full of mischief. I shook my head, walking towards Frankie to give him a hug goodbye.

  “Good luck, darlin’. I don’t envy you havin’ to ride with the two of them,” Frankie teased me. I started to think his idea of staying home was a good one. Maybe I would just hang with Frankie.

  “Let’s go, princess,” Liam called behind me. I swung around to look at my man who was smiling ear to ear. I scanned his masculine body dressed casually in baby blue board shorts and a fitted white t-shirt, looking like sex on legs. Never mind. I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to be pressed against that tonight.

  “Coming,” I hollered before turning back to Frankie. “Make sure you call us if you need anything. I left some of my sister-in-law’s homemade lasagna in the fridge for you. She made way too much and insisted I bring some for you.”

  “Thank you, darlin’. You don’t have to worry about me. Go on. Get outta here.” He patted the side of my face. I gave him a kiss on his cheek and then ran to Liam who was waiting for me. Dax hurdled over the side of my convertible, jumping into the back seat. Liam lifted me into his arms and over his shoulder as he manhandled me into the passenger seat. He claimed my mouth with his. Blaine banged on his horn as the crazed group in his car hooted and whistled. We laughed through our kiss at the cheers around us.

  Liam gave me one last quick peck before jogging around the front of the car and sliding in behind the driver’s wheel.

  The beach was crowded with people celebrating the holiday. When we arrived, Lexie, Jake and their group had already set up camp, arriving earlier in the weekend. The guys took care of unloading everything and setting up our tents for the night as I hung with Lexie on her oversized and vibrant beach blanket.

  “I feel like I haven’t seen you in weeks,” I said as I took a seat next to Lexie. She was lying back on her elbows, watching the masses splash around in the water and lounge on the beach.

  “You’ve been a little preoccupied,” she eyed me over her sunglasses that she dropped down her nose. I removed my cover up to reveal my white, floral print, strapless bikini.

  “I could say the same for you,” I smirked, pulling and twisting my long hair into a pile on top of my head. I had barely been out here for thirty minutes and already I was starting to break a sweat. I leaned back on my own elbows to lay beside her.

  She shrugged, raising her sunglasses back up to conceal her eyes. But she wasn’t quick enough. I saw the expression she was trying to hide.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.” Her answer was short and tight.

  I studied my friend, knowing damn well something was up. “Where’s Jake?” I asked, looking back at the campsite, realizing I hadn’t seen him or his buddies.

  She nodded her head in the opposite direction, looking towards a game of beach volleyball. I followed her gaze, seeing Jake and his friends playing volleyball with a group of girls I didn’t recognize.

  It only took a few minutes of watching the game to realize what had my friend upset. One of the girls was being overly friendly with Jake, and he wasn’t doing anything to discourage her flirting.

  “Ignore it, Lex. It’s nothing. I’m sure,” I tried to comfort her, even though my own anger was starting to surface. She turned back to look out at the ocean, and I worried she was fighting tears back behind the cloak of her dark sunglasses.

  Liam joined us a few minutes later, looking agitated as he crawled over me, covering my body with his. “What are you doing?” I laughed. “You’re blocking my sun.”

  “I’m blocking the rest of these assholes who are getting off just from looking at you,” he growled as he pressed his sweaty body firmly to me. “Don’t you have a one piece or something? Fuck, princess.”

  “Maybe you should piss on her… that may help,” Lexie smirked.

  I laughed, weakly pushing against his shoulder. “Stop being ridiculous. That would give me awful tan lines. It’s just too bad this isn’t a nude beach,” I goaded him some more. I loved when he went all alpha male on me.

  He glared at me. “You better not be getting naked for anybody but me.”

  “Then I expect the same from you.”

  He smirked, giving me a kiss, grinding his hips firmly against my core in response. I gasped, forgetting where we were. Or the fact that my best friend was less than a foot away.

  “Seriously you two…” Dax said, towering above us, shaking his head. “At least move inside the fucking tent, so we don’t have to watch.”

  “Where’s blondie?” Liam teased in retaliation.

  “Shut up, asshole,” Dax frowned, taking a seat next to Lexie. He leaned forward, bending his knees to rest his forearms on. “Lex, how ya been?”

  “Good,” she said, perking up a little. “You?”

  “Better now. Where’s your man?”

  “Busy….playing volleyball.”

  Dax looked over at the volleyball game, catching onto the situation immediately. He turned back to her. “His loss,” he smiled wryly. “It’s hot as fuck out here. You wanna go for a swim?”

  She raised her sunglasses on top of her head, her eyes brighter than a few moments ago. “Sure,” she smiled up at him. He stood, helping her to her feet. Liam rolled off of me to his side, taking her place on the blanket beside me. The two of us watched them walk away, playfully touching and pushing on each other as they laughed.

  “This is going to get interesting…,” I said, glancing over at Liam. He shook his head with annoyance.

  “Dax needs to watch his back…I’m not helping him out if Jake tries to kick his ass tonight.”

  “Jake’s a jerk. He doesn’t deserve to be with Lexie.”

  “Regardless, princess. She’s still his girl. At least for the moment.”

  “Well, you wouldn’t know it with the way he’s acting right now.”

  Liam’s face softened as he looked at me. “I didn’t say he wasn’t being an asshole. Whatever happens is between them. I don’t want to get tied up in all the bullshit. I want to spend the day with my girl.”

  He leaned down, caressing my face, pressing his lips to mine before slipping his tongue into my mouth. I ran my fingers through his hair, pulling him back over me.

  “I think we need to cool off,” he released a heavy exhale
.

  “I disagree.”

  He chuckled. “Let’s go for a swim.”

  “No way.”

  He pulled back further his face contorted into a confused expression. “Why?”

  “Unless there is a pool of crystal clear water around here, there is no way you’re getting me to go for a swim.”

  He grinned with wide eyed amusement, “Are you afraid of getting in the ocean?”

  “Terrified.”

  “You’re telling me you’ve been living here for how many years? And you’ve never stepped foot in that ocean?”

  “Three. And I’ve put my toes in the water, but I’ve never gone deeper than my ankles. I’m not about to give some man-eating shark the opportunity to make me his dinner.”

  He rolled to his back. His deep laugh erupted from him, reverberating around me.

  “It’s not funny,” I huffed, aggravated that he found my biggest fear humorous.

  “It is. And you’re getting in that water,” he demanded.

  “No, I am not.”

  He crawled to a crouching position with an evil gleam in his eyes. He was getting ready to pounce.

  “Don’t even think about it,” I warned, sitting up, readying my own escape.

  He inched his crawl towards me. With every movement of his, I made one of my own. I braced my palms on the ground, ready to jump and run. My heart rate picked up with anticipation as I held his gaze.

  “Liam,” I warned again. His grin grew wider. My anxious brain couldn’t handle it. My nerves were wired. I could feel my pulse in my throat. I jumped to my feet, turning to run as fast as I could. I heard his laughter behind me as he closed in on me within seconds, scooping me into his arms and over his shoulder.

  I screamed and laughed, flailing my arms and legs as he carried me towards the ocean. My mind and body whirled with confusion. Excitement, fear, lust and anxiety all mixing chaotically.

  “Liam! No!!! Please!” I begged as he neared the water’s edge. “Oh my gosh! I’m gonna die! Put me down! I’m gonna die!”

  “You’re not gonna die,” he laughed, walking us into the water. He was now knee deep.