REMEMBER ME: GODS OF CHAOS MC (7 page)

“
Sure, sure, no problem
.”
He left, nodding respectfully at Ryder as he passed him.

“
So, you want to venture into civilization, huh
?
”

“
Yes. Seems like the logical thing to do next
.
”

“
Well, all right then,
I’
ll take you. You said yo
u’
re hungry? We can go to Tillamook. Find some dinner
.
”

“
Yeah? Okay, thanks, Ryder
,”
I replied
.“
That sounds great.
I’
m ravenous
!
”

“
W
e’
ll take it slow. Tillamoo
k’
s closer than Portland. We can eat, drive around, see what happens
.
”

“
Perfect
.”
I said, smiling gratefully at him.  I was taking this one tiny step at a time, and while everyone had been so nice to me here, the only person I really felt safe with was Ryder.  Maybe it was because he was the first person I saw when I woke up. Maybe it was because he was the one who rescued me.  Maybe it was because he was obviously concerned about me.  Or, maybe, just maybe, it was because he was dripping with extremely masculine confidence that inspired complete trust in him. 

He strode past me, his confident swagger satisfying something deep inside me.  I needed that.  I had no confidence in anything else, but this man in front of me was like a rock.  A force that could
n’
t be compromised.  I was
n’
t sure of much, and when it came to my feelings about myself, I felt nothing but vulnerable and empty.  The last thing I wanted was to be dependent on anyone, but I did
n’
t know what I would do without Ryder at this point.

I sighed, submitting to the fact that I needed him.

I was
n’
t about to say that out loud, though.  No matter how strongly I felt it.

“I’
ll see if I can find you some leathers
,”
he said, turning on his heel and walking back out of the room.

“
Leathers
?
”
 
I asked to the empty room.

***

We flew around the curves of the winding road leading to the coast. I held on tightly, my arms wrapped around Ryde
r’
s waist, his Harley vibrating loudly between my thighs as I wrapped them around his narrow hips.  Heat radiated from his body, and my tight grip kept slipping up under his cut, giving me a chance to feel the rippling muscles under his t-shirt.

As we rounded a particularly tight curve, I clutched him even tighter.  He reached back, his glove-wrapped hand patting my thigh reassuringly.  There was something about that action that cut right through me.  Electricity shot through my body, and it was all I could do to catch my breath as the bike sliced through the wind. 

The sun was just beginning to set, but the tall pines lining the road created a thick tower of darkness all around us, blocking out any remaining sunlight.  Ryde
r’
s headlight was the only light breaking through the blackness.  It was beautiful and eerie.

Ryder had given me a leather jacket, a pair of leather boots, leather gloves and a helmet that was slightly too big for me.  I tried to look around as we roared down the road, keeping my eyes open for anything familiar, but nothing but trees flew past us in the last remnants of the fading light.

I wondered if I had ever been on a bike before.  Everything about it was unfamiliar, though.  Still, it was thrilling.  The feeling of the open air rushing past you, the rebelliousness of throwing caution to the wind and putting nothing between the asphalt and your skin but a layer of leather and blue jeans.  Ryder was obviously a seasoned rider, and he operated the bike with as much confidence as he did everything else.  Once again, I realized I was entirely in his hands. 

This was becoming a habit.

And I had to admit, as a woman, it was comforting.  He was strong, handsome, and extremely protective of me. Maybe I should
n’
t have, but I felt the first twinges of attraction to him then.  Or, maybe I felt it the first moment I opened my eyes and saw him in front of me.  Whenever it was, I was now fully aware of it.  I was a little shocked that those feelings were getting through, past all the confusion and uncertainty I was feeling.  Past all the despair of not being able to remember anything.

It was almost freeing.  If I knew what I was being freed from, that is.

That was the hardest part of all of this, the not knowing.  Not knowing what or who was waiting for me.  It was frightening.  And it scared me to the very depths of my soul.  My arms tightened around Ryder a little more as my mind wandered throughout the trip.

