Wild Rides: 10 Blazing Hot Alpha Bad Boy Biker and MC Romance Box Set

by Dez Burke

  Ruby's breath caught in her throat at the compliment, and she didn't know what to say. It wasn't that men never complimented her. On the contrary, she was bombarded with it whenever she walked out the door. Those men, though, always seemed to have a hidden purpose behind their words. They wanted to take her home. They wanted to sleep with her. Looking at Josh, she didn't feel that same sense of being...hunted.

  "Now go," he said, waving her off.

  "Okay," she said. "Thank you."

  "More than welcome," he said.

  He smiled, flipped his helmet visor down, and took off in a cloud of dust before she could say anything else. Something like "please come back for me" or "why don't I stay the night again?" or "show me what you look like under that shirt." Ruby sighed as the sun, rising, began to shine into her eyes. Time to get back to business.

  A hand came down on her shoulder and she jumped at the touch.

  "Can I help you?" a low voice asked.

  ***

  Ruby turned, blinking hard, and suddenly wished that she had put on mascara before leaving for Agricorp.

  The man standing in front of her looked like he'd just stepped out of a limousine after dining with the President. His hair was jet black, styled perfectly, and his shirt was a starch-stiff white button-down that reflected the sun so brightly Ruby had to squint. His tie was Armani, and she guessed that was the least expensive item he was wearing, at least if the gold watch and cuff links were any indication. She didn't know how he was wearing a suit in this weather.

  "So this is the brilliant Ms. Thomas I've heard so much about," the man said, shaking her hand. His palm was cool and strong and she had the terrible sense that she was sweating into the handshake.

  "Please, Ruby," she managed to squeak out. She caught her presentation materials before they started to slip from under her arm. "Call me Ruby."

  "Of course," the man said, smiling. His teeth reflected almost as much sun as his shirt. "I'm Alex."

  Her mouth went dry.

  "Alex, as in Alexander Oliver?" Ruby blinked again and hoped she wasn't gaping. The head of Agricorp was there to deal with the merger? She'd thought that she would be dealing with the local managers, maybe talking to one of the heads of the district offices. But the CEO?

  "I hope my reputation hasn't preceded me," Alex said. He slipped one arm under her elbow and then he was holding her presentation materials in one hand and leading her back to the Agricorp building with the other.

  "I...I just wasn't expecting...the CEO..."

  "Don't think of me as a CEO," Alex said, holding the door open for her. "Think of me as a friend. We're doing business together, aren't we?"

  "Right, right," Ruby murmured.

  She walked through the door, feeling acutely vulnerable. She had no makeup on apart from a little concealer—she hadn't wanted it to get messed up under the motorcycle helmet. Her only pair of pantyhose had torn, and she was barelegged under her skirt. Her hair was frizzed from the ride and uncombed. And the way Alex watched her move made her uneasy in a way she couldn't put her finger on.

  It didn't matter. What mattered was the acquisition, and fixing all the mistakes that her company had made here.

  "Where's the presentation room?" Ruby asked.

  They walked across the gleaming tile floor slowly. Nobody else was in the headquarters office.

  "I thought we could start with a tour," Alex said. "It's been a while since I've been out here. What do you think?"

  He grinned and offered her a hard hat from the hanging rack next to the door.

  "Sure," she said, plunking the hard hat over her head. At least she could hide her unruly hair.

  She'd thought that one of the general managers of the plant would be taking them on the tour, but Alex intent on showing her around personally. They spent the next two hours walking through the factory. Alex pointed out all of the different manufacturing capabilities of the plant and made sure to mention the growth that was still possible.

  He took her up the side stairs of a silo and she tensed as they walked up the grated metal stairs. She hated heights. But at the top, she looked out and saw the countryside for miles around. The view from the highway was pretty accurate, as far as she was concerned. Corn everywhere, stretching as far as the eye could see. She peered into the distance and tried to find Josh's cabin amid the green rows. Too far away.

  Alex came to the rail and leaned on it next to her.

  "Plenty of space here to grow. Lots of opportunity for petroleum. We're even considering solar retrofitting on these plants to reduce electrical costs."

