Too Hot to Handle (Romancing the Clarksons #1)(10)

“I don’t know. Charisma?” Rita stared with impatience at the still-red light. Leave it to her to broach the subject of erectile dysfunction within five minutes of meeting revamped McConaughey. “Are we almost there?”

“Another mile or so.” His hips turned on the seat, scooting her thighs a little wider, making Rita all too aware of the intimacy of their position. “I’d like to know your name before we get there.”

Rita ordered herself to stop comparing the color of his eyes to the sky outlining him. “Why is that?”

“So I can introduce you properly to Stan, our mechanic,” he explained in a patient voice. “I’d like to say, ‘Stan, meet so-and-so.’ Instead of ‘Stan, this is some nameless woman I picked up.’ It doesn’t have the same ring.”

Rita sorely regretted taking this ride. Jasper Ellis was turning out to be anything but predictable or typical, and she didn’t like having her theories disproved. It was like sprinkling nutmeg on eggnog, then taking a sip and finding out you’d used chili powder instead. Why should this man who could wink a woman into the sack also have a personality? “Rita.”

“Rita,” he repeated, although with his accent, it sounded more like Ray-da. “I like that. Rhymes with cheetah.”

The light turned green and they starting moving before she could respond. There were two conflicting sides of her. One wanted this damn ride to be over, so she could send Jasper on his way and stop worrying about his refusal to be categorized. And the other side sorely regretted that the ride was coming to an end. The scent of his worn-in leather jacket teamed with the waft of diesel was pleasant. More than pleasant. The helmet strap beneath her chin was soft, like warm fingers encasing her jaw. Rita didn’t do outdoor sports, but being on the back of a motorcycle hadn't filled her with terror as she might have expected. When she considered it might have something to do with the steady energy of the man holding the handlebars, she shook her head to clear the thought.

Hurley sneaked up on either side of them, small but efficient. A hardware store, a diner, a bakery. Green, leafy shrubs and ice plants gave the town a well-kept feel, the residents clearly taking pride in the community’s appearance. Its vibe was so far removed from the dusty two-lane highway they’d just come from that Rita felt like she’d been transported into an alternate universe. There were two convenience stores on either side of the main street, which was actually named Main Street, both with signs outside boasting deals on produce, the prices so reasonable compared to San Diego that she almost fell off the bike.

Several people waved at Jasper as they traveled through town, sending Rita shrinking down into the seat to avoid scrutiny. Had any of them seen her online disgrace? Not for the first time, it occurred to her how hilarious she must look on the back of a certified-cool-guy’s bike. They probably thought he’d lost a bet or something.

Rita felt Jasper watching her in the rearview and ducked her head, grateful the drone of the engine prevented conversation. Finally, at the edge of town, they pulled into a garage. A man in coveralls set aside his newspaper and rose to meet them as they parked. “Shouldn’t you be sitting down to lunch with Rosemary?”

Jasper held out a hand to assist Rita off the bike, sighing when she climbed off without his help. “Indeed I should, Stan, and I expect to catch some serious grief over my tardiness. But I had reason.” He gestured to her. “This here is my friend, Rita. The rest of her group is stranded out along Highway Sixty, just east a few miles. Would you mind giving them a tow in?”

“You betcha,” Stan said, donning a baseball cap he tugged from his back pocket. The older man looked flat-out excited to have something on his agenda. “Pleasure to meet you, Rita. I’ll have them back in a jiff.”

Rita walked toward the shade provided by the garage, joined by Jasper a moment later. They watched Stan pull his tow truck onto Main Street without speaking, and then they were alone. Without the hum of the bike’s engine, the silence made Rita jumpy. What, was she expected to carry on a conversation now? “Thank you for the ride. I don’t need you to wait with me.”

She could tell he’d been expecting her to say that. “That wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me.”

“But your grandmother is waiting for you.”

Jasper leaned up against the concrete building, crossing one ankle over the other. “I’ll admit I’m feeling pretty guilty about that. Feeling hungry, too. But I’ve weighed the pros and cons of the situation carefully, Rita. And I think a few more minutes talking to you is worth the added guilt and possible starvation.”

“Who even…are you?”





Chapter Five



Jasper kept his smile in place, although that question—Who even…are you?—hit a little too close to home. If Rita knew how many times he’d asked himself that same thing lately, she would also know he didn’t have an answer. He kind of appreciated her confusion, actually. At least she hadn’t written him off as the town manwhore everyone knew him to be.

There was no rule saying she had to write him off, either. What if—to Rita—he could be Jasper, the decent soul and sparkling conversationalist? Standing right in front of Jasper was a woman without any preconceived—or hell, conceived—notions about him, and he couldn’t recall the last time that had happened. Maybe he could find something out about Rita, before Rita found out the worst about him. Lord, the possibility made him feel lighter than he had in years.