Quicksilver Dreams(160)
It was late morning when we began our ride back through town. There was some traffic, but the morning-rush-hour nightmare traffic had diminished, which allowed us to cruise comfortably along the Pacific Coast Highway, smelling the salt air. It only took forty minutes of travel to get back to the apartment. To keep from remembering how good he felt as I wrapped my arms around his waist, and how good he smelled, I started trying to solve my more immediate problems. I was determined not to focus so much on how tied I felt to a guy who wanted nothing to do with me.
Everything was up in the air. Someone was trying to kill me, which meant I couldn’t go back to my apartment and would likely have to do some crawling to get my aunt to let me stay with her for a while. As far as I knew, I still had my job, so that was good. Maybe offering to pay my aunt’s bills for the next six months would persuade her to have a heart.
Because it was a weekday and most of the residents had gone to work, parking was wide-open. We were able to park the bike right outside the gates. It felt surreal being back on Earth, where everything was familiar. I looked across the street at the apartment complex and had a fleeting thought that Mrs. Myrtle had had to walk to school on her own the last few mornings. I hoped she was all right.
Stiffly, I took my helmet off, and keeping my eyes on the task of scooping the straps neatly back into the helmet, I said, “Thank you for the ride, and for protecting me. I really do appreciate what you’ve done for me.” Carefully trying not to touch him more than necessary, I swung a leg off the bike, wanting simultaneously for this moment to be prolonged and for my immediate escape, so I could start my self-medicating crying jag. I know. It didn’t make sense, but nothing in my world made sense anymore. Everything that I’d thought I could count on was altered.
Ryder got off the bike and took his helmet off, running his fingers through his black hair in a purely masculine gesture. I turned my gaze away, remembering how soft his hair had felt in my grasp and desperate to forget. He took both of our helmets and put them on the bike before turning to me. Clearly something was on his mind as he scanned the immediate area.
“It’s not safe for you to be here.” He was looking around the neighborhood rather than at me.
“Yeah, I figured. I’ll work it out.” I nodded, hugging my waist.
“How?” He confronted me dead on, his cool green eyes watching me steadily.
“Don’t concern yourself. I’ll be fine. I’m not your problem.” I said this evenly, firmly, up until the last word, when my voice cracked and I had to take a calming breath. How could anything hurt so much? It was like my whole body needed to weep in great gusts. There was an open wound bleeding profusely in me, and I needed to see to it, but he wasn’t letting me escape.
“Thinking of going to your aunt’s?” he asked calmly.
“Maybe I am. It’s none of your business.”
“The abusive one?”
“Better that than dead.” I smirked.
“That’s not acceptable,” he said grimly.
“Who are you to judge?” At least with her, I wouldn’t get blindsided.
“I’m the guy who’s going to protect you.” He stated this in firm tones.
“Whatever, dude. Have a nice life.” I spun off and pushed through the security gate, for once glad to see that someone had propped it open with a rock, because I didn’t want to have to dig my keys out. Of course, as soon as I went through the gate and started up the stairs, I realized Ryder was right behind me, which was making me furious and excited at the same time.