Page 10 of Unmasked Prophecy

I narrow my eyes. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.”

I shake my head. “No.”

“Yeah.”

The audacity of this man.

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Youare.”

“You don’t get to bark orders at me.”

He tilts his head. “Got a choice. You either get up and come with me, or I’ll take you by force. Don’t want to have to take you by force, considerin’ what you’ve been through, but one way or another, you are comin’ with me.”

My mouth drops open, and I want to snap back but I can’t find the words.

I stand slowly, keeping my eyes narrowed on him. “Where are we going?”

His eyes flash, but his expression doesn’t change. “It’s a surprise.”

He turns and walks out without waiting. The nerve.

Still, I do as he asks. I get changed. I slip into jeans and a worn hoodie, yank on my boots, and tie my damp hair back. By the time I step outside, Talon’s already straddling his bike, helmet held out for me. My eyes widen and I’m taking a step back and shaking my head before he even has the chance to say a single word.

“I’m not getting on that death machine!”

He raises a brow. “You trust me?”

“No.”

“You want to?”

Silence.

He tosses the helmet to me and I catch it quickly, not wanting it to fall in the dirt. “Then get on.”

I bite my lip and my hands shake as I slide it on, fingers fumbling with the strap. Then, I take two strides towards him, my heart racing as I climb on, awkward, unsure where to put my hands. Being this close to him has my heart skipping a beat, and I try to hold my breath so I don’t have to breathe his delicious scent.

“Wrap ‘em around me,” he orders.

I hesitate.

“Unless you want to end up on the road.”

I wrap my arms around his middle. Not tight. Just enough.

The bike roars to life. And then we’re flying.

I barely get a chance to gather myself before the bike is whizzing down the road. My screams are muffled by the loud rumbling sound it makes as it moves. The wind is brutal, slapping against my skin like a warning. But there’s something freeing in it, too. Like I’ve ripped a hole in the past and dared the future to chase me. The world blurs around us, noise and fear stripped away by speed and vibration.

It's exhilarating and my screams quickly turn into bursts of happy laughter.

We ride for what feels like forever. Past towns and empty fields. The sun rises higher, casting golden light over the trees. It’s spectacular and in that second, I forget about the world around me and just focus on the now. A feeling I’m not used to having, and one I could learn to love.

Eventually, he pulls off the highway and into a dusty parking lot in front of a tiny corner diner with a broken neon sign. He cuts the engine and dismounts. I stare at the place in front of us a moment, before getting off the bike and putting my helmet on the seat. My hair is a mess, so I try to run my fingers through it, but my attempts are futile.

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