Denver: A Bad Boy Romance (FMX Bros Book 3) (11 page)

Chapter 28

Denver

Normally, I was stoked as hell to reach the weekend after a long work week. But now every weekend was a black mark on a short calendar, a five week span of time that was passing with the speed of light. And to add to my already darkening mood, Cole had invited me up to practice. He’d known exactly what he was doing when he clapped my shoulder and said, ‘jumps at my house Saturday. See you at noon’. He’d left no room for protest. I needed to get back on the bike and the sooner, the better. Cole had said my bike was back from the mechanics, looking fit and ready to ride. Physically, I was ready to blow off some energy and the frustration I was feeling that I’d finally met a woman I could spend my life with but who would soon be walking out the door. Mentally, I wasn’t completely there yet. I’d replayed the crash on my computer and in my head over and over. The stark reality that I was risking my neck with every jump just kept gnawing at my brain like an ugly, oversized rat.

I heard Jami’s footsteps on the stairs and I opened the door. She was dressed and ready to go, but she was biting her lip in thought. “I was thinking maybe it would be better if I didn’t tag along today.” She hopped off the last step and stopped in front of me. That extra splash of daylight that always followed her like a glowing halo was on full display today. It was going to be nothing but gloomy weather when she was gone.

“You’re not still dwelling on that bad luck, superstition stuff, are you?”

“No.” Her thin shoulders lifted and fell with a sigh. “Yes.”

I lifted her chin with my fingers and pressed a quick kiss on her lips. “You are the right in my wrong, the light in my dark, the happy in my sad. Not to mention the mind-blowing sex, which I technically just mentioned. I’m still trying to decide what I did to deserve this.”

She smiled. “Funny. I was just thinking the same thing. If you don’t think I’ll provide too much of a black cloud for your practice, I will tag along. But if I cover my eyes during it all, don’t read anything into it.”

***

Cole was just pushing his bike out of the garage when we walked into the yard.

“Was wondering where you were, east coast. How’s it going, Jami? Kensie just rode up to the back wall on her horse if you want to say hello.”

“Absolutely.” Jami hurried off in that direction.

Cole pushed his sunglasses up on his head. “Your stuff is in the garage. Rodeo is in the house eating breakfast. Or lunch, I guess. He just got up.” He stared at me. Cole knew me well enough and he knew what a bad crash could do to your confidence. He’d had a few good ones himself. “Just remember, thinking is good. Over thinking is bad. Get your gear on. I’ll meet you out there.”

“Yep. Think I’ll take a few laps on the track first to make sure they glued it back together right.”

“Glue,” Cole laughed. “Classic.”

I headed into the garage. I hadn’t seen my bike since I saw it limping away from the track, looking like a guilty horse that had just thrown its rider. It stared back at me with its one big eye. I walked over and checked the handlebars. The mechanics had taken the tweak out of them and they looked ready.

I yanked off my jeans and pulled on my riding pants and boots. I put on my chest protector and gloves. I grabbed the helmet and goggles out of my gear bag. There was a scratch in the helmet paint but the damage had been minimal. To my head as well, thankfully.

I pushed the bike into the warm sun. Rodeo was just lumbering out of the house.

“Einstein, you’re here. Damn. I had a bet with Cole that you wouldn’t show. Figured you and that big head of yours had already analyzed the shit out of that fall.”

“Yep, I have. Maybe I should switch my big head for a pin headed version like yours.”

“Least I don’t look like a fucking Pez dispenser.” He chucked me on the arm. “See you out there, bro.”

“Yeah.” I pulled on the helmet and goggles. Jami had hoisted herself up onto the back wall. I could see Kensington sitting on her tall horse. Jami was stroking the horse’s face and talking animatedly about something with Kensie. She fit so damn perfectly into my life.

I kick-started the bike and rode over to the small dirt track Cole had built in the center of the property. His dad’s failed vineyard experiment was set far enough from neighbors and the rest of civilization, save a busy highway, that it was the perfect place to ride and practice without people complaining about the noise or dust.

I took it easy and coasted around the first lap. The bike felt as solid as always. I twisted the throttle and took a few fast laps around. On my fourth lap, I saw Rodeo had geared up and was headed out toward the kicker. I pulled off the track and followed him. As I pulled up, Cole motioned toward the jump, to see if I wanted to go first.

I needed to go. If I sat for too long and watched them go first, it would be harder. Kensington had ridden off and Jami was sitting with a wide smile waiting for the first jump. I was sure the smile was more forced than real. The first real experience she’d had watching me ride had ended in disaster. Her confidence was as shaky as mine at the moment.

I headed off toward the far end of the property. It would give me plenty of space to gain speed and hit the kicker at just the right angle. I wasn’t going to do more than a moto whip on the first run.

I circled the bike around. The kicker looked narrow and steep and uninviting. I took a deep breath and twisted the throttle. A cold sweat broke out on my skin and a knot formed like a pit in my stomach. The kicker got closer, but I wasn’t ready. I rolled past to the other side of the yard. I stopped at the end but didn’t have the courage to turn around and see the faces behind me.

