Rydin' the Storm Out (5 page)

“You should go on a ride with us today,” Gunnar said.

Ryder was looking at her, his green eyes boring into hers, willing her to say yes.

“Umm, I don’t know. “ Molly flicked her eyes to Gunnar’s and then back to Ryder.

“I’m a good driver. I won’t let anything happen to you. Come on and try something new,” Ryder said.

Molly looked at Ryder and swallowed hard, unable to take her eyes off the green eyes staring at her. Gawd, he was gorgeous. When he looked at her and was this close to her, she couldn’t seem to think clearly.

“Okay.” Molly’s voice was soft. She couldn’t look away from this man in front of her.

Ryder let out the breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. Whew, that wasn’t so bad. She was so beautiful. Her eyes were shining, and he could tell she was feeling better as the color came back to her cheeks. She was smiling more, too. He wanted to see her smile all the time. Seeing her in his clothes made him feel all sorts of funny things. He kept imagining pulling them off of her. That dress she was wearing last night revealed what a nice ass she had.

“Excellent. Then it’s settled. I’ll call Mom and let her know; she’ll be thrilled. Dress warm, it’s a little cool out today.” Gunnar continued talking, with no one else able to get a word in.

When they finished breakfast, Ryder took Molly’s hand and pulled her back to the bedroom to grab her dress and shoes. She hesitated and turned to look at Ryder.

“I should change back into my dress and give you your clothes back.” Her voice was soft.

“Why don’t you leave them on Molly? It’s a little cold outside, and you may be happy to have something a little warmer on. In fact, if you need a jacket, I have an extra one you can wear.”

“Thank you.” Molly was once again cognizant of the fact that when she needed him to, Ryder was taking care of her.

Ryder walked to his closet and pulled out a black leather jacket loaded with zippers and studs. He held it open for Molly to slide her arms in. As he lifted the jacket to her shoulders, his knuckles brushed the back of her neck. Molly shivered at the contact.

“See, you were cold. Good thing I have an old jacket for you.”

Molly nodded. No need in telling him it wasn’t the temperature of the room that made her shiver. The jacket felt heavy and warm, and as she bent her head to zip it up, a puff of air lifted to her nostrils and she smelled…Ryder—the scent she remembered from the wedding, the scent that was permanently imprinted on her brain. Another shiver ran down her body and landed in her core, creating an ache between her legs.

“There. Now my house is programmed into your GPS. See?” Molly smirked.

“Thanks. Now I’ll be able to come back to your place again.” Ryder looked into Molly’s eyes waiting for her reaction.

Molly stared for a beat, but the lump in her throat at the look on his face and the innuendo in his comment made impressive words impossible. All she could manage was, “Awesome.”

On the ride to Molly’s place, she was staring out the window. She was trying to sort through her thoughts and emotions. Last night she had been jealous, even though she had no right to be. This morning, just seeing him at home in his element, made her want to spend more time with him. She really liked Joci, and she assumed Joci’s family would be like her, but her boys were great, this one in particular. As soon as he realized what kind of person she was, he would run for the hills, and that might really hurt. She was really starting to like him. A lot.

“What are you thinking about?”

Molly turned to see Ryder looking at her. He looked back at the road and then shot her another quick look. When she didn’t say anything, he raised an eyebrow in question.

Molly smirked. “You know, I don’t have to go along today. I know you said you wanted me to join you, but, it’s a family day for you, and I don’t have to go along.”

Oh, that’s what she was thinking. Ryder looked at the road again and then back at Molly.

“You need to stop worrying about that. You already know my family and you‘ll love riding. It gets in your blood. And,” Ryder swallowed, “I
want
you to come with us.” Ryder let out a deep breath. That wasn’t so bad.

Molly took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m excited to go. I’ll be like a real biker bitch or something.” Molly laughed as she watched her words roll around his brain.

Ryder burst out laughing. Oh. My. God. When he laughed, he was beautiful, simply beautiful. And, damn, it made her insides clench and moisten. His features were perfect. A strong jaw, full lips, beautiful skin. God, she thought he was something special.

Molly smiled. She let out a deep breath. “Did you think about asking me out at the wedding?”

Ryder looked at her again. He smirked at her and then nodded.

“Thank God.” It came out before she could keep it from tumbling out of her mouth. She blushed and threw her hands up over her mouth as Ryder looked at her with surprise in his eyes.

