┏━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┓

Ride

┗━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┛

Chapter 38: Ride (Tristan's POV)

I stayed as long as I could but I had to leave and go back to my apartment, not just to freshen up but to fucking think. 

Everything Amara told me about her past, about what she lost, about how much of herself she lost along the way, left me wondering if I was lied to by the man I was forced into calling my family. It wouldn't surprise me if Michael was using me to get what he wanted but I felt almost disgusted with myself for agreeing to it and even thinking of killing her. 

I held her responsible for something she didn't even commit. I didn't know that now any more than I knew it then but despite being aware of that fact, I was so blinded by revenge that I was going to... 

A heavy sigh escaped me as I entered my apartment and was immediately greeted by Paris purring at my feet. Swooping down, I picked him up, giving him a good scratch. "Has Linda been taking care of you?" I asked as if he would answer me. 

Linda was the housemaid I had. She was fired a while ago by Michael, so I hired her. Once a day, she would drop by to check on the place and Paris and once a week, she would help me clean. Noticing his stuffed food bowl, I figured she was taking fantastic care of him. 

Setting him back down, I went straight up to my room and first grabbed a fresh set of clothes, getting in the shower. I ran a hand through my hair as the water ran over me and fell into thought yet again. 

I meant it when I said the truth didn't matter to me. Regardless of what Elijah had to do with it, Amara wouldn't be punished. I wouldn't let Michael lay a single finger on her, I'd die before it ever happened. 

After rinsing off, I turned the shower off and stepped out, drying myself off and tugging on the plain black, half-sleeve v-neck and a pair of black pants. I killed a few hours in my apartment, checking in at the office and having a brief conversation with Dante as I sat on the couch with Paris in my lap. 

Shortly after that, just when I noticed that the sun would start to set soon, I grabbed my leather jacket and motorcycle keys, heading for Amara's apartment yet again. I rang her doorbell, standing there with my helmet tucked beneath my arm, and waited for her to answer the door. 

Moments later, she did so with Donna in her arms. "You're back," she said with a smile tugging at her lips as she stepped aside and let me in. 

"Sure am," I mumbled, setting my helmet at a table. 

"You rode the bike?" she asked, nodding toward the helmet. 

I hummed in response and turned to her as she set Donna down. "Let me take you for a ride later tonight," I said. 

Her brows twitched up but she refrained from making any comments. 

"Any kind of ride you want," I smirked, cupping one side of her jaw and tilting her head back. 

"Oh," she mused as I leaned down to kiss her slowly. 

I felt her grin against my lips as she held my arm, tugging me closer with her free hand. Running my tongue along her bottom lip, I pulled her in as I deepened the kiss, my hands finding their way down her waist, to her hips, heading further south until they reached her ass but just as I did, she planted her hands on my chest and broke the case. 

"Work," she prompted without pulling away from me. 

I let out a sigh of defeat. "Aren't you tired? You've worked all day." 

She shook her head, "Mm-mm. I covered most of it. We don't have much left, come on." Tugging at my hand, she began moving toward the stairs. I stayed rooted to my spot and held her back as she tried dragging me along. "Tristan, come on," she groaned loudly. 

I pulled her back suddenly, causing her to stumble into me, our bodies colliding. "What do I get in return?" I asked. 

She thought for a beat before replying with, "A reward." 

"What kind of reward?" I leaned in. 

"Any kind you want," she mumbled softly, holding my gaze. Her fingers quickly shot up as she clamped a hand over my mouth, seconds before my lips met hers. "But later," she whispered with a devilish grin. Resisting a groan, I lightly bit her finger and she laughed, pulling away and dragging me upstairs, successfully this time. 

We spent hours working, putting a detailed plan together of how we would go about tailing Michael. First, I had to find out what he was up to, so I decided to meet him tomorrow with the excuse of our deal. 

After work, Amara finally reached her limit and called it a night. Stretching in her chair, she closed the file in front of her and dropped her arms on it, resting her chin on them and meeting my gaze. "You're staring," she announced as I sat across from her, leaning back in my seat, simply watching her. "It's awfully obvious," she added. 

"I wasn't trying to hide it." 

"What are you thinking about?" she questioned. 

"You." 

"What about me?" 

