“Yes?”
“Will we get to ride tonight?”
Ben shook his head. “No, but if we have time, I’ll let each of you sit on one before you leave. Makowski’s has a large paved course out back for test drives and practices for this class, which we’ll be doing tomorrow night and Saturday.” He paused and glanced around the room at each student. “How many of you have actually ridden a motorcycle?”
He couldn’t hide his surprise when the only one who raised a hand was the elderly woman.
“That’s great,” he said, giving her a smile. “Did you ride often?”
“My husband, bless his soul, rode all the time,” she offered, sounding like she’d smoked more than her share of cigarettes. “He always wanted me to learn, but I was too scared.”
“What finally prompted you to sign up for the class?” Ben asked.
She tilted her head and gazed at the ceiling for a moment before answering. “Phillip died over a year ago, and I recently found out my time is coming sooner rather than later. He always joked I needed a motorcycle license so we could ride together in Heaven.” She chuckled low and looked back toward Ben. “I seriously doubt I need one up there, but hey, I’m not going to take the chance. Saw your ad and signed up. Well, my granddaughter helped me sign up on the computer.”
Floundering for a response, he scanned the quiet room. Nobody would make eye contact with him. Well, nobody until his gaze landed on Angus. His stare bored into Ben and, for a moment, Ben forgot where he was. Those damn eyes…
But he had a class to teach, so he turned back to her and smiled. “Well, I certainly am glad you chose to learn with us,” he said, surprised to find he meant it. “What shall I call you?”
“Anything but old,” she shot back, a twinkle in her eye.
He laughed and shook his head. “You got it, young lady,” he said with a wink.
“The name’s Shirley,” she added.
Ben nodded and grabbed the handouts. “Well, let’s get started. We’ve got a lot of groundwork to cover in only a few hours.” He passed everything out and got down to business. He didn’t enjoy teaching, but at least he got to talk about something he loved.
* * * *
He couldn’t believe how quickly the night had gone. The students were all pretty quick to catch on. That last student never showed, but Ben wasn’t going to worry about it. He’d have Candy give the guy a call in the morning.
Angus was fairly quiet all evening, even though Ben had made sure to call on him several times. He always answered correctly—in a short, to-the-point tone. Yet each time he heard the man’s voice, Ben’s skin tingled. He wasn’t sure what that was all about because he’d never had that reaction before. It was unsettling, to say the least, and he tried not to think about it.
“Okay, everyone pass the practice test forward and I’ll take a look at them. Anyone who wants to try sitting on a cycle before you take off, hang around for a few minutes and I’ll take you out there.”
Angus pushed his chair back and it screeched across the tile floor. Ben looked up and fought the disappointment. He’d hoped Angus would stay so he could get to know a little about the man.
“You don’t want to check out a bike?” The words were out before he knew he was going to say them.
Angus glanced back, his eyes round. He shook his head. “No thanks,” he said, his face pale.
Ben watched him and swore Angus was cringing. Shit. The man’s afraid of motorcycles! It was written all over his face. “That’s fine, but can you hang on for a second?”
Angus nodded and slunk back into his seat, his backpack dropping to the floor.
Great. Ben had no idea what to do now—he hadn’t really thought things through. Why had he asked Angus to stay?
2
Angus’s heart was racing and he just wanted to get the hell out of the place. He certainly hadn’t expected the sexy teacher to ask him to stay after class. But there was no way he was getting on that damn cycle. His publisher could make him attend the class, but he would fight like a wild bear before his ass ever touched a motorcycle seat.
Not that he minded watching Ben from here. Fuck, the man was hot. Broad shoulders and chest, big thighs wrapped in tight denim, and a black Harley shirt stretched across his torso. Ben looked to be a powerfulman, and images of being bent over…well hell, anything, while Ben took him from behind had played in a never ending loop in Angus’s mind the entire evening. He’d been hard since he’d laid eyes on the guy.