I gripped my handlebars and clenched my teeth in anger. “Fucking, stop this shit,” I muttered to myself as I turned the bike around.

I raced full speed back across the property leaving a trail of dust and several worried expressions behind. I got to the end and circled back. I headed toward the kicker and for a second it all came back to me, the feeling of falling through the air without the bike beneath me. That ‘knockin’ on heaven’s door moment’ as Rodeo liked to call it. I roared past the kicker, threw on the brakes and laid the bike down. I climbed off, plucked off my helmet and strode away toward the supply shed on the back side of the house. I walked up to it and plowed my fist into it, leaving behind a nice dent.

I stood there for the longest time, chiding myself for being a fucking coward and for insisting that Jami come along to watch. I walked to the side of the house, to the old gazebo where I’d led Jami to on her first visit to Cole’s place.

I climbed beneath the rusted skeleton of the structure and sat on the even more rusted bench. I looked up to see Jami crossing the yard.

She stopped to smell some roses that were growing on the outside of the gazebo. “These remind me of spiced tea.” She climbed the steps and sat next to me.

“Well, that was one of the most humiliating moments of my life. Nothing like putting one’s cowardice on full display for the woman he wants to impress.” I growled as I leaned back against the rod iron wall and crossed my arms. My hand was throbbing plenty, but it had been worth it.

“Humiliating? Cowardice? Really? What percentage of the population do you think would ever even considering launching into the air on a motorcycle?”

“Only the crazy ones.”

“Exactly. Crazy and fearless. You had a setback with that fall. It happens.” She leaned back with me. “Damn, I’m channeling my grandpa. Oh well, he was the smartest person in the world.” She inclined her head toward me. “Present company excepted, of course. I sometimes forget how smart you are because you are a damn beefcake.”

“If this little chat is supposed to make me feel better . . . it’s working. At least now I feel like a coward but a beefcake coward.”

She laughed. “That’s good. I think.”

I scrubbed my fingers through my hair. “Fuck, can’t believe I balked at that stupid jump.”

“I can. A few years back, I felt that all the music coming off my bow sounded strained and ugly. I just couldn’t get the flow. It got worse every time I picked Stuart up because somehow I’d convinced myself that I couldn’t play anymore. So I stuck Stuart in his case and put him back in the safe.” My face turned toward her and she nodded. “Yes, my mom makes me keep the violin in a safe when I’m at home. I can’t tell you the massive argument we had when I told her I was taking Stuart on vacation with me.” She waved her hand. “Anyway, that’s another crappy moment in time. Let’s refocus on your crappy moment. Anyhow, eventually I got over the fear that I’d lost my ability to play. I started picturing myself no longer playing violin. I tried to imagine what it would be like to never pick up Stuart and run a bow across his strings again. I tried to imagine what it would be like, but I couldn’t do it. There was no way I could live a life without playing violin. So, you need to think about a life where you never ride, or more importantly, jump a motorcycle again. See if it feels natural or impossible to you. Then you’ll know what comes next.” She leaned over, kissed my face and walked away.

I leaned back and closed my eyes and thought about her words. I’d been riding dirt bikes since I was six years old. I started freestyle when I was sixteen and I’d never looked back. Jami was right. I couldn’t imagine my life without it. I’d had a setback, but that was all it was, a setback.

I got up and walked toward my bike. It was lying on its side, looking a little insulted. Sometimes it was easy to see why Jami considered her violin to have human emotions. I saw it in my bike occasionally too. And right now, my bike was saying, ‘I got banged up too, fool, and you don’t see me having a temper tantrum, throwing my fist or stomping off in anger’.

I lifted my helmet off the ground and pulled it on. Rodeo was just climbing on his bike when I fired mine up. Everyone’s attention turned my direction. Jami waved at me once. I took off toward the end of the yard. This time my thoughts were stuck in what the fuck are you doing mode. This time I was thinking about how fucking dull and empty my life would be without FMX.

I raced toward the kicker and the front tire flew up. The horizon line flipped upside down and right side up again and the ground came into view. My tires touched down.

Chapter 29

Jami

Once he’d gotten his mojo or determination or whatever it was one needed to swing a giant motorcycle through the air back, there was no stopping Denver. He’d even pulled off what he called a flawless cliffhanger but what I called just plain scary.

Denver was playing invisible drums on his steering wheel looking more excited than I’d ever seen him.

I couldn’t hold back a laugh. “You look like the kid who just won the entire soccer match with his last kick.”

“Feeling like that too.” He turned the truck along an off-ramp that I’d never seen before.

“Where are we headed?”

“I’m pretty amped up as you might have noticed.”

“I did notice. Are you ditching the truck to carry me the rest of the way home on your back? Because at the moment, that looks possible. Even with your swollen hand.”

He glanced at his red knuckles. “Forgot all about that. Nope. I’m not ditching the truck. I was going to show you our work site.”

“All right. Sounds interesting.”

We traveled along a stretch of quiet road that looked as if it had been recently paved. Then the massive steel skeleton of an unfinished building loomed in the distance. An impossibly long stretch of chain-link surrounded the entire building project.

