Cole lurched out of bed and pulled the door open, searching the dark bus he saw two figures close to the door. Fingers shoved into his hair, he took a tentative step toward them. Heather stood naked, facing not one other person as he originally thought but three. “Fuck.” He dropped his head.
“Fuck is right buddy.” Brant called from just outside the door.
“Screw off Brant. Heather, get dressed already! Ry…”
“Don’t you dare ‘Ry’ me. I came over her to fix this shit, and I find her.” Rylan threw her hands up and let them slap down against her thighs before spinning around and pushing her way through Jamie and Brant.
Heather still stood in their living area with her clothes clutched to her chest. Cole glared at her before trudging back to the bedroom and slamming the door, causing the bus to rattle.
He fell back on the bed thinking of how royally he just messed everything up, but in reality, it was already a mess. He could hear the threesome talking in the front room. Wondering where Rylan had taken off to, he passed out with his hands covering his face.
Cole was dreaming about Rylan; he went after her in his dream and caught her. When they sat down and rehashed everything, it ended in the sweetest session of make up sex ever. He could smell her and taste her as his mouth mapped out her body. His own body was shaking with desire.
“Wake up Sunshine. Time to hit the road.” Cole came to and realized it was all a dream. The trembling was from Dom shaking him awake. He groaned, grabbing his head that throbbed in a dull ache.
“My head hurts, shut off the damn light.”
“That’s the sun. I can’t turn it off.”
“Then close the damn blinds.”
“Nope. I need you up. Hangover or not, we have to go.”
“Get Fred, he drives, not me. You don’t need me up. You want me up. Now leave me alone and go the fuck away.” Cole threw an arm over his eyes to protect them from the glare of the sun.
“There is a very pissed off manager of the MJL race team on board, and we can’t pull out of here and head to the next city until you handle her.”
That got his attention. Jamie was in the living area. He grabbed a shirt out of the miniature closet. He pulled it over his head and made his way to the front. Jamie stood near the door; Brant sat to her right in the captain chair with his legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles. Both looked as if they didn’t sleep all night and wore angry scowls. As soon as Brant saw Cole, he shot up, coming toe to toe with his best friend. “She’s gone. You stupid prick, the only women you ever loved, and you pushed her away minutes after reconnecting with her.” He poked his finger into Cole’s chest with every word he wanted emphasized.
Stepping back, Cole gripped Brant’s finger and twisted before shoving Brant’s hand away. “You have no clue about anything. Did she tell you about my mom and MJL racing?”
“Yeah, you fuck face, she did. She told me exactly how your mom set her up to find your sorry ass. I wish my parents gave two shits enough to find me, but they don’t. You’re a lucky bastard and all you can think is ‘poor Cole, I need to get laid and forget about the girl that just fought through hell to find me.’ You know you’re in the wrong. Think about shit for five minutes with a clear damn head and you’ll regret everything that happened.”
“Shit, she did see Heather than?”
“Don’t pull that ‘I can’t remember’ card on us, West.” Jamie finally spoke up, snapping at him.
“I hoped it was a nightmare. I remember. You know her better than anyone right now Jamie, where would she go?”
“I checked everywhere I could think. You need to call your mom and see if she’s spoken to her. I know she called McKenna when we first got to Daytona and she realized she found you.”
Cole paced the area from the captain’s chairs to the door of the bedroom. He’d run his fingers through his hair and then laced them behind his head just to drop them and repeat the motions. He hadn’t talked to his mom in five years, and now he had no choice but to call her. He knew if Rylan had already talked to her, she would be mad. He wasn’t sure this was a conversation he was ready for, much less one he wanted to share with three other people. He grabbed his phone off the counter before making his way off the bus and down to the now nearly empty parking area. When he got to the entrance of the pit area, he turned down it and pulled his phone out of his pocket.
