by Pj Fiala
Emma was surprised by the way Gunnar grabbed her and pulled her to him, and kissed her. She was even more surprised by how quickly her body responded to him and right now, at this moment, she couldn’t get her brain to work for anything. There was nothing in it but Gunnar. The way he felt pulling her to his body, the heat he radiated, the strength he had in those arms of his and the desire he ignited in her was so potent and immediate, she didn’t have the power to resist. Her breasts felt heavy and needy, her nipples beaded to sharp points with an ache threatening to take her breath away if he didn’t touch them. Emma slid her arms up and around Gunnar’s neck and shoulders to push her breasts into his chest. A moan slipped between her lips and she immediately felt Gunnar’s muscles bunch under her arms. Powerful—so powerful and sexy.
Chapter Eight
Gunnar slipped a hand between them to touch Emma’s breast. He found her nipple and pinched it softly between his thumb and forefinger, causing her breath to catch. Jesus. Gunnar reluctantly pulled his mouth away from Emma’s. He laid his forehead against hers and concentrated on regulating his breathing. If he continued at this pace, he would completely lose control. She started to pull away, but he held her tight, loathed to let her go.
Emma lowered herself as she realized she was up on her toes and had pulled her arms tightly around Gunnar’s shoulders in an effort to ease the tension in her breasts. She was embarrassed at her behavior. So much for making him think ‘she wasn’t doing men’ right now. But holy shit, she had never, ever been kissed like that before. She shivered as she thought about it.
“You cold?”
Emma blinked and pulled her head back just an inch to look into Gunnar’s eyes. He lifted his head slightly and watched her face. Her beautiful, sweet face.
“No. I’m fine.”
“You shivered; that means you’re cold.”
Emma was thrilled that it was dark out, because she could feel the heat in her cheeks. God, she was so in way over her head here.
Gunnar watched her face for a moment more, nodded once and turned them toward his truck. He opened the passenger door and grinned at the look on her face. “Between stalker Janie and stalker picture guy, we keep getting interrupted. Let’s sit in here so you can tell me what you need to tell me.”
Nodding her head, Emma stepped on the running board and scooted into the passenger seat. He closed the door and walked around the front of the truck, affording Emma a small amount of time to gather her thoughts.
After climbing in, Gunnar turned towards her, resting his wrist on the back of her seat. With his free hand he smoothed her cheek with the back of his forefinger, staring into her eyes. She smiled and caught her bottom lip with her perfect white teeth and his nostrils flared as his heart began beating out a rhythm a rock band would be jealous of.
Emma swallowed the lump in her throat and let out a long, slow breath. “Okay. Gunnar, if you change your mind about tomorrow after I tell you…I’ll understand. Okay?”
Gunnar smirked. “Spit it out, babe.”
“Okay. Six and a half years ago, I killed a…a biker.” Emma looked deeply into his eyes to gauge his reaction. He waited patiently for her to continue. Greg never, ever waited patiently for anything.
Swallowing again and fidgeting with a loose string in the seam of her jeans, fighting the tears that were blurring her vision, Emma said, “His name is...was Josh. Josh Kendall. I was driving home from school. It was a clear day, the radio was playing—probably too loud—but it felt right at the moment. I had the windows open and the wind whistled through the car. I felt free—invincible. I had just gotten an A on a final; the world was my oyster. “Emma sniffed and braved a glance into Gunnar’s eyes.
He looked at her, following the lone tear that trekked its way down her smooth cheek. He leaned in and kissed her lips, just once and very quickly, his way of comforting her. But still, he continued to wait.
She nodded her head once, and continued. “Well, I was just three blocks from home. My dad was still alive and I was living with him. Ashley was too, but she and Ron were getting married in a month and a half. Anyway…” Blowing out another breath, Emma briefly glanced out the window, and then back to the stubborn thread in her jeans. “I was driving past the street before I needed to turn toward home and he shot out of the intersection. He never stopped, just ran right out in front of me. I…” clearing her throat and sniffing, she said, “I slammed on the brakes, but I was too late. I hit him.”
She wiped the tears that flowed freely now and sniffed a few more times. Gunnar touched her hair with his fingers using light stroking, soothing motions.
