She took a deep breath. “I’m at my limit right now. I have to think about what you’ve said. I’d really like to take that ride with you.”
She would like the bike. That was a plus on his side. He nodded and slid off the bed. “Dress warm, baby. It’s cold on the highway at night.”
He watched her slide off the bed. The way she moved was poetry. More than her looks, it was the brightness shining out of her that got to him. He felt it when he was with her. He was dark and ugly inside. She was light and so damned good he had no business pulling her down to his level, but it didn’t matter. It really wasn’t a choice anymore, not now that he knew she existed, not now that he’d been with her for so many weeks and he knew she needed him. He would be careful with her, but at the same time, it was necessary to prepare her for the bad times—and there were always going to be bad times with him.
She went into the bathroom, and he waited a couple of minutes and then opened the door and leaned against the doorjamb. She looked startled, outraged and then resigned.
“Do you understand about privacy?” She didn’t even bother to get angry.
“I understand very little about it,” he admitted, uncaring about anyone else and their privacy. This was about conditioning. This was about slowly drawing her into his world.
“Great. I’ll explain it to you. Privacy is where a person is free from being observed by another person. In this case, me shutting the door means don’t disturb me, I want to be alone.”
“Thanks for that explanation. In this case, I don’t really give a fuck. I wanted to tell you something.”
“What was so important you thought you would disturb my privacy?”
Now there was amusement in her voice. He liked that about her. She had a great sense of humor, and she was going to need it.
“Not certain you deserve to know.”
“Fine, don’t tell me. Just remember the definition of privacy.”
“I will, baby, if you promise to remember that you follow my rules.”
Her gaze met his across the room. “Do your rules include me not going to the bathroom by myself? Because, seriously, if you have a fetish that includes anything to do with the bathroom, that’s kind of a deal breaker for me right off the bat.”
“No fetish, babe. Just don’t like you closing doors on me.”
She studied his expression for a long time, so long he felt his heart begin to accelerate. “Are you going to lay out your rules for me, or do I have to guess at them?”
“I’ll lay them out, Seychelle. Because breaking them carries consequences, some pretty rough. It wouldn’t be fair to you if you didn’t know the rules ahead of time. I am Torpedo Ink, same as my brothers and Alena and Lana. There are rules to living in a club as well.”
“What happened to freedom, Savage? I thought clubs were all about freedom.”
“Just as society has bullshit rules, we have them too.”
She blinked and then laughed as she washed her hands in the sink. “At least you’re aware your rules are bullshit.”
“Yeah, they’re bullshit, but you still have to follow them. It’s the only way to keep me sane.” He waited until she pulled on jeans and a sweater, then held out his hand. “Let’s go. You’re going to get a real taste of what freedom is.”
She took his hand with only the briefest of hesitations. He pulled her into him. She was small, soft and all curves. He loved fitting her close to him.
“Where are we going?”
“Up the coast.” He swept his arm around her and walked her out to his bike. Just the sight of it settled him. The two things that mattered most in his world were coming together. He handed her gloves and then checked to make certain her jacket was very warm. He turned her so she was facing away from him, and he put his arms around her in order to zip the jacket all the way up.
“I’m going over the bike with you, babe, so don’t be nervous. You’re shaking.”
“I am a little nervous,” she admitted. “But mostly I’m excited.”
He showed her the foot pegs, folding and unfolding them, and explained how to get on and off. He explained how hot the pipes could get and to keep clear. He took her patiently through everything there was about being on a bike with him. He was a little astonished when she repeated everything back to him verbatim.
“I want your arms around my waist, Seychelle, at all times. When I lean, you just go with me. Not any further. Just exactly what I do. Like we’re making love. You got that, baby? You think you’re ready for this?”