Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 17184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 86(@200wpm)___ 69(@250wpm)___ 57(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 17184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 86(@200wpm)___ 69(@250wpm)___ 57(@300wpm)
We’ve been together forever. We met in our first year of high school, and barely left each other’s sides since. But the hardest, or maybe it’s the easiest part about it, is that I’ve wanted to be with him since our first interaction.
He was smaller then. Half the height he stands now, with twigs on his arms instead of the massive tree trunks he sports now. A rake-thin sapling with a nervous smile and an offhand compliment about the novel I was reading.
“I know.” He shrugs, adjusting himself up my headboard.
“Then why do you look so upset, sourpuss?” My attempt at lightening the mood makes him wince.
“I’m not.” His raspy voice gives me all I need to know the real answer hidden beneath his lie. “Well, not with you going on a date.” A quick attempt to recover that makes his heart thump a little faster against my fingers. “It’s the guy you’re going out with. You know he’s no good for Boulder.”
Once upon a time, a change like this would’ve been exactly what Talon yearned for. But his view of our little university town changed when he joined the Knight Riders. I’m not sure if it’s for the better or worse, but his fiery passion to keep Boulder safe is damn sexy.
“Make hay while the sun shines.” I slide my hand back slowly, enjoying the feeling of his firm chest against my fingertips. “That’s what Momma always said.”
“Momma’s a wise woman.” He’s met her a thousand times over, so he knows how far her wisdom extends. “Anyway, let’s not dwell on me. Of course, I’ll drive you there. Bring you home when you’re done, too, if you’d like?”
I must be all kinds of screwed up to be upset by him wanting to do what I asked. I had no ulterior motives in asking him for a ride or telling him I’m going on a date, but some part of me deeply wanted him to object and fight for me to stay here with him instead. It could’ve been the catalyst that made us take the step away from friends to something more, but maybe that’s just me being delusional. Seeing something where there’s nothing because it’s what I want to happen.
For all I know, his reaction really is set in the fact that Ezra Green isn’t a good person and has nothing to do with me seeing someone.
Getting up from the bed, I keep my hand on Talon’s chest as long as I can before it becomes too hard to explain why I’m still touching him.
He opens his mouth to say something, but shuts it just as fast with a humph and a sigh. The short walk down the set of first-floor stairs to the main lobby is taken in harrowing silence. Only the sounds of his footsteps and the occasional grumble from Talon, no doubt wanting to say whatever made him react this way in the first place.
I just wish he’d actually say it. Come out with whatever’s running through his mind so we can get past this. But all the way down, right until we’re standing next to his bike, Talon doesn’t speak. He doesn’t even look at me with those dreamy hazel eyes. He simply stares ahead, with a stern gaze that would make the devil quiver in his boots.
A chilly wind blows through the night as we stand in front of his motorcycle. I knew I should’ve brought a coat, but in a rush to get away from the awkwardness, I barely remembered to grab my cellphone off the kitchen counter as we walked by.
But here it is. His last chance to speak up and tell me to stop. The only question is, will he take it?
And my heart shatters into tiny little pieces as he opens his mouth and asks, “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” I answer, masking my frustration with a fake smile.
“Then let’s get to it.”
We blast through the night on Talon’s motorcycle at speeds I haven’t seen him ride in years. We whizz by buildings, cars, and people who turn their heads to look at the man flying like a bat out of hell. A ride that should have taken twenty minutes completed in half the time.
Talon pulls his bike into the closest parking spot he can find to the Casa Bella’s entrance. He gets off first and extends a hand to help me up like a true gentleman. All smiles now, the ride must have shed his gloomy disposition, and while I’m glad he isn’t moping anymore, I still think I preferred his lack of acceptance to this.
It was the closest we ever came to me fulfilling my teenage dreams of holding his hand and sharing my first kiss with him. I’ve kissed a few others since, but something tells me they’ll never hold a candle against Talon.