“He died instantly. There was so much blood.” Swallowing again, she softly said. “So much blood.”
Gunnar leaned forward, kissed her forehead and cupped the back of her head. Pressing his lips against her hair, he softly kissed the top of her head. With the console between them, he couldn’t hold her like he wanted. He reached down and captured her fidgeting little fingers in his much larger hand and held them, gently rubbing circles with his thumb. As she calmed down, Gunnar leaned back and held her gaze in his own.
“That wasn’t your fault. He was behaving recklessly. A motorcycle seldom wins when it plows into a car or the other way around.”
Emma nodded her head a couple of times but still couldn’t look into his eyes. Slowly Gunnar reached forward and tucked his fingers under her chin, pulling her face up to his. Their eyes locked. He softly traced the scar he had seen on her cheek. “Is that where this came from?”
She nodded and looked into his eyes but couldn’t say anything. “It wasn’t your fault, babe.”
Another tear trekked down her cheek to the side and traveled toward her ear. Emma reached up and swiped at it. Her full lips quivered at the corners. “His mother thinks it is. She’s the reason I left town and moved to Chicago. She kept driving past my house, and for a while, I felt like she was stalking me. Everywhere I went, she would be there too. I would do anything to turn back time and change that day.” She sobbed.
“I’m sure you would. I’m sure she would, too. That doesn’t give her the right to stalk you, and I’m sorry it chased you out of town away from your family. But, this doesn’t change things for me. We’re still going on a ride tomorrow, and I’ll show you not all bikers are reckless.
“If you aren’t sure what to wear, ask Molly for pointers. I’m a safe driver. I don’t screw around and I want you on my bike. Tonight, I’ll see that you get home, but, that’s it. No pressure. I want you to know that I’m not a pig, never have been. Not saying I haven’t had casual sex, because I have. If it’s consensual, which is the only way I would ever engage in it, there’s nothing wrong with it. But, you and me,” he said, motioning his fingers between them, “we aren’t casual. We’re going to get to know each other, spend time with each other and see where this goes. Got it?”
“Gunnar, I—”
“Got it?”
“Gunnar—“ He held her gaze. “Yes. Got it.”
“Good.” He bent his head and brushed her lips with his. He licked the seam of her lips gently, and then lightly pressed his lips to hers once more. He lifted his head and watched her face in the dim light, seeing a soft smile spread across her face. God, she would undo him. He was quickly becoming afraid that she could crook her finger at him and make him do anything she wanted him to do. But one thing he would not do, and that was allow her to put space between them. He felt something for her the instant he met her. He kicked himself for not asking for her phone number. Then, God put them together at the hospital and Gunnar knew it was a sign. After their date last week, she said she didn’t want to go out with him again, and he stupidly allowed her to have her way. If he wouldn’t have seen her tonight, he would have been there tomorrow morning to get in her space and demand that she get to know him.
Grinning, Gunnar firmly kissed her lips once more and motioned toward the building. “So, do you want to go back in or head home?”
“Ho
me please. I’m a bit creeped out now, I guess. Too many weird things happened tonight.”
Chapter Nine
“Geez, Emma, he’s…holy crap, how in the heck are you even able to talk to him? I would be a stuttering mess around him.” Ashley’s voice was low so as not to wake a sleeping Tyler in her arms.
“Do I need to remind you of the exploding baby formula incident of a couple weeks ago?” Emma looked at Ashley and smiled. “Besides, you talked to him last week.”
They both giggled as they watched Gunnar through the front window in the living room. He had just pulled his bike up the driveway, turned it around, dropped the kickstand, climbed off and started walking to the front door. Gawd! Emma could see the power in his thighs through the thick fabric of his jeans. Fantastic legs and his ass, well—forehead slap—there was no ass in the world like that ass. His leather jacket was unzipped and under it he wore a tight t-shirt, which showed off his defined abs and massive pecs. Emma felt a pulsing between her thighs and her heartbeat hitch, creating a blush rapidly crawling up her neck and resting on her cheeks.
“Yeah, I did. But need I remind you, I’m not sexually interested in him, it’s different. And, I was sleep deprived.” Ashley watched Gunnar walking toward the front door. “Geez, you’re a lucky woman, Em. Gawd, but he’s beautiful.”
