She shook her head, not looking at him. “No, I don’t like taking them.”
“Why?”
“Because they make me fuzzy and lightheaded.”
His hands closed over hers. “How about we try something else to help you?”
“I don’t have anything else.”
“Not talkin’ about a different drug.”
She looked up at him then. “Then what?”
He smiled, pulling the pills out of her hands.
She started to panic. “Please, Crash, don’t take them from me.”
He shook his head. “I’m not, honey.” He put them back in her purse. “They’re right here if you absolutely need them. But, let me try something else.”
“Nothing else works.”
“You never told anybody about this, right? Other than the doctor that prescribed those pills.”
She nodded.
“So, no one has ever tried to help you. You’ve tried to deal with this all alone, right?”
Again, she nodded.
“What would help you, Shannon? Talking about it? Me holding you?” He glanced toward the bed and teased, “A distraction, maybe?” She looked up at him, and he saw the vulnerability in her eyes. God, he wanted to protect that.
“Can we get out of here? Go somewhere? Please? I just don’t want to be here right now.”
Crash smiled down at her. “Sure. Whatever you want, Princess.”
She went back into his arms, her head pressed against his chest. He stroked her hair and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “How about I take you out on the bike? You up for a ride?”
She nodded against his chest.
They rode for hours. Down along the coast and back, watching the early light of dawn turn into day as the sun rose over the horizon and climbed into the sky. And in that time, Shannon fell in love with riding. It was so freeing and made her forget all her problems. Seeing the countryside from the back of a bike was nothing like being in a car. On the bike, you were out in your surroundings, not seeing it from the other side of a piece of glass. You could look up and see the sky above you, the trees passing overhead, the ridge of the hillside, just so much more. It was like going from a flat photo to a 360 degree shot. You could hear sounds going on around you, not just some radio noise. You could feel the wind, smell the sea. It just involved all five of your senses in a way that being inside a car did not. It made her feel so much more a part of the moment than she ever felt rolling along in a half catatonic state in a monotonous car ride.
They stopped along the way for breakfast and then later, for lunch. Shannon was having the time of her life. Anywhere she wanted to stop, Crash did so. When she pointed at a deserted stretch of beach along Highway 1, Crash pulled over, and they hiked down to the beach. When she saw the wharf down in Santa Cruz, Crash pulled over, and they walked around. When Shannon said she wished she had her cell phone, so she could take some pictures, Crash bought her a pocket camera at one of the shops. They watched the sunset over the ocean, and then Crash headed them in the direction of home.
Or at least that’s where Shannon thought they were headed.
They ended up at a cookout at Cole and Angel’s place.
Shannon had been in the kitchen helping the women with food until Angel had shooed her out onto the back deck where the men were overseeing the kids playing on the big wooden play set that Angel had informed her Crash had helped Cole to build for the twins third birthday several years ago.
Shannon walked past the sunken living room where Mack, Red Dog, Wolf, Green and Cajun were sprawled around the giant sofa pit group watching a game on the big screen TV. She strolled outside where Crash, Cole and another man were sitting on the back deck. Looking off to the play set, she saw Red Dog’s son, Billy and Cole’s kids, TJ and Melissa were all playing on it.
Shannon took a seat next to Crash.
He reached over and took her hand, bringing it to his mouth for a kiss. “You okay, Princess?”
“I’m fine.”
He nodded toward the other man and introduced Shannon. “Shannon, this is Rusty. He’s a member of the War Dogs,” he grinned over at Rusty and added, “but we don’t hold that against him.”