t, and if there was one thing that irritated me more than anythi

first motorcycle ride, her arms tigh

e" was that it was based on her s

his pr

llege

gang for a short period of time ("no more than a couple of weeks," he

ling easy, and her waves of guilt and regret were being steadily eroded by a constant sexual cavalcade of

belonged in a horror film about bikes that ate innocent young women alive. As

y layers of clearly chiseled abs beneath. She knew he had to be having fun, must have felt dozens of women clutching him like this. He was

ty-but Grim was a beacon of sexual force in the world. A titan of male power, clear

ations hit her-it was okay to be caught up in the m

dn't la

a lengthy vetting process for her, one that include

her and repulsed her. She wanted it to be that simple, but she also wanted every sexual encounte

ng on his washboard torso, combined with the heavy vibrations rhythmically slidin

minutes when the pressure from the vibrations became too much for her to bear. It was almost ce

, on the other hand, was fucking hot, which was a problem bec

cts rather than people. They cheated on their girlfriends and wives with any loose girls who happened to wander into their bars. They

ties to do what was best for the brothers, w

rought with them a slew of implication

t was done by t

t she felt building in her mind at t

y drove through the outskirts of Binan, ge

few hundred thousand, owing primarily to the fact that the city limits extended so far outside where the actual city buildings were. Farmers,

than twenty stories. It had a small airport, but it was an int

alls with small businesses that she had never seen anyone enter. The same enormous, wide parking lots that could be found all over Laguna. The same unke

on Sundays; the local shops she and her mother visited every summer before school to get new clothes; t

turning to this wasteland border town with i

dy arousal, were not the

e attempting to build a rope ladder to the moon. And getting rid

worked a crappy job at a retail clothing store, but it was only enoug

even seen them a few times-but only when they came to Calamba. Her hope was

tail between her legs-with a bike belonging to one of Lagun

to keep the handlebars in place, his posture ramrod straight, his intricate frameework of tat

ff the seat herself. When he pulled up, her hips and thighs instinctively pulled up with him, atte

he expression on his

act together. He

k around the pump to stretch her legs and clear her mind. Taking a step

ished she could slide up between him and the gas pump, feel his hard, bi

pid. Super,

re to do something to break t

name?" she inquired.

oduced himself.

she says. "It's

d. "That's a well-kno

ing it up with him. Not after he'd been so pleasant so far. She

size and twice his age at the time. In any case, he called the assistant principal, who then called the cops. I fought them all. When my father ar

rin. "I believe

whether he liked it or not. "Are you coming in from Cala

beral arts. Philo

speak

e else did? Will he accuse her of wanting to be a teacher, and thus

ant to be

oo shabby. "Somethin

to rely on her parents again. An English degree might not have been the best choice for that,

d hiring basketball players and shaking all

ermanently change the subject. "how's it going y

th his hands. "People invent stories about bik

pe parties? No h

om would have told her that even the most blatant lies contain some truth, but those nuggets of truth were freq

out rape

ugs, right? We don't really follow the laws of the land. But we still h

she had anticipated. Boys playing wi

s your life going? The way of life? What shoul

ure you wa

As a result

go, I'd say it's the best thing in the world. There are no rules except our own. There is no law except our own. We

e you're bringing me into yo

ith his hand. "You can leav

deflection. "However, things

proached. In fact, they're called Beat Machines. One of them recogni

," he re

ed her gaze to him, almost

h course. You must obey what I say, when I say it, a

as un

your car repa

the opposite of her hesitation was that he was too attractive, and h

an uncomfortable. She was already attracted to Grim in a biological, primal way, a preternatural sen

n her life in a long time, not since Simon, and if it appeared ag

ing. He rested his

, Rhian

the distance between them. Her lips brushed against his, feeling the probing, alm

hing half-heartedly. Someth

kness of his hair and the density of his shoulders. Her legs appeared to have a mind of their own, squirming forward to wrap around him

" she said quietly, slip

wer lip, impressed and disappointed in hersel

was excellent. Aren't you a

rom the bike, and stepped aside. T

honest, she just needed a splash of cold water on her face before