As she burst back through the door of the motel and closed it behind her, her heart was still pounding. She had taken off her shoes and practically run all the way back and now she felt exhilarated and alive.
What the hell had just happened?
One moment, she had been dreading the sight of him back in the diner and then the next, she was annoyed with him for ignoring her. Then it had turned to anger at him for making her feel bad, and then it was pure lust. The man had her in an absolute spin of emotions and confusion, and she couldn’t keep one coherent thought together.
She laughed and she ran her hands through her hair and sat down on the bed, but she couldn’t sit still. She wanted to talk to someone, she wanted to call Kady and tell her everything but at the same time, she knew it was late and she didn’t want to outstay her welcome before it had even begun.
She rose to her feet and went across the room and looked in the mirror. The woman who looked back at her was a completely different one to the girl who had woke up in Slate Springs that morning. Ashley had most certainly gone. Ash, biker whisperer with platinum blonde hair and a killer attitude, was here to stay.
She squealed and held her hands to her lips to hide her smile.
She flopped back down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Already, she was having trouble remembering what he looked like. She knew the details of his features, but as she tried to piece them together, they all swirled into one. His face was a blur and she knew then that her attraction to him was real and strong.
That was why she had been so upset earlier in the day when he had laughed at her. It was because, the moment she had laid eyes on him, she had known he was someone she would want to get to know. She could sense that he had something her soul needed.
She groaned as she thought about those hands. The way they had gripped the glass and ran through his hair. What he could surely do with those hands…
The thought made her tremble.
There was so much to think about and there seemed to be no time to think about it, even though she was completely alone and all she had was her own company and time. Her mind was full of different voices and conversations and she paced the room as she began to get undressed for bed.
She removed her make-up and slipped into a little pair of sleep shorts and a matching tanktop. She tied her hair up into a ponytail and still found it strange when she ran her fingers through it and realized it was so short.
The day really had been a big one. She had woken up in her childhood bedroom, with her parents only feet away. There had been two ways it could have gone. And now she couldn’t even imagine what she would be feeling if she had stayed there. It seemed completely out of the question. Slate Springs already felt right. It was already pulling her into its heart and she was beginning to feel protective and safe.
She thought about Tyler and of what he may think of Breaker. Even though nothing had happened with them, she could sense the chemistry. Hell, it was stronger than anything she had ever felt before. And she certainly hoped she would see him again very soon. Would she tell Tyler and risk him interfering? Or should she just wait and see what happened over the course of the following days?
The last thing she wanted was Tyler to get annoyed and cut her rental at the motel. He was paying for her and she was in debt to him in that respect, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t get to know someone on her own time and see where it went.
“You should get a job,” she whispered to herself as a flutter of possibilities roamed around in her mind. And she couldn’t help but grin at the thought of working along Main Street with its quaint little stores and its warm and friendly atmosphere.
“Wouldn’t that just be insane,” she sighed. “All this time and you had no clue what this place was about. And now you’ve been in town a day and you’re ready to give up everything and call it home.”
It would have been normal to think that she was crazy for being so confident and enthusiastic, but Ash saw it another way.
She saw it as fate.
When she woke the following morning, she stretched her arms high over her head and yawned. The curtains were drawn tight and for a cheap little roadside motel, they certainly had a good black out on them. Barely any of the harsh desert sunlight was breaking through and as she rolled over and rubbed her eyes into awake she smiled and pulled the covers up to her chin.
She hadn’t woken up feeling this good in a long time. Not even when she was with Matt did she feel this positive first thing in the morning. She was used to waking and being conscientious of not waking him. She would tiptoe around the house and get ready in silence before slipping out the door and going to work without a word.
This room, it was all hers. And she could do whatever the hell she wanted in it.
She reached over to the nightstand and grabbed the remote and flicked on the TV, and then she sank back down into the bed and raked around in the bedsheets for her cellphone. When she found it, she looked blearily at the screen and could see that she already had several texts from Kady.
She smiled and laughed as she opened them…
K: Morning! Okay, I know I’m a pest but I just need to know what happened last night?? You two looked in a very good mood when I slipped away. How was it? What happened? Did you kiss him? TELL ME EVERYTHING… x (07:34am)
K: I don’t think you understand how much I need details, girl! I can’t stand the suspense…! I’m on my way into work now but I’ll have my cell with me at all times ;) mwah x (08:26am)
K: There better be a good excuse for your lack of reply. IE. You better be naked in his bed after having the most incredible sex ever! Call me when you can x (09.44am)
“Jesus, what time is it?” she said as she rubbed her eyes again after noticing the times on the texts. She reached over and spun the alarm clock on the nightstand and groaned when she saw it was almost noon.
“What the hell,” she whispered as she threw the remote down on the top of the quilt and jumped to her feet.
