Page 17 of The Trauma Response
“Hold on tight.” He pulls the throttle and the bike darts forward. I squeal despite being told not to, but it makes Cai laugh.
He eases me into it, gently taking the turns much slower than he’d probably like. A few miles pass and my breathing slows to a normal rate, but my heart still pounds. I’d bet my bottom dollarthathas nothing to do with the adrenaline spike of riding the bike and everything to do with Cai’s soft humming and the way his abdominal muscles flex beneath my palms. Even with feeling only in one hand, it’s got my mind swimming. I can’t imagine feeling it with both. I’d probably swoon and fall off the back of the bike.
When we ease to a stop, he sits straight and rests both hands on my knees. “You still good?”
“Yeah. Getting used to it. It’s actually kinda fun?”
“Is that a question? Kinda? I’m going easy on you. Actually, Ava is probably angry with me for going so slow.”
“Ava?” Who the heck is Ava? And why does white-hot jealousy surge through my entire body at just the sound of another woman’s name on his lips?
“The bike, of course. She needed a name, so I chose Ava. She’s not quite used to going so slow all the time. Feel like taking the interstate?”
Ava. The bike. Whew, thank goodness. I mean…oh, okay. Definitely not worried. No reason to be worried since I’m notplanning to date anyone anytime soon. Not so soon after getting out of a relationship.
“Whits?”
“Oh, uh, maybe on the way home? Let me get a little more used to it.”
Cai nods slightly and the light turns green. We’re not far from the tavern, so an interstate ride would be a detour anyway. We make it to the next red light when another bike pulls alongside us.
“What’s up, Hotshot?” I hear over the comms. “When did you get a backpack friend?” The guy’s tone is flirty and slightly accusatory as he rotates his head to look at us. At least, I think. It’s hard to tell which of us he’s looking at through the dark visor he wears.
“That’s my friend, Thor. Thor, this is Whits, my childhood friend I told you about.”
“Ah, nice to sort of meet you, Dr. Whitmore. I guess I’ll meet you officially at Brokedown.”
The light turns green and Thor jets off ahead of us, laughing the entire time.
“What are you laughing about? You know I can outrun you any day,” Cai teases, but only receives more laughter in response. It’s borderline maniacal but is soon cut off by a woman’s laughter. Chantelle pulls up beside us on her bike with who I assume is her fiancé on the back. She nods my way and we continue down the road in a small pack. Three other bikers have joined us and we all turn into the parking lot of Brokedown Tavern.
Cai parks alongside the others and taps my thigh. “You first, beautiful.”
On unsteady legs, I slide off the bike. Cai guides me so I don’t trip, then swings his leg over and immediately takes my left hand. The only sensation I have is the pressure at my wrist, but I say nothing. Ilikehim holding my hand like this, even if I can’tfully feel it. I know it’s there, it’s affection, and I find I might be craving it more than I realized.
“Yay, you made it!” Chantelle says and nudges me. “Did you love it?”
“I didn’t hate it,” I mumble and try to remove the helmet with one hand. Cai releases my hand and gently unclasps it for me. My hair is messy and flies everywhere, but it’s nice to breathe fresh air again. “It was different for sure.” I don’t dare mention there seems to be something different about this friendship between Cai and me than there was years ago. For one, there’s more touching.
“Since Cai seems to want to keep her all to himself, I’ll introduce Dr. Whitmore to everyone,” Thor teases. “You seem to know Chantelle, and that’s her guy, Jude. This is Christian and his wife, Roxy. And that’s Des and Holt. We’re something of a biker group I guess, but we tend to stay on the right side of the law.”
“Tend to?” I raise an eyebrow and smile.
Thor grins and shrugs. “Can’t say I follow it completely, but I do my best.”
“Everyone knows you stay on the straight and narrow, my friend,” Holt says.
Des merely smiles and observes.
We stand staring at each other for a moment before Holt says, “Well, I’m starving. Can we move this party inside?”
Cai’s fingers slip through mine and he pulls me along into the tavern. Inside is dim and a little loud, but it has a cozy feel that I immediately like. Once we are seated and the waitress takes our drink orders, Chantelle pipes up again.
“You look so cute in my helmet. I might have to let you have it,” she says.
“Aw, I thought the purple sparkly one was all mine,” Jude teases.
“You wish you could rock the purple sparkles.” She kisses his cheek and nods toward me. “She pulls it off better than you, for sure.”
