It’s amazing how one person can have such a powerful effect on another person. Of course, that can be a good or a bad thing. Luckily for me, Sawyer seemed to have a very positive effect on me. It didn’t matter what kind of mood I was in, he always managed to brighten my day, and I’d find myself smiling like a schoolgirl with her first crush. He’d send a random text or call at the end of a hectic day, and I’d find myself practically giddy. I knew I wasn’t being sensible, that I was teetering on the edge of the unknown, and possibly even something dangerous, but I just couldn’t stop myself. With each little morsel he tossed my way, I snatched it up, drawing myself even closer to him. I simply couldn’t resist the temptation. I loved looking at him and talking to him. I longed to get to know him better, hoping that I would find that he was truly as nice as I thought he was. Ready or not, I was about to get my chance.

It was late, and we’d been talking on the phone for several minutes when he suggested taking an afternoon ride on his motorcycle. Surprised, I told him, “I’ve never ridden a motorcycle before.”

I could hear the mischief in his voice when he laughed at that. “There’s a first time for everything, darlin’.”

“But what if I fall off or something?”

“I won’t let you fall off, doll. You’ll be fine,” he assured me.

“What about a helmet and all that?”

“I’ll bring Kevin’s. You can use his until we get you one of your own.”

When he implied that there would be future rides, I felt a flutter of butterflies in my stomach. “I’m game. What time do you want to go?”

“I’ll be at your apartment around ten. Just text me the address.”

Trying not to sound overly excited, I said, “Okay. I’ll do it now.”

“And one more thing.”

“Yes?”

“Since you haven’t ridden before, thought I oughta tell ya … wear jeans and boots if you have them. Not sure if you’re one that tends to get cold, so you might want to wear long sleeves.”

“It’s eighty-five degrees outside,” I scoffed.

With a slightly condescending tone, he asked, “Have you or have you not ridden a motorcycle before?”

“Umm … I have not.”

“Wear jeans and boots. I’ll leave the shirt up to you.”

“Yes, sir,” I said sarcastically.

“Hmm … I like the sound of that.”

“Well, don’t get used to it.”

“I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay. I’m really looking forward to it. Sleep well,” I told him before I hung up the phone.

I lay in the bed for several minutes just staring at the ceiling with a big, goofy grin on my face until I finally dozed off. The next morning, I woke up with that same bubbly feeling, but then it dawned on me that I was going to actually see him in a few hours. And it was just going to be the two of us. Alone. For hours. Oh God, I had no idea what the hell to wear. I jumped out of bed and rushed over to my closet. I was flipping through all my different shirts and jeans, but nothing seemed right. I started tossing things on the floor and onto my bed, hoping that I could find something that would make me look like a hot biker chick. Unfortunately, everything I had just seemed wrong. Feeling frustrated, I huffed, “Damn.”

Robyn came to my door and said, “What the hell happened in here?”

“I’m looking for something to wear.”

“For what?”

I hadn’t told her about Sawyer. I was afraid that she would be upset with me. It’s not like I wouldn’t deserve it. I’d given her all kinds of crap about Runt, but I’d convinced myself that Sawyer was different. I just wasn’t sure she’d see it that way. Knowing I couldn’t hide it any longer, I confessed, “I have a date.”

She crossed her arms and gave me one of her little smirks. “Is that right? Is this date with the guy you’ve been talking to all week?”

“How did you know I was talking to someone?”

“Come on, Dee. You’ve been on cloud nine for days. I figured you’d met someone. I was just waiting for you to tell me about him. So, who is it?” she pushed.

“His name is Sawyer,” I started. “He’s actually … a friend of Runt’s.”

I bit my bottom lip as I waited anxiously for my words to sink in. She blinked a couple of times, then asked, “He’s a friend of Runt’s? You mean he’s in that motorcycle club?”

“Yes. I met him that night at Daisy’s … and, again, at the hospital when his son broke his arm. We’ve been talking, and he asked me out.”