He raised his brows. Molly laughed a little. “I thought you weren’t interested.”

“Well, that was before I knew you couldn’t hold your liquor.” Ryder laughed.

Molly groaned. “Sorry we had to get together after I puked. How mortifying. I still can’t believe I let myself get so bad.”

“Why did you?” Ryder was smirking.

Molly smirked back at him. “You need your ego stroked, Ryder?”

“No. Why did you, Molly?”

Molly took a deep breath. She let it out slowly. “I was jealous.”

Ryder raised an eyebrow. “That so? What were you jealous of?”

Ryder pulled into Molly’s driveway and put the truck in park.

“Forget it, Ryder. I’m not stroking your ego anymore. Do you want to come in and wait for me to change or come back?”

Ryder grinned. She was jealous. Hmm. “I’ll come back and get you with the bike. We’ll need to be at Mom and Dad’s in an hour. I’ll be back in about fifty minutes or so.”

Molly opened the door of Ryder’s truck and jumped out. She was wearing his t-shirt, sweatpants, jacket, and her heels from last night. She turned to tell him she would get his clothes back to him but when she turned to look at him, he had gotten out of the truck and was walking around the side to her. His eyebrows were pinched together. Molly cocked her head to the side when she saw his face pinched up.

“You make it hard for me to mind my manners when you don’t let me open your door. My grandma would kick my ass if she thought I wasn’t a gentleman. Mom too.”

Molly laughed. “Sorry. I’m not used to anyone being gentlemanly towards me.”

Ryder furrowed his brow again and gently bowed in front of her. He stood and held his arm out to her. She placed her arm through his as they started walking to her front door. Both of them laughing at his feigned gallantry.

Ryder picked Molly up for their ride a few minutes before noon. She quickly showered and blew her hair dry. Good thing it was short and dried quickly. She put a black bandana over her hair, like she’d seen the women do at the Veteran’s Ride, to keep her hair from blowing all over. She applied a small amount of makeup and some lip gloss, and threw on a pair of jeans and an army green wrap sweater with a white camisole underneath. She would be wearing army green suede shoe-boots as well. She still had Ryder’s leather jacket, and would ask him if she could wear it for the day.

She heard the deep rumble of Ryder’s motorcycle pull into her driveway. She left the bathroom and headed to the front door as she heard him knock. She took a deep breath and opened the door. Could he look any friggin better? Molly flushed as she looked at him. He was wearing jeans that hugged his legs and his, um…front, perfectly. He was wearing an unzipped black leather jacket similar to the one she wore. His light green shirt highlighted his green eyes, and the shirt cuffs peeked out from under the sleeves of his leather. His spiky hair looked great, even after making the short ride over from his place—he looked perfect. A shiver ran the length of her body as her nipples puckered tight.

With a raspy voice he said, “You look beautiful, Molly.”

Molly blinked, taking in what he just said. “You look amazing yourself, Ryder. Wow.”

Ryder blushed and cleared his throat. “You ready?”

Molly nodded. “Um, do you mind if I borrow your jacket for the day? I really don’t have any riding clothes.”

“No, I don’t mind. You look great in it.” He blushed all the way to the tips of his ears.

Molly softly smiled as she walked out and closed her front door. “Oh wait. I want to bring my tablet and show your mom some of the wedding pictures. I know she’ll see them tomorrow, but I thought she might like to take a peek if we have any down time today. Is that okay?”

“Of course. She’ll be thrilled. Thanks for thinking of her.”

Molly ran back into the house to grab her tablet and tossed it into her big bag. Ryder smiled at her as she walked back outside. She was feeling giddy knowing she was about to go riding with Ryder! She couldn’t wait to call Tammy and tell her!

Ryder grabbed her bag. “I can put this in one of the side bags if you like. It’ll get heavy carrying it.”

Molly smiled up at him. Holy shit. His stomach rolled and his cock throbbed when he looked at her. That smile of hers was what he’d been thinking about this whole week. Her perfect teeth, full lips, and that body. Jesus. He was going to have a hard-on all fucking day.

Ryder walked to the bike and pulled open one of the side bags. He pulled out a pair of gloves and handed them to Molly.