  "You've convinced me," she said. "Though, to be fair, we were already convinced. Now we just have to settle on a price."

  "The guy you sent out to us earlier—"

  "Was a moron. Apparently," Ruby said, flushing. "What happened?"

  "I don't know," Alex said. "The team out here called me yesterday morning and said that the deal was going south. That I needed to fly here as soon as I could."

  "Sounds familiar," Ruby said. "I'm sorry this merger isn't going smoothly. You could be back at home sipping mojitos right now instead of here in Nowhere, Nebraska."

  "What, and miss this view?" Alex said motioning to the corn fields in front of them.

  Ruby giggled.

  "Don't worry," Alex said. He put his hand on hers and smiled. "I'm sure we can work something out."

  ***

  They walked back to the Agricorp headquarters, where two other men dressed in identical black suits were waiting for them in the downstairs lobby.

  "Ruby, these are my associates," he said. "Come to help with the merger deal."

  "Pleasure to meet you," she said. She shook their hands, aware that they were looking her up and down.

  "Ready to work out the details?" Alex said.

  Ruby nodded. Her nerves were getting the better of her. She'd spent so much time putting deals together, but she'd never been in the front room when it happened. And to be negotiating with the head of Agricorp himself...

  "Great," he said. "What's the game show phrase? Let's make a deal."

  Two hours passed, then three. The men pored through the deal paperwork, picking out details and asking Ruby for explanations about all of the arcana included in the merger. She'd hoped that her predecessor would have worked the kinks out before she arrived, but it seemed like they had made the problems worse. Not that there were too many problems—she didn't want to overstate the issue. The small nitpicks of any deal would frustrated anyone but the most patient of negotiators. Fortunately, Ruby had patience in excess. She enjoyed tearing through the legalese of the paperwork.

  Another hour passed, and they broke for a late lunch. When they came back to the table, Ruby was surprised to find the three men agreeing with all of the changes she'd made to the acquisition. It only took another forty minutes to finalize the paperwork, and then they'd come to the end of the merger negotiations.

  Alex leaned back in his chair and smiled at her.

  "You're taking us for a ride," he said. "Your boss should give you a promotion for making this deal."

  "I think it's a fair deal," Ruby said calmly. He hadn't signed the final page yet. "And we gave you a stipulation for the solar once it gets installed."

  "Fair enough," Alex said. He leaned forward and signed the merger deal, then stood up from the table and offered his hand. "Congratulations, Ruby."

  She shook his hand, dizzy from the hours of negotiations.

  She'd done it. By herself, and with no help, and with the freaking CEO of Agricorp himself! She suppressed the urge to grin widely. Instead she gave him a calm smile.

  "Scan this up to send to Ms. Thomas," Alex said, handing the papers to one of his associates. Both men left the room.

  "When are you flying out?" Alex asked. Ruby looked up to see him standing very close to her. She could smell his cologne, fresh and heady. She hoped she didn't smell too bad herself.

  "I didn't even check," Ruby said. "I'll have to ca
ll my assistant and see if he can book anything for tonight."

  "Good luck with that," Alex said, sarcasm in his voice.

  "Why?"

  "You're going back to New York, right?"

  "Right."

  "They don't have any flights until tomorrow morning."

  "Argh!"

  "I know," Alex said, a commiserating smile spreading over his face. "You sure you don't want to spend another night in the cornfields?"

  "Hah! This place."

  "Don't I know it." Alex leaned against the table and tapped her hand lightly with his fingers. "Say, you probably don't have a hotel booked for tonight, then?"

  "I—" Ruby thought about Josh, and at first she hesitated, some part of her wanting to see him again. Then she thought about Josh's cabin. The single cot, the tub with freezing cold water. "No. I didn't have anything planned."

  "Come stay at the Hilton downtown. It's the least rustic of the hotels around here. And there's a sushi place across the street."

  "Sushi? In Nebraska?"

  "I was surprised, too. In fact, I had my assistants try it for lunch just to test it out, before I risked food poisoning."

