Breaking the Cycle (Rocking Racers Book 1) Page 4

  “So Liam rides with Hunter?” I ask. I don't disguise the worry in my voice. These men who I barely know already matter to me.

  “Nah, they managed to miss each other, but every now and again if a ride comes up for Hunter, they’ll race each other.”

  “And how does that go?”

  A smug smile crosses Jax’s face. “Liam leaves him in his dust.”

  “Yeah!” Chris cheers from my lap and we laugh.

  “Liam’s like the love child of Reed and Hunter. He has Hunter’s talent and Reed’s work ethic, which makes him unbeatable. Hunter can’t stand it. I mean, you saw what happened last night.”

  Shock at just how serious this is rips through me. “That was him?” I gasp.

  “Him and his goons. It seems the more success Ryan Racing has, or every time something happens with his outfit, we get the blame.”

  “So what happened to cause this latest attack?”

  “I heard Hunter missed out on a ride for the race on the weekend, so naturally it must be our fault. It has nothing to do with the fact he can barely walk in a straight line, let alone race a 1000cc bike at 300 km/h.”

  “He’s not a nice guy,” Chris says.

  My eyes drop to Chris and I offer a small smile. “It doesn’t sound like it.” I give Chris a quick squeeze. “So who does this Hunter race for?”

  “Devil Racing. No idea why they still sponsor him, but it’s their loss.”

  My face pales because despite not knowing about the world this lot of good-looking men inhabit, I do know Devil Racing.

  Chapter Six

  REED

  I walk into the kitchen determined to make this a quick chat. I’ve got plans for my girl and me.

  “What’s up, man?” I ask Park. “Bria’s here.”

  “She is?”

  “Yeah, Chris is with her right now.”

  He peers through the window into the dining room. Shaking his head, he says, “For as long as I live, I will never know how she got to him.”

  Looking at her as she laughs at something Jax says, my heart swells in my chest. “I think I’m beginning to understand.”

  “Yeah?” Park cocks an eyebrow.

  “There’s something about her.”

  “There really is.”

  “She just fits. Tell me it doesn’t feel like she’s been a part of this family for years.”

  “No, you’re totally right, man. She does fit, almost perfectly.”

  “No almost about it. So what did you want to talk to me about that’s keeping me from my girl?”

  “You got the parts for Liam’s bike for the weekend?”

  “Yes, Park, I have. They arrived today as I told you they would. I have done this before, you know. In fact, I used to do this for a living.”

  He sighs and stops flipping burgers for a second. “Yeah, I know, and we all know how much you gave up for the field and for the family. It’s just—”

  “It’s just the pre-race jitters don’t lessen even if you’re no longer the one on the bike. I get it.”

  “You could’ve been great, you know.”

  I don't want to hear it. I know what I gave up. “Wasn’t meant to be.” I give a one-shoulder shrug. “You know that as well as I do.”

  “But at least I got Chris out of it.”

  “And I got my life. Seems like a fair enough trade.”

  “Especially when a girl like Bria comes along, am I right?” Parker chuckles.

  “Damn straight. So can I go out there and get her now?”

  Park laughs. “Yeah, sure, have fun.” He offers his fist. I pound it out before exiting the kitchen.

  Bria looks lost in thought when I get to the table where she sits with Chris on her lap, the lucky bastard. I slide in beside them and Bria snaps back to reality.

  “So what does it take for a girl to get a burger around here?” she asks in her sweet voice.

  “A whole lot because you and I are going out.”

  “We are?”

  “Yep, on a date. Our first in fact,” I say, grabbing Chris and swinging him over the table to stand beside the booth.

  “And if I wanted to stay here?”

  I slide closer to her, running my hand from her knee up to her thigh, my lips at her ear, and say, “Please, angel, I just want to be alone with you, get to know you better. I’m not above begging.”

  She turns her head and gives me a quick, chaste kiss on the lips. “Okay.”

