I Knew You Were Trouble - Cassie Mae Page 0,38

and obey all traffic laws.” He slips his helmet onto my head, the weight surprising me. I swear I lose my neck entirely into my shoulders.

“Isn’t wearing a helmet a law?” I counter. Chills run up my spine as he clicks the buckle under my chin and slides it to my size. His fingers lightly brush against my skin.

“Not here.”

I swallow hard, adjusting the helmet and trying to get used to the weight. My fingers shake, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the cold night air and everything to do with the fact I’ll be getting on that monster vehicle.

Pete’s gaze travels over my fidgety hands, and he reaches up, taking them into his. His skin is ice. I hope he’s got gloves.

“Take a breath, Candace.”

I breathe in and blow out a large exhale into his face. He jerks his head back, his eyes closing and nose wrinkling. The messy brown strands of hair wave with the gust.

“Sorry.” I make a face, suppressing my laughter. “Garlic for dinner.”

“Was it good?”

“Super yummy.”

We laugh together, and I laugh a little harder at the fact that we laughed in sync. He drops one of my hands, but keeps the other tucked against his palm. He’s being awfully caring right now… I wonder what’s wrong with him.

“You want a safe word?” he asks. I breathe out another shaky laugh, but I suck it back in when I catch the sincerity in his eyes.

“Wait… are you serious?”

“Absolutely.” He leads me to his bike and lets my hand go. The December air replaces his touch. “The second you say you’re done, I’ll take you back here.”

I lift a brow and jam my hands into my coat pockets. “Why are you being so nice?”

“Motorcycles are level violet.” A wrinkle appears on the bridge of his nose, and my heart thuds a little louder in my ears. “This is a big one, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” I admit. I wasn’t completely sane when I asked for a ride, but I still want to do this. Level violet has only three fears. If I can tackle this one, then in theory, I can tackle all those fears underneath it.

Besides, Zach offered to take me for a ride sometime. I’d rather get all my panic out with Pete. He’s much safer; he won’t go anywhere because he’s totally used to my idiosyncrasies.

“How about Troublemaker?” I suggest, glancing up at the neon lights of our place of work.

“I’ll keep an ear out for it.” The corner of his lip twitches, and a warm blanket of comfort descends on me. Oh, I’m still nervous as heck, but I like that I’m in control of this trial run, even if I’m not driving.

He mounts Gertrude, swinging a leg up and over the thing. Holy gosh, there isn’t much room back there for me, especially with his beefy coat.

“So… just do that?” I ask.

His head flings back, and he laughs at the starry sky. “This is nowhere near as tall or thick as a horse.”

Point taken. I straighten my shoulders and march to the bike, throwing my leg over before I lose my nerve.

“E-easy p-easy.” My voice cracks against the two words, my chilled body suddenly fiery hot. My crotch is aligned against his hips. Why in the world did I not think of this before?

He laughs, and no no… he can’t do that. It makes things much worse. The way his body moves sends fire-tipped prickles all across my lower abdomen. A rush of lava floods through my bloodstream, and I forget to breathe for a solid fourteen seconds.

My legs are wide apart. A guy fills the gap. My muscles lock into place and refuse to budge.

I’ve never had a guy here before. Never been this close. Never felt such a rush of warmth and goosebumps all at the same time in such an unexplainable fashion.

And worst of all? I think… I think I like it.

“Did you hear a word I said?” Pete asks, sliding goggles over his eyes.

“Huh?”

He laughs—he really needs to knock that off—and reaches back, tapping my thigh. Why is he doing that? Is that supposed to be reassuring? It’s not. More goosebumps pebble across my skin and through my open legs, centering in on any part of me that’s touching him.

“Can you slide any closer?” he asks.

“Closer?” I squeak. He twists enough for me to catch the smile lines in his cheeks. He puts both hands on my legs, hooking me just under the knees. He pulls the slightest