Free Full Throttle by Kerrianne Coombes Page A

into
his bedroom. He hastily tugged free from his leathers and peeled off the gray
t-shirt underneath. He stalked into the bathroom and twisted the shower knob
with jerky movements.
    “Shit!” he growled and rested his palms on his sink.
His bike had been picked up at the scene by one of his friends, because he had
gone in the ambulance with Sammy. So he took a taxi home. The guilt he felt for
leaving Sammy alone in the hospital made him itchy and fidgety. All the way
home and he’d been seconds away from telling the driver to go back, until his
brother called him on his mobile. It’d felt good to be able to tell Tony that
Sammy was okay. He explained that she sat up and talked to him, even though
that dark bruise glared back at him each time he looked at her. And she had been
coherent and seemed fine.
    But he still couldn’t swallow the bile that rose at
the knowledge that she’d been so close to dying. She had flown through the air
like a paper bag in the wind, her small, feminine body hitting the road with a
sickening thud. It was all Josh could do to push the memory to the back of his
mind.
    “Shit!” He exclaimed again before he stepped into
the searing hot shower spray. He would never forgive himself for getting her to
chase him along that country road. She’d been flexing her newly learned skills
as a biker. Accelerating lightly to speed down that road. And like a fool, Josh had taken it as flirting, biker style.
    He leaned his head against the cool tiles and closed
his eyes. He was tired, bone-tired, and tense. He allowed the water to batter
his shoulder muscles until the spray ran cool and then he stepped out of the
shower, dried himself off and fell into bed. He would sleep for a little while
and then return to Sammy before she could get lonely. He remembered the sight
of her holding back tears, her green eyes so filled with moist misery, he’d nearly
cried for her. He wouldn’t leave her alone for long. She might not have family,
but he would make sure, that until she was at least feeling better, she had him
around to help.
    ****
    Josh opened his eyes on a start. Something woke him,
and this something must have been loud because he’d been fast asleep. His mind
whispered “front door” but he couldn’t recall hearing an actual sound. He
turned his head slowly and watched the gap in the door. The light was still on
in his living room and he waited to see if a shadow passed by. His heart
thundered in his chest as he waited, poised. He was not a paranoid person, nor
a wimp. If his instinct said that there was someone out there, then there was.
    He began to slowly sit up and went stiff when the
bedroom door started to slide open. A dark shadow stopped inside the room, and
Josh knew immediately who it was. He sat up, flicked on the lamp, and glared at
Penny.
    “What the fuck are you doing?” He snapped as he
dragged a sheet up to cover his nakedness.
    Her shrewd dark gaze watched him cover up, and she
ran her tongue across her bottom lip. She was wearing a rain coat, loads of red
lipstick and high boots that said “fuck me.”
    “What do you think I’m doing, Josh?” She said in a
sultry tone as she stepped closer to where he still lay. Her hands went to her
coat belt and Josh sprang from the bed to stop her from removing what he knew
to be her only clothing. She grinned at him and bit her bottom lip
suggestively. “Eager, Josh?” She let go of her belt and ran her flattened hands
over his chest, all the while giving him a look that spoke of dirty, monkey sex.
    Deep
breaths. You
don’t like her, remember? She ditched you. Remember?
    “No. Look, Penny.”
    She slid her hands to the precariously loose sheet
hanging from his hips, and he couldn’t help but pause at the sight of her slim
fingers as they attempted to dip below the thin barrier. His blood surged to
his cock and his heart picked up the pace. He saw her red nails a moment before
they disappeared below the sheet and his mind kicked back