Risky Business by Lauren Landish

Author:Lauren Landish [Landish, Lauren]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-06-16T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 18

CARSON

After a quick stop in my office to grab my helmet, I rush us downstairs.

“Have a good night, you two,” Ellie calls out as we scurry through the lobby. I toss a conspiratorial smile her way, and she makes a lip-zipping motion.

I’m sure Jayme would prefer to stay here, working on preparations for tomorrow and obsessing over every little detail until her eyeballs burn and she’s pulled every blonde strand from her head in stress. But we’ve done what we can and I trust my team. I’ll still text Spencer to check in before crashing tonight, but for now, we can leave guilt-free.

I slip the helmet onto her head, memorizing her hopeful smile as it disappears beneath the face shield. I climb onto the motorcycle and hold it steady while Jayme climbs on behind me. I’m glad that she’s wearing slim-fit slacks today, though the sand burns on her knees are long healed.

“Ready?” I ask, looking over my shoulder.

She nods, the helmet bobbing on her head slightly. I remind myself that I need to get a helmet for her, not only because of helmet laws but because her head is so much smaller than mine.

I start the motorcycle, the roar breaking the quiet of the night, and once I feel her arms wrap around me tightly, I pull off. The parking lot gives way to the road, and I accelerate into the night, free for the time being. The wind whipping past us washes away any last bits of worry about the festival.

It’s the two of us. Not Jayme, the fixer, and Carson, the fuck-up. I’m not Carson, the amusement park heir, either. She doesn’t care about any of that. She just cares about me, enough to risk this thing growing between us in an effort to improve my relationship with my dad and make my future better.

She sees things in me that I don’t, but I see her too. Her generosity and kindness, even when they’re packaged in hard words and tough to acknowledge, spot-on observations.

We ride for what seems to be hours, leaning into curves together and flying through straightaways, no destination in mind. But we end up back at Cutthroat Curve as if it’s our place. Maybe it is? The place where things changed and we began.

I want to start over, though—or maybe it’s a continuation—from this new, deeper place of understanding between us. Jayme squeezes me tightly with both her arms and thighs, and it feels as though she can read my mind.

I pull over on the shoulder and move a few feet deeper into the soft dirt before stopping. I can see for miles, over the cliff and all along the road in front of us and behind us. When I shut off the motorcycle, it goes dark, only the moon high above and the distant glow of the town below lighting the night.

I hold the motorcycle steady as Jayme climbs off and begins to take off the helmet. I pop the kickstand down and throw my leg over the back, coming to help her undo the clasp.

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