He tugged her hand and led her back through the shop. He stopped and pulled two black helmets off hooks on the wall and handed her one. Her smile slipped, and she swayed on her feet. His grip on her hand steadied her.
Derek tilted his head and looked at her quizzically. “Never been on a Harley?”
Her eyes were solemn as she shook her head and mumbled, “Uh uh.”
“Bike virgin!” boomed out Chuck’s voice from under the car. “You’re in for the thrill of your life, lady. And Derek’s just the man to give it to you.”
Sonya jumped at the sound of his voice and turned a pleading look towards Derek. He rubbed her back and said huskily, “I’ll take good care of you, darlin’.”
Warmed by the tone of his voice, Sonya nodded forlornly and gripped his hand hard as they walked out to the bike. When she tried to put the helmet on, she found that her bun wouldn’t fit under the rigid headgear. She reached up to deconstruct her warm day do and let her hair down.
Derek gave a low whistle before he said, “Lovely!” He brushed sable strands back off her face, placed the helmet firmly on her head, and adjusted the strap. He arranged her long tresses evenly across her back, causing ripples of pleasure to course over the back of her neck and scalp.
He climbed on the metal monster and indicated where she should sit. Sonya took a deep breath, used her wobbly legs to straddle the leather seat behind him, and knew enough to lift her feet to the pegs. Then she did something she had desired all day. She wrapped her arms around Derek and held on for dear life when the thundering motor engaged.
She felt a sense of vertigo when he turned the motorcycle and drove out of the lot. The only thing she had to compare it to was riding a bicycle, and it didn’t feel the same at all. She felt exposed, vulnerable, and though she had a stranglehold on his solid body in front of her, it didn’t feel as safe as she had hoped. It felt almost like flying with no barriers between them and the world rushing by.
They had turned down a couple of streets when Derek pulled over and stopped the bike. He climbed off and turned around so that he sat facing her. He pulled off his helmet and then tilted her chin up with one finger and said, “Sonya, sweetheart. You are strung so tight I fear you’ll snap. You’re missing out on the freedom of the ride. Relax and find your rhythm. Think of it as a dance. Mold your body to mine and move when I do. Let’s tango, baby. ”
White-faced, Sonya bobbed her head in agreement.
Derek lifted her visor, leaned his fetching face in, and kissed her. Then he tilted his head and engaged her mouth more deeply. A warm sweetness flooded her body, and she felt her limbs relax their rigidity. Eyelids heavy, she initiated a kiss of her own before saying, “I think I can now.”
“Good girl,” he whispered before turning around and setting them in motion again.
This time when she wrapped her arms around him, it was to embrace his body, rather than to secure an anchor. Though it was awkward with a helmet on, she found a way to lean her head between his shoulder blades and replayed their kisses in her mind. Who could have guessed that when her car malfunctioned she would reap such scrumptious benefits?
Soon, Sonya felt more in tune with his movements. She mirrored the motion when he leaned to one side or the other and after a distance did feel like they were partners in a dance. Less tense, she peeked out at the scenery once in a while and became almost accustomed to the rumble of the motor.
Its rhythmic beat entered her bloodstream and pulsed along her veins. Her whole body throbbed in rhythm with the engine. Her breasts swelled and became sensitive. She pressed them against Derek’s denim-clad back and savoured the sweet pressure. Now this was the way to travel, she thought. An unruly part of her mind, or her libido, or something, wanted to wrap her legs around his hips. She managed to resist.
But she did scrunch ahead and press her pelvis against his tight buttocks. Sonya moaned with pleasure at the heated sensation, but she was sure the sound flew backwards in the wind. Away from delicious Derek’s ears. On their own accord, her hands kneaded his middle. A stray warning flashed in her mind. What if he was ticklish? She couldn’t feel his chest rumbling with laughter, so she guessed they were safe.
Then she turned off her mind and immersed herself in the pulsating pleasure of the ride. Closing her eyes, she pressed herself against his rock-hard maleness and replayed a mind video of his chestnut eyes and hair. She thought about his sculpted biceps and the tanned six-pack beneath his vest. His lopsided smile. The feel of his lips caressing hers.
Sonya held him tightly, and a throaty moan escaped her lips. She replayed the scenes in her head and groaned again. She felt like a flame riding a throbbing wave. Like the wings of a Hellbird. She gripped Derek hard with both hands. He pushed one down to his groin and held onto the other. His blatant arousal sent her over the top.
Her whole body convulsed. Again and again. Every nerve sang. She tipped her head back and screamed with joy. She was alive as she had never been before.
