Breaking the Ice by Esme Taylor

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Reid

My cock twitched as visions of her leather-clad body hanging on to me while driving along twisting roads flashed through my head.

“Bike it is then. But first, we need to get you a suit and helmet that fit. Once we've done that, we can head out, drive along the coast road and feel the wind in our hair. I’ll even buy you lunch. Now, go, get dressed.”

An hour later, we found ourselves at my favorite bike shop, where I bought her the safest suit I could find. And just as I’d expected, she looked hot. The suit hugged her body like a second skin. With a black helmet in place, gold aviators covering her eyes, and her hair tied back into a ponytail, she was ready to go.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to avoid blowing my load with her pressed against my back, especially looking like she did. Unfortunately, the image of our steamy kiss from the night before was still replaying in my mind and it wasn’t helping the situation at all. Yet, even though it was weighing heavily on my mind, I hadn’t mentioned it to Hettie. Of course, if I were being honest, I wouldn’t know how to explain my reaction, even if we were to talk about it.

“Ready?” I asked as I pulled on my helmet and slipped onto the bike. Hettie nodded with a smile.

“Hold on tight and don’t sit too rigidly. It’s really important that when the bike leans, you lean into it, but not too much. If you get too overzealous, we’ll end up kissing the pavement. Just let your body react naturally. If you’re scared or you need me to stop just tap me on the shoulder.” She nodded.

Once she had settled onto her seat, securing herself tightly against my back with her arms around my waist, I pulled out through the front gate of the house.

A short twenty-minute ride later, we hit the coast road, which gave us the perfect opportunity to see the sights. Its curvy twists and tight bends passed ancient castles, secluded beaches, and numerous seaside towns. If you were to carry on far enough, you’d eventually reach Scotland.

Today, the air was crisp, but the sun was shining. Luckily, the heat our bodies generated by being so close together was helping to keep us warm, especially given the wind blasting past us as we rode along.

Worried Hettie might slip off, given how tiny she was, I did my best to keep my speed low. Which apparently, she didn’t approve of.

“This is a very disappointing ride, Viking,” she shouted in my ear. “How about you show me what you can really do?”

How could I possibly refuse such a request? I thought to myself as I opened the throttle and ramped up the speed.

Hettie immediately squealed in delight, pulling herself even closer to me. There was only one downfall to this entire situation… having her body wrapped so tightly around mine made my cock swell and strain painfully against my leather suit.

About an hour later, we came across a quaint little fishing village with a tiny sandy beach. After parking the bike and helping her climb down, I waited for her to remove her helmet.

“That was amazing,” she exclaimed, shaking her hair out with a wide smile. “I officially love motorbikes, although I have no idea how I’m ever going to get this suit off. Going for a wee will certainly be interesting.”

Hettie took in her surroundings and sighed contentedly. “I love the sea,” she announced happily from behind her sunglasses. Even though she wore them like a movie star, I found myself missing not being able to see her eyes. Leaning over, I pushed them up onto the top of her head and smiled.

“Much better.”

“Ugh, what are you doing? My poor retinas will burn in the sun,” she cried, closing her eyes and playfully pushing her shoulder against my bicep.

“I couldn’t see your beautiful eyes, Etta. How am I supposed to know what’s going on in that head of yours if I can’t see your eyes?”

“Well, don’t blame me when I can’t see later,” she quipped, staring out at the sea. “Would you like to take a walk with me, Viking?”

I was desperate to hold her hand, touch her, kiss her––do anything to show her how I was feeling. But, instead of doing any of that, I simply nod and walk down toward the sandy beach with her, side-by-side.

“Do you know why I love the sea?” she asked, staring out at the stormy dark waves. “It doesn’t stop moving, it doesn’t freeze, and it doesn’t get stuck. It powers through, no matter what. Sometimes, I wish I could be that strong.”

“Etta, you might possibly be the strongest person I’ve ever met. Nothing seems to break you.”

“You’d be surprised,” she muttered, her voice laced with sadness. “I gave up my entire life once before because someone broke me.”

“Is that why you moved here?”

She nodded.

“Of all the places in the world, why here?” I asked, in genuine curiosity.

“I wanted a fresh start. I was married at the time and he broke my heart. In the end, I decided I didn’t want to hang around and watch his Happily Ever After with someone else.” Her voice hitched as she talked, the sadness in her eyes making them appear more green.