Emma’s voice was barely a whisper through her dry and constricted throat, “I know.”
Ashley looked at her sister and they both grinned. “God, it’s good to be home.”
Emma walked to the front door, wiping her damp palms on her thighs and opening it just as Gunnar knocked. Ashley quickly sat down in the rocking chair in the living room and rocked Tyler in her arms.
“Come on in. I’ll get my purse.”
“You look beautiful, Emma.” He leaned down and surprised her with a quick kiss on the lips. She had pulled her thick blonde hair into a braid down the back of her head. A few little tendrils escaped the braid and Gunnar reached up to touch one of them, gently brushing the scar.
Emma blushed. She turned and looked at a grinning Ashley, rolled her eyes in an oh-my-God motion, then walked to her bedroom to grab her purse.
“Good morning, Gunnar. How’re you today?”
“I’m good. You look good. Is Tyler letting you get some sleep?”
Gunnar leaned over Ashley just a little to look at Tyler, who was fast asleep in his mother’s arms. Ashley giggled. She was very pretty too. Emma looked a lot like Ashley with her big brown eyes. Ashley was a little taller, her hair was shorter, and she was a couple of years older, but you could definitely tell they were sisters.
“No. Last night Ron let me get some sleep while he got up both times to feed Tyler. He’s sleeping right now or I would introduce you.”
“No problem. There’ll be time for that another day.”
Emma came back into the room with her purse in tow. “I’m ready.”
Gunnar nodded and held his arm out toward the door, prompting Emma to walk out before him. They both said good-bye to Ashley and left. Emma’s jeans fit her perfectly and defined her toned legs. She had on a white cami and over that she wore an Army Green wrap sweater. She paired it with a scarf, her brown mid-calf boots, and her leather jacket. As they walked to his bike, Gunnar couldn’t take his eyes off her ass. When she walked, it moved just enough to be enticing as hell and his cock throbbed with want for touching it—touching her. He hadn’t slept at all last night, dammit. Every time he rolled over, he remembered the way she felt in his arms, the way she tasted, the sounds of her little moans, and the way her tongue felt sliding against his. He could smell her on his t-shirt, so he decided to sleep in it last night. When he dropped her off at the house, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her like he had kissed her at The Barn. She whimpered into his mouth when he pulled her close to him and ground his cock against her belly. It made him shake to feel her and smell her and taste her. He wanted her so fucking bad right now, he was going to have a painful ride today. He purposely wore the loosest fitting jeans he had to allow his forever swollen cock room, but it was painfully apparent they didn’t allow him enough.
Fuck!
Gunnar opened the side bag and pulled out a pair of gloves and held them out to her. “You can put your purse in the bag. You’ll get tired of carrying it. I brought you gloves to wear. It’s a little cool in the morning yet, but it’s supposed to warm up this afternoon. By the time we get to Door County for lunch, it should be nice out.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.”
“Are you nervous?”
“A little.” Emma shyly smiled. She looked Gunnar in the eye; she wanted to be brave for him. Her tummy was tied up right now. Between Gunnar being, well Gunnar, and riding on a motorcycle, she felt guilty for riding. Gunnar touched the side of her face with the palm of his hand and leaned down to kiss her lips.
“Don’t be nervous. I promise you, we’ll have a great day today.” He pecked her lips again, turned and threw his leg over the bike. He sat and then nodded to Emma to do the same.
Emma threw her leg over the bike and climbed on. She put her feet on the foot pegs and had her hands on her knees. Gunnar tilted his head back and to the side. “Wrap your arms around me, babe, and hold on. I want to feel your arms all day, okay? That way I know you’re still with me.”
“Oh, so that’s why you wanted me to come along today?”
“Yep. Also, when we make a left turn, look over my left shoulder and when we make a right turn, look over my right shoulder. That way, you aren’t pulling me out of a corner. Okay?”
“Okay. Left, right; right, left. Got it.”
Gunnar smirked and waited for a few beats. Emma was sitting behind him, trying to keep her thoughts together. When they didn’t move for a few moments she leaned forward, “Gunnar, you know I’m kidding, right?”
