Takedown Teague (Caged #1)(67)

“I guess so,” I said.

“Very convincing.”

“I told you I don’t know how to do this shit.”

“I’m not so sure I know how to do ‘this shit,’ either,” Tria said, “but I’m willing to try. Are you?”

I nodded.

“And as much as I would like to spend the next few days figuring it out with you, I have to figure out how to get home. Nikki needs me there.”

“First things first, huh?”

“Something like that.”

“So, when is all this shit supposed to go down?” I asked.

“The day after tomorrow,” she said. “Actually…um…there is a bit of a problem.”

“What? Just one?” I said with a halfhearted laugh.

“Well, one big one,” she said. “The bus fare.”

“What about it?”

“Um…I don’t have it,” she replied quietly.

“Oh…um…shit.” I lay back on the couch cushions.

“I’ve got about four dollars at the moment,” Tria clarified.

“I don’t have much more than that,” I admitted. “I had to get an advance from Dordy yesterday to cover rent. I ended up bringing in about fifty bucks last night.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“The ticket to get here was a hundred and seventy-five dollars.”

“Now we need two,” I reminded her.

“You don’t have to—”

“Shut it!” I rolled myself closer to her and covered her mouth with my hand. “I’m going. We’ll figure it out.”

She mumbled against my fingers until I moved my hand.

“How?” she asked.

“I’ll ask around,” I said. “I know a few people who have cars. Maybe I can find one who would let me borrow theirs for a few days.”

“That’s a big favor,” Tria remarked.

“I’ve got a few people who owe me.”

“I owe you,” she said quietly. She kept her gaze on mine as she reached up and touched the edge of my jaw. I could see the beginning of a tear in the corner of her eye, and I leaned down to kiss it away.

“You cry too much,” I told her.

“I can’t help it,” she said with a shrug.

The salty liquid on my lips was quickly covered by her mouth. She gripped my shoulders, and I ran my hand up her side. I felt her shiver under my touch and wondered if this could be enough for me.

I was never one to take it slow, but Tria might be worth the restraint.





Chapter 18—Take the Trip


I dropped the phone back down and sighed.

“Any luck?”

I glanced up at Tria, paused for a second, and then shook my head.

“People who say they owe you one later are full of shit,” I told her. “I got three flat out no ways, two offering to let me borrow a car next week, and one who just laughed. The best I got was from Dordy himself, who has an old motorcycle he said I could use.”

“Well, let’s do that!” Tria said.

I huffed out a breath.

“To be completely honest, I have never ridden one—not even on the back. I haven’t even been on a bicycle since I was a kid. I don’t think I’ve got time to figure it out before we have to leave, and I don’t want to splatter us both all over the highway.”

It was a little embarrassing to admit it, but it was better than a remake of Blood Runs Red on the Highway.

“Oh!” Tria said with widened eyes. “That’s okay—I can ride.”

A deeper glow of sex appeal surrounded her as those words left her mouth.

“You can?” My arms and legs tensed, and for a moment I knew exactly what it felt like to be a cat ready to pounce on its prey.

“Yes, I can,” she said, and her cheeks reddened as she looked away. “I had a motorcycle back in Maine. A snowmobile, too. In the winter, it’s the only way to get around.”

Between her words, the blush, and the sheer amount of testosterone coursing through my system, I couldn’t take any more. I lowered my eyes as I moved across the room toward her. Tria glanced back at me and took a slight step backwards as I approached. She opened her mouth slightly as I grabbed her, lifted her up, and pressed her against the wall. I crushed my lips to hers.

“You have any idea how hot that is?” I asked against her mouth.

“Do you have a thing for this wall?” She giggled.

“Maybe,” I shrugged. “I didn’t before, but it’s definitely growing on me.”

Tria chuckled against me, causing her to shake a little in my arms. She reached around my neck and used her index finger to brush the hair on the back of my head up in a little line. She tilted her head to see her fingers better as she repeated the motion, causing the short hairs to fan out backwards. I raised an eyebrow at her.

“I’ve wanted to do that since you got your hair cut,” she said with a blush.

“Why?” I gave her a look.

“I don’t know,” she said. “It just looked like it would feel cool.”

“Does it?”

“Yes,” she said with a wide grin, “it does.”