Rough Ride (Riding with Honor)

by Rebecca Avery

  Her blue eyes shone in the last of the day’s light and he felt lost in them. He wanted to tell her that she had every right to think like she did but somehow it seemed like she already knew that and was just now allowing herself to really feel.

  “After the investigation ended and I was cleared of any wrong doing… I packed up all the household stuff in a storage unit, my clothes in my car and headed down here to stay with Sherri,” she said. “I feel like the last ten years of my life I spent living a lie. Now that I’m here I don’t know what to do… where do I go from here?”

  “You start over… find a new path… maybe a biker’s path…” he said.

  She stared up at him as though she was still trying to decide the direction of her life. Then with her eyes still open and gazing into his, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. Her kiss was gentle and soft and he realized that she was thanking him. He didn’t want her thanks; he wanted her heart, her fire and passion.

  When she ended the kiss that had barely begun he said, “Your welcome, but don’t kiss me unless you mean it… like I want you to mean it. I’m a man with very little self-control… especially where you’re concerned.”

  “What are you saying? I did mean it,” She said looking away from him.

  Catching her neck in his strong hand as though he meant to choke her, he captured her mouth and released it and then captured it again a little rougher and again released it. He heard her small whimper and watched as her eyes closed at the pleasure of his kiss. There was passion in there… he just needed to jump start it.

  “When I kiss you I mean it… understand?” he whispered against her mouth.

  He felt her body shiver. “Come on let’s get you inside and dried off,” he said.

  She was surprised to see all the guys asleep when she entered the camper with Bobby right behind her.

  “I just need a towel and I can change in the bedroom so you can have the bathroom,” she whispered.

  He followed her the short distance to the bathroom. After handing her a towel from the cupboard he put his hand on the side of her face and brushed his thumb over her bottom lip.

  “Good night Lilly,” he whispered.

  She closed the sliding divider door to the room and after towel drying her hair she changed into her night gown and combed through her hair until it was mostly dry. His kiss had turned her inside out. She could no longer deny that she wanted him. He was a playboy but she wanted him. Somehow it no longer mattered as much if she were to become another notch on his headboard.

  He changed and after heading back to the bunk beds he whispered, “She’s ok, but she rides with me tomorrow and we need to keep her real busy this weekend.”

  “I must be getting old or something ‘cause riding in the comfort of this home on wheels sounds mighty good compared to being hunched over that bike for the third day in a row,” Dickie whispered.

  “Thanks man,” Bobby whispered lying back. What was it about her? She was too high class for his taste… wasn’t she?

  Chapter Six

  As they pulled into the area where their booth was to be setup, Bobby felt a little disappointed when she pulled her arms from around his waist. God Almighty the feel of her against his back had been like suffering Priapism.

  An hour into the trip she had begun to relax from her normal rigidity and by lunch time she was fully pressed against the back of him with her arms around his waist rather than high on his chest… her hands nearly touching the place he wanted them to touch…

  Occasionally she would lean even closer and ask questions about landmarks. Her heated breath on his neck was enough to make him want to detour to the closest hotel and show her just how much he meant those kisses.

  Now that they were here, work would take over for the majority of the weekend. His plan was to keep Lilly so busy she had no time to focus on anything other than either working or having fun. After giving the guys a brief synopsis why she had been upset, they had all been more than eager to help keep her busy for fear she would quit in her emotional state. Everyone felt that she was doing a bang up job of running the office. They all liked her and were prepared to do whatever it took to keep her as part of the team.

  The day before had been full of rainstorms bad enough to force them to pull over for long stretches at a time. He had offered Lilly a rain check on the bike ride only an hour into the ride and was surprised when she took him up on it as they left out this morning. The rain had slowed down the trip so they didn’t arrive until after lunch on Thursday.

  The setback only gave them until dark to get the booth setup and the custom bike signed in for the competition. He and Tommy got the bike started and he rode it down to the tent area designated for the entries. The walk back to their booth area gave him time to re-focus his thoughts on the show and all that needed done before opening day, rather than the feel of Lilly’s hands on him.

  As he neared the tent that the guys had just finished setting up he could see her standing on a folding chair inside reaching up to the metal poles that acted as the frame for the tent. She was attempting to loop a hook over the pole that ran the depth of the tent. She was balanced precariously on tip toes and he could see the chair wobbling as he entered the tent.

  Walking over to her he looped an arm around her waist which was chest level to him. He must have startled her because she yelped and then quickly turned in his arms to catch herself by putting her hands on his shoulders. He put his other arm around her and cupped her bottom pulling her to him.

  “You’d have to check with my office manager, but I’m not sure my workmen’s comp is paid up so I’d hate for you to fall and hurt yourself,” he said with a grin.

  With that he grasped her bottom tighter and lifted her down off the chair, allowing her body to slide down his own as he placed her on the ground. Taking the hook from her he reached up and placed it over the pole.

  “It fits around that rod perfectly, doesn’t it?” he asked her.

