Page 9 of Her Nosey Biker
“Well, this kind of seals the deal… It's official, he’s never getting rid of me,” I think as the beautiful, picturesque cottage comes into view.
“It’s my dream house,” I whisper in complete awe. I don't expect him to hear me, but I know he does when I feel the hard muscles under my hands shake with laughter.
“It comes with its own forever handyman.” He winks back at me. Oh boy, am I in trouble.
CHAPTER NINE
LOOT
Ismile at her reaction. Usually, I wouldn’t give two shits what others think. Preferring them to actually run away. I’ve actually thought about putting some kind of new-age scarecrow, like maybe building my version of Optimus Prime to place at the start of the driveway. Still, with my luck, people would think it’s some kind of fucking tourist attraction, and I’d get even more attention. Next on my list is definitely a fucking gate, though. One that’s camouflaged into the trees so that people won't even notice it's there.
My Star, however, I might just decide to keep locked in instead of out. With every unintentional rub of her hand on my stomach, it's getting harder and harder not to make that both of our realities. I finally pull into the barn, parking my bike and reaching my hand back to help her off. Once she’s safely standing, even if it's a bit on the shakier side, I hop off and unhook Finick, letting her run free.
“Don’t go jumping in that pond… Ah, fuck, she’s gone.” I sigh as she takes off straight out the door. I sigh, hoping she gets sidetracked by a squirrel instead of going fishing. I hear Grace’s chuckle and think to hell with it. If I have to give her a quick bath tonight, it would be worth it.
“You have a pond out back?” I hear her ask softly. Now that we are here in my domain, she’s reverted to the shy girl I couldn’t get two words out of.
“Sure do, own a little piece of heaven out here,” I tell her, turning and walking out of the barn. I turn when I notice her not following. “Come on, I’ll give you a grand tour,” I say, trying to put her at ease. Grand wouldn’t be the first word I would use for this place, but it's all mine.
“This is absolutely stunning,” she whispers in awe.
“Thanks, still got a long way to go, but it's slowly coming together. Like I said, you’ll be able to see it all better in the daylight. Come on in,” I say, bringing her up the walkway and to the front door.
When we walk in, I throw my keys on the dingy side table. I think some might call it rustic, but since I made it myself, I’ll stick with dingy. I flip the light switch, and the kitchen and living room brighten. The cabin is on the smaller side, but that’s why I love it - something about it seems more cozy.
“The grand tour is really just straight back. You have your restroom straight ahead, the master bedroom on the left, and the guest bedroom on the right. Uh, I hadn’t gotten the chance to clean out the guest bed to fit an actual bed. Right now it’s more of an office mess,” I tell her, suddenly regretting not adding the third room I’d thought up at one point but didn’t think was needed. It would make this place seem bigger and better to her.
“Oh wow! I love the fireplace; oh, it feels like an old witch's cottage with the wood-burning stove!” She squeaks in excitement, then covers her mouth and looks at me with wide, worried eyes. “Sorry, not in a bad way, but in the best way possible, actually. It’s like something out of a fairytale. It’s my dream house.” The last part is whispered as she takes in more of the house with wide eyes.
“Just wait until you see the bathtub.” I wink at her to let her know I’m not upset. I actually fell in love with the old cottage's stone character that was spread throughout the house, too. I’m glad I’m not the only one who appreciates it. But only with her.
I didn’t think it was possible, but her eyes grew even wider. Within seconds, she was nearly vibrating with excited energy. I torture her a bit longer, but finally break before she bounces right out of her skin. “Go on. Take a look.”
She wastes no time, taking off before I get out the last word. The bathrooms were the only major change I made, making them bigger and adding the largest bronze clawfoot tub I could find. It’s situated right in front of an enormous bay window with one-way mirrored glass. During the daytime, it has a perfect view of the break in the trees and the pond shining in the background. The door swings closed behind her, but I still hear a loud gasp and another squeal.
I chuckle as I head to the kitchen, calling out, “Towels are in the closet; go ahead and take a bath if you want.”
She must take me up on the offer because the next time I see her, she’s walking out with flowery pajama pants, a large T-shirt, and a towel drying her hair. I smile at the sight; it seems the bath helped ease the tension in her shoulders. Hopefully, the chicken soup and rice I whipped up will help fill her up and soothe her a bit.
“I made some dinner. I don’t have a TV, but we can eat on the couch and talk.” I shrug, heading toward the living room. I stop turning and head to the front door, opening it and calling out for Finick. It doesn’t take her long, and I hear her tags jingling as she comes running. Luckily, she’s not soaking wet, so it’s probably more likely that she was chasing rabbits instead of swimming.
“Good girl,” I coo at her, tossing a treat her way. She wags her tail, nudges me with her head and butt lovingly, then takes her treat to her bed.
“She is just spoiled, huh?” Grace gives me a soft smile as she takes a seat on the far side of the couch. I hand her her food and take a seat on the other side. I decide to sit back and enjoy my meal, letting her get comfortable and come to me.
It takes longer than I expected, actually. The girl could probably outlast a nun, and just as I’m about to cave, she throws me a bone.
“Thank you again. For tonight.”
“I’m just happy I was there. That motherfucker would have gotten away, and that would have made it harder to track down,” I scoff, shoving another bite of food in my mouth, giving her another minute.
“So, uh, how long have you lived here?” she asks, moving her food around before taking another big bite.
“About five years ago. Around the same time, I started prospecting for the club. What about you? How long have you been in town?”
“Only a few months.” She shrugs.
Oh, I’m going to have to pry any sort of personal information out or learn to be patient… yeah, that’s not going to happen.
