by Megan Lowe
She looks unfazed. “Honey, I told you before, you don’t need to worry about me. I know what we have here and I know how you feel about me. I’m not worried what anyone thinks or says about us. I only care about you and me.”
“Every time you say stuff like that to me I’m always so surprised.”
“Why?” she asks, hurt.
I'm quick to reassure her. “Because you’re just so amazing and understanding, and I can’t believe someone like you could want to be with someone like me.”
“You’re not so bad yourself you know,” she says, running her thumb over my cheek, “and I’m not the only one who can’t believe you’d want to be with someone like me. There are a million girls who’d claw out their eyes to be with you, yet you chose me.”
I offer her a smile. “I'd seen you around before, saw how fucking cute you are, but it wasn't until we actually spoke, and then the way you protected Chris… hell, it was enough to tell me I never wanted to let you go.”
“Is that why your brothers call me sis?”
At this I blush, possibly a first for me, and hide my face a little.
She pulls on my hair so she can see my eyes and I nod. “Yeah, they know one day I’m gonna marry you." I pause, waiting for a reaction. Her eyes soften as she listens and waits for me to continue. "I think they knew it almost before me. Chris certainly did, and even though Park was the only one here at first, it’s like some kind of bulletin flashed through all of them alerting them to the fact I’m no longer on the market.”
“I love your family,” she says and my heart almost bursts. My family and I are as close as can be and any woman in any of our lives needs to know, understand, and be okay with that. It’s a bonus if they get along like a house on fire. Luckily for me, Bria and my family do.
“If you don’t know they love you, then you’re blind, lady. They think you walk on water.”
Bria giggles and I tickle her gently.
“What are you doing next weekend?” she asks.
“Besides being wherever you are, nothing.”
She kisses me sweetly. “Well, in that case would you like to come home with me? I haven’t been home in a while and I owe my parents a visit. With exams coming up soon, now’s the best time.”
“You want me to meet your parents?”
She nods and smiles her beautiful, breathtaking smile.
I roll her to her back and settle between her legs, my previously semi-hard cock now rock-hard. “I’d love nothing more.” I kiss her gently.
“Really?”
“Absolutely.”
“You’re really all in, huh?”
“Baby, if you can’t tell I am,”—I thrust inside her—“then I’m doing something wrong.”
She giggles, and her movements make thinking impossible.
Chapter Nineteen
BRIA
Reed and I barely got out of bed on Sunday, and he doesn’t want to let me out this morning. We’ve just caught our breath after another round of lovemaking. The man has incredible stamina.
“I have to go.”
“I don’t want you to.” He hugs me tighter and throws a leg over mine, effectively trapping me with his body.
“I have to get to class.”
“Education is overrated.”
I snort. “Not all of us can ride motorbikes and look good doing it.”
He snuggles into my neck. “So I look good, huh?”
“Shut up.” I elbow him. “But I really have to go.”
“Fine,” he says, releasing me and throwing his arms and legs out wide on the bed, “but at least shower with me.”
“Will we shower?”
“Eventually.” He wiggles his eyebrows at me.
“At least you’re honest.”
“Is that a yes?”
I groan and go to the bathroom. When I get to the door, I look back at Reed, who’s lying on his side watching me.
“Enjoying the view?” I ask.
“Absolutely,” he says and sends me his panty-dropping smile, complete with dimple overload.
“So are you going to lie there and watch or are you going to join me?” I’ve barely finished my sentence before Reed rushes at me, picking me up around my waist and spinning us into the bathroom.
He gets a waterproof bandage out and carefully puts it over my stitches before picking me up again, my legs wound tightly around his waist, and walking us into the shower.
He carefully and lovingly washes my body, his hands all over me electrifying me and making me think if he were to take me right now I’d probably come instantly. When Reed’s done with me, I return the favour and come to the conclusion that washing him, getting to rub my hands all over him, may be even better than him washing me.
He proves me right by giving me two insanely intense orgasms before shutting off the water.
“You’re going to have to help me walk.” Exhaustion drips from every syllable.
A smug smile crosses Reed’s face. “No worries. I’ve got you.” He reaches out to grab a towel before wrapping me in it, then proceeds to sweep me off my feet and gently places me on his bed. I lie there while he grabs a towel for himself, and I watch as a drop of water slides down his chest.
Reed laughs as I lick my lips.
“You okay there, angel?”
“I think you broke me.”
With his brows dipping in concern, he asks, “Is it your leg? Are you okay? Do you need anything?” He sits beside me on the bed.
I laugh and reach up to cup his cheek. “I’m fine. My leg is fine. I’ve just never come so hard in my life. I’m still tingling.”
“Oh.” His smug smile returns. “Well, if that’s the case....” He leans down to kiss me.
He’s deepening the kiss when I pull back. “I meant what I said earlier. I really do have to go.”
Reed pouts. “I don’t want you to go.”
“I don’t either, but I’m a few weeks from exams, then graduation. I don’t want to stuff this up, not this close to the end.”