She shuffled into the bathroom and began to run the tap in the sink. She was going to have to wake herself up and fast, because there was no way she was missing out on a full day in Slate Springs when there was still so much to learn…
She spritzed herself with perfume, combed out her new hair which still gave her a shock every time she saw it, and bronzed up her cheeks before making her lips dewy with gloss. She looked fresh and young, and she still couldn’t believe how much she suited her new look.
Once she’d dressed in a pair of denim shorts and a blue and white shirt, she slipped her feet into her sandals and headed for the door. She gave her cell phone a quick glance again and wondered why Tyler hadn’t been in touch with her. It seemed strange that he should leave her on her own this long when they hadn’t seen each other in months and months.
“His attitude just keeps getting worse,” she grumbled to herself as she reached for the door handle and pulled it open.
As she stepped out into the parking lot, the intense sun hit her head on and she reached down into her purse for some sunglasses. She put them on and then she jumped and skidded to a standstill as she saw a familiar silhouette standing about twenty feet away from her, leaning against a huge, glinting motorcycle.
She steadied herself and tried not to smile too wide. But it was such a nice surprise and had taken her so off guard she didn’t know where to look or what to say.
“Sleeping Beauty awakes,” Breaker said as he stood forward and stepped away from the bike.
She could barely take her eyes off him as he stepped more into the sun and it began to light up each and every smooth curve and groove of his muscles. He was wearing a tight V-neck t-shirt and a pair of battered old jeans which were slung low around his waist. She could see a flash of underwear and his defined muscular hips. It was almost too much to take, as if he was teasing her.
She swallowed. Hard.
“Do you always sleep the day away?” he asked her cockily as he took another step forwa
rd and broke her trance.
“No,” she mused. “I have no idea why I didn’t wake up with my alarm. I always have it set for seven thirty.”
“Must have been worn out after last night,” he joked.
Ash felt herself blushing.
“How come you’re here?” she asked playfully. She didn’t want to appear standoffish but she also wanted to know. Had he come for her, or was he here to see Tyler?
“Well, I’ve been here since the crack of dawn, waiting to see you…” he said, but she couldn’t tell if he was joking around or not.
“The crack of dawn?” she laughed.
He nodded his head and looked down at her with those goddam eyes. They were so green. So clear and bright.
“What you up to now?” he asked.
He was standing right in front of her and she felt eclipsed by him. He was so tall and his frame was so imposing, it was as if she was standing in the wake of a giant.
“I was going to get something to eat,” she said, almost in a whisper.
“Good,” he said. “Because that’s exactly what I had in mind.”
He turned and looked over his shoulder at the diner and then back toward the motel. He appeared kind of concerned, as if he was trying to see if Tyler was around, and so Ash looked across the parking lot too.
“He isn’t here,” she said. “His truck’s gone.”
Breaker nodded and a wicked smile flashed across him.
“What makes you think I’d care if he was?”
He was playing with her, wanting her to feel the danger of the situation. And it was working. She was loving every second.
“What would happen?” she whispered. “If anyone saw you with me?”
He shrugged and looked nonchalantly off to the side.
“Does anyone know who you are?” he grinned.
“No one but you and Tyler,” she said as she bit her lip.
“Well then, as long as Tyler doesn’t see us, I can’t see the problem.”
She could tell by the way he was saying it that he didn’t really mind. She could see how much he wanted to be there, and if he had been waiting for half as long as he said he had, it only confirmed it even more.
“Come on,” he said. “I’m buying.”
She walked up to him and they smiled at each other as they began to walk across the highway, toward the diner. She didn’t know the politics of what would happen if her brother found out, but Breaker obviously did and it wasn’t worrying him. She wanted to be there with him and she was enjoying his company. The more time she spent with him the more she could feel herself falling, which was crazy considering it had only been a day. But it felt so different. There was so much between them, as if they had just been waiting for the day when they walked into each other’s lives.
Breaker waited by the doorway and opened it for her. As she walked inside, she felt a hush and a calm fall over the whole room and she looked nervously around, wondering what the hell was going on.
The waitress who had been there the night before glared at Ash with a look of contempt, but she flashed Breaker a look that softened her exterior slightly. It was becoming obvious to Ash already that this woman clearly wasn’t a girl’s girl.
“Hi, Arlene,” Breaker said as he walked straight past her, ushering Ash along with him toward the booth he had sat in the night before when he had turned his back on her.
“The waitress?” Ash asked as they sat down. “What’s her problem?”
Breaker looked over his shoulder at Arlene and laughed.
“Her problem is, she never got the life she wanted,” he began. “Her problem is, after years of skulking around this town and hanging around our bars and clubs, she still hasn’t managed to bag herself a biker. All she wants is to be married to a Forsaken Rider.”
He shook his head in disbelief and Ash found herself staring at the faded waitress. She really did look miserable and past it. She would have felt sorry for her if she hadn’t been so rude.
“Do you get that a lot?” Ash asked him. “Women throwing themselves at you?”
He rubbed the stubble on his chin and laughed.
“You’d be surprised,” he said. “Those bikes and the way we live, some girls really seem to dig it.”