  “Okay?” I ask, shocked she gave in so easily. I hope that means I’m getting through to her, but I just don’t know her well enough to make that distinction, yet. But I’m determined it won’t be long until I can.

  “Yep, I've decided you need to woo me, so let’s get to it.” A brilliant smiles curves her lips as she playfully pushes me out of the booth.

  As soon as she’s out of the booth, I grab her hand and race towards the door.

  “Bye, Reed, bye, sis, have fun!” Jax calls out as we burst outside.

  “Did Jax just call me sis?” Bria asks as she tries to keep up with me. I don’t answer; I’m in too much of a rush to begin our night.

  Chapter Seven

  BRIA

  Reed pulls me through the diner in a rush and I admit, I’m as eager as he seems to be to start our date. It appears sometime during the chaos that was last night, this band of men have wormed their way into my heart, none more so than Christian and his eldest uncle.

  Reed comes to a stop in front of a shiny, pearlescent-blue bike—a very fast one by the look of things.

  “Have you ever ridden on one of these?” he asks, grabbing helmets, one off the handlebars and the other out of a lock box on the back.

  I bite my lip and shake my head. The ones I used to tool around on when I was younger were nothing like this.

  Reed tugs on my chin to release my lip. “Do you want to? If you’re uncomfortable, we can take my car.”

  I’ve always wanted to learn how to ride a motorbike, but have been scared shitless to actually do it. I mean, if something goes wrong, there’s not a lot of protection between you and the road, but I’m not scared with Reed.

  “No, the bike is fine. Just don’t go too fast, okay?”

  Reed steps up to me, both of his hands finding my hips and pulling me flush to him. “Angel, I promise I will never do anything you don’t want me to do. Putting you at risk by speeding doesn’t sit right with me, so if you want me to drive at 10 km/h that’s what I’ll do, okay?”

  I smile nervously and chuckle a little. “I don’t think going that slow will be necessary, just don’t go speeding off.”

  “Sure thing.” After a quick, chaste kiss, he puts the helmet on my head, adjusting the chinstrap before putting his own on.

  He picks me up and puts me on the back of the bike, and hops on in front of me. He then reaches back and pulls me tight to his back. My arms are crossed securely across his very tight abs, my thighs hugging his narrow hips.

  “If you want me to slow down, just tap my stomach, okay?”

  I nod and Reed starts the bike, bringing it to life beneath us. He moves easily with the bike, leaning into the corners, taking me with him, the cool night rushing around us.

  It’s exhilarating, the sense of freedom coming from not being in the confines of a car. I feel like I'm almost part of the scenery I'm riding through. Beneath my helmet, I wear a massive smile.

  We ride for about twenty minutes before he pulls over to a rest stop off the side of our town’s main road. Just because we’re in the middle of nowhere really, it doesn’t mean we’re behind the times. Even all the way out here, we follow culinary trends. A rickety old food truck is sitting in the clearing, and the smell of herbs and spices permeates the air.

  Reed helps me off the bike, running his hand through his hair, making him look even more irresistible than he already is. I bite my lip beneath my helmet before taking it off, my hair drifting around me in a blonde cloud.

  I manage to just get it off my face before Re
ed crashes his lips to mine.

  He sucks my bottom lip before his tongue begs entrance and I grant it. I moan into his mouth and Reed growls and pulls me tighter to him. His tongue explores my mouth, the minty taste of the gum he must have been chewing seeping into mine. His body feels amazing against mine with the tight abs I was hugging a few minutes ago and strong, muscular arms keeping my body next to his.

  Finally, he breaks the kiss, leaving us both panting a little.

  “Damn, baby.”

  “What?” I ask, still trying to get my bearings.

  “You have no idea how incredible you look, do you?”

  “An incredible mess, you mean?” I say, running my hand through my mop of hair.

  “Baby, you are so far from a mess it’s not funny.” He pulls me tighter to him. “You are so goddamn amazing, and you have no idea.”

  Heat crawls its way to my cheeks. “I’m just a uni student.”

  “Oh, angel, you are so much more than that already.”