  "Food tasters for the king?" Ruby raised one eyebrow.

  "Turns out I didn't even need them to taste it. The sushi's pretty decent."

  "I—" Ruby's resolve was weakening. Why not go back with him? Why was she being so reluctant? She looked up to see Alex smiling confidently at her.

  "Sure," she said, setting her face in what she hoped was a pleasantly professional tone. "As long as they don't serve corn."

  He opened the door for her to leave, and she felt a thrill of anticipation as he touched her on the back to lead her to his car, a black Lexus. The air conditioning was deliciously cool and the seats were leather. She settled back into the plush seats and almost fell asleep at once. Raising her hand, she stifled a yawn.

  "Long night preparing for the merger?" Alex asked. He revved the engine and pulled out of the Agricorp parking lot.

  "Something like that," Ruby said. In her mind, she could see the wolves jumping over the fence. How on earth would she ever explain that to anyone? A pack of wolves, running through the moonlight...she was beginning to think that it was a all a dream herself. Or a nightmare.

  "You did a great job in there," Alex said.

  "Thanks," Ruby said. In an instant, all of her thoughts of wolves and cornfields were erased. She was sitting next to the CEO of Agricorp, for heaven's sakes! "Why don't you tell me more about your business?"

  "Oh, it would bore you to tears. All I deal with all day are businessmen and politicians who don't know their heads from their asses. This is the most interesting thing that has happened to me in a long while."

  "This? Cornfields?" Ruby asked, with not a small degree of skepticism.

  "That too," Alex said, giving her a warm smile. "But I was mostly talking about meeting you."

  A warmth flushed Ruby's skin, even with the air conditioner on full blast.

  At the hotel, Alex insisted on paying for an upgrade for her room to the executive suite.

  "Celebrate a little," he said when she protested. "Drink out of the minibar."

  "I never drink out of the minibar," she said, aghast. "Do you know how much they charge for a bottle of apple juice?"

  "Those bottles of apple juice make the best appletinis."

  "I don't believe you," Ruby said, laughing.

  "Why don't you come have a drink with me and let me prove it." His voice wasn't asking, it was telling.

  A lump in Ruby's throat prevented her from answering right away. She knew what he was asking her, and it both thrilled and scared her. To go back to the hotel room of a successful CEO...that wasn't just an invitation to a drink. At least, she didn't think it was. She shook her head and settled her shoulders. She could always say no later. And the idea of picking the brain of the head of AgriCorp piqued her curiosity like crazy. Why not?

  "Come on," he said. "Just to wind down. And celebrate your biggest successful account merger."

  "How do you know this is the biggest account I've managed?" Ruby asked.

  "I don't," Alex said, slipping his arm around her waist and turning her to the hotel elevator. "I'm just used to being the biggest a woman's ever seen."

  Ruby rolled her eyes, but she let him lead her back to his room, making small talk all the way.

  He fixed her a drink from the minibar—true to his word, with apple juice—and watched as she took a sip.

  "It's good," she said. She stood awkwardly in the middle of the room as he poured a brandy for himself. "So how did you get started with Agricorp?"

  "Oh, it was a long time ago," Alex said, waving his hand absentmindedly. "I started out in the tech development department in the agriculture sector. Trying to build better farms."

  "How cute," Ruby said.

  "What? Developing tech?"

  "Yeah. It has something to it. Building a better farm." Ruby sipped her drink, feeling the cold liquid hit the back of her throat and turn warm on its way to her stomach. "How's that for a new ad campaign line?"

  "Genius. We need something to get us out of the oil leakage shadow."

  "Oil leakage?" Ruby turned her hip out, shifting her weight back against the counter.

  "Do that again," Alex said. "No, wait."

  "Do what?" Ruby asked.

  "Just like that," Alex said, pulling out his phone. He held it up quickly and she realized too late that he was taking a picture of her. Her fingers flew to her hair to smooth it down, but he was already putting the phone away.

  "That's a great picture to use for you in my contact list," Alex said, smirking. "Although it might distract me too much if you're always calling about work."

