Page 4 of Edge
I reached across the table, catching one of her hands gently. A shallow scrape reddened the heel. No blood, but I was sure it stung like hell.
“It’s nothing.” She tried to pull back, but I didn’t let her. I turned her wrist, my thumb skimming over the tender skin at the base. Her pulse jumped, and mine did the same.
“You always downplay pain?” I asked with a crooked smile.
“You always interrogate girls you barely know?” Her snippy tone was fucking adorable.
“Only the ones who crash into my Harley and then offer to bribe me with a latte.”
Her mouth dropped open. “The coffee was your idea!”
“Fair enough.” I laughed as I slowly released her hand, feeling the reluctance in my fingers as they slid against her soft skin. In an effort to distract myself before I hauled her onto my lap and kissed her, I changed the subject. “You like it here?”
Her gaze slid to the window to stare at the blue dusk, a slice of moon, and the café sign reflected backward.
“It feels like…if I breathe deep enough, maybe I won’t hear my parents lecturing me.” She wrinkled her nose. “That sounds terrible. They’re not awful. I love them. It’s just…they had plans for me that weren’t mine.”
I sipped my coffee and let the silence sit a beat. “Doing what you want isn’t a crime.”
“Tell that to my mom.” She smiled faintly, then glanced at my cut, as if noticing it for the first time. The Redline Kings rocker caught the light. “You’re with the motorcycle club that practically owns this town.”
I couldn’t read her tone.
“Vice president,” I replied, studying her reaction.
She didn’t flinch or freeze. But there was tension in her shoulders as she reached for a sugar packet, tore it open, and tipped the grains into the foam with a focus that told me her hands still wanted something to do. I was pleased that she hadn’t bolted. Brave little thing.
“Thank you for not yelling at me in the street,” she finally murmured.
“You were already punishing yourself.” I shrugged. “Didn’t look like you needed my help.”
It took a fuck of a lot to make me lose my shit, but I’d still been a little taken aback that I hadn’t felt even the slightest annoyance when I spotted the damage she’d done to my bike. It wasn’t much and would be a quick repair. But it had been my reaction to her that had snatched away any other thoughts.
Her eyes flicked up and caught mine, and for a second, the noise of the café fell away. Dark blue pools of curiosity turned into something with heat at the center.
“And I wanted to see those sexy pink lips curving into a smile, not watch you cry.”
“Do you flirt with every girl who knocks into your bike?” she asked.
“No.” I took another drink and let the corner of my mouth lift. “You’re the first.”
Her cheeks went warm again. She tucked a flyaway strand of hair behind her ear, not noticing when it fell right back out. I noticed. I had the sudden, ridiculous urge to tuck it for her, then follow the curve of that ear with my mouth. My tongue tingled with the desire to know if she tasted as amazing as she smelled.
“Okay, Vice President Edge,” she said with a sassy tone that made me want to bite one of her lush lips. “We’ve had our coffee. You’re just going to let this go at that?”
I was about to nod, then reconsidered. “One more thing. A walk.”
“A walk?”
“I’m carrying that mangled bicycle home for you.”
She tried to play it cool with my offer, but her face lit up, betraying her. “You don’t have to.”
“I know.”
“You’re very sure of yourself.”
“It’s efficient.” I nodded to her mug. “Finish your latte.”
