“You here with someone, cutie?”
Bryn let her shoulders droop to show her irritation before she turned around to lay into whoever had used the horrible come-on. There in front of her was Adonis himself, bed tousled dark hair, face clean-shaven, and piercing blue-green eyes. He had changed into a gray V-neck t-shirt that must have been a size too small, showing off his chiseled muscles, and a black fitted sports coat. Dark frayed jeans completed his look, with uber cool Polo boots. He was the absolute perfect “Dr. Hottie.”
“Dr. Glynn,” Bryn sighed dreamily, sounding like a high school girl with a crush. “I mean, Charlie, you look…nice.” She wanted to say hot, but didn’t have the nerve.
Charlie turned her chair so that she was facing the bar. He stood slightly to her right, the front of his body flush with her side. Placing his arms on either side of the chair, he gripped the bar, caging her in. A burst of breath tickled her neck as he spoke, “I thought you were going to stand me up, Bryn.”
A shiver erupted across her skin, leaving tingles in its wake. He was standing so close, she could smell his cologne, fresh, light and vaguely reminding her of a mojito. His demeanor had changed from earlier in the day, making him seem darker, and dangerous.
Bryn could sense her nerve endings rapidly firing, as she tried to maintain her composure. She closed her eyes, taking a steadying breath, but failed in calming herself. All she had done was add gasoline to the slow fire burn inside her body, making her shiver with desire. Being pinned to the bar by his masculine frame was not helping either. She needed to be able to see his eyes, to gauge his emotions. Bryn tried to turn to read his face. What she met were soft, wet lips, slowly brushing back and forth across hers. Feeling left her body except for the places where their bodies touched. Leaning in to deepen the contact, Charlie let go of his hold on the bar, letting her turn further into his body. He pushed his hands through her hair, cupping her jaw. He pulled back from the kiss, resting his forehead against hers.
“Damn it, woman. You’re killing me.” He let go of her face, stepping back to let her off the barstool. Sticking his hands into the pockets of his jeans, he stuck his elbow out, encouraging her to slip her arm through his.
“Let’s eat before we give the whole restaurant a show.”
Bryn curled her lips in a smirk, shaking her head in disbelief at what she had just done. But damn, did it feel good.
Chapter Six
Bryn and Charlie enjoyed a delightful dinner on the front deck of the restaurant, in the cool evening breeze. The sexual tension had dissipated into playful banter as they talked about life in general and Charlie’s family. Originally from Ohio, he had just finished his residency in Milwaukee, ending up in Amulet by the luck of the draw. His parents still lived in Ohio, and all three of his younger sisters stayed close by. His father was a doctor, and his mother a therapist, both still practicing. He talked about having to pretty much raise his sisters once he was in high school. Bryn talked very little about her family, diverting the conversation when he asked her questions about them.
“Dinner was delicious, Charlie. Thank you.” Bryn felt her phone vibrating in her pocket, startling her.
“You better send him a text to let him know you are ok, Bryn. His name’s Corey, right?”
Bryn shot him a curious stare, “How did you know that I was texting him?”
“I have three sisters that I took care of while they were dating. I made them call me every hour when out on a date. Brotherly protection is what I call it.”
“Corey’s not my brother. He’s my best friend. I don’t have any brothers.”
“Ahh,” he said, sitting back in his chair, crossing his feet over each other. He carefully laced his fingers together, placing them in his lap.
“Sisters?”
“One, younger, Sara.”
He nodded his head, trying to encourage her to continue. When the silence stretched on, he shook his head, grinning like a cat that ate the canary. “Don’t trust me yet, or do you usually keep yourself this locked up?”
Bryn straightened her spine, taking a deep breath. Corey’s words were haunting her as she debated with herself. Most rapists don’t have a flashing sign on their foreheads that say “psychopath.”
He has been nothing but a gentleman, Bryn. Knock it off!
The butterflies in her stomach were starting to make her feel nauseous. She had to get control over this situation, before she panicked. Deep breath. Ok. Good. Now say what you want to say.
“I don’t really want to talk about my family, Charlie. I would really like to go for a ride. I assume you drove your bike?”
