Page 14 of Two Hearts' Ploy

“Listen. I’m really sorry about this. I didn’t sleep well last night so I must have been a little distracted. I’ve never done something as stupid as this. I’m usually pretty careful on my bike.”

Wren heaved a sigh, turning back to the SUV.

Walking over to her vehicle, he grimaced. “It looks like you’ve got a flat. I’d offer to change the tire, but these newer model vehicles don’t even provide you with a spare. All you get is a can of fix-a-flat.”

She frowned. “Really? I just drove cross-country. It’s a good thing that I didn’t have any trouble along the way.”

“Where were you headed?” he asked.

“I’ve got reservations at the Dragonfly Pointe Inn,” she replied.

“Good. I can drop you over there, and they’ll send someone here to gather your luggage and have the car towed into town so they can fix up that tire at our local garage. I don’t see why they can’t have it back to you by the end of the day.”

“You want me to ride with you – onthat?”

His smile was wide. “I promise I’ll be careful. We don’t have far to go. Have you got a purse or a bag that you want to bring along with you?”

She could hardly believe what she was doing, because of her hatred of motorcycles, but five minutes later Wren was hoisting her leg over the seat, her purse strapped over her shoulder. The stranger had clipped her overnight bag to a rack in back.

“I’d give you my helmet but with my disability there’s a possibility that I’d get into trouble if I got caught not wearing it,” he said.

Despite the fact that she probably looked like a kook, she’d wrapped a long scarf over her head so her wig wouldn’t fly off her head during the drive. This guy probably didn’t know who she was, but she still needed to disguise herself, since she’d have to make her way through the Inn to check in and make arrangements to have her tire fixed.

“Wrap your arms around my waist,” he said loudly, once they were both settled on the seat with the engine running.

When she did as he said, she had the strangest reaction. Vin was the last guy she’d been this close to, and this guy was doing all kinds of crazy things to her senses.

He sure smelled great, she decided. It was either his soap or cologne.

Damn, he was fit. A lot more so than Vin.

She was feeling the strongest urge to bury herself against him.

Wren could hear him clear his throat, although he seemed to have nothing to say.

After what seemed to be only a few minutes later, he was pulling into a large parking lot, over half filled. She’d been on the bike with him for over ten minutes, she was surprised to realize, glancing at her watch once he pulled his bike up to the Inn entrance.

She shook her head dazedly as he shut down the engine. Disentangling himself from her arms with what seemed to be reluctance as he stepped off the bike, he reached for her hand, assisting her from the seat.

“Hang on a minute until I talk with Jake over there about your vehicle,” he muttered, heading toward a man near the entrance, who seemed to be in charge.

She watched them shake hands, as the stranger spoke to the man named Jake, who glanced over at her where she stood near the bike.

The man named Jake winked at her as he laughed at whatever the stranger had to say when he pulled out his wallet, handing over some bills to Jake.

It was funny, but she had a feeling that the guy named Jake knew who she was.

The stranger returned, unclipping her overnight bag from the back of his bike and handing it over as the man named Jake approached.

“Hey, there,” he said, reaching out with his hand. “I’m Jake Loughlin, the owner of the Inn. I’ll bet you’re the guest who scooped up our cancellation, aren’t you?”

“I am,” she answered. “It’s nice to meet you, Jake.”

“Jake’s going to take care of getting that flat repaired,” the stranger said, reaching out with his hand to shake hers. “The cost has been taken care of. Thanks for not getting me into trouble.”

“I’d say you’ve got enough of that to deal with anyway,” she answered dryly.

Surprisingly, he barked out a laugh.

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