Free Clutched (Wild Riders) by Elizabeth Lee

be.
    “Go!” I yelled and wound my hand in the air telling her to up her speed on the straightaway when she flew by. Reid was putting her through her paces on the track. I heard the uptick of the throttle and knew that she'd taken my suggestion. Her last lap time was a microsecond better than before so I had to agree that riding with Reid was a good idea.
    “Well?” she asked when she pulled her helmet off and shut off the bike. I was taken for a split second by the way her long hair glistened in the sunlight as it fell around her shoulders. Even sweating and dirty from riding she was beautiful.
    Ugh.
    “It was a little better,” I told her. “Plenty to work on still,” I said, holding up my notepad to show her the list I'd jotted down as I'd watched her.
    “Great,” she said half-hardheartedly. At least she was kind of interested in what I had to say.
    “Not too bad, kiddo,” Reid told her when he pulled up next to her. “You nearly had me on the back half.”
    “When you ride with the best...” She shrugged with a grin.
    “Keep a tight grip on the turns and I think you'll be even faster,” Reid told her.
    “I'll keep that in mind. Thanks for riding with me today.”
    “I'm glad you can take advice from at least one, Travers.” I muttered and shook my head. Just when I thought I couldn't get more annoyed with her she went and got all “I'll keep that in mind” with my brother. “Let's hit the gym this after lunch.”
    She nodded her head and started to speak when Nora bounced up next to us.
    “Nice job, babe,” she said, giving Reid a peck on the cheek. “And you too, missy,” she said to Chayse.
    “Thank you,” Chayse replied. “I'm Chayse by the way.” She extended her hand to Nora.
    “Nora. It's so nice to meet you,” Nora said to Chayse as she pulled her into a hug, nearly knocking her off her bike. That was Nora for you. The girl had never met a stranger. “Hoyt has told us a lot about you.”
    “He has?” The look on Chayse's face was priceless. One part confusion, one part terror. “I imagine he's told you I'm a pain in the ass.”
    “He hasn't,” Nora assured her, sneaking me a glance that had “you're welcome” written all over it. As grateful that I was that Nora hadn't given Chayse another reason to hate me, it was time to eat lunch and get to the gym. They could bond over their estrogen another time.
    “Are you ready to go?” I asked Chayse.
    “He's told us that you're a fantastic rider,” Nora added. “You really did look great out there today.”
    “I told you she could be a fantastic rider,” I corrected. “If we could get a workout in today that would be great.”
    “All right. I'm going,” Chayse said before she rode off.
    “We'll see you at the party tomorrow night,” Nora yelled after her.
    I felt the sting of Nora's hand against my shoulder and had to wait for the rumble of Chayse's bike to fade before I could ask her what the hell that was for.
    “Ouch,” I said, rubbing my hand down my arm. “What was that about?”
    “Seriously?” Nora said pointedly. “You're a jerk.”
    “You spoke to her for five seconds and you're already taking her side?” I shook my head. “I thought we were family,” I added with a wounded smile.
    “Hos over bros,” she said, earning a chuckle from Reid. “You could have at least agreed with me about the fantastic rider part of our conversation. Did you see the poor girl's face when you offered up your two-cents?”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “You hurt her feelings.”
    “You think we have time for that out here?” I asked, pointing at the track. “This is motocross, Nora. We're here to ride, not to sit around discussing what does and doesn't hurt our feelings. If she wanted that she would have joined a sorority and not a race team.”
    “You were kind of short with her,” Reid offered. “She's really good. You could have told her good job at least.”
    “You are too smart to be this stupid,”