  Turning to look at her, since she’d stepped back out of his way, he could tell that she had taken his comment as he’d intended it. She tried to look anywhere but at him as he stepped into her space.

  She stepped around him. Grabbing one of the posters she had taped to a piece of cardboard she hung it on the hook by the string she’d attached to the back. She was ignoring him! Stepping up close to her, he could feel her body tense up as she moved the poster a little one way and then the other way.

  “If that satisfied you and you want some more… just come and find me. I’m always willing to help where I can,” he whispered against her bare neck.

  Hearing her small gasp he smiled as he turned and headed out of the tent to help get the tables unloaded.

  The sun was setting in the sky when they finished setting up the booth. The lights, neon signs, posters and merchandise looked great. They roped off a small section to park the bikes. They each owned a custom bike that he had designed and the team had built. Lilly had confiscated Dickie’s leather jacket to hang behind their table and was busy trying to find the information on where they ordered the jackets from on her laptop.

  The guys all wanted to ride around town and hit up some of the local bars, so Lilly offered to take the RV back and see about getting Gretchen bedded down since tomorrow would be a long day.

  “I’ll lead her to the campsite and make sure everything is hooked up and then I’ll catch up,” Bobby said.

  Tommy winked at him as the guys all took off on their bikes. Her face burned as she caught the look Tommy had given Bobby.

  Gretchen willingly showered and lay down to watch her movie and was already asleep as she finished up her shower. Having nicked herself on the inside of one knee shaving in the minuscule shower, she put on her knitted shorts and a tank top and decided to see about starting a campfire. She grabbed a tissue to use on her cut and headed outside to get a chair from the back.

  As she stepped outside the camper she could see that Bobby had setup the overhang
, strung lights along it and started a fire. He sat in a chair near the fire with another chair beside him and a small table in between. She walked over and sat down in the empty chair. He appeared to be drinking liquor from a bottle.

  “Sorry no wine but I’m willing to share,” he said offering her the bottle.

  She had never really been a drinker, other than a glass of wine with her strawberries…something her college roommate had turned her onto. Once she’d started dating Darren he had always frowned at her drinking wine, so she’d never tried anything else.

  “Does it taste like wine?” she asked.

  “You’ve never had whiskey before?” he said in amazement.

  “No,” she replied.

  Shaking his head he took another swig from the bottle and looked at her again. Wanting to listen to some music to relax she stood up and headed back to the camper.

  “I’m going to put on some music. I think I figured out how to get it to play on the outside speakers by accident. I thought you were leaving...” she said, looking back at him as she went inside.

  She came back out and sat down after she heard the music playing through the outside speakers of the camper. She heard him laugh softly as she sat down. Looking at her he laughed a little harder and looked away.

  “Motown’s greatest hits?” he laughed some more looking back at her.

  “Yeah, what’s wrong with that?” she asked.

  “It’s just not what I would have guessed. I pictured Mozart or Beethoven to go along with your wine and strawberries,” he laughed again and took another swig from his bottle. Then he offered it to her.

  She laughed a little and grasped the bottle and took a drink. As it went down she nearly choked and coughed a little after she finally got it down.

  “That’s really strong,” she choked out.

  “Let me get a glass and I’ll pour you some,” he said.

  After returning with the glass he filled it up halfway. She was a little concerned with the amount since it was nearly twice what she usually drank when having wine.

  “You can’t sip this stuff you kind of have to drink it down. It’ll get stronger as it sits so you’ll not want to linger over it like you do your wine,” he said.

  “Ok,” she said, grasping the glass and taking a drink. She winced as she swallowed it down. “I’m not sure I care for this, it’s a little too strong I think.”

  “It’s just different, you have to at least finish what I gave you before you’ll appreciate the flavor,” he said.

  Taking the tissue out of her pocket she dabbed at her cut as she forced herself to finish what was in the glass.

  “More?” he asked with a chuckle after she finished doctoring up her cut and placed the empty glass a little too heavily on the small table he’d setup between the chairs.

  “It’s still pretty strong… I don’t think so,” she said looking up at him.

  Her face was flushed and he could tell she was already feeling it.

  “Sometimes it helps to mix it with soda,” he said pulling a can of cola out of the cooler next to the camper and opening it. He filled the glass about a third of the way up with the liquor and then filled it the rest of the way with the cola. “Here try that.”

  Taking the drink from his hand she tasted it. “Actually, that is a lot better,” she laughed.

  Oh yea, she was feeling it. He watched as she relaxed back into her seat… gone was the prim and proper woman who sat up straight and wore pencil skirts. Leaning forward he picked up her glass and handed it to her.

  She took several big drinks and then sat it back down. “Whew! I’m not sure I should drink anymore, I feel tipsy already,” she laughed.

  “You don’t sound like it’s affecting you too much,” he lied.

  Leaning forward she picked up the glass and finished off the last half of it. Oh boy… this should be good.

  “Tell me about you. I already spilled my guts to you so now it’s your turn,” she said and then giggled.

