Page 17 of Kairo

It wasn’t as if I didn’t know how to ride, but the idea of driving him made me nervous. I’d been operating motorcycleshalf my life, so it didn’t make sense why my mind drew a blank on how to operate a motorcycle.

“I only got one helmet.”

He shrugged. “That’s cool.” I hesitated. He must have noticed. “Nah, I’m good without. If you’re as good as you say you are, I trust you to keep me safe.”

“Um…”

“Go get the keys, Junie.”

The way my name rolled off his tongue straightened my spine. My legs had a mind of their own as I made my way to the key box. I grabbed the one with the angel wings on it before I reached for the black helmet that was on the shelf. Slowly making my way back to the bike, I noticed Kairo studying it. Hopefully he couldn’t tell how nervous I was from my walk. My knees knocked and my heart raced. If he had stethoscope, he would hear my heart beating out of my chest.

“Ready?” I asked, trying to contain the chatter of my teeth.

He nodded. “I’ll walk it out for you.”

He climbed on the bike and walked it out the door. I was thankful for his gesture. Once we finally made it outside, the sun was still shining brightly. I knew eventually it would start to hide.

Kairo got off the bike and made his way to me. He reached for the helmet and prepared to put it on me.

“I don’t need help putting on a helmet, Kairo.” He ignored what I said and slid the helmet on my head. “Ugh! You don’t listen.”

“Junie, get on the bike and stop stalling.” Kairo climbed on the back. “Ready?” he asked once he got comfortable.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” I asked.

“Been ready.”

“Where would you like to go?”

“Just ride, Junie.”

I switched on the ignition, then I revved the bike and checked the mirrors. Seconds later, I was on the road, lost in the ride.

Impressedby Junie would’ve been an understatement. Junie handled the bike so well. I’d seen many drivers. Beginners, intermediate, and expert. Junie was well beyond expert as she rode down the highway. Even though I couldn’t see her face, I could tell she was in her zone. We rode for an hour, and I didn’t think she even noticed.

The sun was setting, and the traffic had calmed down. Even though she mentioned only taking a short ride, I wouldn’t dare interrupt her from being in her zone. Instead of smelling fresh air, her perfume filled my nose. Her body was warm against mine as we swerved all over the road. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t avoid our bodies pressing against each other. Junie’s body felt great against mine. It was as if it belonged.

Thirty minutes later, we arrived at a small house that sat on a lake. She shut the engine off and removed her helmet. She fixed her helmet hair while I got off the bike, placing my hand on my gun before I helped her off.

Junie hadn’t realized it, but she had turned me on. If I wasn’t turned on by her before, seeing her handle the bike intensified that feeling.

“Sorry,” she said.

“For?”

“When I ride, I get lost in the moment. I didn’t expect to drive out here.”

“You cool.”

I looked around at the wooded area. The house was white with a black door. It had two windows that had black shutters. My curiosity piqued, my guard was up, and Junie finally noticed.

She sucked her teeth. “Relax, ain’t nobody out here, killer.”

“How you know?”

“’Cause I know.”

She placed the helmet on the bike and walked past me, onto the wooden dock, before she sat on the edge. She faced the white house, staring off in space. She did that for a couple of minutes before I made my way over to check on her.

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