“Arms around me, babe.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right.” Emma slid her arms around Gunnar’s waist and he started up the bike, shifted into gear with his left foot and they were off. Emma glanced back at the window, knowing full well Ashley was there watching them. She smiled and waved as they pulled out of the driveway and down the street.
They arrived at Ryder and Molly’s within forty minutes of leaving Ashley and Ron’s. They didn’t live that far away, but Gunnar wanted Emma to get used to riding and looking over his shoulder so she could find a comfort level with being on back of the bike. They went around blocks, stopped at stop lights and signs, yielded on and off the highway and eventually wound their way around to Ryder and Molly’s. Emma hopped off the bike and waited while Gunnar dropped the kickstand and turned the handle bars.
“Like taking the long way?” She grinned at him.
“Something like that.”
His smile was wide, his teeth were perfect and he was focusing all of his attention on her. Her breath caught a little in her throat as she looked at him. Wow.
“I liked it. It took me a little while to be able to relax, but I think I did…at least a little.”
Gunnar tapped her nose with his forefinger, leaned forward and pecked her lips with his. “I felt you starting to relax. By the end of today, you’ll hate getting off.”
He grinned at her as he grabbed her hand and led her toward Ryder, Molly, JT and his uncle and aunt.
As they joined the group, Molly came over and hugged Emma. “Morning. Are you ready to ride?”
“Yes. Gunnar just gave me a quick rundown on the basics. I think I passed the test.” She smiled, looked over at Gunnar, and he winked at her.
Gunnar hugged his uncle and aunt. “I would like you to meet Emma. Emma, my Uncle Dayton and my Aunt Stacy.”
Emma reached her hand out to shake hands with them, but Stacy wrapped her in a gentle hug instead as a rosy blush tinted Emma’s cheeks.
“We hug here, girl. It’s nice to meet you, Emma.”
“It’s nice to meet you too.”
Dayton stepped forward and hugged Emma briefly. “Welcome, Emma. Glad
you could join us.”
“Thank you. I’m looking forward to it.”
JT and Ryder both came forward and hugged Emma, as well. She had been with Greg three years and never once did anyone in his family hug her. His parents were cold and aloof. Usually, Greg was as well, unless he wanted sex. That was the barometer Emma used to measure Greg’s mood. If he was touching her, holding her hand or putting his arm around her in public, he wanted sex when they got home. Gunnar was always touching her, holding her hand, touching her face, her hair, her cheeks. Now his family was hugging her, too. Whoo! This was a totally different world.
Dayton whistled to signal it was time to get rolling, and the group began pulling on gloves and jackets. Molly came running up to Emma with a black Rolling Thunder bandana. “Here, Emma. You might want to put this on to keep your hair from snarling up.”
“Thanks, Molly.” Emma took the bandana offered to her and folded it crosswise like Molly’s was. She laid it on the top of her head and pulled the corners around her head to the back to tie it off. Gunnar watched her as she wrapped her head up. When she finished, she looked up at him and smiled. “Do I look like a biker babe now?”
“No. You look like a hot, biker babe.”
He winked and threw his leg over the seat of his bike and sat down. He looked back at Emma and she climbed on behind him. As soon as she sat down, she slid her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his left shoulder and gave him a little squeeze. Gunnar turned on the ignition and the bike roared to life. As they sat waiting for everyone else to saddle up, Gunnar reached down and rested his left hand on Emma’s knee. Without thinking, Emma squeezed her arms tighter around his waist and kissed his left cheek.
“Babe.” Was all Gunnar could say.
Emma found herself relaxing and enjoying herself on the ride. The sun warmed her skin and she was able to pull her gloves off and put them in her pockets. She enjoyed holding on to Gunnar and feeling the wind in her face. They wove around a few back roads until they were forced to hit Highway 57, which ran up into Sturgeon Bay. Once in Sturgeon Bay, they switched to Highway 42, which took them up to Fish Creek, where they were stopping for lunch. Emma loved the apple and cherry orchards, though nothing was in bloom yet, but in a couple of months there would be full parking lots as people stopped to pick their own apples and cherries in season. There were dozens of little shops and antique stores along the way—some looking more prosperous than others. And in between were many farms—large, small, and in-between.
