Page 4 of Love, Lacey Donovan
The biker rolled onto the sidewalk. All his limbs seemed attached.
“Elevate!” I exclaimed, remembering what the E stood for.
The biker stared up at me. Dark sunglasses hid his expression, but I could only guess it was thunderous. I braced myself for more cussing, this time aimed at me, not the bushes.
Unexpectedly, he burst out laughing. He pushed to his feet and pulled off the sunglasses. Tears streamed from his eyes.
“You okay?” Despite the fact that he wore a helmet, I thought he might have knocked something loose in his head. He was having trouble standing he was laughing so hard.
He finally caught his breath. “I wonder if anyone got that on video,” he said. “Had to be hilarious.”
“I’m glad you’re not hurt.” A giggle escaped my mouth. Now that I knew he was okay, it was hard not to laugh.
He pulled off his helmet and ran his fingers through long black hair that had been made for a shampoo commercial. His long tresses had gotten a little disheveled during the tumble, but the rest of him seemed unharmed.
“Those all your dogs?” he asked, binding his hair in a low ponytail at his neck.
“No.” I tightened my grip on the leashes. “None of them are mine. I volunteer at the rescue center.”
He pointed at Aslan. “He looks like a handful.”
Aslan ignored the biker’s disapproving tone, tongue lolling in blissful oblivion.
“You don’t seem hurt.” I crossed my fingers this was true.
“I’m fine,” he said, plucking a leaf from his shirt.
“And your bike? I can pay for any damages.” There went my extra income.Easy come, easy go.
He crouched over his bike, running a hand over the frame and inspecting the tires. “We’ve been through worse.” He straightened to his feet and wiped his sunglasses off on the hem of his shirt, revealing a swatch of tanned, toned abs. “The major damage is to my ego,” he said.
My shoulders relaxed, and my heartbeat slowed back to normal. He was good looking, and he knew it. He had a wide smile, and all that long shiny hair probably got him tons of attention from the ladies. “Your ego looks fine to me.”
“It was worth crashing to get the number of the prettiest girl in the park.”
“I didn’t give you my number.”
“Ouch.” He winced. “That hurt worse than the crash.” He patted down his left arm. “I think something’s broken.” He showed me his elbow, which looked perfectly fine under his fitted jacket. “I should probably get your number just in case,” he said.
“If something’s broken, call a doctor. Not me.”
He grinned. “So that’s a no?”
“It’s a small town,” I said. “I’ll probably see you around.”
“I can only hope.” He replaced his sunglasses and reached for his bike.
“Sorry about making you crash.”
“No worries.”
He flashed a wave as he rode his bike off along the trail. I waved back, watching him until he disappeared around the corner. He had a cute smile and gorgeous eyes. And he’d laughed at himself. I liked that. But I didn’t feel any flutters in my heart or elsewhere. Nothing.Nada.
I was more excited about the next Miranda Lockhart romance novel than I was about meeting a hot guy in the park. Book boyfriends were much better than the real thing.
Chapter 3
A week passed, and Pressly hadn’t returned Aslan. Every day when I went to walk him, I sighed in relief as I saw him sitting in his gated room waiting for me. He had a plush bed, plenty of toys, food, and water—everything he needed. My only concern was that he missed his friends at the rescue center.