  He could not hold back his smile. She didn’t handle liquor well at all. He’d always thought the upper class were a bunch of rich drunks.

  “I’m thirty four own my own business and I’m a Scorpio,” he said, taking a swig from the bottle and watching her from the corner of his eye.

  She giggled. “No I mean… do you have family? Or is Edna your only family?”

  “Nah, just me and Gran… her daughter, my mother… bailed when I was a year old and the old Hag’s been riding me ever since,” he smiled.

  “Ever been married… have any kids?” she asked.

  “No and no,” he said, taking another drink and handing her the bottle. Surprisingly she took a drink before handing it back.

  “Why do you say such naughty things to people?” She giggled and then broke out into more giggles.

  “I only say naughty things to you,” he said with a grin.

  “But why? Sherri says women throw themselves at you without you ever having to flirt or ask them out or anything… so why not say those things to them?” she asked.

  “I haven’t been with any women since you showed up in my office. I’ll admit… some might have labeled me a man whore in the past, but that’s all changed,” he said

  She laughed out loud and then giggled some more before getting control again. He smiled… this was what he’d been after with the liquor. The woman seemed to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders sometimes and just once… for this night… with him… he wanted her to relax.

  “Ok so my turn to ask some questions,” he said. “Does it make you uncomfortable when I say naughty things to you?”

  Knowing she was just drunk enough to be relaxed and completely honest but not drunk enough to be ill, he hoped he could get her to tell him if he even stood a chance with her. It was hard to tell sometimes… though she responded to him when he’d kissed her, she seemed to be holding back from him and he wanted to know why.

  “I don’t know… it makes me think of things I shouldn’t but I wouldn’t say it makes me uncomfortable,” she answered leaning her head back in her chair. “You’re hard to take, you know that?”

  “Hard to take? What do you mean?” he asked.

  “You know what you’re doing and you’re good at it. You said that you are just a man and have little self-control… well I’m just a woman and I usually have a lot of self-control but you… you push me,” she said, her voice drifting off as she turned her face away from him.

  “Push you?” he said.

  “Yes! You get in my space… so close to me I just know you’re going to kiss me… and then you don’t… you just tease me. You say things to me to make me have dirty thoughts and I’m not used to it…. So yea, you’re hard to take!” she said emphatically.

  “It’s called foreplay. Didn’t your husband say those kinds of things to you?” he asked.

  Her cheeks flamed but she answered, “No, he wasn’t like that. He was romantic… flowers, cards, gifts… that kind of thing.”

  “So he was boring in bed then,” he laughed.

  “No! He was just gentle with me. That’s all. Can we talk about something else please?” She choked back an embarrassed laugh.

  “You said you were angry at him the other night… and that he cheated on you. Did you ever cheat on him?” he asked

  “Of course not! Sex isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be anyways… so why would I risk my marriage and the embarrassment of a scandal?” she asked in return.

  There it was… her response to him was unfamiliar not uncomfortable. Christ! Her husband must have been a real piece of work if he hadn’t done everything in his power to please this woman both in and out of the bedroom. Instead he had left her sexually frustrated while he hooked up with someone else. What an ass and an idiot!

  He’d been with a lot of women… more than he ever should have. Mostly when he’d been drinking heavily and partying all the time. Then when he started his motorcycle business a few years ago he’d straighten
ed up his act… for the most part.

  He’d not had a serious relationship since his early twenties so pleasing a woman outside the bedroom was a little foreign, but with a woman like Lilly it couldn’t be that hard. She seemed easy enough to please. As for pleasing her in the bedroom, he’d love it if she’d let him try.

  “Isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be?” he said. “Did you enjoy having sex with him?”

  “He was my husband! I loved him… at least I tried to love him. We just didn’t always see eye to eye. I tried to please him as I’m sure, at least in the beginning, he tried to please me,” she said defensively.

  “Was he able to make you orgasm?” he asked.

  Shock made her turn to look at him. Then after several seconds she blushed and looked away. “I guess so… we were married for ten years. It wasn’t his entire fault, I think I was just too hard to please… maybe he just got tired of trying,” she said quietly.

  She was embarrassed that she’d let the liquor say things she’d never shared with anyone… not even Darren. Maybe now that he knew she wasn’t as ‘hot’ as he thought she was, he’d stop saying things and flirting with her.

  “I should go in and check on Gretchen,” she said.

  As she made her way past him and headed to the camper, she heard a motorcycle pulling into the campsite. Looking over she saw Dickie pull up. Bobby walked over to him but Lilly couldn’t hear what was said.

  After checking on Gretchen, she sat down at the small table in the kitchen area of the RV as Dickie and Bobby entered.

  “You guys should take a ride; it’s a beautiful night… I’m going to turn in so I can get to the booth early. I’ll be here with the squirt so no need to rush,” Dickie said.

  “You go on. I think I’ll just stay here… check emails and then turn in myself,” she said to Bobby.