He shrugged.
“But I’m looking for someone a little more real, you know?” He looked deep in her eyes. “I want someone I can spar with and someone I have a connection with. None of the skanks that hang around The Bleeding Bullet or Tanners have any respect for themselves. They would take anyone or everyone. They’re not fussy. What they don’t realize is that the joke is on them.”
Ash couldn’t believe what some women would go to in an attempt to find love. Or their version of love anyway, which didn’t sound anything like hers. She had never thrown herself at anyone. She was a firm believer in letting fate decide.
“That’s quite sad,” she agreed with him as she looked at Arlene again and watched how she eyeballed the two of them sitting there, almost green with jealousy.
“It is,” he said. “Sad and desperate. I would never want a woman like that in my life. I like someone with a bit of an edge. Someone with a bit of sass… Someone who would give me hell and throw a drink over me, maybe…” he trailed off with a wry smile on his face.
She hung her head and laughed.
“Well, maybe you’re in luck,” she said as she bit her lip and smiled at him.
Each time they looked into each other’s eyes, it was as if a bond was being forged. Deeper and more intense. He had a way of looking at her that was both knowing and exploratory, as if he wanted to know it all. No one had ever looked at her like that, and it was impossible to deny the chemistry that was bouncing between them. They had something fun and different. They had something game changing.
Arlene the waitress approached the table and huffed as she stood there with her notepad and pen poised.
“What can I get you?” she asked, sounding impatient.
Breaker didn’t even look up at her, he kept his eyes directly on Ash and let her take the lead.
“Whatever the lady would like,” he said. “I’m following suit.”
Ashley smiled from ear to ear and brushed her hair over her shoulder. She hadn’t even looked at the menu, and suddenly, she wasn’t even hungry, so she looked at Arlene and shrugged.
“You’re the expert,” she smiled. “I’ll take whatever you recommend.”
Arlene rolled her eyes and chewed her gum and spun on her heel and walked on back to the kitchen. If Ashley hadn’t had a look of shock on her face she would have burst out laughing, but she couldn’t believe how rude she was, considering she was in customer service.
Breaker laughed and it made her start too.
“Can you even believe that?” she asked him, her mouth wide.
“I can, actually,” he laughed. “And trust me, from her that’s nothing.”
“Jeez,” she said. “Maybe she should consider a career change.”
“I’m sure she will soon enough,” he sat back. “She’s the biggest bitch in town and no one likes her. Bitter and twisted isn’t very becoming.”
“It sure as hell isn’t.”
He locked eyes with her again and she felt her heart dip. She had never felt her body have such a physical reaction to someone, it was unnerving and beautiful all at the same time.
“So I’m glad I waited.” He smiled as he put his hand on the table between them. “After last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about you and I knew I didn’t want to leave it.”
“You’re addicted,” she said jokingly. “I have that effect on men.”
“I’m not going to dispute you on that,” he said.
“I was kidding.” She leaned forward with embarrassment. “God, I’m not that full of myself.”
“Well, you should be,” he said seriously as they locked eyes again.
Her hand was only millimeters from his and she could feel the electricity rising between them. She wa
s sure she could feel his heat and she wanted so desperately to reach out and take hold of him. To let her fingers graze against his and to feel him again.
“I like you, Ash,” he said out of nowhere.
Her breath caught in her throat and she felt frozen, unable to move or respond.
“I liked you the second I saw you yesterday sitting in that chair with all of that stuff in your hair. You looked so innocent and embarrassed, and you handled our jokes like a real lady with class.”
She furrowed her brow, she wasn’t sure she could agree with that one. Especially after how she had gone on to treat Flash in the jazz bar.
“I don’t meet many women who have so much self-respect. I know I was an asshole yesterday, but I want to make it up to you. I want you to let me take you out properly. Not just here at this diner. I want to take you somewhere special. I want to prove to you I’m not all bad.”
She couldn’t help but smile.
“I already know you’re not all bad,” she whispered. “And you have made it up to me…”
“But I don’t feel like I have,” he said sternly. “And I always put things right.”
Arlene arrived with a jug of coffee and a stack of waffles which made Ash’s stomach turn. They were dripping in syrup and looked so sugary and thick that she couldn’t think of anything worse.
“Well,” she smiled. “That would be nice…” And when she was about to continue to say she would love to, she noticed there was someone standing outside the diner, looking in at them. The figure was moving closer and even out of the corner of her eye she could see they were moving quickly and with rage.
Before she turned to look, she already knew it was going to be him, but there was still a part of her that hoped she was wrong. Things were only just getting started with Breaker, she didn’t want everything to come crashing down before it had even begun.
But she was out of luck… Because she knew it was him.
Tyler was walking toward the diner. He had seen them through the window.
“Oh no…” she said under her breath as she turned and saw her brother’s angry eyes focus in on them as he came close to the other side of the glass and glared at them harshly.
BREAKER (Forsaken Riders MC Romance Book 14) Page 7