  “What do you mean, already?” I ask as Reed takes hold of my hand and pulls me towards the truck.

  “I mean that quickly, so quickly, almost instantly, you have brought a lightness to our family.”

  The quick and instant is right. I've been barely able take a breath and get myself together since last night and meeting him. But it's another word that catches my attention. “A lightness?”

  “I can’t explain it, but it’s like we can smile again or something.”

  “Reed, I’ve known you and your family for”—I glance at my watch—“twenty-two hours now.”

  “I know, and that’s the crazy thing. You’ve just slotted in like you’ve always been there. Anyway, let’s get some food and we can talk about this over dinner.”

  “Reed!” a voice from inside the truck says.

  “Hey, man, how the hell are ya?” Reed asks.

  “I’m good.”

  “That’s good. Hey, meet my girl, Bria,” Reed says, pushing me forward.

  “Bria, huh?” the voice says as I step forward, and I recognise Mike, the owner. “How you doing, girl? The usual?”

  “I’m good, Mike, and the usual will be fine, thanks.” I smile at Reed's wide eyes.

  “You know Mike?” he asks.

  “Been coming here about as long as you. I’m kind of amazed you two have never run into each other. You’re both here enough, but I see you found each other anyway. I am a bit surprised a woman of your intelligence is with a bum like this one, though,” Mike says, nodding towards Reed.

  “Hey, man, not cool!” Reed says, pulling me back to him, my back to his front, and resting his chin on my shoulder. His grin doesn't match his offended tone.

  Mike chuckles. “Hell, man, she’s a smart girl. Figured she already knew that. So what are you eating?”

  “Give me a rack of ribs with baked beans, fries, coleslaw, and a Coke.”

  “Gotcha. Go take a seat and I’ll bring it out to you.”

  “So you know Mike, huh?” Reed asks as we take a seat at a nearby picnic table.

  “I do.” I shoot him a smile.

  “So was he right?” Reed asks as he reaches across the table and twines his fingers with mine.

  “About what?”

  “That you know I’m a bum but you’re here anyway.”

  “Of course I’m here. It’s undeniable. I’m sitting right across from you.” I poke out my tongue.

  “You know what I mean.”

  “No, I don’t think you’re a bum; in fact, I think there’s a lot more to you than meets the eye.”

  “Jax told you the story.”

  “Jax told me a story. I don’t know if it’s the story.”

  “What did he tell you?”

  “That you used to race, you had trouble with a guy named Hunter. He was a danger to you, the other racers, and himself and the race organisation didn’t do anything to stop him so you quit.”

  “Yeah, that’s the story.”

  “That was a very selfless thing you did.”

  “Yeah well, he had to be stopped. Now he just comes after us in different ways.”

  “Before we get too into this, I’ve got to tell you that I may be unfamiliar to a lot, basically all, of the motor racing world, but I have heard of Devil Racing before.”

  “Okay,” Reed says hesitantly. “A lot of people have.”

  “There’s a little bit more to it than that.”

  Chapter Eight

  REED

  I’m not gonna lie, when she says there’s more to it, I’m seriously starting to freak-out. Does she know Hunter? How well? Did they used to date? How come I never met her before? And more importantly, can I walk away from her knowing she’s close to Hunter?

  I take a deep breath and try to calm down. “I gotta tell you, I’m freaking out a little here.”

  “It’s nothing bad,” she rushes to reassure me, “but I grew up with one of the guys who rides for Devil.”

  I’ve now got the entire roster of that piece-of-shit outfit running through my head. “Who?”

  “Roman Thomas. I haven’t spoken to him in years though. He, um, he changed after signing with them.”

  I have to admit the name doesn’t ring a bell, but Devil has so many guys going through the garage, all of them with hopes of becoming the next Mick Doohan but then shoved in development classes or used as test riders. The fact he, Bria’s friend, changed after he signed with them, well, devil by name, devil by nature.

  “Can’t say I know of the guy but I appreciate you telling me of the connection.”