When he finally pulled off the road, it was into the parking lot of a run down bar.  The Rodeo Roadhouse looked like it was straight out of a Patrick Swayze movie.  I half-expected to see people fighting and being thrown out of the two saloon-style swinging doors we walked through.  Peanut shells littered the floor, the smell of old, stale beer assaulted my senses, and country music echoed through the place.  In addition to the beer, the distinct scent of bacon and burgers went straight to my starving stomach.

Ryder led me to a booth in the back and we sat down, placing our helmets on the seats next to us. 

“
I
t’
s not fancy, but they have the best burgers within 20 miles
,”
he said with that sexy half-grin of his.

“
I
t’
ll do just fine.  As long as the
y’
re quick.  I do
n’
t know why
I’
m so damned hungry
.
”

“
I do. Outside of that IV, you have
n’
t eaten but once in four days.  Makes sense to me
.
”

“
Yeah, I guess
,”
I said.  My amnesia colored everything, every second of everything I did. We ordered from the saucy red-headed waitress, and I noticed that she could
n’
t keep her eyes off Ryder as she stood by our booth.  I looked around, and saw that everyone else was staring, too.

I looked over at him again, and it all made sense.  He was huge, his towering frame was likely intimidating to even the most masculine of men, his meaty, tattooed arms absolutely screaming rebellion.  And that cut he wore - the scattered patches symbolizing things that I had no clue about - probably communicated more to these local people than it did to me.

If Ryder noticed, he did
n’
t let on.  His attention was focused on me, his eyes glued to my face as he watched my every move.

“
So
?”
he asked.

“
So what
?
”

“
Anything? Any sparks of memory at all
?
”

“
Oh. No
,”
I replied
.“
I do
n’
t think
I’
ve ever been here before
.
”

“
No, I should hope not.  I was
n’
t talking about this place.  Just, you know
,”
he said, glancing away from me and then back again
.“
I was just wondering if you remembered anything at all today
.
”

“
No
,”
I said, simply. 

“
Well, tha
t’
s okay. Give it time
,”
he said.

“
Yeah, I guess
,”
I replied, smiling across the table at him
.“
You getting sick of me yet? You probably want your bed back, huh
?
”

“
Hardly
,”
he replied.
 “
Well, I mean
I’
m not getting sick of you.  I do miss my bed, I must admit
.
”

“I’
m sorry.  Is
n’
t there anywhere else I could sleep, so you can have it back
?
”

His eyes narrowed at my suggestion.

“
Nowhere
I’
d want you sleeping
,”
he said gruffly.

“
What do you mean
?”
I asked curiously.

“
Nevermind. 
I’
m sure any one of my brothers would be happy to offer up a bed, but I do
n’
t trust them as far as I could throw them.  At least not when it comes to keeping their hands off of you
.
”

“
Oh. Right
.
”

“
Yeah
,”
he said
.“
Do
n’
t worry about it.  W
e’
ll figure something out
.
”

“
Where have you been sleeping
?”
I asked.

“
I have
n’
t
,”
he replied.

I felt even worse than before. 

“
Listen, Ryder, I just want to say thank you again.  Yo
u’
ve done so much for me, and I have nothing to offer you in return.  I promise, once this is all over,
I’
ll pay you back somehow for your trouble
.
”

“
You do
n’
t owe me a thing.  You do
n’
t worry about that.  You just focus on getting better, tha
t’
s all I care about
.
”

“
Thank you
,”
I said
.“
Tha
t’
s very kind of you
.
”

He chuckled loudly.

“
Yeah, tha
t’
s what
I’
m known for - kindness.  Some people might disagree with you
.
”

“
I do
n’
t care what anyone else thinks.  I
t’
s obvious to me that you have a huge heart.  Why else would anyone do what you did
?
”

“
Well, I could
n’
t just leave you there lying on the side of the road, could I
?
”

“
Sure, you could have
.
”

“
Well.  I did
n’
t.  And now, here we are
.
”

“
You could have just called the cops
.
”