When Cole changed his name, he had gotten a new phone. The old phone, that he knew was still activated, was in a drawer in his bus. It always charged and always on silent. He knew his mom had tried to call a few times, but at the time he didn’t care; he was hurt and living his life they way they had pushed him to. He loved racing and loved that fact that they were able to provide him with the means to get started. At the same time, he felt that they had pushed him away. It was a hard pill to swallow.
He scrolled through his phone, searching for his mom’s number that he knew he put in there when he switched phones. Finally, he found her information. After bringing the contact up, his thumb hovered over the call button. His stomach twisted with nerves. His palms were slick with sweat and beads of moisture formed on his top lip. Taking a deep breath and running his left hand through his hair, he exhaled and hit send.
“Hello?” His mother’s voice caressed his ears. Her smooth, sweet voice sounded the same after all these years.
Cole fought off the burning in his eyes and swallowed down the lump in his throat. He had pushed her away long enough. It was time to reconcile with his mom. “Mom.”
“Oh my goodness, Christopher. Son, I’ve missed you.” Her voice broke on the word “son” and it wrecked Cole’s heart.
He could hear her sobs and sniffles. “I’ve missed you too. How are you?”
“Rylan found you.”
It wasn’t a question, so he didn’t answer. “Thank you for that. There’s so much to talk about. I really want to see you.”
“Where are you now?”’
“We’re leaving Daytona today, and we have two weeks down time before we head to Georgia. If you’d like, I’ll fly you to South Carolina. My shop and home’s there…” He trailed off, not sure why he so eagerly offered to fly her out. Deep down he knew exactly why: he missed his mom. He had always been a momma’s boy until his father got in between that. It didn’t seem to matter to his father that he was successful at racing. He still didn’t want anything to do with Cole, as far as he could tell. His mom still hasn’t said a word about his dad.
“I’d love too. I can buy my own ticket, Christopher. What day is good for me to fly in and what airport?”
“Mom, I’ll take care of this. I’ll email you your information. Can you text me your email address on this number?”
“Yeah, thank you, Chris.”
“Mom, two things: it’s Cole now. Can you call me that?”
“Oh, sure.” He could hear the disappointment in her voice. He felt like shit. Gripping his hair, he gave a tug before asking her about Ry.
“One more thing, Mom, have you heard from Rylan today or last night?”
“No, why?”
“Well, we had an argument, and she took off.” Cole was pacing around the pit area, with everything cleared out the place looked like a ghost town. The single form coming at him from across the track had his heart speeding up in anticipation. He started for her. Her luscious curves and dark hair with green tips gave her away immediately. “Never mind, Mom, I found her. I’ll call you back. Don’t forget to text this number your email.”
“All right, Chris, make things right. I love you.”
“Bye.” He hung up the phone as Rylan approached. He knew he should have responded to his mother’s sentiment, but he was a ways off from repeating those words back to her, or anyone, including Rylan.
He ran his eyes over her body, regretting last night in its entirety. He knew he needed to say something, but she stole his breath. Cole took every inch of her in. Starting with her green Chucks, his gaze trailed up her toned
legs to her jean shorts that rested low on her hips. His mouth watered at the smooth sliver of skin revealed between the top of her shorts and the bottom of her t-shirt. Her lime green V-neck t-shirt looked soft and fit her perfectly, shaping her lovely breasts. He lingered on her full soft pink lips; the arch in the bottom one gave her a constant semi-pout. His smile widened as he picked up the diamonds sparkling in the morning sun. Her already big eyes widened further when he finally looked into them.
He wasn’t sure what she saw in his stare, but something had her shaking her head with a small smirk on her face. “Cole I…”
“I didn’t…” They both started at the same time. Rylan paused, and Cole took his chance and spit out the most important thing first, “I didn’t fuck her.”
“I know.”
His eyes narrowed at her. How the hell did she know? Letting it go, he moved on to the next important piece of information. “I called my mom. She’s coming to Charleston.” He dropped his head. He wanted to ask her to come too. He was afraid of rejection.
