NYC Angels Flirting with Danger - By Tina Beckett Page 0,13

created by her helmet.

On the first real turn she instinctively wrapped her arms around Brad’s waist, realizing he was right. She needed to hold on and try to lean when he did. The best way to do that was to be physically connected to him, in much the same way as she’d moved with the horse she’d had years ago. Her hips slid forward even more, pressing intimately against him, her thighs squeezing his in order to maintain her balance. Every inch of her was aware of every inch of him. At first she put it down to basic survival instinct, but that weird tingle down low had nothing to do with survival.

Then Brad turned another corner, wiping away every thought except hanging on, probably much tighter than necessary.

During the first few minutes she was too afraid to move, but once she got used to the vibration from the engine beneath her and the easy way Brad handled the big bike, she began to loosen up a bit and enjoy the ride.

They stopped for a red light. Brad’s feet hit the ground to keep them stable, and Chloe drew in a deep breath, noticing the claustrophobia she’d felt earlier was almost gone.

“You okay back there?”

“So far, so good. It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.” It wasn’t quite a lie.

A soft laugh came through. “And I never thought I’d see the day when Chloe Jenkins would agree to ride on my bike.”

A reference to her refusal years ago? She smiled, her heart lightening for the first time. “The times are a-changin’.”

“Hmm. Want to learn to ride one?”

Her stomach did a back flip. “Yeah, well, the times aren’t changing that much. I think I’m going to stick with being a passenger. A bad one.”

He reached back to squeeze her leg. “You’re doing great.”

The light turned green, and Brad revved the engine enough to take off. Her arms instinctively wrapped around him once again, the fingers of her left hand gripping her other one in a vise. It was better than having her palms splayed across his rock-hard abs—a position that seemed far too intimate. Sure, they’d horsed around when they’d been younger and had done plenty of touching. But this was different, although Brad didn’t seem affected by it at all.

Despite the concern he’d shown on the night of her arrival, he’d soon reverted to type, viewing the world through a lens of amused cynicism.

Although traffic was bumper to bumper, they were moving at a fairly steady pace and before she knew it they’d cleared Central Park, where green gave way to a pristine white building. Even from her perch Chloe could see the hospital off to their left. “Is there underground parking?”

“There is for our patients. There are a couple of lots near the hospital where we can park, which is what I do on the days I drive to work.”

“Isn’t that expensive?” Chloe had assumed everyone parked on hospital grounds. But things in New York City were evidently different than they were in Connecticut.

“Staff gets a discount.” There was a pause as Brad pulled into a lot across the street from the hospital. “I sometimes take the subway to work, but I didn’t think you’d be too anxious to get back on it.”

She blinked. “How did you know I rode the subway?”

“My doorman said you had that shell-shocked look of first-time riders.”

Little did he know that the shock had been from something very different. Although the fact that Brad had ridden to work just for her touched her. “Thank you. But I’ll be okay. Let me at least help with the parking costs.”

A suited valet came forward, eyes wide as he looked from them to the bike. He quickly found his professionalism, reaching out a hand to help Chloe off. Her legs were shaking, much to her chagrin, but she smiled at the man anyway. When she glanced at Brad, she noticed his frown, even through the shaded visor. He put down the kickstand and yanked off his helmet, taking the keys from the ignition.

When she fumbled around for the catch to her own helmet, both men moved forward, but the valet stopped almost immediately when Brad handed him the key and held up his hospital ID. “We’ll be here until around seven.”

The valet nodded, glancing one last time at Chloe before handing Brad a ticket.

Once the man had started the motorcycle and driven into the lot, Brad turned back to her and unsnapped her helmet.