“It’ll be a little cold while we ride. That’s the best part of riding in the fall. You feel the crisp air and get a little chilled. When we stop, we can have hot chocolate or tea and warm up. After the ride today, we’ll go to Mom and Dad’s house. Mom has a big pot of chili for us. If you don’t have supper plans.”

“That sounds delicious. Thank you, again.”

Ryder smirked. “Molly…I.” Ryder turned, shaking his head and started to get on his bike. He stopped and looked at her. Fuck it. He wanted to kiss her. He leaned forward before he lost his nerve and kissed her. His lips whispered over hers and she sighed. The hunger he had felt all week prompted him to kiss her thoroughly. He reached out and cupped the back of her head, adding pressure to the kiss. He licked her lips and she opened her mouth allowing him access. He slipped his tongue in her mouth and caught her sigh. Molly grabbed Ryder’s jacket on each side and hung on. He ended the kiss with a little nip on her bottom lip. When he pulled his head back, he looked into her incredible blue eyes.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.”

Molly chuckled. “Me too.”

Ryder’s full-blown smile stretched across his face. Molly looked at him and all she could say was, “Oh.”

Ryder turned and threw his leg over his bike. He was riding a Dyna Switchback today. He had other bikes, but he just bought this one, and he planned to work on customizing it this winter. The coppery orange color is what caught his eye, but he loved riding it. He looked back at Molly and nodded for her to get on. Molly placed her hands tentatively on Ryder’s shoulders and threw her leg over the seat. As soon as she sat down she gripped his jacket on the sides and sat stiff as a board.

Ryder chuckled and took both of her hands in his and pulled them forward and around his waist. “Hang on to me, tight. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Don’t let your legs touch the pipes.” He pointed to the pipes on her right side. “Until you get used to the feel of the bike and the leaning, when I turn into any corner, look in the direction I am turning. If you’re comfortable, you can rest your chin on the shoulder in the direction we’re turning. Yeah?”

“Um, yeah.”

“If you try to pull me out of the corner, it could cause us issues. Okay?”

“Okay.”

Holy shit, there was a lot to this whole riding thing. Molly’s heart began beating out a dance rhythm as Ryder started his bike, and off they went.

They arrived at Jeremiah and Joci’s house about ten minutes later. JT, Gunnar, and Jeremiah’s brothers, Thomas and Dayton, were also there with their wives, Erin and Staci. They were standing outside talking and getting ready to ride. Joci smiled and waved at them when they pulled up. Molly climbed off the bike and waited for Ryder. As soon as he put the kickstand down and climbed off, he grabbed Molly’s hand and walked with her to his family. Ryder kissed his mom, hugged his dad, and said hello to everyone else. “You all remember Molly from the wedding.”

“Of course. Happy you could join us today, Molly,” Staci said.

“Thank you, I’m excited. Oh, Joci. I brought my tablet with the pictures on it. I know we’re meeting tomorrow to look at them in detail, but in case you wanted a sneak peek, I brought them today.”

Joci squealed. “I can’t wait to see them. We’re still waiting for Bryce and Angie. Can we take a quick peek now?”

“Of course.” Molly walked back to Ryder’s bike to get her tablet. As she walked back to the group, she turned on the tablet. Joci patted the top of the tour pack on Jeremiah’s bike. Molly set it up and started the picture show as everyone started oohing and aahing over the pictures.

Jeremiah wrapped his arms around Joci from behind and rested his chin on the top of her head as they looked at the pictures. Joci and Jeremiah were beaming. When the slide show stopped, Joci hugged Molly.

“Thank you for bringing this, Molly. They turned out fantastic. I can’t wait to take a longer look at them. You’ll have to do the slideshow again when Angie gets here. She’ll want to see.”

“No problem. We can show it as many times as you want to see it. I have the pictures on a thumb drive for you also. I’ll bring it with me tomorrow.”

Bryce and Angie pulled up and they watched the slide show of the wedding pictures again. Ryder stood back and looked at Molly’s face. She was genuinely a happy, loving person. The way she smiled at his mom made his heart swell. She was so damn beautiful. Her hair was very dark with rich tones of russet weaving through it. Her sweet little ass was a sight to behold. His cock had been standing at attention all morning. Last night watching her sleep he almost rubbed one off he was so fucking hard. And when he kissed her? He didn’t have the words to describe what happened to him when he kissed her.