  "Work," Ruby said, trying to regain the direction of the conversation. She didn't want things to get any more out of hand. "You were saying how you started out in tech development."

  "Building better farms."

  "Right. And...well, that's interesting," Ruby said. "What did you work on?"

  "On the contrary. It was unbelievably boring. Hey, come on. No more work talk. Time to relax," he said, guiding her by the elbow to the bed. She sat a few inches away from him, cupping her drink with both hands.

  He sipped his brandy. "Tell me more about about yourself. All I know about you is that you're a kickass negotiator. What do you do for fun?"

  Ruby paused in the middle of taking a drink, the rim of her glass pressing lightly into her bottom lip.

  "I...you know, I don't know what I do for fun!" She laughed and took another sip of her cocktail. The apple juice was so sweet she couldn't even taste the alcohol. "I work way too much."

  "Sounds like a successful person talking," Alex said.

  "Sometimes I just want to run away to the middle of nowhere. You know?" Ruby took another sip, and then her cocktail was gone and Alex was making her another.

  "You mean out in the middle of, like, Nebraska?" Alex laughed. "You've arrived!"

  "I guess so," Ruby said. "Do you like it here at all?"

  "Do I like the cornfields? Is that what you're asking?"

  They both chuckled. He handed her the second martini. This one was stronger.

  "I don't mind being out in the middle of nowhere," Alex said. "Especially when there's a pretty lady out there with me. But I need my creature comforts. If I didn't have my minibar..." He shrugged.

  "It would give me more time to read," Ruby said, sipping thoughtfully. "I'd like that."

  "Ha! I don't remember the last time I cracked a book that didn't have P&L embossed on the front page," Alex said.

  "Or whatever you do to relax," Ruby said. She swallowed the rest of her drink hurriedly, the alcohol hitting her harder than she'd thought it would. The back of her throat burned.

  She stood up, trying not to let the room spin around her. He obviously wasn't in a chatting mood, and she was starting to think she shouldn't have come up to the room with him. Why hadn't she insisted that they dr
ink at the hotel bar downstairs? She set her glass down on the top of the minibar counter.

  "You know what I do to relax?" Alex asked. Coming up behind her, he slipped one hand along the small of her back. His other hand wrapped around her shoulder and began to massage her there. She tensed.

  "I don't...I don't think..."

  "That's good." Alex smiled at her—she could see his reflection in the mirror. "Thinking never helps me relax. You have to...feel..." His hand moved over her hip, to her stomach. She tried to step back, but his leg was behind hers, pinning her to the counter. She swallowed hard.

  "How do you want it?" he whispered in her ear. "Do you want to play rough?"

  "No!" Ruby shoved herself backwards and spun away. Her arm knocked her glass over and it tumbled silently to the carpet. She bent to pick it up. "No. Look, I'm sorry. I misunderstood."

  "I don't think you misunderstood," Alex said. As she stood with the glass, he grabbed her wrist and stood close to her. She could smell the acrid fumes of the brandy on his breath. "A smart girl like you? You understood just fine."

  "I don't know what you're talking about," Ruby said, yanking her arm out of his grasp. "I should go."

  "We're not done here," he said, stepping forward.

  "I am done here," Ruby said firmly. Although she'd gotten hints of Alex's overconfidence, she never expected him to be so brazen. She turned on her heel and strode to the door. As she pulled the door open, Alex's hand reached over to stop it from opening.

  "Deal's off," he said.

  "Excuse me?" Ruby whipped around, her heart pounding. "What deal?"

  "Your precious merger," Alex said. He stepped back and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms casually. His eyes, though, burned a fierce black.

  Ruby's heart skipped a beat.

  "You can't...you signed the deal."

  "Really?"

  "Of course! We agreed—" Ruby stopped mid-sentence. The associate had taken the paperwork. Alex had claimed he would scan it in to send to her, but now a sunken feeling dropped into her stomach.

  "Don't try and tell me you came here—alone—without having this all planned out."

  "I didn't!" Ruby cried.

  "Arriving at a business meeting with no pantyhose, smelling like sex—"