Ride Steady(48)

My eyes went to Snapper’s.

“We all fall on hard times,” he said quietly, removing his fist from my chin. “It’s just lucky for you that you fell in the right direction.”

“That’s one way to look at it,” I told him.

“Only way, babe,” he returned immediately. “We are who cares about us.”

I felt my brows draw together. “Sorry?”

“You weren’t worth the trouble, we wouldn’t make it.”

That was so nice the dirty washed out of me and I couldn’t help but smile. “That’s sweet.”

He smiled back. “Maybe. Still true.”

“That’s also sweet.”

He kept smiling and offered, “Want a shot?”

I shook my head. “No. I shouldn’t. I’m driving.”

“You get blotto, I’ll put you on the back of my bike, take you home.”

“I, well… that’s nice, but my son comes home the day after tomorrow and I have a lot to do as well as a shift at work. I probably shouldn’t be hungover.”

“Your call,” he muttered.

“Though I’ve never been on the back of a bike,” I shared and he focused on me.

“No shit?”

I shook my head.

He grinned and he took his time doing it. “Then f*ck that beer. Best high of your life, bein’ on a bike. I’ll take you out.”

My disaster of a night started looking up. “Really?”

“Absolutely.”

I looked toward the pool table and saw in the short time my attention had been diverted, Joker and his brunette had stopped playing and now Rush was playing with some redhead.

Rush’s girl wasn’t in a tube top. She was in a Harley T-shirt and tight jeans, much like me. Minus the Harley tee—mine was a girl-fit Broncos babydoll tee—and also minus the tight jeans. I had on jeans, just not tight, except at the bottom where every pair of pants seemed to be tight these days.

I scanned the room and saw Joker was gone altogether.

So was his brunette.

My heart squeezed.

“Yo!” I heard Snapper call and I looked to him to see he was looking beyond me. I turned around and saw Tabby was heading toward me and Snapper. “I’m takin’ Carissa out on my bike. You wanna look after her purse or put it in Shy’s room or somethin’?”

At his request, Tabby’s gaze immediately cut to the pool tables. When she took them in, for some reason, her face got hard before she softened it and looked back toward us.

“Not a problem,” she said, stopping at us. “Go. Ride.”

“Never been on a bike,” I told her and her face split in a big smile.

“Then go. Ride.” She leaned in to me. “Beware, wind in your hair, moon on your skin, you’ll fall in love.”

I wasn’t sure that was a good thing. I’d fallen in love with something I couldn’t have, and if I fell in love with the wind in my hair and the moon on my skin, without someone to give that to me, I couldn’t have that either.

But to heck with it.

Maybe this would be the only bike ride I’d have in my life.

And maybe the kiss Joker gave me was the only fabulous kiss I’d ever get.

And maybe my dream of having a family or the other dream of getting behind the steel guarding Joker’s eyes was lost to me.

But I was still breathing.

So I’d take what I could get.

Tabby put her hand on my purse, which was lying on the bar. “Got this. Have fun.”

“Thanks,” I whispered.

She winked at me.

I looked to Snapper. “Let’s go.”

“Meet you at the end of the bar, babe.”

“Right!” I chirped, jumped off my stool, threw Tabby a smile, nabbed my jacket that I was sitting on and bounced to the end of the bar.

When I got there, Snapper had pulled on his leather jacket. He grabbed my hand and guided me out the door and to his bike. Then he got on his bike before instructing me on how to do the same.

The bike roared, he backed out on an angle, and we glided over the tarmac of Ride.

He pulled out onto Broadway and I got it.

The wind in my hair.

The moon on my skin.

The leather of his jacket in my nostrils.

The solidness of him under my hands at his waist.

We got close to the onramp of I-25 and he shouted, “Hold on!”