Page 3 of Summer Ever After
It felt like it jumped ten billion degrees outside, but that heat was laser-focused on my face – and then Max winked and my cheeks burned hotter than the surface of the sun. Under my bike shorts, my body throbbed against the seat of his motorcycle. Max was hot, cocky, rode a motorcycle, and I was about to find out if he was hiding a six or an eight-pack under his t-shirt.
* * *
Dust billowedbehind us as Max tore down the dirt road. He wasn’t taking it easy, but he also wasn’t being an idiot. He’d managed to find the exhilarating space between total snore-fest and holy shit don’t crap your pants speed.
He tapped my leg and slowed the bike, pointing ahead on the road. “There’s a corner coming up.”
I knew that it was coming. That corner meant the end of my ride. “That’s my turn. Take a right.” I had to shout so he could hear me over the bike and through the full-face helmet.
Slowing the bike to a complete stop, he looked over his shoulder. “I’m not sure that I can let you get off just yet. The bike is giving me breakdown vibes. He patted the handlebar. What if I’m stranded again and there isn’t a pretty girl hiding in the sunflowers ready to pop out and save me?”
“That’s a good point.” I put my hand on my neck, my thumb brushing the helmet strap as though I was actually pondering his comment.
“Have you been to Keystone Point?”
“I have heard of it, but I’ve never been there.” My stepsister Chloe went to Keystone Point all the time, but I was never invited.
“Seriously?” His eyes studied mine. “It’s got a beach with a big sandbar. There are huge parties out there and that’s where they hold the regatta. You’ve never been there?”
It was as though I’d told him that I’d never seen a refrigerator, or been in a car.
“Nope.” I shook my head.
He revved the engine. “We’re going to fix that right now.”
“How far is it?”
“Just around the corner.” He pointed to the road, which disappeared into the woods ahead. “Are you in?”
I glanced at the saddlebag beside me. “There’s milk in here.” I patted it with my hand.
“Is spoiled milk the only reason you’d say no?”
There were a million reasons why I should say no. A billion reasons why I should never have gotten on the back of that bike in the first place. The Breitling watch on Max’s wrist and the vintage motorcycle; were dead giveaways - Max was rich. I’d come from that world, and I could spot the heir of a rich family a mile away. I used to be one – and I knew that like oil and water, the two of us wouldn’t mix.
The other reason, the vain one, was that the high-end helmet had flattened down my sweaty hair, and I was pretty sure that the natural deodorant I’d been wearing had worn off after I left the grocery store. “I should get the groceries home before they go bad. That’s the only reason.”
“Awesome.” He patted my leg again, but this time he let his hand rest on my thigh. “I’ll buy you new fucking milk.”
The acceleration caught me off guard and I instinctively tightened my embrace around his waist, my chest pressing into his muscular back, my grip confirming the ab count – yes, it was definitely an eight-pack. And I was riding off into the sunset with its owner.
TWO
MAX
I’d hadwomen on the back of my motorcycle before, but none of them knew how to ride like Daisy. Her thighs gripped onto me like a vice – only when needed. She leaned just the perfect amount as I rounded the corners.
It was still hot as balls outside, but as we zipped along the back roads of Windswan the breeze helped to cool me down.
Keystone Point was at the north end of Windswan Lake next to the entrance to the Serpent River. By the time we got there, I knew that the bike’s battery would be just fine, although part of me wanted to try starting it with Daisy again. I still couldn’t believe my luck, that this beautiful girl had just emerged from the field and knew exactly how to bump start a vintage R9.an
For a warm summer evening, Keystone point was surprisingly empty. A bored-looking mom stared at her phone while two kids splashed in the shallow water, bouncing off of a unicorn floatie.
I shut off the bike, then Daisy and I walked to the shore of the lake.
“It’s pretty.” She put her hands on her hips and surveyed the beach.
“Come on, let’s go in.” I jerked my head toward the lake.