“That’s great, Cole. I’m glad you called her. Your mom has missed you. I know this isn’t going to automatically make everything okay, but it’s a step in the right direction.” She stepped up to him, throwing her arms around his waist. Burying her face in his chest, she tipped her head up to look at him. He dropped his gaze to her as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders soothing his hands up and down her back. “Heather found me and told me nothing happened.”
“Hmm,” it was the only thing that would come out. “Would you… This is harder than I thought. Hell, Ry would you like to come to South Carolina with us? I’m not done getting things back on track with you. If not, we won’t see each other until the next race.” He had dropped his head back to look up at the sky before asking her, and he took a huge breath, acknowledging how afraid of rejection he was.
He hadn’t noticed he was trembling until Rylan mentioned it. “You’re shaking. Cole, I would love to come to South Carolina with you…”
“But…”
“But I have to think of my crew. I won’t have anywhere for them to stay, and nowhere to get the bike ready. I wouldn’t want to impose on you and your men.”
“You’re not imposing. I’m inviting you. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t have space for everyone. There’s room to park the RV, room for the guys to sleep and space for them to work on your bike. Don’t worry about that.”
She twisted out of his arms, pulling her hair up off her neck. Piling it up on top of her head, she turned back toward him letting it fall to her shoulders once again.
Seeing Rylan do that again reminded him of how she used to do it as well. It brought up one of his favorite memories: the first time they met.
Christopher was walking home from school. It was the second week, and he was already over being in high school. So far, it hadn’t measured up to his dreams. His best friend became a jock and stopped hanging out with him because he was a racer who didn’t play sports. All the girls were too stuck up to talk to a lonely freshman. He was kicking the rocks on the dirt road he used to get from his house to school and back. Most of the road was shaded by huge trees, and a creek ran along side the road. It was peaceful, and it was the place where Christopher practiced riding. He started the bend in the road, looking off to the creek, and not really paying any attention where he was headed.
“Hey!” a feminine voice hollered.
Christopher snapped his head in the direction of her voice. A girl his age was a few steps in front of him, holding a rock. She was beautiful, though not in the way the head cheerleader Megan was or in a supermodel-gorgeous way, but her looks had him sucking in a breath. Her green eyes held his with a question of rebellion to them. Her long blonde hair fell down her back, and her chest bounced as she stomped closer to him. She was pissed and looked hot as hell.
“You kicked this and hit me, asshole!” She threw the rock at his head.
Christopher ducked, laughing. “Easy, sweetheart, it was a mistake. I was having a shitty day and just taking my frustration out on some rocks. I didn’t mean to hit you. I didn’t see you.”
“No one ever does. And don’t call me sweetheart. The name’s Rylan.”
Christopher stuck his hand out. “Christopher, but you can call me Chris. I’m really sorry.”
Rylan gathered her hair in her hands and swirled it around before piling it on top of her head to let it fall back down to the middle of her back. Christopher smiled, earning a smile in return. Rylan shook his hand. “I’m new to town, and I’d rather have a friend before an enemy.” Christopher nodded, and they headed over to a rock by the creek.
“Cole! Have you heard I word I said?” Rylan nudged her shoulder against his.
Cole had forgotten how often she did that nervous habit. It took him about three days to figure out it was her equivalent to nail biting. He knew she wanted to come with him. He slipped his fingers through her hair on the back of her head. “Sorry, no. But Ry, stop worrying. Everything will be okay. You and me, we’ll head back on my motorcycle. Brant and Jamie can take care of the guys and get them set up with a work space and living arrangements. We’ll meet my mom at the airport and travel to my home together. I want you with me. I want you there.” He let out a nervous breath. This was the most he’d been open with anyone about what he wanted. Except for sex, he was always open and controlling in that department.
Rylan glimpsed up at him before dropping her stare back to the floor. She kicked a rock and smiled as if she was remembering their first memory too. “Okay.” She flicked her eyes up to his again, smiling and with a stronger conviction said, “Okay,” again.
“Okay?”
“Yeah, I think we need this. If you promise it won’t be an imposition.”
