Chapter Thirteen
Steele
Just the thought of Claire made my blood run fast. My mind flashed through her smile, her ease, her body moving on top of mine, and all I wanted to do was jump up from the conference room table and run out the door.
Not that Claire made me reckless. In fact, it was the opposite. For the first time in years, I had told someone the complete truth about myself. And I wanted to keep that intimacy, that first real connection between the two of us.
"So we've decided to skip all the red-tape from the government and simply choose another site." The president of Acquisitions and Development looked to me for approval.
"I agree that choosing another site is the most cost-effective and efficient course of action," I said.
Plus, the new site was an hour closer to the city which meant I could see Claire more easily.
"It's an arid expanse, only one major road connecting it," my employee said.
I waved off his concerns. "I've been down there half a dozen times. It's an easy drive and you can see the urban sprawl. Soon it will be the center of a new industrial district."
Ross Alan scoffed. "What'd you do? Buzz the site with your helicopter?"
I bit my tongue. I'd toured past the site multiple times with my motorcycle club, but no one in the room knew about that. Not even my closest business ally.
"Sorry, Ross. Didn't know you'd be jealous of a dusty road trip," I said. "Can I approve the site or do you want to go down there too?"
The employees around the conference table chuckled and Ross sat back in his chair. "Your word's good enough for me," he said.
I chucked him on the shoulder and called the meeting to a close. The rest of the small talk and hand-shaking washed over me as I ran back over the last few hours. What if that wasn't my only slip-up?
Just that week I had shocked the bartender at the roadhouse. Hen had been griping over a friendly wager he'd lost with another bartender. He owed him a bottle of single-malt whiskey that he hadn't opened in fifteen years. It was at the height of its smoky taste and the epitome of its cost.
"Who cares about a few thousand dollars. It's the taste you're really going to miss out on," I had told Hen.
He had tipped his head to the side and studied me for a full thirty seconds. "So you drink aged whiskey and don't even think about the cost. Must be a pretty damn good day job you have," Hen had said.
Twice now since I started dating Claire, I had almost revealed my dual lifestyles. I headed to my office and laughed at myself behind closed doors. To think I had been worried about Claire blabbing about my secret and here I was letting huge clues slip.
I couldn't even keep secret how hard I was falling for Claire. Max, my driver, had been clearing his throat all day and shooting me curious glances in the rearview mirror.
"Sir? Your driver's here. Ready when you are." My secretary buzzed my office.
I laughed out loud and thought about teasing Max by taking a cab. The only thing stopping me was Claire. She deserved a more comfortable ride than a cab, even if it meant letting my old, nosy driver meet her again.
Max didn't even let her get into the town car. He tipped his hat before he opened the door and asked, "So, Dr. West, how did you two first meet?"
"Steele didn't tell you?" Claire asked. She had already discovered my driver had been with me since my teenage years.
"No, miss. He prizes his privacy," my driver said.
Claire reached around to open the door handle herself. "I met Steele at the museum's charity gala. Hopefully, you didn't hear anything about me or my brother that night," she said.
Max scrambled to open the door and give Claire a hand in. "Oh, yes. And here I thought you two had gotten off to a more exciting start."
Claire settled into her car seat and smiled up at Max. "Obviously you've never danced with Steele. I assure you, it was very exciting."
I chuckled but caught Max by the collar and hauled him back to the driver's side door. "How about you lay off the questions and drive?"
"Yes, sir," Max said with a stubborn set to his chin. He was the only other person that knew about my secret life and he had apparently connected the dots between Claire and I almost faster than we had.
Max waited until we were settled in and then he asked, "Home or to the roadhouse?"
"Didn't you say something about lunch by the pool?" Claire asked. She ignored Max's bait completely.
"Yes," I said. "Unless you'd like to try something a little more exciting."
Claire arched an eyebrow at me. "I have to go to work later and that will be enough excitement, thank you very much."
I laughed. "It's not like I'm suggesting anything that would land you in your own ER as a patient. I'm just wondering if you'd like to go on a little cruise. Just the two of us."
"I like the idea of having you to myself," Claire said. "What kind of ride are you talking about?"
"Motorcycle," I said. The idea of riding my Harley with Claire clinging to the seat behind me was heating up my blood.
Claire glanced at Max just as he looked up at her in the rearview mirror. He nodded and Claire relaxed.
"Don't worry about him. He knows. Too much, probably, but you can trust him," I told Claire.
"Then it's okay if I say no to a motorcycle ride?" Claire asked.
I caught her hand. "Why would you? It's such a beautiful day. Wouldn't you rather be out in the weather than behind tinted windows? Feel the wind in your hair?"
"With your club?" Claire asked. Her sweet mouth twisted as if the word was sour.
