Free Darkness Bound by Stella Cameron Page A

clapped his hands. “C’mon Jazzy, boy. Quit checking your pee-mail.” He swept up Leigh’s dog and stuffed him between Blue’s front feet.
    Blue gave Jazzy a lick and got an adoring stare in response.
    Niles closed down the sidecar and handed Leigh a crash helmet. When she didn’t seem to know what to do with it, he put it on her head and carefully fastened and checked it for fit.
    He lifted her from the ground and placed her on the pillion, then slid a leg over and sat in front of her.
    Her heart did jumping jacks and she thought her blood might have heated up several degrees. The leather-covered back in front of her was impossibly broad and black wavy hair escaped the bottom of Niles’s helmet. She couldn’t take in everything she’d like to from her current position but flexed thighs filling out his jeans would be hard to miss, and when he leaned forward to kick off the stand a quick downward glance gave a perfect view of hard buns.
    She looked at the sky. This was outrageous. What was she doing here with this man? On a motorcycle? Leigh had never been on a motorcycle before.
    He smiled at her over his shoulder. “Off we go. Feel free to hang on to anything that appeals to you. Everything about this bike is absolutely safe.”
    She nodded and thought,
including you?
    The bike roared off, leaving Leigh’s stomach in Gabriel’s parking lot. A glance at the sidecar showed Jazzy standing between Blue’s front legs, body fully extended to reach the window rim, so he could look out with a doggy laugh at the passing scenery. So much for the dog who didn’t like riding in cars—evidently motorbikes were different.
    Wind grabbed at Leigh’s hair, lifting it on either side of the helmet. The air smelled good, of pine and the coldest part of the winter that was almost upon them.
    They leaned into a corner and Leigh’s tummy went the wrong way again. She filled her hands with the two pleats where Niles’s leather jacket expanded for movement. Her own coat, though down, was not thick enough to keep out the biting air.
    They shot past several cars and made another turn, in the opposite direction.
    Leigh closed her eyes, slid her arms as far as theywould go around Niles, and pressed her visored face into his back. She clung on, letting herself go with the moves until she was almost lulled.
    From time to time she looked to see where they were but she was more comfortable with her eyes shut. Once Niles patted her hand against his side and the simple gesture made her smile.
    “Fun, huh?” he said loudly.
    She opened her eyes and realized they had stopped at a curb and there were a few buildings on either side of a gravel-strewn road on the outskirts of Langley. The ride had only taken about twenty minutes.
    With a jerk, she sat straight and pulled her arms back to rest her hands on her thighs.
    Niles kicked down the stand and looked back at her again. “You okay?”
    “Oh, yes. That was great.”
    “See those two,” he said, pointing at the sidecar. “They want more.”
    The dogs did look as if they were drunk on pleasure and panting for more of the same.
    When Leigh climbed off the cycle she had a shock. Her legs felt like water. They seemed to have no substance and she could scarcely stop herself from falling.
    “Hey,” Niles said, laughing. “Your first time? That can happen.” He put an arm around her waist and took off the helmet for her before removing his own. He hung one on each handlebar, keeping an eye on Leigh at the same time.
    Her apparent inability to walk shocked her. She tried to take a step and laughed nervously when Niles swung back and caught her by the shoulders.
    This time he didn’t laugh.
    She couldn’t look away from his face. He frowned a little, searching her eyes as if he thought he could see inside her.
    “Just stay still for a few moments,” he said, his voice quietly, deeply penetrating. “We all need to get our sea legs sometimes.”
    His lips parted and he passed the tip of