Avoiding Responsibility (Avoiding #2)(41)

"Holy shit!" Lexi couldn't help herself from exclaiming.

"Yea," he murmured appreciatively. "Ever been on a four wheeler?" He walked over to a green bike in particular and set his hand down affectionately on the handle. Lexi shook her head unable to utter a single word. "This baby is a Raptor," he informed her, "you'll like her."

The garage door startled her by beginning to open to the front. Brad wandered over to them and stared longingly at the four wheeler Ramsey had just shown her. "You riding the Raptor?" he asked obviously itching to get on the bike.

"Lexi's never been on one," Ramsey told him effectively ending the conversation.

"Uh…you think I'm getting on that thing?" she asked apprehensively.

"I won't go that fast," he said winking at her. "Though it is one of the fastest models. I'll wait until you're more comfortable though."

As the rest of the group wandered into the garage and began claiming the various bikes and four wheelers, Lexi realized that there were less people than she had originally thought. There were two additional guys and four girls in total. She almost laughed aloud when she realized that they were evenly matched guys to girls. Silently she wondered if this had been planned.

"Alright I'm not really going to go into the details, but since you've never been on one before I'll just forewarn you that the buzzing sound is completely normal, the ride should and will be bumpy, and you're going to have a lot of fun," Ramsey said. His smile was infectious and Lexi couldn't help but revel in his enthusiasm. Though she assumed it was also the thrill and anticipation of what she was about to do.

Lexi gingerly climbed onto the back of the bike. She wrapped her arms tightly around Ramsey torso and pressed herself against his back. Nuzzling into his shoulder, she tried to calm her heart which had kicked into overdrive. Ramsey revved the engine, kicked the clutch into gear and took off. When Ramsey had said he was going to go slow, Lexi had thought he had meant slow, but apparently their definitions were different. He raced ahead easily taking the lead from his friends. The shorter layers of Lexi's hair released from her ponytail and whipped around in her face. She felt him switch gears and zoom forward into the tree line following a dirt trail that she couldn't make out. Her terror alleviated some the longer Ramsey drove down the path, but her grip only barely loosened.

As they took a sharp turn, a fire burning in the distance alerted her that they weren't the only ones in the woods. The adrenaline from the ride kept her mind vigilant. As she became more comfortable on the bike, she also became more aware of her surroundings. A dirt path lay before her and she realized that it was wider than she had originally thought. The tree line had gradually begun to grow in overhead to fight for the sunlight, but the moon was still visible.

Lexi clasped her hands tighter around Ramsey's torso and nuzzled in closer to his warm body. She could feel his taut muscles underneath her grip. A smile spread across her face at the feel of him and she realized, despite her terror, that she was having a good time. She would have never done anything like this, she never had done anything like this before.

Just as she was finally getting into a rhythm of the bumps and curves, Ramsey pulled into a clearing. He made a circle around a roaring bonfire, then hit the brakes and killed the engine.

"Did you like it?" Ramsey asked helping her off the bike and setting her carefully back on her wobbly feet.

"Uh…" she managed clamping and unclamping her frozen fingers. "You said you were going to go slow."

Ramsey laughed boisterously at her shocked face before throwing an arm over her shoulders and dragging her closer to the bonfire. "That was slow."

The rest of the group skid to a halt next to Ramsey's Raptor and joined them by the fire.

"Man that was awesome," Brad crowed wandering up to Ramsey and clasping him on the back. "Haven't been up here since the summer."

"Yeah I forgot how killer the ride is," Jason said sidling up to Lexi. "You like it?"

Lexi smiled noncommittally though she had enjoyed herself once she had gotten used to it. The rest of the group seemed to all know each other. A few of the girls giggled about the ride up. One of them reached up and directly kissed a guy staking her claim. They introduced themselves but as soon as they were said she had forgotten them save for one redhead, Jessie, who kept eyeing her warily.

After settling in around the fire, the group began to roast marshmallows for smores and talk about some event that had happened in high school. Lexi wasn't really paying attention to the conversation since she didn't follow more than half the players involved, but she did listen to the next thing that was mentioned.

"Do you remember when you guys came up here after prom and she insisted on wearing that ridiculous long dress on your tiny dirt bike, Bridges?" Jessie asked her eyes shifting from Ramsey to Lexi.

Lexi glanced up at Ramsey who was glaring in Jessie's direction. "Yes I remember," he growled.

"That was a crazy night. I think I was dating Jeff Kensington," she said giggling. "He had such a crush on me. Would have done anything for me."

"I think he did," Brad said with a wink. The group laughed aloud at some private joke.

"Well not compared to…" she began.

"Jess we know the story," Ramsey snapped narrowing his eyes.