Molly folded up the cover to her tablet and started walking back to the bike to put it away. After she had tucked it back in the side bag, she stood up to find Ryder was standing there next to her.

“Thank you for bringing that for my mom. You just made her day. Did you see her smile?”

Molly’s heart was beating faster just being close to him. She smiled at him and looked over to see Joci smiling at and hugging Jeremiah.

“She’s great you know? I liked her from the first moment I met her. I know she had a hard life before and I’m thrilled beyond words that her life is so good now. You’re welcome, by the way. But, you don’t have to thank me. I was excited to be asked to take their wedding pictures, and I’m so happy to be able to make her smile.”

Ryder looked over at his mom and dad. “Yeah, she’s great. My dad’s never been so happy. When they found out she was pregnant, well, he was over the moon. She’s treated JT and me with so much respect and given us more love in such a short time than our biological mother ever has. We both love her a lot.”

Jeremiah whistled, indicating it was time to saddle up and ride. They climbed on the bike, and followed JT and Gunnar, who would be leading today. This group was very comfortable riding together, and they just followed wherever they fell in. They took off and headed toward Manitowoc on the back roads.

Molly was amazed at the ride. She felt safe riding with Ryder, never feeling nervous or scared in any way. They rode in the middle of the pack with Joci and Jeremiah alongside them. Every once in a while Joci would look over and smile at Molly. She felt like she belonged in this group. A few times throughout the day Ryder took his left hand off the handlebars and laid his hand on Molly’s knee. Each time he did, it gave her a bigger thrill than the time before. Her warm and fuzzy emotions were beginning to settle between her legs.

Riding along the back roads, the scenery was beautiful. Molly could see the appeal to riding—watching the passing houses and farms, seeing the animals, and feeling the wind dance across her face felt so freeing. The wind was chilly, but not biting cold. It felt refreshing and made Molly feel more alive than she had ever felt. Even though they were in a group while on the bike, you were virtually alone with your thoughts. As they rode through a couple small towns, some of the people would stop to look at the bikes while others would point and wave like they knew them.

They ate pizza at The Iron Buffalo and drank hot chocolate; well, some of them did. Molly was comfortable standing around talking with everyone. Joci and Jeremiah were talking about their honeymoon and some of the things they saw. Ryder stayed close and always made sure she was taken care of.

Ryder and Molly were standing with Gunnar and Angie when Joci approached. “Molly, I was going to talk to you about this tomorrow, but, if you’re available, next weekend I like to have you take pictures at the build we’re doing for Danny Schaefer. He’s the veteran receiving the bulk of the donations from the Veteran’s Ride. Are you interested? I want them for the video.”

“Oh, that would be fabulous. Yes, I would love to participate in the build. I don’t have anything on my calendar for the whole weekend if you need me. Thanks, Joci.”

Joci smiled. “Thank
you
. It’ll be fun. We’ll have food and beverage tables set up in the yard, and I plan to interview Danny as well for the end of the video.”

“Wow. That’s really cool. What a great way to end the video.”

After they had eaten, they saddled back up and hit the road before dark settled in.

Around four forty-five they pulled into Joci and Jeremiah’s driveway. “Are you okay going in, Molly?” Ryder asked. “I want to run the bike home and bring the truck back; otherwise, the ride home will be biting cold.”

“I’m fine, go on ahead. I’ll help your mom get things ready.”

As they were eating, Molly said, “Joci, this apple pie is the best I’ve ever eaten.”

Gunnar smirked at Molly. “That’s where I got my great pancake recipe. Molly loved my pancakes this morning, Mom.”

Molly was horrified that he would say anything. She didn’t want Joci knowing she’d spent the night at their place last night. Her face flamed a bright red and she looked at Gunnar with eyes the size of saucers. She heard JT chuckle. He just smirked at her as she immediately darted her eyes at him. Molly braved a look at Joci, who was grinning at her.

“She also likes the little basket in the bathroom with the towels in it.” Now it was Gunnar’s turn to smirk at Molly.

Molly’s eyes squinted as she looked at Gunnar. Oh, so he was determined to tease her too. Dammit!

“Really? You’re going there?”

Gunnar did a quick scan through his brain of anything Molly might have on him. When he couldn’t come up with anything his grin turned into a smile and he nodded and said, “Yup!”

Molly gave her head a nod and said, “Paybacks are a bitch, Gunnar. Just sayin’.”