  “Rome’s a great guy. Well, he was before he got involved with them, but when they first started talking to him, it was like he forgot who he was and what he stood for. He caused a lot of heartache.”

  “For you?” My heart starts pounding. I really don’t like the idea of my girl being an ex to one of these guys.

  “No, not to me, to my best friend, Grayson. Her and Rome, they were ‘the’ couple in our high school.”

  I exhale a deep breath. “You really had me going for a minute there, angel. I had all sorts of crazy thoughts running through my head.”

  Bria gets up and comes around my side of the table. I turn and draw her into my lap and she wraps her arms around my neck, my hands resting on her hips. On contact, I ease into her touch and affection. Effortless. Everything about Bria is so natural, as easy as breathing.

  “I just didn’t want something to happen and for it to come out that I know him and you be blindsided by it.”

  “Thank you, baby.”

  “It’s just, I think we’ve got something here, you know?” I catch the slight shake in her voice, her nerves rising to the surface.

  “Oh, I know.” I bounce her a little in my lap, which turns out to be a very bad idea judging by the tightening in my groin. “But I do appreciate it.” I draw her face to mine, our lips seeking each other out. I take the time to explore her mouth. My lips feel bruised from our earlier kiss but I don’t give a fuck.

  God, this girl. I’m almost certain I never want to let her go, and I’ve got a feeling it won’t take long for that “almost” to disappear.

  One of my hands moves to her arse while the other travels up to her chest to graze her breast. I lightly rub her nipple and feel it harden under my touch. She moans into my mouth and I pull her tighter to me, my cock pressing hard against my zipper now.

  We’re interrupted by someone clearing his throat.

  “Sorry to interrupt you lovebirds, but I figured you wouldn’t want to let this food get cold,” Mike says, two giant plates in his hands.

  I clear my throat as Bria hides against my neck. “Yeah, thanks, man.”

  He snickers as he puts the plates down. “Enjoy.” He walks away.

  I look to see what Bria ordered and laugh. It’s the same as mine but she’s ordered different sides.

  “You’re a fucking dream,” I mutter before I crash my lips to hers again.

  I finally manage to tear m
y lips away from hers. “Come on, let’s eat before it gets cold.”

  Mike comes back to deliver our drinks, a Coke for me, a milkshake for Bria, but not just any milkshake. There’s syrup and cream running down the sides, four wafer sticks sticking out, plus... “Are those profiteroles on top?” I ask.

  “They surely are,” she says, taking a long sip.

  “Is it as good as it looks?”

  “Better.” There’s a twinkle in her eye.

  “Want to give me a taste?”

  “Nope.” She wraps her lips around the straw again.

  As soon as she releases it, I grab the back of her neck and bring her lips to mine, kissing the shit out of her.

  “Mmmm, caramel,” I say as I lick my lips, taking a wafer stick with me.

  Grinning, she shakes her head.

  “Come on, the food’s getting cold,” I say and gesture to our meals.

  “Mac and cheese, sweet potato fries, and potato bake, huh?” I ask, swinging a fork over her plate.

  “Food of the gods,” she says and shovels in a mouthful. She closes her eyes and moans. My dick twitches. He still hasn’t fully recovered from our make-out session before.

  “Wanna share?” I gesture to my sides.

  “Sure.” She shrugs and snags one of my chips.

  “So tell me about Bria Marie Adams.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Anything, everything.”

  “I’m an only child. My parents, Aaron and Lacey, have been together for twenty-eight years. They live in Mooresville, about an hour and a half from here on the coast.”

  “So my family must be a total culture shock compared to yours.”

  “There are a lot of you,” she concedes.

  “What else?”

  “I’m doing honours at Booker, a journalism/PR major.”

  “You live on campus?”

  “Yep, with my best friend, Grayson. We managed to snag a suite. It’s nice.”

  “You guys grew up together, right?”

  “Yep, our parents are best friends and we’re only a few months apart in age so naturally we were always together.”