Her eyes drifted up to the ceiling as she let out a deep breath. Strange noises vibrated through her chest as she mulled over everything I just told her, then she looked back over to me and said, “So, you really like this guy?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“And you think you can handle all this biker crap, because there’s some pretty heavy stuff that comes with that,” she warned.

“I don’t know, but I think I’d like to try.”

She cocked her eyebrow as she said, “Okay, but you let this guy know, if he does anything shady, I’ll put a scalpel to his balls.”

I giggled as I told her, “I’ll be sure to let him know.”

As she walked over to my closet, she asked, “So, where are you going on this date of yours?”

“He’s taking me for a ride on his bike. He told me to wear jeans and boots.”

“It’s eighty-five degrees outside!”

“I know!”

“Okay. We’ll make it work,” she assured me. “So far, he’s only seen you in scrubs, right? Anything would be a step up from that.”

“You’d think, but I’m not so sure.”

“Have faith, chick. I’ll have you fixed up in no time.”

As promised, Robyn found me the perfect outfit. I wanted to wear my hair down, but she convinced me to braid it, warning me that the wind would make it a tangled mess. When I gave myself one final check in the mirror, I didn’t think I looked half bad. As I started downstairs to meet Sawyer, my nerves were churning inside of me, building with each step, and by the time I made it to the front door, I was practically trembling. After several slow, steady breaths, I forced myself forward, and once I was outside, I found him standing beside his motorcycle. Just as I imagined, he looked sexy as hell, and my heart started to race as I took my first step towards him. As soon as he spotted me, the corners of his mouth curled into the most delicious smile, sending my hormones into complete overload.

“Morning, sunshine.”

His voice washed over me, sending a seductive chill down my spine. “Morning.”

“You ready to go?”

“Um-hmm.”

Sensing my unease, he asked, “Nervous?”

“Mmm … Just a smidge.”

“About the bike or about the date?”

I feigned a smile and replied, “A little of both.”

Then, he did something I wouldn’t have expected in a million years. With one quick swoop, he reached for me, placing his hands on my waist, and pulled me towards him. Before I had time to think, he lowered his mouth to mine and kissed me with an intensity like I’d never known. His lips were soft and warm, and suddenly, I was leaning right into him. It was clear that he was no Prince Charming. There was no white horse. No castle on the hill. He was rough, tough, and sexy as hell—and my God, he could kiss like it was nobody’s business. His arms wound tight around me, inching me even closer as his tongue found its way into my mouth. I was holding on by a thread, and just as I was becoming completely lost in his touch, he pulled back, quickly breaking our embrace. His blue eyes danced with lust as they locked on mine. He lifted his hand up to my mouth, gently brushing the pad of his thumb across my bottom lip and asked, “You still feeling nervous?”

Still feeling a bit dazed, I muttered, “Hmm?”

“I’ll take that as a no.” He chuckled as he reached for my hand and led me over to the bike. He handed me a helmet, and after helping me put it on, he said, “You’re all set. Just hop on behind me.”

He got on and extended his hand, guiding me as I swung my leg over and eased on behind him. “Now, what?”

“Just put your feet on the pegs and hold on. Leave the rest to me.”

“I think I can handle that.”

“I thought you could.”

He started up the engine, and I held onto his waist as we pulled out onto the road. I’d lived in Memphis for three years, driven down the same roads we were riding on a hundred times, but everything seemed completely different being on the back of his bike. It was like the city was alive, a living, breathing organism, and we were a part of her. The wind was her breath. The different sounds, the music, the horns blowing in the distance were her voice. And the people, diverse in so many ways: rich, poor, dreamers, the homeless, those who sought a future, others who found despair—they were her heart. I’d never felt such a rush as I did nestled up behind him, crossing street after street, and when we finally stopped at our first destination, I was feeling better than ever. As he helped me off the bike, he asked, “Well, what did you think?”

“I loved it.” I glanced up at the Pyramid and asked, “So, what are we doing here?”