“Of course. Some little hothead told me today that a bike shouldn’t be holed up in a garage. I decided to heed her advice.”
Bryn grinned at his attempt at levity, “Nice, but we need to ride up to Corey’s shop first. He will have a coronary if he knew I left the restaurant with you.”
“Text him first to tell him that we are on our way, he works at Double M over in Hamilton, right? We will be there in 15 minutes.”
“Yes, we both work there,” she said as she rose from her chair. Charlie motioned with his hand for her to walk off the deck of the restaurant first. His hand rested in the small of her back, warming her skin through her thin cotton shirt. Choosing her simple red shirt with the oval cut out in the back, pairing it with her dark skinny jeans and black loafers. Sexy, but yet not overly provocative. She relaxed, feeling his body heat as he pulled her closer to his side; his lips lightly kissed her temple.
“Wait here, I forgot something in the restaurant.” He didn’t wait for her to respond as strode to the front door of the restaurant. Quickly he came back out holding two helmets and a leather jacket over his arms.
“I didn’t want any more excuses.” He set both the helmets down on the sidewalk, holding the jacket out for her to slip on. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he spun her around to zip up the coat. He reached down to grab both helmets, handing her the bright red carbon fiber-full face helmet, with the remains of a price tag still attached to the chinstrap. Bryn smiled at his thoughtfulness, realizing that there was very little chance that this man had malicious intentions. Now, she just needed to show Corey. Otherwise, her chance to finish what she and Charlie started earlier in the restaurant was shot to hell.
It didn’t take long to reach the chop shop in Hamilton. Bryn had tensed up more than once on the ride over, but Charlie could sense her panic, gently grabbing her left hand and squeezing it when she was gripping his waist harder than necessary. When they got to the Hamilton city limits, he had moved his left hand off the handlebar, resting it on her knee for a moment, stroking back and forth. He gently patted her leg, and then put his hand back on the handlebar. Bryn leaned with him as they eased into the parking lot at Double M Harleys. Of course, Corey stood out front with his hands on his hips, pacing back and forth like a caged animal.
Bryn could hear him yelling before she even removed her helmet. “What the fuck do you think you are doing, man?”
Charlie dismounted the bike quickly, slipping his helmet off his head. Holding out his hand to help Bryn, she waved it off, placing both of her hands on the driver seat, popping herself backwards over the rear tire. Charlie gave her a lopsided grin, as he meandered over to where Corey was pacing.
“Corey, Bryn asked me to go for a ride tonight, and I would be grateful if you could lower your guns. I get that you feel like Bryn’s protector, but you need to trust that I have no ill-fated intentions towards her. Back. The. Fuck. Off.” They stood toe to toe with each other, both men glaring. The posturing was enough to make Bryn roll her eyes. Obviously, they were going to continue this stare down until she knocked some sense in to them both.
“Ok, take it down a notch or two please, both of you,” awkwardly stepping in between them, pushing Corey towards the front door to the office. “Enough of this shit. Corey, let’s go inside and we can talk.”
Corey stood his ground, finally grabbing Bryn’s hand, pulling
her into the office. Once inside, he turned his back to her, clutching the door handle. The muscles in his arm twitched as he stood there frozen for a few seconds. Bryn couldn’t see Corey’s face, but she could hear the crack in his voice when he shot out a series of questions that must have been plaguing his mind, “Did you tell him about your issues with riding pairs on a bike? How did you make it over here? Do you trust him, Bryn? Do you want me to back off this guy?”
Bryn sighed before answering, “No, I didn’t tell him about my panic attacks. I seemed okay riding this far with him. I trust him enough to know he won’t hurt me, Corey. I love it that you are always there to take care of me, but I do think it is time that I started to stand on my own two feet.” Bryn put her hand on his back, trying to soothe him, “Besides, you need to start dating again, too, Corey.”
“Hmph,” was Corey’s only reply. “Alright, baby girl, but I want to talk with Dr. Hottie, alone.” The menacing way that he said “alone” made her nervous about his intentions, but she didn’t leave the office.