"I can't take my eyes off of you," I found myself saying. "The hardest thing I've ever had to do was keep my hands to myself around you like this." 

"Like what?" she whispered, holding my gaze. 

"Like this. When you're sitting right in front of me, focused, looking so fucking devastatingly beautiful." 

Despite not being very dressed up, something about Amara was just that. Devastatingly beautiful. She drew me in like no other. 

"I want you," I breathed out. 

"You have me," she replied, blinking. "Always." She stood up and my eyes followed her hopelessly as she rounded the table and reached me, leaning against the desk beside me. "Want to take me on that ride?" she asked with a light smirk playing on her lips. 

"Which one?" I questioned. 

She laughed, "The one on your bike. Let's go." 

"It's midnight," I reminded her. 

"That won't stop us," she said pointedly before heading out. 

"Take a jacket," I told her. 

She grabbed the first one out of her closet, a white faux leather one, and pulled it over her simple black tank top with the signature Chanel logo at her chest and a white band acting as the neckline and straps, which was paired with plain black pants. I trailed behind her, taking my helmet as she took hers. 

At first, we drove around aimlessly, speeding down the street. After a while, I realized I knew the perfect place to take her. Making a sharp left, the engine roared beneath me. 

"Where are we going?!" she shouted over the bustling noise of the city and the wind ripping through the air. 

"You'll see!" I replied. I'd known these directions since I started riding a motorcycle and after nearly half an hour, I slowed down. 

"The airport?" she asked, opening up her visor. "We're going to the airport?" she chuckled. 

"Almost, but not quite," I said, a smile tugging at my lips. I drove around the entire airport and was able to slip into the unnoticed area which led straight to the fences that divided the runways from the fields around them. Glancing around, making sure we went unnoticed, I slowed down just beside the fence at the perfect angle to watch all the flights taking off. 

A soft gasp escaped Amara as she took her helmet off. I watched her through the side mirror as her shoulders came up to cover her ears when a plane flew right above us, leaving an echo in its wake. 

Strangely enough, this was a spot where even from the ground, you could see how the city lit up, and watching the airplanes fly just above your head was a sight. 

She laughed and sat upright before climbing off and standing in front of me. "How did you find this spot?" she asked. 

"When I first started riding a motorcycle, I followed some friends around the city and got lost. Somehow, I reached here." 

"It's beautiful out here, Tristan." 

"It looks even better when the sun is setting. We'll come back some other day." 

She paused for a beat before stepping closer. "Does it look just as good when the sun is rising?" 

I stared at her for a beat before replying, "It does." 

"Then why miss it? Let's stay. If we get tired, we can always leave and come back later." Taking my helmet off, I watched her as she walked a few feet ahead, into the grass fields before coming back to me. "I didn't even know this spot existed at this airport." 

"It's a secret," I told her, "it goes by unnoticed, even from airport staff and security." 

"Did you come here a lot?" she questioned. 

I hummed in response and hung my helmet on the handle before moving to the backseat and beckoning Amara to come forward. She chuckled softly as she sat in the front, facing me with her legs on either side of the bike. Taking the backs of her knees, I inched forward and pulled her legs over mine, keeping as little space between us as possible. 

"Especially when I was younger," I said, answering her question. "To get out of the house, to get away." 

She watched me and listened intently. 

"Even when you left," I admitted. 

"Did you miss me?" 

"Madly." 

Her gaze softened the longer she looked at me. "You called," she stated. 

"You didn't answer," I replied. "If I knew where you were, I would have flown out to you myself. I would have gotten on a goddamn plane and found you, Amara." 

"I never doubted it," she said quietly. "Tristan, I trust you," she added after a minute, "I've never let someone get this close to me, see me so vulnerable. I can trust you, right? You won't break it?" 

I understood why she was still concerned. It was valid. All her doubts were valid. "You can trust me, Malyshka," I responded, tilting her chin up with my knuckles. "I'm never going to break it." 

Grabbing hold of my jacket, she pulled me in and closed the distance between us, our lips crashing in a somewhat fervent kiss. It always felt like I kissed her with that sense of urgency, that desperation, that feeling of an insatiable desire. But when Amara kissed me then, for the first time, I felt it coming from her. 

