Chapter 12
With the dogs picked up by their owners, Robin went back to Shaw and his friends who waited at a picnic table for her. “Last one’s been picked up. I’m ready to go. I’ll follow you in my car, Shaw.”
He chuckled as he got up off the tabletop and scooped her up into his arms. “The hell you will. You’re riding with me, baby girl.”
Robin smiled and leaned her head on his chest as his friends flanked each side of him. She couldn’t help but notice they’d come up to her in the same position. Brogan and Rafe on his left, Grey and Falcon on his right, and all just a step behind Shaw.
His lips on the top of her head made her stop thinking about that and look up at him. “I don’t have a helmet.”
“Yes, you do. I brought one for you.” He kissed her lips. “I wasn’t about to put you in danger for even a minute.”
Robin couldn’t help the way she felt. Her heart soared as she sighed and laid her head back on his chest. Giving into him seemed to be the best idea she’d ever had.
Once they’d all gotten onto their motorcycles, she held tight to Shaw, holding her hands together around his waist. “You won’t go too fast, right?”
“Me? Never,” he said then laughed as he went slowly out of the parking lot before gunning it on the open road, making her scream. He knew she wasn’t screaming in fear. The sound she made was from feeling the rush of pure adrenaline.
“Wow!” she shouted. “I’ve never felt so free.”
Robin sounded happy, and that made Shaw happy. He’d never been the kind of guy who got off on other people’s happiness; this was a first for him.
The way the other men rode behind them was a thing Robin noticed too. Brogan and Rafe rode side by side right behind Shaw, and Grey and Falcon rode side by side behind them. All played as if they were going to pass the other, but none ever did. It was kind of like Shaw was their leader.
Robin blew it off, thinking that motorcycle gangs had leaders, that had to be what it was. Shaw just led the group.
Shaw took her on a ride down a small road where trees towered over them, forming a canopy. Everything looked so beautiful as the sun twinkled through the thick trees. They began to ascend up a mountain, a stream cut along the earth on one side of the road. A mixture of ice and water looked refreshing, and she laid her head on Shaw’s back to gaze at the sight.
One of his hands moved over hers, caressing them and making her body react immediately. She had no idea things could feel this way. Just the slightest touch from him could set her off.
She pulled her head off his back and leaned her chin on his shoulder, looking in front of them. He kissed her cheek, and she felt her cheeks heat with a blush. Then she kissed his cheek and felt kind of sexy for being so forward with him.
Once they reached the top of the mountain, she saw they were in a small village with a few places of business. A bar that looked like it had been erected in the early 1800s, a small old-timey grocery store, and a little café that looked new made up the tiny town.
They all pulled into the parking lot of the bar, then climbed off the bikes. Shaw’s arm wrapped around her shoulders and he pulled her close to his side then kissed the side of her head. “Having fun so far, baby?”
“The ride was exhilarating all right. I loved it,” she found herself gushing.
“Good, I want to take you with me every time I ride. You fit me perfectly.” He pulled his shades off as they went inside the dark bar. It was only four, still daylight outside but you wouldn’t know that from the inside of the small bar.
Neon lights were all that lit the interior, and the few people who were in there so early were seen as mere shadows who sat at small tables in the even darker corners. Robin took in her surroundings and felt a chill as she thought it looked pretty scary. “Why do they keep it so dark in here?”
“I suppose it’s because people who come in here like it that way.” Shaw’s arm moved off her shoulders, and his hand ran down to rest on her ass before he gave it a little smack. “Go sit over there and wait for me while I grab us a couple of beers. I’m going to teach you how to play pool.”
Robin laughed and did as he said. But she had a surprise for him. Her family had a pool table, she’d been playing since she was a kid.
When he and his friends came to the table to join her, Shaw placed a tall brown bottle of Michelob ULTRA in front of her. “You and I are playing against Gray and Falcon. Once we kick their ass, we’ll take on Rafe and Brogan.”
The comradery among the men had Robin feeling very differently than she had been. They all joked around with each other, and even her, drawing her into their tight little circle with ease.
Gray racked up the balls as Shaw picked out what he considered to be a good cue for Robin to use, then he picked one out for himself. Handing her the smaller of the two, he said, “Here you go, baby. We’ll let you break.”
“Cool,” she said as she got up to take the shot. She eyed the men who weren’t paying much attention as she made a break that had nearly half the balls in pockets. “I’ll take the cute striped ones if that’s okay?”
Shaw and the other men looked at her with dropped jaws. Sauntering up to her, Shaw wrapped his arms around her. “Seems you’ve played this game before.”
“A time or two,” she said then laughed. “My family’s had a pool table since I can remember.”
“Ah, so we have us a pro then.” Shaw kissed her then stroked her blonde hair. “How many more surprises are you hiding, my little angel?”
She shook her head and looked down. “No more.”
“I bet you do have more, and I can’t wait to find them all out.” He let go of her and took his turn at the table.
The afternoon turned into night, and the group headed back out to their bikes. The sky was clear, the stars bright. Shaw noticed the phase of the moon as he got on his bike, Robin getting on behind him. The quarter moon glowed high above their heads, signaling the ascent into the full moon phase. His inner wolf, well aware of the phase, growled deep inside of him.
Before Shaw started his bike, he turned his head to say something to Robin, “Ready to go back to my place?”
Robin ran her hand over his shoulder as an unexplainable fear filled her. Surely his friends were coming too. They wouldn’t be alone yet. In a way, she hoped they would be alone. Shaw had handled her body a lot while in the bar. Touching her constantly in one way or another. A yearning had begun, and she didn’t know how long she’d be able to hold back.
She nodded then hung on to Shaw as he started the loud machine. It roared to life underneath them, vibrating and making Robin even more interested in the events of the night.
When she had woken up that morning, she had no idea she’d be giving away her virginity to the man she’d been despising. It had never been her intention to be with Shaw in any way. Not even in business. She was ready to forgo the wealth that would come along with the business agreement just so she didn’t have to be around Shaw.
She’d given up so much just to stay away from the man. Yet here she was on the back of his bike, heading to his home. A place where she knew she’d give him all of herself. Unsure exactly how things had managed to change so drastically in the matter of a few hours, she chalked it up to fate.
The fact was Shaw wasn’t forgetting about her and moving on to his next conquest, the way she thought he would. The fact was that his touch sent lightning through her veins. And the truth was, she wanted Shaw. She had to admit to herself that she always had.
It began to sink in that Robin fought the man so hard from the moment she met him because he brought out something inside her that she was afraid of. A wildness she wasn’t aware she had hidden deep down. She’d hidden it so well, she wasn’t even aware it existed until Shaw kissed her.
When she finally allowed him to kiss her, something woke up. Something that wanted to make huge changes in her life. As she clung to Shaw, the two of them speeding down the road toward their destiny, she grew more and more afraid.
Shaw could smell her fear, and it only served to excite him. A little fear only added spice to sex, in his opinion. And Robin had every right to fear what was about to happen. But he’d show her that along with great fear can come great pleasure. Both ends of the spectrum served a purpose, and he couldn’t wait to get her alone.