And then slowly reality replaced her euphoria. She realized that they weren’t moving very fast. Coasting really. It seemed like a rural road. Derek pulled the motorcycle into a gravel parking lot and parked it under a tree. He dismounted and pulled off his helmet.
The sight of him rekindled her longing, but Sonya was suddenly shy of facing him. She bent her head down and fiddled with the strap of the helmet. His capable hands were there, removed it, and smoothed back her long hair. She could feel ferocious heat in her face as she peeked up at him through her eyelashes.
“I don’t need to ask how you enjoyed your first ride,” Derek said and then punctuated the remark with his lopsided grin.
“I … I didn’t know …I’ve never…It was …” She lifted her head and looked pleadingly into his shining eyes.
“Satisfying,” he offered.
Sonya nodded without meeting his gaze. “Is it always like that?” she asked in a small voice.
“Takes some people that way. And, before you ask, no, the members of the club don’t drive around with hard-ons. Not that I’ve heard of anyway.”
“You?” She asked.
“I take pleasure in the ride, but not usually sexual. Would make it tricky to drive.”
“Sorry,” she whispered, hanging her head again when she realized that she may have selfishly endangered them both.
“Woman, don’t apologize for your passion. Glory in it.” Derek chastised her. He tilted her chin up and looked into her eyes. “You heated my blood too.”
A slow smile lit Sonya’s face. She fought the urge to examine the front of his jeans to see if he was still aroused.
“What say we grab some grub here,” he said pointing to a dusty rose-colored Spanish-style building she hadn’t even noticed, “and then see about getting you a room? They have a patio that overlooks the river.” He took her hand.
She nodded before sheepishly admitting, “I’m not sure I can walk.” Heat crept into her face again.
Derek let loose a joyful yelp of laughter before scooping her up in his arms. He carried her easily around the building to the patio, while she hid her face in his shoulder and inhaled his scent. Sonya felt like she had died and gone to heaven.
Derek climbed over a thigh-high stone wall and deposited Sonya on a comfortable chair on a stone-floored patio. A permanent overhang jutted out from the roof and shielded them from the sun. No one else was out there. Overhead, large fans swirled lazily. An abundance of greenery and potted yellow and blue flowers made the spot feel like a secret garden. Sonya looked down at the river flowing by and could see the rose-colored desert in the distance. She sighed in contentment as she took in the idyllic oasis.
The spell was broken when a tall woman in black pants and a white shirt entered the patio through French doors. She shook her head topped with spiky red hair and said, “Who have you brought us today, Derek? And what have you done to her that she couldn’t get here on her own two feet?” She raised one eyebrow over her dramatically made-up eyes.
“Sam,” Derek said. “This is Sonya, and she just rode for the first time.”
Flashing a friendly smile at Sonya, Sam asked, “So what made your knees weak – the bike or Derek?”
“Both,” Sonya said and then flushed pink.
Sam nodded like she had already known the answer and asked what she could get for them.
“Link in the kitchen?” Derek asked, and when she nodded he said, “Ask if he’ll make up one of his feast platters for us, and I’ll have a beer.” He looked questioningly at Sonya.
“Red wine, please,” she said.
“Bring the bottle,” Derek said. “And Sonya needs a room for one night, maybe two. I don’t suppose the cabin is free?”
When Sam said it was and went inside to place their orders, Derek turned to Sonya and said, “Okay, biker girl?”
She could feel her face flush and wished she could control that childish reaction. She smiled at the striking man who had carried her to this special place in his arms. Sam’s comments gave her the impression that she wasn’t the first woman he had brought here, but she really couldn’t care at the moment. She was here with him now, and the whole day had a dream-like quality that made it seem outside of real life. She should ask him if he had someone special, but she was afraid of the answer.
Garlic bread and coconut shrimp gave way to a platter laden with a veritable smorgasbord of bite-sized taste sensations. Sonya hadn’t expected this when Derek had suggested they “grab some grub.” They fed each other morsels from their communal plate and attempted to discover their favorites. Licking of lips and each other’s fingers made the meal a sensory experience. No other diners had appeared, and she wondered if he had made that happen.
Sonya sipped the last of her wine as an orange sunset bathed them in its glow. In the soft light, the man across from her seemed like a vision she had dreamed up. She swallowed and then said, “So, the cabin …”
Derek leaned back in his chair. “It’s just down the road and around the bend.”
“Will you join me there?”
“I was hoping you’d ask.”
“Could we ride on the Harley?”
He threw his head back and laughed before he said, “It’s a short ride, and I hope you’ll wait for me this time.”
Sonya felt like she had waited her whole life for him, but what she said was, “It takes two to tango, Derek Neal.”
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***
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Bikers Don't Use Brakes (Hellbirds Motorcycle Club) Page 2