“One of the local Native American tribes is building a casino. It’s actually small compared to some of the others around here. It doesn’t look like much yet, but the design is pretty cool.” He hopped out and unlocked a gate and jumped back in the truck. We rode through and then he repeated the process by locking the gate back up. He held up the keys. “I’m sort of one of the big shots. Get to have my own set of keys and everything. Of course, it helps to be best friends with the boss.”

“I believe, to really impress the girl, you’re supposed to say you earned your way to the big shot position by toiling and proving your skills and knowledge.”

“Uh huh, that too.” He put the truck in drive. He looked like a man on a mission. I just wasn’t sure what it was yet.

I grabbed the edge of the seat for support as the truck toddled onto a rough dirt road. The characteristic low, verdant hills, typical in this area, provided a picturesque backdrop for an otherwise inherently industrial building site. We traveled along at a pace that was slow for the street but possibly a bit too fast for the primitive road. Twice, I clutched the armrest to keep from being popped off the seat. A long, white trailer with a Kingston Construction banner was parked at the back of the site. We pulled up in front of it.

I looked around. “It’s very deserted out here.”

“Exactly.” He jumped out of the truck and I followed.

He came around to my side, took my hand and led me up the portable steps to the trailer. “This is the hub of the construction site.” He put the key in the door and opened it up.

There was a massive desk covered with papers at the far end of the trailer. A computer desk was lined up next to it. Three sets of drawers were on one side of the office, and two metal chairs sat in front of them.

“Are we going to do some office work?” I asked.

He shut the door behind us. “That’s a good term for it.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms. “That half hour ride back to the beach was too damn far. I need you now.” He kissed me long and hard. As always, I was like melted butter in his arms.

He stared down at me with that heated gaze that made every part of me flush with warmth. “I thought I could be the boss and you could be my very naughty assistant.”

I glanced back at the desk and then shook my head. I walked out of his arms. His disappointment was palpable, and I had to bite my lip not to smile. I stopped at the desk and turned around. It looked as if someone had knocked the wind out of him.

I was done teasing. “
I’m
the boss, and you are
my
very naughty, very hunky assistant.” I slid off my sandals and unfastened my shorts. I pushed them to the floor. My panties followed.

He sucked back in a deep breath. His hands were balled at his sides as if he was using every ounce of his control not to grab me.

“Get over here now, hot assistant, or there will be no Christmas bonus this year.”

Denver crossed the floor in two long steps. He pulled out his condom and had his pants down to his ankles in seconds. He reached behind me and shoved back the paperwork. His strong hands gripped my waist and he lifted me onto the edge of the desk. The varnished wood felt cold and smooth beneath me. I leaned back on my hands and stared at him from beneath lowered lids as he fumbled with the condom package.

“Come now, love, don’t keep the boss waiting.”

“Fuck,” he growled as he finally ripped open the package. “These fucking things sure put a crimp in the whole spontaneity thing.” He gripped me around the knees and lifted my legs around his waist, yanking my ass closer to the edge of the desk.

A small cry of anticipation jumped from my lips as he slid one hand along my inner thigh and dragged his fingers through the moisture in my pussy. “God, baby, you feel so damn ready.”

With that, he pushed his cock inside of me.

He lifted my legs higher around his waist and held me tight as he thrust into me again and again, making the delicious ache more intense each time. I leaned my head back, reveling in the raw, rough feel of being taken on the desk in the middle of a strange place with the one man who could make me hot just by looking at me the right way. He continued his sweet assault, holding me firmly with one hand, while reaching between our bodies with the other. His thumb stroked my clit.

“Oh, Denver, yes.” I writhed against him, holding him tightly with my legs and bracing myself against the desk to meet each thrust. A final blow sent my body spiraling into ecstasy, and my pussy pulsed and tightened around him. My arms shook beneath me, and my legs trembled as I held him between my thighs and braced my hands against the desk.

Then, without warning, he withdrew. He pulled me against him. I was still in a blissful haze as he kissed me roughly, urgently. Just as he’d done before, his hands circled my waist and he lifted me off the desk. My feet hit the cold floor, and the air in the office cooled the moisture between my legs.

“This assistant has another plan for his extremely misbehaved boss.” With one quick turn, he had me facing the desk. His hard chest pressed against me as his large, callused hands smoothed down my arms to my hands. He took hold of my wrists and braced my palms against the edge of the desk. His knee urged my legs wider as he gripped my hips and pulled my bottom out farther. Before I could catch my breath, he’d pushed his cock back inside of me.

My arms felt the fatigue of our first position, but I hardly noticed the tremble as the beautiful ache of his thrusts filled me again and again. It was rough and punishing and amazing. Denver’s fingers dug into my flesh as he held me in his iron grip. Then with one final push, he jammed his cock in deeper. His low groan of release rolled over my shoulder as he came.

He reached out and wrapped his arms around me, holding me against him while our breathing and heartbeats slowed. “This office is going to look completely different to me now.”

I leaned my head back against his shoulder with a sigh. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to walk past a desk again without smiling.”

A long, sad moment followed.

Denver tightened his hold on me. “Shit, Holliday, when you leave me, every damn thing is going to look different. Nothing will be the same. Hell, I won’t be the same either.”