“Come with me,” was all Bryn could hear before the sounds of boots stomping got quieter and quieter.
Just great. Now my best friend is going to murder my date and I will end up an accessory after the fact.
Bryn sat quietly, waiting for them to return. Looking at the time on her cell phone, Bryn saw a text message from her sister.
“Miss U”
There hadn’t been a day that passed that Bryn didn’t think of her sister. Afraid to return to the farm, Bryn decided to wait for Sara to make the first move. She wasn’t sure if she agreed with her mother about riding motorcycles. It only took an hour to pack up what she could out of her room when Bryn moved out, opting to leave behind her furniture. Sara wasn’t home that day and Bryn took that as a sign of resentment towards her.
By the time Bryn settled in with Corey, and had gotten used to living in town, she tried calling her sister, but she never answered. Corey had asked Darrin to let him know how things were going with Mrs. Lonneman and Sara, but it didn’t sound good. All Bryn knew was that Sara had moved off the farm, and her mother had decided to take an extended vacation in Florida with her sister. Darrin had said that the farm sat empty until just recently, when someone moved in as a renter. Bryn tried avoiding thinking about someone else living there, but she was somewhat relieved that her sister was out from under her mother’s thumb.
Bryn feigned ignorance of her sister’s well-being for a while, hoping that Darrin was watching over her. Sara had lived on her own before in college and Darrin seemed to have a fondness for her little sister. Besides, Bryn knew that she had to focus her attention on her own messed up life. Guilt washed over her as she realized she had no idea where her little sister lived, or what she was even doing.
Bryn typed back “Miss U2 You ok?”
Seconds later, “Yes, you?”
Bryn quickly typed “Getting better. <3”
“K, luv u too” came back. Bryn smiled, thankful that she had reestablished a connection with her little sister. It would be nice to have a girl to talk with again, not just Corey. Well, she did have the guys at the shop, too, but it wasn’t very often that they would do more than just grunt a reply to her questions. Even Corey had limits to what he was willing to talk with Bryn about, feelings included.
Bryn could hear laughter from the front of the building, and the voices were getting louder. Jumping up from the floor quickly, she brushed herself off. A knock on the door startled her.
“You can come out, baby girl, we’re done talking,” Corey said as the door was whipped open.
Bryn emerged from the office, her hands on her hips. The door started to close and the sight that greeted her made her gasp. Corey had blood sneaking down the side of his lip, and a devilish glint in his eye that didn’t bode well for any of them. Charlie had a cut under his left eye, his lips curled up in an impish grin as she stared them both down.
“We came to an understanding,” Charlie started to say as Corey finished, “yeah, he understands that if he hurts you, I will fucking kill him.” Corey slapped him on the arm as he walked away, going back to the chop workshop. He pulled open the door, quickly stepping inside. As the door was closing, he shot over his shoulder, “You two have fun. Love you, Bryn.”
Bryn furrowed her eyebrows together as she looked at Charlie, “What was that all about?”
Charlie pressed his fingertips to his cheek, wincing from the pain. “Guy stuff. Come on, you have been cleared to go for that ride now.” He shook his head, chuckling as he walked over to the bike. Bryn held her position, crossing her arms across her chest, pushing her breasts up.
Charlie groaned, taking a deep breath. Walking back over to her, he grabbed her waist, lifting her off the ground, spinning and setting her next to the bike. His face was inches from hers as he planted a soft kiss on her lips. “Come on, Bryn. The night is young, and you were given permission to have some fun.”
Chapter Seven
The temperature had dropped considerably since earlier that evening, making Bryn’s hands chilled as they rode down the old highway, heading towards Lake Manitowoc. She reveled in the feelings of the hard muscles underneath her fingertips, as she palmed Charlie’s abdominal muscles, rubbing her hands across the expanse of skin, barely covered by his lightweight shirt. His sports coat was unbuttoned, flapping in the air whipping past them. Sighing in contentment, Bryn laid her helmet-covered head forward, resting it against Charlie’s shoulder. The feeling of the wind blowing past, the noise of the Twin Cam engine, and the feel of Charlie’s strong body in front of her was transporting her to somewhere else. Her thoughts were disconnecting, feeling was evaporating from her body, reaching that perfect moment of bliss. Free. No sooner had Bryn felt the euphoric rush flood her system, cold tingles skittered across her arms, pulling her back from happiness. Gasping, Bryn could feel her chest tighten as the panic attack started in her stomach. No more, please, no more.