She kissed me like she was dying for it, her hold on me tightening as if I would slip away the moment she let go. Securing my hands at the back of her legs, I tugged forward and hoisted her up and into my lap, still seated on the bike, and a sharp gasp escaped her at the sudden proximity and the way our bodies now sat flush against each other. 

The kiss slowed momentarily as she drew back and looked down at me beneath her lashes, her chest rising and falling against mine with each heavy breath. She didn't say a word and even though I wanted to, I couldn't come up with anything. 

No words were enough for her, for what she did to me. 

I kissed her, slower this time, allowing us to catch our breaths. Amara's hands roamed around my body as freely as mine roamed around hers, with a hint of restraint we both struggled to maintain. 

Grasping her jacket, I pulled it off her shoulders, letting it pool at her waist just seconds before she did the same to mine, dragging her touch down my arms in the process, drawing goosebumps on every inch of my skin. 

Resting her hands on my shoulders, she shifted slightly in my lap, her hips moving against mine, and my hands shot out instinctively to guide them as she deepened the kiss. Her lips moved with mine in perfect rhythm, her hips tracing slow circles over mine, setting my soul on fire. 

As she drew back to let up and breathe, I resorted to trailing slow, soft kisses down her neck. Her grip on my shoulders tightened as I reached her collarbone. "Tristan," she gasped. 

My lips briefly met the strap of her top as I moved to kiss her shoulders before I slid it down with a single finger, letting it dangle on her arm. 

Pushing me away, she met my gaze and breathlessly demanded, "Kiss me." 

"I don't know how long I can go with only these kisses, Amara," I mumbled. "How long?" 

"Until I'm sick of it," she whispered, her lips brushing against mine. "Until we can't possibly keep this distance between us," she continued, pausing to kiss me briefly. "Until," she paused, a smile teasing at her lips, "you can't possibly survive this without having me." 

"I can't," I mumbled against her lips. "I'll do whatever you want." 

Her eyes held mine for several moments. 

"You have no idea," I said a little breathlessly, "what you do to me. How far I'd go for you, the things I would do for you. If you want me on my knees, I'll get down and beg. But please, not much longer. I'm not sure I can wait. When I'm around you, I lose myself. I can't control it." 

After a minute, she finally said, "I won't make you wait much longer. I promise." Leaning in, she kissed me softly before whispering against my lips, "But it's good to know that a man as powerful as Tristan Harper bends at my will." Her nails scratched at my torso as she grabbed the hem of my shirt and began tugging it off. 

I pulled it over my head and draped it behind me, feeling her hands all over me as she kissed me again. Slipping my hands beneath her top, I asked, "Do I have permission?" 

"You do," she grinned, putting her arms up as I dragged the shirt up and over her head, dropping it over the handlebars. "Anyone could see us," she whispered. "Doesn't that bother you?" 

"Not unless it bothers you," I replied. "Trust me, no one's coming here." 

She inhaled shakily as I trailed kisses down her throat and to her chest, my thumb running underneath her bra, tracing the wire. "Tristan," she said, chuckling softly. She leaned back onto her hands as I kissed her ribs and then her torso, hooking my thumbs into the waistband of her pants. 

"Yes?" I asked, glancing up at her before kissing her chest. 

She hesitated for a beat but then shook her head. 

"Do you want to leave?" I questioned, stopping. 

"No. I want to stay." Her eyes followed my movements as I pulled one leg off the bike and stood up. 

"Move," I demanded. 

She slid forward, pulling both legs to one side as she faced me completely. 

I stepped forward, pushed her legs apart, and kissed her with a smile on my lips. My fingers worked on the button of her pants until it came undone and pulling her onto her feet, I slowly pushed them down her hips. Lifting her up and seating her on the bike again, I dragged them down her legs, draping them over the backseat. 

Her breath hitched as I tugged her closer, pulling her bare legs around my waist. "Do you trust me?" I asked. 

She nodded. 

"Do you want this?" 

"Yes," she breathed out. 

"Say it. Use your words." 

"Tristan, I want this. Please," she whispered. 

"Tell me to stop if you need me to," I said, toying with the waistband of her panties. 

.

.

.

.

.

Chapter 38

No. No, I'm not robbing you. 

Btw, outfits are the first comment

next ch: stars

also, y'all seriously need to comment more like where tf did everyone go 😭😭