The Detective and Her Bachelor

Chapter 14

The sun beat down on my back, sinking into my clothes and warming me from the inside out as the cold slice of winter wind sent every piece of clothing on my body flapping wildly. Decker and I rode in silence, the roar of the motorcycle cutting out all potential for verbal communication. 

Decker took a turn sharper than he needed to, forcing me to grip his waist tighter to keep myself from flying off the back. I felt Decker's muscles tense under my touch, making the entire ride another layer of uncomfortable. 

Every moment we had ever spent together was filled with snide remarks, quick retorts, rude observations, and work. And now I was trapped on the back of his bike, forced to have more physical contact with him than... well ever. I couldn't remember a time that we had even shaken hands before. It was like physical contact had been a clear repellant thought for both of us. And without snide remarks to cut through the awkward closeness of our bodies, the entire ride was awkward.

"WHERE ARE WE GOING?!?" I shouted, crushing my body against Decker's back, hands in a vice across his waist as Decker took another turn that nearly sent me flying off the back again. 

"HIDEOUT SPOT! STOP SQUEEZING SO TIGHT!" he barked, chancing a glance over his shoulder, dark blue eyes cold. 

"THEN STOP TRYING TO GET US KILLED WITH BAD DRIVING!" I shouted back. 

"I'M NOT TRYING TO GET US KILLED!" he snapped back as we drove into a tunnel, the world flashing dark for a breath before we emerged on the other side, spilling back into the light. 

"RIGHT, JUST ME THEN!" I countered. 

The bike screeched to a stop against a curb, ending our shouting match as silence erupted in place of the bike's roar. I yanked my helmet off, face enraged. Nearly dying wasn't on my list of ways to spend the next few hours. Nor was dealing with Decker's clear bad mood.

Decker glanced at me over his shoulder, sending all snarky words falling out of my brain at the spark of warmth that settled into his dark blue eyes for a beat. He searched my face, eyes seeing more than I wanted them too. He had always seen more than I wanted him to. "You okay?" he asked, voice suddenly calm.

I shoved my helmet towards him and ignored his question, doing my best to glare. He had been rude since the moment he picked me up, and I wasn't going to reward his ridiculous behavior with a response. 

With a sigh Decker plucked the helmet from my fingers and tucked it into the side compartment of his bike. I slid off the bike and chanced a look around, realizing with a start that we hadn't gone anywhere familiar. I had half expected him to lead us to a dingy bar, or the office. But what I found was a street lined with rundown apartment buildings.  The lack of noise left me unsettled. 

"Where are we?" I asked, trying to map out our location in regards to the larger LA area. 

"Somewhere safe," Decker replied, walking onto the cracked sidewalk, sandy brown hair a mess post helmet as he tilted his head back to stare up at the worn brick building that stood before us. He had a fondness in his expression. 

Shoving his hands into his worn acid-washed jean pockets, Decker walked forward, glancing back over his shoulder at me with an unreadable expression. "Come on."

I didn't move to follow. I didn't like the vagueness of his answer. The lack of knowledge of the area. I knew we were on the same team, but I had spent the last twenty-four hours on edge and that wasn't something so easy to let go of. Suspicion seemed to be a constant companion lately. 

 Decker ran his fingers through his hair, a flash of frustration crossing his face. "You snuck out for a reason right?"

"Just tell me where we are."