Bryn knew that she was in danger of falling off Charlie’s bike if she didn’t get him to stop, and fast. She pumped her hand on his top of his thigh, the universal signal for a pit stop. Nothing. She made a slicing motion across his throat, mimicking the motion her dad used to make when he wanted her to stop a piece of machinery on the farm. Grasping her hand, Charlie placed it on his stomach again, patting her hands. The hopeless feelings were starting to overwhelm her, causing chills to rack her body. Slamming her hand on the gas tank of the bike, she could feel the muscles in Charlie’s thigh tense up as he shifted the bike out of gear, slowing down.
Bryn didn’t wait for him to make a complete stop before she ripped the helmet off her head, trying to hold on with just her thigh muscles as her fingers furiously unhooked the buckle. She could feel her body being propelled forward as he slammed on both brakes, causing the bike to squeal and almost flip forward. With her body pressed so close to his, her panic stepped up another level. Come on, bitch, you know you want it.
“Noooo!” Bryn screamed as she started to fly off the side of the bike. Her jeans were caught on the exhaust pipe as she slid down, making the pant leg of her skinny jeans ride up, exposing the skin of her calf. As she threw her right leg back to dismount, her left leg lay flush with the heated exhaust, burning her skin. “Aggh!” she cried as she fell to the ground on her back. The physical pain was short-lived as the mental torment continued, I’m gonna give you everything you’ve been begging for.
Warm hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her upwards. She clutched her eyes tightly together, using her feet to push off the ground, scrambling away. “No, get the fuck off me!”
She hadn’t made it two steps away, when a body fell forward on her, pinning her to the ground. Rolling as they fell, she landed with their bodies pressed together, her knee catching him in the groin as they slammed together. He couldn’t rape her if his dick and balls were sore.
“Ah Fuck! Jesus, Bryn. God damn it!” her assailant screamed, clutching her tighter to his chest. “Bryn, it
’s me, Charlie. Please, Bryn. Come on, open your eyes.”
The voice was soothing, not terrifying like the bastard that had raped her. She tried to will her eyes open, hoping that she was not underneath a burly six-foot skinhead, her body being destroyed again.
The voice had turned softer, as the fight left her body. “Come on, Bryn. Look. At. Me.”
Bryn opened her eyes, meeting a furtive glare. “I’m going to let you go, now, Bryn. Promise me you’re not going to run again?” Not able to form any words, she simply nodded her head. Charlie rolled off her, and she immediately curled up into the fetal position. Bryn lay in the grass for a few minutes, before the magnitude of the situation came slamming down on her, eliciting a gasp from her weakened body. Slowly rolling over, her leg brushed her calf as she tried to sit up. The skin on her calf was already blistering, making the skin stretch tight. Ignoring the pain, she scooted over to Charlie, not yet touching him. “I’m so sorry, Charlie. Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just trying to get my boys dislodged from my gut is all,” he groaned as he rolled over to look at her. “You want to tell me what that was all about?”
“I needed to stop, and you wouldn’t listen!” The whiny voice she had used made her inwardly grimace. That was so lame.
“We are only five miles from my cabin on the lake; I thought we could stop there. I don’t have any hand signals for that, so I gave you a reassuring pat on your hand.”
“Well, I am not a dog, so a pat didn’t fucking tell me anything!”
“Ok. We’re getting off track here. Why did you freak out once we did stop? You ripped your helmet off before I had even stopped, burned your leg getting off the bike, screamed at me to get the fuck off you, and kneed me in the balls. Just because I wouldn’t pull over? I don’t buy it. In fact, you outwardly looked like you were having a panic attack.”
“Just drop it, please.”
Let Me Fly Page 4