“Will you come here after class?”
I smile gently at him. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” His answering smile lights the whole room.
“So quickly,” he murmurs.
“So quickly what?” I ask, confused.
He cups my face. “So quickly you’ve become my whole world.” He presses his lips against mine. It's chaste from what I'm used to, but it doesn't stop the tingles from spreading through my body.
This time he breaks the kiss. “Okay, you’ve gotta go. I don’t want to be the cause of you failing and having to retake the semester and spend more time away from me.”
We get up and dress before a quick breakfast with Liam and Mason, and then I’m out the door.
My afternoon class is cancelled so after swinging by my room to grab some clothes—I wonder if Reed would give me my own drawer?—I head to Wheels, getting there just after lunch.
Reed happens to be passing by the door as I walk through it. He grabs me by the waist and hugs me tightly before pulling back to kiss me. His lips are soft and familiar.
“I missed you,” he says once we break apart.
“I’ve been gone four hours.” I roll my eyes.
He grins and over exaggerates his pain “I know, and it’s been torture,” he says, rocking us back and forth.
Liam comes out of the kitchen, pauses, and upon seeing us, exhales. “Thank God you’re here, sis. He’s been unbearable.” He comes over and gives me a kiss on the cheek before moving towards a businessman at a table.
“Unbearable, huh?”
Reed just shrugs. “I want to be with you always. I’m not going to hide that fact.”
I soften immediately. “Reed….”
“Come on,” he says, releasing me and leading me to a booth. “Have you had lunch? You know you can’t have your antibiotics on an empty stomach; have you taken them?”
I sit and pull him down with me. He slings an arm around my shoulders a
nd I curl into his chest.
“No, I haven’t had lunch or taken my antibiotics, and yes, I know I can’t do that on an empty stomach, so if I could get a club sandwich that would be great.”
“Caramel shake?”
I nod.
“On it. I’ll be back soon.” With a quick peck, he’s gone.
I watch him walk through the swinging doors to the kitchen and then hold them open a second later as Chris comes sprinting through the restaurant straight for me.
“Aunty Bria,” he yells, scrambling up into the booth before hugging me around my neck.
“Hey, buddy,” I say, patting his back gently. “How are you?’
“Good,” he says, releasing me.
“What have you been up to?”
“I was with Pa. We were watching races.”
“That sounds like fun.”
He nods. “It was. Uncle Liam’s going to smoke ’em next weekend.”
“That’s right, buddy,” Liam says as he walks past and puts his hand out for a high five. He then heads to the bar.
I pull out some of my textbooks while Chris goes and gets his backpack from Parker. Apparently, it survived the explosion.
I watch as a guy comes into the diner and heads straight for Liam. He sits down right in front of him and begins asking questions. When Liam shakes his head and refuses to answer, the guy leans forward, trying to get in his face. I can see Liam is trying to be polite, but he’s having a hard time trying not to lose it.
I've always been fiercely protective of people I love. It goes with the territory of wanting people I care for to be happy and safe. I'm therefore not surprised when I ask Chris to stay at our table, giving him the important mission of saving our table, while my feet lead me to Liam.
“Come on, Liam, you must have something to say about the explosion of your garage at Mechanical Field on Saturday,” the guy, obviously a reporter, says.
“As you no doubt know,” I say, cutting Liam off, “the explosion is currently under police investigation, so Mr Ryan and the rest of the staff and family at Ryan Racing aren’t at liberty to discuss it.”
The reporter swings to me, looks me up and down, and finds me lacking. I admit my usual outfit of jeans and a hoodie isn’t professional, but neither is this guy asking questions he knows can’t be answered.
He flicks a hand at me, dismissing me. “Go away, girlie. Why don’t you go back to the shops or something?”
Anger flashes in Liam’s eyes and I put my hand on his arm, halting whatever he has to say.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. As Ryan Racing’s PR rep, you’ve made my afternoon shopping trip impossible now.”
That gets his attention. “PR rep, you say?”
“Yes, sir, and if I may ask, which publication do you work for that would be willing to put a very serious police investigation in jeopardy?”
He flounders. “What did you say your name was?”
I extend my hand. “Bria Adams, and if you have any further and legitimate questions for Mr Ryan and the Ryan Racing team, you can go through me.”
“Huh,” he says and scratches his chin. “So, does the Ryan Racing team have a statement they’d like to put out regarding the weekend’s events?”
I stand a little taller. “Ryan Racing is shocked at this weekend’s events but is looking forward to getting back on track next weekend. They are cooperating fully with race officials and the ongoing police investigation.”
The reporter sighs at my generic words. “That’s it?” he asks.
“You know that’s all we can give,” I reply sharply.
“Fine.” He grunts and slides off the stool, and walks out of the diner.
“Our PR rep, huh?” Liam asks, an amused look on his face.
I shrug. “It’s what I’m studying, so I took the opportunity to put my education to use.” I grin, my heart picking up speed a little though, hoping I didn't offend him.