"You'd like them," I assured her. "And they pull out all the stops anytime someone's ol’ lady rides with us. Best routes, best stopovers, best stretches of open road."
"Ol’ lady?" Claire asked.
Max snickered from the driver's seat. Obviously, I wasn't selling the idea well. If I wanted Claire straddling the back of my motorcycle, I was going to have to convince her.
"They're really great guys," I said. "But, for our first ride, you're right; it should be just the two of us."
"They're all good guys?" Claire asked. Her eyebrow still had a cynical arch.
I knew why she hesitated. Hack was a member of my motorcycle club and he was the one that had threatened her and her brother. It felt like a punch in the gut when I realized I had yet another secret I had to keep. Claire didn't know that I was aware of her situation.
"A few might have a hard time now and then," I said, "but mostly they're just good guys with the same hobby as me."
"Driving around is not a hobby," Max said.
Claire laughed at his quick retort. "I might agree with Max. You really just ride around?"
We pulled into the driveway of my mansion and I sat forward on the edge of the town car. "Oh, now I'm definitely taking you out. You won't be saying that after we've gone a few miles."
Claire looked nervous as I pulled her out of the town car, but she smiled when I admitted how excited I was to take her out.
"You don't usually have an 'old lady' riding behind you?" she asked.
I laughed. "No. Actually, you'll be my first rider."
Her cheeks reddened and she changed the subject to focus on my motorcycle. "So, what is it? I mean, besides a Harley Davidson?"
I rolled it out into the driveway, checking the gates to make sure no nosy neighbors were looking. "It's an FLHT Electra Glide. Best touring motorcycle and all-around great ride."
"Is this the one you won in a bar bet?" Claire asked.
My jaw dropped. "You remember that?"
Claire's cheeks blazed. "After I realized you were the patient that I treated all those months ago, I've been remembering little details. Like how you won your motorcycle in a bar bet. Same as your club name."
I watched her forehead crinkle as she realized that Steele was not a made-up, motorcycle club name. "I told you about my name, remember?"
Claire furrowed her brow then it cleared. "Steele is your mother's maiden name," she said.
"Good memory, Doc. Now let's see if we can clear that cluttered brain of yours." I swung a leg over my motorcycle and motioned for her to climb on behind me.
Her fingers were tentative as she hitched herself into the seat behind me. Then I turned the engine on and felt her fingers grip tight. "You ready?" I asked.
Claire shook her head in a panicked negative even as she smiled and said, "Yes!"
I took it easy on her all the way out of my fancy neighborhood. I even followed the speed limit signs on the highway. But when we turned onto an open county road where the traffic was almost nonexistent, I started to tear up the pavement.
Claire's arms snaked around my waist and squeezed hard. I started to back off the acceleration, then I heard her laugh. The wind tore the sound away but I could see her in my rearview mirror, her face turned up to feel the exciting sting of the wind.
The road started to wind and drift up and down over open countryside. Claire learned to lean with me on the turns, her body taking cues directly from mine. We moved together over the motorcycle and I could feel her wriggling closer to me. Her exhilaration radiated and I felt it seeping into my body, bright waves of heat.
"We're stopping so soon?" Claire asked.
I parked the motorcycle in the shaded turn-out and gestured toward the view. "Just thought you might want to catch your breath."
I swung off my motorcycle and turned to help her. Claire stood up into my arms and pressed her bright smile against my lips. The motorcycle, the road, everything was forgotten as I swept her tighter against my body and deepened our kiss.
Claire smiled in between excited gasps for air. "So maybe I get it," she said. "Maybe I can see why you like riding motorcycles."
I lifted her up off her feet and swung her around. It felt so good to be with someone who didn't judge the real me. I leaned her up against the trunk of a tree and pressed her deeper into a kiss.
She made me as overheated and clumsy as a teenager, and I would have embarrassed myself if she hadn't pushed me back with an apologetic sigh.
"I have to get back. I have work tonight," she reminded me.
I cruised her laughing all the way to the double doors of the ER's ambulance bay. A handful of nurses grinned and waved but gave us enough space for another heated goodbye.
"Clear the way! Get that thing out of the way!" An uptight man in fresh scrubs frowned at us from the sidewalk.
I ignored him and walked Claire to the door. "So, you'll go out for a ride with me again?" I asked.
"Dr. West has better things to do than drive around on that. Know what we call people like you in the ER?" the man asked.
I recognized him, the asshole surgeon. Claire gave me a pained look and I backed off, not wanting to give her an awkward night at work.
"Organ donors," the surgeon spat.
I ignored him and kissed the back of Claire's hand. "Call me later. Don't worry about the time. I'll be up," I said.
I left her next to the jealous surgeon and jumped back on my motorcycle. Claire had to hide her smile as I revved it as loud as I could. I sped off and missed her body wrapped tightly around me as I drove.