He pulled her into a tight hug. “I promise, Ry.”
Chapter Six
Cole had Dominic reserve a flight for his mom and send her the information. Brant and Jamie helped by getting Rylan’s race team on board and on the road to South Carolina. As the bus and RV pulled out of Miami heading north, Cole and Rylan approached his sleek black bike. “I never expected you to own a Harley Davidson.” Rylan giggled as she ran her hand over his bike in a sexy caress.
“Don’t give me any shit. It’s a sportster. I couldn’t travel to far from my roots, but I have always wanted to own a Harley, ever since my mom’s brother Michael took me for a ride when I was twelve.”
“I wasn’t giving you shit. I like her. She’s sexy.”
“How do you know it’s a girl?”
“Look at her curves and tell me she’s not a girl.” Rylan winked before climbing on and situating herself in her seat.
He laughed, “I named her Betsy.”
“I knew it!”
“You okay with stopping in Jacksonville for the night?” He knew they could make it there in a day, but he asked her if she wanted to stop half way. Nine hours on the back of a bike is a long time. He knew Rylan could handle it, but he also knew he wanted a night alone with her. Jacksonville sounded like the perfect place to stop.
She lifted an eyebrow at him curiously. “Sure.”
Before joining her on the bike, he searched for a hotel in Jacksonville. He thumbed the call button and brought the phone to his ear. He wanted to surprise Rylan with a few extras at the hotel, so he walked a few feet away before turning back and watching her get comfortable. Rylan sat back on her seat a few inches above his, holding on to the grip handles. He would have to insist she hold him. He wasn’t about to travel this long without her firmly wrapped around him. After giving the hotel his credit card information and reserving a suite for them to enjoy, he stowed his wallet and phone in a small compartment and sat back on the bike.
After starting the bike and settling into his seat, he grabbed Rylan’s hands and pulled her close to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. Finding his controls, he revved the engine before peeling out and finding the first on-ramp to the freeway.
They made the nearly
five hour trip in three hours and forty-five minutes. It was one of the reasons he loved owning a bike. He wasn’t stuck in traffic often, and even while keeping it at a reasonable speed, he was able to switch lanes and smartly weave through traffic, which cut down on his travel time. The entire time, Rylan held him with her arms and encased him between her thighs. Her soft sweet scent floated around him, causing him to groan with the roar of the engine on more than one occasion. He felt addicted to her scent. Every time it was interrupted by the smell of diesel coming from a big rig, he growled in displeasure until the air cleared and he could inhale her again. As they approached their destination, Rylan traced her fingers across his stomach.
They pulled up to Omni Jacksonville Hotel and immediately found parking in the garage. They entered the lavish hotel lobby with its marble grand staircase and gorgeous polished wood. Cole instantly understood why it cost him so much for a presidential suite in this place. It was okay, Rylan was worth it, especially when he noticed her huge eyes taking everything in and mouth slack in surprise.
Winking at her he said, “Close your mouth Ry, you might catch a fly.” He left her standing by the entrance as he made his way toward the check in desk. The clerk behind the counter was eyeing him suspiciously as he approached her. He’d become used to the fact that everyone judged his tattoos before they judged the man. He really didn’t let it bother him. As soon as he spoke to her, her features switched to that of lust and willingness to do anything for him.
“Cole West, I called in a few hours ago, reserving…”
She cut him off, frantically typing in her computer. “Yes, Mr. West we have your suite ready with all your, um, requirements.” She flashed a tight lipped smile toward Rylan and then a more flirtatious look to Cole.
“Thank you, now all I need then is the key card.” He turned back to look at Rylan. He’s missed her more than he ever thought possible. She stole his breath with every look.
“Right. Top floor, you’ll need the key card to access the elevator, which is right around that corner. My name’s Alexa. If you need anything at all, just call.” She handed him his key card and a smile, but to Cole, Alexa was trying too hard, and coming on to him when he was obviously with someone was tacky.
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