Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 41825 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 209(@200wpm)___ 167(@250wpm)___ 139(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41825 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 209(@200wpm)___ 167(@250wpm)___ 139(@300wpm)
“Thanks,” I managed, my voice coming out softer than I intended. “You really don’t have to—”
“Don’t talk yet.” His commanding tone brushed past my ear as we kept moving.
I pressed my lips together, feeling flustered. If someone spoke to me like that at home, I would have smiled politely and found a graceful way to redirect. But with him acting like my health was the most important thing, I felt cared for in a way that had nothing to do with who my parents were.
The realization sent a little flutter in my stomach. I wasn’t used to being handled like I was something worth protecting instead of being displayed. My parents’ world ran on appearances and careful distance. This man didn’t seem to care about either.
I snuck a look at the patch on his leather vest. Cage.
It was a safe bet that the meaning behind his road name was far removed from the gilded one I’d been raised in.
The roar of engines continued to echo behind us as the race continued without missing a beat. My head throbbed in time with my pulse, but the dizziness had eased enough that I could walk straight without assistance. But I didn’t tell him that as we kept walking, I liked the feel of his hand on the small of my back as he guided me through the thinning crowd.
I glanced sideways and decided to test the waters. “Are you always this bossy with strangers, Cage?”
“Only the ones bleeding on my track.”
A surprised laugh slipped out of me before I could stop it. His straightforward humor cut straight through the fog in my head. I opened my mouth to tease him back, but he spoke again before I could.
“And my name is Thayer.”
I blinked up at him. “But your patch says—”
“No buts. You call me Thayer.”
His words had that same absolute certainty I’d grown up around, but he didn’t sound condescending.
“Okay, Thayer. Though I have to say, Cage suits the scary medic who appears out of nowhere vibe you’ve got going.”
“I’m a doctor, not a medic.” His hand shifted slightly on my back, the pressure changing just enough to steer me around a pothole I hadn’t noticed. “And you talk a lot for someone with a head wound.”
“Yeah, because I’m nervous,” I admitted, the words tumbling out before my usual filter could catch them.
Thayer’s gaze flicked down to me for a moment, his eyes looking grayer in the dim lighting of the parking lot. “Nothing to be nervous about. You’ll be okay.”
Around my parents’ circle, I always measured every syllable. But with Thayer staring down at me, the truth just slipped free. “I’m being escorted by a tall, very bossy biker who won’t let me finish a sentence. So yeah…nervous. But not in a bad way.”
His lips tilted up just the tiniest bit, and my cheeks filled with heat.
Luckily, we reached his SUV, so his intense gaze shifted to the passenger door. Opening it, he turned back to me. One hand gripped my waist, while the other braced my elbow as I stepped onto the running board. I settled into the leather seat and watched as he leaned in just enough to buckle my seat belt for me. His forearm brushed my shoulder, and the faint scent of leather and cedar wrapped around me.
He closed the door and rounded the hood before climbing into the driver’s seat. The cab felt smaller the moment he slid inside, more due to his compelling presence than his size.
I should have felt awkward. Or at least a little indignant that a stranger had taken over so completely. Instead, a strange warmth spread through my chest.
In my parents’ world, people handled me like fragile porcelain meant for display. They kept a careful distance so nothing smudged the perfect image. Thayer acted as though he didn’t believe in personal space. To him, my bleeding temple was a problem he intended to solve, not an inconvenience.
When he started the engine, I murmured, “Thank you. You didn’t have to drop everything and play knight in leather.”
His mouth twitched again—not quite a smile, but close enough to make my stomach flip. “It’s not every day that a gorgeous woman decides to stand too close to flying debris.”
He shifted the truck into gear and pulled out of the lot, completely unaware of the impact of his compliment. At home, praise always came with an agenda, but his words felt real instead of calculated.
My head still throbbed, but the dizziness had faded to a dull ache. What hadn’t dimmed was my awareness of the man beside me. I settled deeper into the seat, studying his profile in the glow of the dashboard lights.
Sitting next to Thayer in the quiet felt dangerously good.
As the SUV hummed along the dark county road, I kept stealing glances at him while trying to look like I wasn’t. His hands rested on the wheel with casual confidence. The way his thumb occasionally tapped made something low in my stomach tighten. Everything about him felt contained, like a storm held perfectly in check. His eyes scanned the road and flicked toward me every few minutes like he was still assessing damage.