Adversaries and Lovers Read Online Free Page A

good," she said. Ignoring his request for water, she grabbed her portfolio, nudged him outside and pulled the door shut. She headed for the motorcycle, anxious to be on their way before her grandmother could call her back.
    "You'll regret not changing your clothes," Ben said.
    Kate stared at the long narrow seat and pondered the physical contact its proximity implied. "The only thing I regret is that I'll be forced to sit behind you on that thing."
    "It's a Harley," Ben corrected. "You seem to have a thing about my things. My office complex is a thing. My Harley's a thing. Or maybe you have a fetish with men's things."
    Kate wasn't amused. "Can we just go? I'm not in the mood for verbal sparring."
    Ben smiled. "Nor am I. Meanwhile, I'm responsible for my passengers, and since you need to hold onto me, I'll take this—" he grabbed the portfolio in her hands, but she held on to it, knowing it would make a barrier of sorts between them. He jerked it free, and ignoring her look of censure, packed it into a saddle bag and handed her a helmet. "Put this on and climb aboard." He donned his helmet and gloves and mounted the motorcycle.
    Kate pulled on the helmet, then gathering her skirt, tucked it between her legs and straddled the seat. After arranging the skirt to cover her knees, she sat with her hands resting on her thighs.
    Ben glanced over his shoulder, and said, "You'd better hang onto me."
    "I'd rather not," Kate clipped.
    "Suit yourself." Ben revved the engine. As the motorcycle shot forward, Kate grabbed onto him to keep from flying backwards. At once, the exotic aroma that clung to him the night of the reception drifted to her nostrils, the untamed headiness of it sending words flashing in her mind like a neon warning sign: Dangerous Animal. Beware . Her awareness of him had the odd effect of making her feel weak, as if the strength was draining from her arms, and she found herself gripping him tighter yet, until she could feel the play of muscles in his lean, solid torso.
    A big gloved palm covered her hands. "You okay?" he asked.
    Kate realized she was clinging far tighter than necessary. Lessening her hold, she replied, in an attempt to justify her impulsive move, "No, I'm not okay. Your driving's scaring the hell out of me." Which it wasn't. But she didn't want him to know.
    "Funny," Ben said. "I had you pegged as an adventurous woman, and I'm usually not wrong about women."
    "I'll bet," Kate quipped. But she had the uneasy feeling that before the day was done, she'd wish she did know karate. Ben was definitely a man on the prowl. But she couldn't deny that another part of her didn't want to fight him off, a thought she found increasingly troubling as the motorcycle brought them ever closer to his hideaway in the woods.
     
     

CHAPTER TWO
     
    To Kate's dismay, her skirt began to creep up her legs, and each time she went to pull it down, the motorcycle would make a sharp turn, forcing her to abandon her efforts and grab onto  Ben. "Do you have to drive like a maniac?" she yelled into the wind.
    Ben tilted his head toward her. "This your first time on a bike?"
    " Of course it's my first time !" Kate cried. "I'm not an idiot. And this is definitely not my idea of fun."
    "You'll get used to it. For now, sit back and enjoy the feel of the wind on your face—" Ben glanced down at her bare leg "—and other enchanting parts of your body."
    By now Kate’s skirt had crawled up high on her thighs and there was nothing she could do about it. Having given up trying to maintain some semblance of modesty, she focused on balancing on the back of the motorcycle with a minimum contact with Ben, which was hopeless. Every time she slackened her hold, the motorcycle veered this way or that, forcing her to hang onto Ben to keep from falling off.
    On the outskirts of the city, they turned onto a road that followed the winding course of the Willamette River. Cruising through Oregon’s pastoral countryside with its colorful patchwork