Free Hot Pursuit by Lorie O'Clare Page B

being her own bodyguard. Zoey wasn’t a tyrant like her father. Bodyguards deserved vacations from time to time.
    “No!” she yelled over Ben’s shoulder, which she was able to do only because her part of the seat was noticeably higher than his. “Just keep in mind everyone knows me in this town and you just paraded us through downtown. So don’t even think—”
    His laughter cut her off. “You’re in the most trustworthy hands in the state of California.”
    She prayed he was right. For once, she would take a walk on the wild side, or make that a ride on the wild side. She was doing something because she wanted to do it. It was daring, spontaneous, and dangerous. And she prayed she wasn’t making the worst decision of her life.
    Zoey was terrified, stimulated, turned on, and entranced all at the same time. Her heart beat too hard in her chest, and her tummy was doing flip-flops. Gorgeous men simply didn’t come along and sweep her off her feet, literally.
    She adjusted the helmet on her head so she could see better around her. If anyone did step out from any of the shops downtown to get a better look, Zoey wanted to know who was doing the staring. Or if early-evening strollers stopped in their tracks to check her and Ben out, Zoey would know who. So far no one had, not that Zoey could see inside shop windows. But if her father informed her he’d received a phone call, before going on to berate her for humiliating him and the Cortez name—not that he didn’t do that every day—she would at least have a good idea who made the phone call. So far, Zoey had seen no one staring at her and Ben.
    Daring to relax just a bit, she dropped her hand on her leg. Already one of her hands rested on his waist. If she wrapped her arms around him, leaned into his hot, muscular backside, she might very well forget about the potentially dangerous situation she was getting herself into. Instead she allowed herself to enjoy the muffled rumble of the motor from inside her helmet. It gave her the odd sensation that she was suddenly in her own world where nothing else she’d just left mattered anymore.
    “Hold on, sweetheart,” Ben said over his shoulder, and straightened his arms in front of his handlebars.
    His legs moved, and she was forced to adjust hers. Then they were moving. Really moving. Instinctively Zoey wrapped both arms around his waist, clinging to him at first. After they’d ridden a few blocks and were no longer downtown, her grip relaxed. Zoey realized she’d had her head pressed against his back and raised it to look around.
    “So give me the tour,” Ben said, looking over his shoulder at her.
    “It seems more as if you were giving me the tour.”
    Ben had an ornery smile. Dimples appeared on either side of his mouth as he smirked at her. It was harder to see his eyes, but focusing on his profile she also noticed his eyelashes were long and thick. His blond hair bordering the strong features on his face helped give him a charming look. Zoey imagined Ben to either be an incredible troublemaker or the type of man who would always save the day and make sure no one was ever harmed. She couldn’t imagine him being both but also couldn’t decide which way his nature went.
    “Are there factories in Zounds, or maybe any contractors who might need a painter or a carpenter?” he asked. “I’m pretty good with my hands.”
    She just bet he was. “Rod Greene hires temporary help from time to time when he’s working on a home,” she offered.
    “Greene?” Ben asked, again turning his head slightly when he spoke to her. His hands rested on his handlebars, and he leaned forward slightly but then straightened his arms once again when they reached the end of the street. “Left or right?”
    “Umm, right,” she decided. Not that it mattered. It was dark now, and there wasn’t anywhere she could take him at night that would help him find work. Nor could she think of any part of town worth showing off in the dark.