I reached out to take her hand, rubbing my thumb over where her wedding ring would have been.

“He was my best friend,” she continued. “We’d been together since we were nineteen and I’d thought we had our entire lives planned out. As it turns out, I was wrong. If he’d have just left, it might have hurt less. Instead, he made me feel like all of our problems were my fault––that if I had changed, everything would have been okay.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm the emotion in her voice.

“He broke me so badly that I wasn’t sure I’d ever recover. But when he told me he was moving in with her two weeks after he left me…. That’s when I knew I had to leave. It was either that or risk never being able to piece myself back together again. So, I found a job here, packed up my belongings, and never looked back. I’ve been on my own ever since.”

“Fuck him, Etta. He’s not worthy of you. You deserve someone who worships you. Someone who will protect your heart and support you, no matter what.”

She looked up at me with a half-smile, but I see the sadness there in her eyes. “I’m not sure I’m meant to be loved like that. Maybe I’m just not meant to be someone’s Happily Ever After and I’m okay with that.” Without another word, she turned back to face the sea.

I was at a complete loss for words. Does she really believe that about herself? I wondered. How can one person tear another down so much that they believe they are unlovable? The thought infuriated me.

If I ever meet her ex, I am gonna beat the shit out of him for breaking her. That’s when another, more terrifying, thought struck me. What if I add to the cracks in her heart by trying to get close to her?

“Etta, no one deserves to be treated like that. I want you to know that you are worth so much more than you even realize. Don’t ever apologize for being you. You’re perfect just the way you are.” I pulled her hand to my mouth and kissed the back of it. “Tea?”

She nodded, and we wandered back, hand in hand, to where I’d parked the bike, stopping to grab two teas from the mobile van near where we’ve parked. Tea in hand, we took a seat on a nearby rock wall that looked out over the sea.

Hettie placed her head on my shoulder as the two of us sat in silence, listening to the waves. “Thank you for this, Viking. It was exactly what I needed after everything that has happened over the last couple of days. It’s too bad I have to get back to the real world tomorrow.”

“You don’t need to think about that right now. We have the whole day to have some adventures first.”

She nodded and took a sip of her tea before spluttering it back out. “God, that is probably the worse tea I have ever tasted. They even left the bag in it. That is so wrong.” I couldn’t help but laugh at her weird tea obsession as I took the cup from her hand and stood to dispose of them both in a nearby bin.

“How about we head back to the house and I will order us some lunch and make you the perfect cuppa?”

Hettie’s eyes narrowed, studying me closely. “Do you promise to drive fast?”

“As fast as I’m legally allowed, Etta. I promise.”

She squealed in excitement as she ran back to the bike and hopped on, tapping the seat in front of her. “Let’s go, Viking. Show me what this beast can really do.”

◆◆◆

It was late afternoon by the time we’d gotten back home and finished eating our huge plates of pasta we’d had delivered from Hettie’s favorite Italian restaurant in town, with a bottle of red wine from the cellar I’d filled, but never enjoyed.

Sitting at the dining room table, the two of us chatted comfortably, like we’d known each other forever. Laughing and joking, I watched as Hettie pulled her leg up onto the chair and hugged her knee to her chest as she talked about her life, her dark hair falling over her right shoulder, her face flushed from the ride and the wine. I couldn’t drag my eyes off her full, ripe lips, my mind drifting back to how they felt pressed against mine the night before.

“Do you mind if I go have a swim? I brought my swimming stuff after I saw the pool last time,” Hettie asked, her question breaking through my thoughts.

“A swim? Are you sure?”

“Yes, I need to clear my head and a swim feels like the perfect way to do it. Besides, I’ve not gone swimming in ages and I think our trip to the beach today made me crave some water.”

“I must warn you, it might be a bit chilly in there. I don’t really use it.”

“You have a pool you don’t use? Why?” she asked, appearing shocked.

I shrugged. “I don’t really swim. The pool came with the house and I’ve never gotten around to having it taken out.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to come in with me?” she asked, appearing a little disappointed.

“No, you go and have fun. Take your time. I’ve got some work to get on with. Let me know when you’re finished and we can watch a film.”

“Sounds perfect,” she called over her shoulder as she made her way upstairs to change.

I smiled as images of Hettie’s perfect ass played in my mind while pouring myself another glass of wine. Suddenly, that same familiar sense of anxiety I had grown accustomed to over the years began to creep up, grabbing me by the throat.