Page 18 of Riding with the Bad Boy
“Okay.” I let the subject drop.
IT WAS CRAZY HOW ONEchange in mindset could affect everything about you. After realizing that I wanted Danni, I felt lighter. Almost excited. I couldn’t stop touching her, holding her, kissing her. All I wanted was to be with her, and if it wasn’t for the fact I had to go look at this Harley today, I would have suggested we didn’t leave the RV until I had to drop her off for the wedding.
I wondered if I could get her to cancel her hotel reservation. We were both going to be in Saddleback, and it didn’t make sense for her to spend the money for a room when she could stay with me. I’d make sure she got to the wedding and whatever other things she had to do, but afterward we could enjoy the motorcycle rally and spend time just being us before we head back home.
“Are you really sure you want a bike?” She asked before we walked into Miller Car Restoration and Repair.
“Yep.” I let go of her hand and put my arm around her waist to draw her closer. “I don’t plan on riding it all the time. Just on occasion. Have you ever been on a motorcycle?” She shook herhead, and a slow smile crossed my lips. I liked the idea of her behind me with her arms and her legs wrapped tightly around me. “You’re going to love it,” I whispered in her ear before pulling the lobe lightly with my teeth.
“Roc.” My name was little more than a breath.
I groaned and let her go. If I didn’t stop, I wasn’t going to be able to walk, much less ride.
I held the door open for her so she could walk in. The place was loud and wide open. I had expected a lobby and a door leading to the bay, but they had an opening in the wall where you could see everything they were working on.
They had some beautiful old cars, and as we waited, I could have sworn I caught a glimpse of a Thunderbird back in the corner that looked vintage and like it still needed a lot of work.
“Can we help you?” I looked back to see a strikingly tall woman standing there with her bright red hair pulled into some sort of knot or bun on the top of her head. She had on a pair of glasses that did nothing to diminish how beautiful her hazel eyes looked, and the oversized work overalls didn’t hide her curves, either. I bet if she pulled her hair down, lost the glasses, and the overalls, she’d be cover model gorgeous.
“Hi, I’m looking for Wyatt,” I told her.
“Wyatt.” She yelled behind her. “Customer.” She gave us a nod, and surprisingly, went back to working on one of the cars waiting to be serviced.
“Not what I expected,” I said, just for Danielle.
“What? That she didn’t flirt with you like every other woman we’ve met on this trip?” Danni tried to pull away.
“No.” I held her tight. “I’m not looking for anyone to flirt with me,” I assured her. “I meant all of this. The open bay, the model working on cars, and the fact they don’t seem to have a secretary or anyone at the desk. The place is big enough to be adealership, but they seem to be running it like it’s some mom-and-pop shop.”
“Maybe they like the hands-on feel of a mom-and-pop shop.” She suggested.
“Maybe,” I replied as a bodybuilder of a guy walked toward us.
Bodybuilder wasn’t right. He wasn’t bulky like someone who lifted weights all the time, but he had a lot of muscle on him. His hair wasn’t as red as the woman who greeted us, but I could see some red tinting in the darkness, and his eyes had the same color as hers. Maybe they were related or siblings. His face was pulled into a serious expression that almost looked gruff, and his overalls were just as baggy as the other woman’s.
“Ya need help?” He said in a voice as scratchy as the beard he sported.
“You Wyatt Miller?”
“Yep.” His eyebrow went up, but that was about the extent of any change in his look, and he didn’t say anything else.
“I’m Rocco Crane.” I introduced myself. “We spoke on the phone about the Harley.”
He looked me up and down and let out a breath. “Didn’t think you’d actually show.” He waved his hand to beckon us and turned. “It’s back here.”
I looked down at Danni, and she shrugged. We followed him to a corner of the shop. Turned out there were more people working here than I had originally thought. They all had their hands on different cars and bikes, from what looked like a sixties Mustang to a current Jeep of some sort.
“Here she is.” Wyatt pulled a tarp off a beautifully restored Harley-Davidson that had me taking in a sharp breath. It was everything that I had dreamed about.
The body was a royal sort of light blue color with chrome that shone as if the sun was permanently touching it. The wheelswere standard, but the front light and the handlebars were right out of an old black and white movie.
As I walked around it, I was amazed at how sleek it looked, but the seat worried me. I wasn’t sure that it would be comfortable for any kind of long ride, and it was way too small to have Danni ride with me.
“Can we switch out the seat?” I asked.
“Nope.” Wyatt shook his head. “These weren’t necessarily made for comfort. They are mostly for show and to feel the power they have.” He explained. “If you want something that would work for the two of you, then I also have this one.”
He walked over to another tarp and pulled the cover off. It wasn’t anywhere near vintage, but it was sexy. The whole thing was black with red highlights and a seat that sat lower to the ground than the Harley. The wheels looked a little like tricycle wheels, but it didn’t matter. The whole thing felt like it was calling my name.
