Apparently not.
Then again, what was she trying to prove? She supposed she wanted to look like she belonged. No point in that. She was totally out of her element here and everyone knew it. She might as well just hang on and enjoy the newness of the experience and let a seasoned veteran like Rick teach her the ropes.
Like riding in darkness into the desert, where the roads curved and the biting wind stung her cheeks and made her wish she’d applied some lip balm to keep her lips from drying out.
There was a lot she didn’t know.
The riding part? She loved it. Hanging on to Rick while the bike hugged the corners of the road was a thrill she hadn’t expected. She felt like she was part of the motorcycle itself. It was exhilarating. And the closer she got to Rick, the warmer she felt, which was a nice side benefit. He didn’t seem to mind her pressed up against him, either. His body was solid and as she laid her chin on his shoulder, it gave her a great view. He had a good command of the bike, knew what he was doing, which helped her relax. He never once even seemed to notice her weight or the fact he had an extra body on the back. He just focused on the road ahead. The ride was smooth and she wished it was daylight so she could see the desert.
After riding for a while—she’d lost track of time and had no idea how long they’d ridden—they pulled down a stretch of road that led to a large, sprawling homestead. In the darkness she could make out fences and heard the rustle of horses, so maybe a farm or a ranch or something? Dogs barked in the distance, and loose dirt shifted under her feet after they climbed off the bike.
And, oh, she was sore, her muscles tight from being in one position for so long. She resisted the urge to rub her butt.
“How do you feel?”
“Fine.” She took off the helmet and handed it to Rick.
“Stiff?”
“A little.”
He smiled and ran his fingers through his hair. “You’ll get used to it. It’s like riding a horse. Your muscles have to adjust.”
She hoped they adjusted fast. “Where are we?”
“Joey’s house. He’s one of the Hellraisers, owns a ranch out here in the desert. The Hellraisers party a lot out here because it’s away from the watchful eye of the law.”
“Really.”
“Yeah. Come on.”
Ava wondered what kind of partying went on that the Hellraisers didn’t want the police or county sheriff to know about. She caught up with Lacey, who was just ahead of her.
“Have you been here before?”
“At Joey’s? Sure. Lots of times.”
“What goes on here?”
Lacey squeezed her hand and laughed. “Relax, Ava. We’re just here to kick back and have some fun. You’ll see.”
Lacey moved off with Bo, leaving her—once again—until Rick moved up and swept his arm around her. “I won’t leave you alone. Don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried at all.” And she wasn’t. Not about herself, anyway. She was more concerned about what Lacey had gotten herself involved in. That’s why she was here. Though she had to admit, having Rick’s arm around her wasn’t bad at all. He was tall, gorgeous, strong, and he smelled damn good. Like leather and soap and the outdoors. And he was fine to look at. Lacey could have stuck her with some ugly guy with a gross shaggy beard and butt crack hanging out of his pants. She counted her lucky stars that she’d managed a riding partner that looked like he could be a male model instead of some grizzled, greasy biker type.
They went up to the house. By the time they made it in there, loud music was playing, the lights were blaring, there was a fire in the fireplace, and there was plenty of beer lined up in large metal buckets on the floor in the living room.
The place was very rustic, all wood floors and paneling. Very little décor and Ava could tell immediately that this was a guy’s place. It had no feminine touches anywhere. No pictures on the wall and only a mounted deer’s head over the fireplace. And it was kind of a mess, though people just shoved things out of the way and no one seemed to care.
Ava shuddered at the clutter, clenched her hands into fists, and forced herself to refrain from jumping in to straighten things up.
She’d grown up in a spotless environment, her mother a politician’s wife almost from day one. Ava had never been allowed to leave her toys lying around, and had always been required to pick them up every night before bed. Of course all her toys had been relegated to the playroom, never in any of the common areas of the house.
As she got older, she remembered coming home from college and not being allowed to study at the kitchen table. She’d been sent to her room. After her first semester she’d stopped coming home. It was more comfortable—more homey—at school. Though even then, she kept her room at college immaculate. Habit, she supposed.
The chaos at this house was truly something to behold. Loud and raucous, a hundred bikers crammed into this guy’s house, talking over the music, laughing, sitting anywhere and everywhere, from the fireplace to the stairs to the kitchen and even spilling into the front and backyards. And discarded beer cans everywhere.
“Want a beer?” Rick asked.
“Sure. Thanks.”
He reached into a round metal bucket and grabbed two cans, popped them open, and handed her one. She took a couple gulps, looked around for a napkin, and of course didn’t find one. Not in a guy’s house anyway, so she did the next best thing—she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, glancing around to see if anyone had noticed.
“Manners don’t count here. Quit worrying about it.”
“Sorry. Old habits die hard.”
“You can drool all over yourself in this group and no one will say a word.”
She laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Instead of staying put in one place—something she’d probably have done—Rick began to wander around. He knew a lot of these people, stopped to say hello, and was nice enough to introduce her to those he talked with. Most of the guys seemed surprised to see him, asked where he’d been, indicated it had been a long time since he’d been around. They all welcomed him back.
Ava wondered where he’d been, too.
“You son of a bitch.”
Ava froze at the angry tone of someone behind her. Rick pulled his attention from the person he’d been talking to toward the sound of the voice, then smiled.