“I thought we’d go up to the lookout deck and grab a bite to eat,” he answered as he took off his helmet and put it on the back of the bike.

“Sounds good to me.” Once I removed my helmet and handed it to him, I followed him towards the door. I’d heard several of the nurses talking about how one of the bigger hunting stores had purchased the Pyramid and added several restaurants, places to shop, and the lookout deck, but I hadn’t actually gone to see it for myself. As soon as we walked through the door, it was clear that a lot had gone into the renovations. I looked over to Sawyer and said, “Have you been here since they’ve changed everything?”

“A couple of times. Kevin likes to come look at the fish.”

“This is amazing.”

“I was hoping you might like it.”

We spent an hour or so just walking around looking at things and then he asked, “You ready to go up?”

“Sure.” He led me over to the elevator that took us up to the lookout deck. Once we made it up to the top, he reached for my hand and I followed him outside. We stepped out onto the deck, and the view was absolutely incredible. You could see the Mississippi River and all of downtown. “It’s beautiful. I can’t believe I’ve never done this before.”

He slipped his arm around my waist and said, “Not nearly as beautiful as you.”

I rolled my eyes as I said playfully, “Really? I didn’t think a stud like you would need to use a cheesy line like that.”

“I take offense to that.” He chuckled. “I wasn’t using some cheesy line. I was simply giving a compliment to a beautiful lady.”

“Um-hmm. If you say so.” I giggled.

He poked me in the side. “So, you think I’m a stud, huh?”

“You picked up on that one, did ya?”

“You’re the one who said it.” Just then, a surprisingly playful expression crossed his handsome face. “So, you think I’m a stud. I like that. My beauty thinks I’m a stud.”

Shaking my head, I started walking towards the door. “Okay, that’s enough of that.”

“Hey! Where ya going?”

“I’m hungry.” Hoping to distract him from the stud comment, I asked, “How about some lunch?”

“Yeah.” He smiled and patted his stomach. “This stud could go for something to eat.”

Trying to bite back a huge grin, I sighed and said, “Move it stud. This beauty is withering away. I must eat before I starve.”

We were both laughing as we headed into the lookout’s restaurant for lunch. We spent the next hour eating and talking while enjoying the beautiful views of the city. It was really nice. I loved talking to him, even when he was teasing me about the stud thing. Once we were done eating, we went back out to the bike. Like before, I saddled up behind him as we rode down Riverside Drive. From there, we went to places I’d never been before. Honestly, I didn’t care where we were, I just enjoyed being on the bike with him. I thought about all the men I’d been attracted to before. Sometimes, it was because of their dashing good looks, their charming personality, or simply because of their great sense of humor, but with Sawyer, it was all those things and more—so much more. I was shocked at how my attraction to him ran so deep, and as I wrapped my arms around him, inching myself closer, I was in a state of pure bliss.

I’d hoped that feeling could last a bit longer, unfortunately, he pulled up to the curb at my apartment, signaling the end of our date. Once we got off the bike, I smiled up at him and said, “I really had fun today.”

“I did, too. Maybe we can go again sometime.”

“I’d like that.”

I suddenly started to feel nervous. I couldn’t help myself. It was the way he was looking at me, like a lion about to pounce. When he reached for me, I took a step back, but I was too late. I was already wrapped in his arms with his mouth pressed against mine. Every single nerve in my body came alive as rough, calloused hands held me against his broad, muscular body. Did he even realize what he was doing to me? My insides felt like they were on fire. Holy crap, Sawyer literally had my head spinning. Before I melted into a messy puddle by the curb, I wound my arms around his neck and held on tight, pulling him closer as he deepened the kiss. When his hands started to slowly roam over my body, I knew we were getting carried away. We were standing out in front of my apartment, in broad daylight, pawing each other like horny teenagers, and as much as I was loving every single moment of it, we had to stop. I placed my hands on his shoulders, and with great, great hesitation, I took a step back, breaking our connection.

Licking his lips, he flashed a devious smile and asked, “You got plans for tomorrow night?”