Free Burning Down the House (Skull Crackers Motorcycle Club) by Marissa Knight Page A

okay?”
     
    Still she remained silent. Hopefully, they would think she was sleeping. To her dismay, a strong, masculine hand grasped her shoulder and shook her gently.
     
    “Miss! Answer me.”
     
    He shook her harder but didn’t hurt her. Then his voice became frantic, and he yanked open the passenger door. Obviously, ignoring him wasn’t going to send him on his way. It was only going make him stay longer, so she opened her eyes. The man’s face was right in front of hers, and she started with surprise. For a moment, she saw a bright smile come to his lips, but then her gaze moved to his eyes – bright blue eyes that shone with merriment.
     
    “I’m sorry,” he said, “but you scared the hell out of me when you didn’t respond. I thought you were unconscious at the very least.”
     
    Melanie smiled up at him. “I’m fine.” His face was so close to hers that she could smell the peppermint on his breath, mixed with the cologne he wore. Blond hair hung in those bewitching eyes that forced her to stare into them as though they held her by force. His closeness sent her mind reeling with unexpected desire. She didn’t want him to move away because he was probably the best looking man she’d ever seen in her life – at least in person.
     
    Struggling to regain her composure, she shifted in her seat. If he wanted to, all he had to do was kiss her, and she would probably turn to mush. She needed to discourage him because her husband would return, and her guilt at having kissed another man would consume her. She’d never done anything considered a great sin – or even a minor one. But oh, how she wanted this man to kiss her! And what if Jake found out? He would be devastated.
     
    “You look a bit dazed,” he said in concern.
     
    Dazed by your good looks , she thought. But aloud she said, “I’m fine. Would you mind backing up so I have some space?”
     
    To her dismay, he did as she requested, his face reddening in embarrassment. “Sorry.”
     
    Melanie pulled the switch to bring the back of her seat forward and smiled at him. What an odd thing to see, a man with a scraggly blond beard in a biker jacket blushing. It made him seem less threatening.
     
    “What are you doing taking a nap on the side of the road?”
     
    “Waiting for a tow truck. Stupid old junk heap here broke down not a mile from the new house.”
     
    “Want me to take a look at it?”
     
    “No, thank you. I’ll probably just junk it, anyway. I just didn’t want to drive my good car back and forth to a construction zone.”
     
    “Makes sense,” he said. “Well, I guess I’ll get back on the road. I have some people to meet up with.”
     
    It was then that Melanie noticed there was only one motorcycle this time. Was he going to meet the gang who had gone by a while ago? Would he take her along so she could have her adventure if she asked him to?
     
    Somehow she managed to respond to his statement, but it was difficult getting out the words. “Thank you for your concern. I’m sorry to have held you up. Have a good trip.”
     
    With a smile, the man nodded and headed toward his motorcycle as he donned his helmet. The back of his leather jacket had words sprawled across it in a half-circle: Skull Crackers. Below that was a logo of a skull with two fists hitting to it. A shiver rushed through her. The message was ominous, despite how kind he had been to her.
     
    He stopped and came back to the Jeep, opening the passenger door and getting in without her permission.
     
    “Thought I should stay and wait with you,” he said with a grin. “You shouldn’t be waiting out here alone.”
     
    Suddenly, her nerves shouted for her to be careful. Her mind shouted for her to think of Jake. But she didn’t want to. She wanted to see what would happen if they spent any time together. “I’ll be fine.”
     
    He doffed his shiny dark blue helmet and tossed it into the back seat. The action revealed a tousled mass of blond waves