“Well, you did a damn good job. I’ve never seen Bob get shut down so easily.”
“Have you guys put out any sort of statement about the weekend?”
“I don’t think so. We’ve just been answering ‘no comment’ when anyone calls.”
I throw my head back. “Ugh, that is a total no-no. You never ‘no comment.’ Who’s your PR rep?” I ask.
Liam shrugs. “We don’t have one.”
“How do you not have one?”
“We just do it ourselves.”
“That explains so much.”
Just then, Reed and Nate come into the dining room and head towards Liam and me. Reed puts my club sandwich in front of me and goes to make my shake.
Nate squeezes my shoulder and sits on the stool next to me. “I heard Bob was here,” he says.
“He was,” Liam replies.
Nate looks around. “Where is he?”
“Sis took care of him.”
Nate looks at me, confused. “What do you mean?”
“I mean,” Liam says, “meet our new PR rep, Miss Bria Adams.”
“Huh?” Nate asks.
“She stepped in when she saw Bob hassling me, shut him down too.”
“It was nothing really,” I say.
“We really should put out a statement, Pop.”
“I haven’t the faintest idea how to do that,” Nate admits.
“Do you have a website?” I ask.
“Yeah, Mav updates it, designed it too,” Liam says.
“Then it’s simple. We put it on there. That’s going to be most reporters’ first port of call.”
“How do you know all this?”
“Because my girl is awesome,” Reed says, placing my shake in front of me and coming to stand behind me and kissing my cheek.
I smile at Nate. “I’m a Journalism / PR student at Booker.”
“So you know about all this media bullshit?” he asks.
“Been training for it for years.”
“We can’t pay you much.”
“You just did.” I take a bite of my sandwich.
“Seriously?”
“She’s family, Pop,” Reed says behind me, and I sink into his arms a little more. I love that I’ve been accepted into this world of men so easily and quickly.
I give Nate a reassuring smile. “I don’t mind helping out. I’m graduating soon and I’ll be looking for a job. Why not this one? Granted, I’m not fluent in all things racing, but I’m willing to learn.”
“I’ll teach you, baby,” Reed whispers in my ear before biting the lobe gently. I have to hold back a moan.
“You sure you want to do this?” Nate asks.
“Hey, I offered. I came over here. No one forced me. Plus, this is an awesome opportunity, for both me and Ryan Racing.”
I look at Reed as I say that and see he’s joined the dots. I’m doing what I’ve been trained for and trying to make his dreams come true.
“Fucking hell, Bria,” Reed says and crushes me to him, “you are so much more than amazing. You’re—you’re everything. I love you so much, baby.”
“And I love you.” I turn back to Nate. “So, you ready to do this?”
He nods.
“Well, come over to my office.” I lead him back to the booth where Chris is colouring quietly.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Nate asks me once again as we sit down.
“Absolutely. It’ll be a learning experience for both of us. There will be missteps, from both sides, but you guys need this. If you want Ryan Racing to be more competitive with the factory teams, we need to get you guys a presence.”
“We can’t pay much.”
“Free meals is fine by me. I was told you guys have the best burgers in town so I think I’ll consider us even.” I flash Nate a smile. “But more than that, I know Reed and I have only been together a few days but I love him and see a future with him. I consider him and all of you my family. Family helps family.”
“My boys call you sis?” he asks, and I smile.
�
�They do.”
He nods. “Then call me Pop.” He returns my smile.
“Right, let’s get down to business, shall we?” I ask, and he nods.
Just then, Reed comes over with my sandwich and milkshake that I left over at the bar. “Thanks, honey,” I say, and lean up to kiss him.
He takes a seat beside me and slings an arm along the back of the seat.
“The first thing we have to do is get a statement out about the explosion. Because it’s under police investigation, we can’t say much but ‘no comment’ is a no-no. It looks like we’re trying to dodge questions. We have nothing to hide so if asked, either don’t answer or give some generic answer.”
“Like what?” Pop asks.
“Like ‘it’s under police investigation and we’re cooperating fully’ or even more basic with ‘we’re just looking forward to racing,’ something like that. We don’t need to be pulled into all that sh— stuff,” I say, remembering Christian sitting next to me. “Our focus is on racing and getting Liam that title.”
Across from me, Pop looks impressed.
“Damn, baby,” Reed says, discreetly taking my hand and moving it over his crotch so I can feel his erection pressing against his zipper. I give him a squeeze and he groans under his breath.
“What sort of contacts do you have in the media?” I ask.
“Hang on, I’ll go get ’em,” Pop says as he gets up. “I’ll call Mav and Jax as well, get ’em down here.”
“They should be here soon,” Reed says. “It’s Monday.”
“Right,” Pop says. “Let me go get those details.”
As he does, I pull out my laptop and start it up.
“Do you have Wi-Fi?” I ask Reed. When he doesn’t answer, I look over at him and find him staring and smiling at me.
“What?”
“You’re so professional, it turns me on,” he whispers close to my ear.