My Kind Of Bad

*****

The ride back was not as Neera expected. Kurt had given her a helmet to wear and instructed her to hop on the back and hold onto his waist. As they tore smoothly along the freeway Neera buried her face in Kurt’s back, her eyes shut tight. She didn’t want to see how fast they were going. She didn’t even like going on the fast rides at the fairground; this was almost like her worst nightmare.

When they finally got back to Neera’s apartment, Neera felt as though she had been on a big drop. Her stomach felt like it was made of water and her backside was sore. But the throbbing in her pu*sy was stronger than before from the thrum of the engine. She forced back the sensation and climbed off the bike, wobbling as her legs hit the sidewalk.

Pulling off his helmet, Kurt grabbed her arms and held her upright.

“Take it easy. It’ll take a moment for your legs to get used to being on firm ground again.”

The touch of his hands was making Neera uncomfortable. Her whole body was now humming. It made her nervous; Kurt was not like any man she had come across before. And no man had made her feel like she was about to go up in flames.

Kurt grinned.

“I take it you’ve never been on a motorbike before?”

“No.” Neera steadied herself and stepped away, his hands falling away. She pulled her helmet off and handed it to him. “I prefer being inside the vehicle.”

“It’s something that needs to be got used to.” Opening the back of the bike and slotting the helmet inside, Kurt turned around and patted the handlebars of his bike like a master would pet his favorite animal. “But it’s a nice ride.”

Neera suddenly had an image of another nice, more naughty kind of ride.

Who knew just one man could get her up in knots?

Kurt was watching her curiously, a frown pulling his eyebrows down over his dark eyes.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Neera gripped her bag strap to stop herself from reaching out and touching him. “Do you fancy coming in? I can make you a coffee, if you wish.”

Now she really was losing it. She was inviting the man in for a coffee! Elizabeth and Petra were right; she did need to get laid.

But Kurt shook his head.

“Sorry, I’ve got to head off. And you don’t need to do anything to repay me.”

“Oh.” Neera felt something between relief and disappointment. She hid her feelings behind a somewhat overly bright smile and shrugged. “Oh, well, bye.”

“Neera.”

Neera stopped. She shouldn’t have. She should have hurried to her building and gone inside before she did something else stupid. But the way he said her name made her pause. The deep rumble made her shiver. Kurt was sitting back on his seat, his helmet on his lap, looking at her with slight indecision. Neera turned back, her heart pounding. She needed to get out of there before something happened that she would regret.

Like kissing a total stranger.

“My boss, Billy DuJour, is having a barbecue at his place on Sunday.” Kurt rubbed the back of his neck, looking slightly abashed. “He’s requested that I ask you to come. As my date.”

“Me?” Neera blinked. “I didn’t know he knew me.”

“He saw you at the club. He likes you.”

“Just by looking at me? Without talking to me?”

Kurt shrugged.

“He’s like that. And he said I needed to stop coming to things alone.” He paused. “Do you want to go?”

Neera weighed the options. On Sunday she would be in her apartment with a lot of junk food and several boxsets. Like every other Sunday since she finally left her ex-boyfriend. Elizabeth and Petra would join her if they weren’t busy but it was usually Neera on her own.

A very boring Sunday was nice every now and then. But Neera was getting tired of them. She shrugged.

“My social life has been going down the toilet lately. And I like a barbecue. I’d like that.”

The look on Kurt’s face said that he hadn’t expected her to say yes. Then he beamed.

“Great. I’ll pick you up at two.”

“Okay.”

Kurt paused, his helmet halfway to his head. Then he leaned over and kissed her cheek. Neera’s breath hitched and she nearly closed her eyes as she leaned into it. But then Kurt was pulling away before Neera knew that he had moved. He gave a smile.

“I’ll see you then. But,” He added, a shadow passing over his face, “I don’t want you to read too much into it. I’m not the best guy to get into a relationship with.”

“Why’s that?” Neera raised an eyebrow, planting her hands on her hips. “Because you’re a biker.”

“Because of extenuating circumstances. People get hurt when I’m around because they’re with me.” Kurt paused. “I don’t want that to happen to you.”

Neera knew what he was trying to do. While he was happy that she had accepted, he was trying to get her to run away. That just made her more curious. She wanted to know what was going on.

“It’s just a barbecue.” She leaned over. “How about letting me decide that for myself?”

Then she turned and walked away, aware that Kurt was watching her leave. So she put a bit of extra sway into her hips, giving him a saucy look over her shoulder and a slight finger wave as she went inside.

*****

Neera slept well that night. After having a long, hot bath she had fallen naked into bed and passed out. She hadn’t realized how tired she had been until she lay down and closed her eyes. Next thing she knew when she opened her eyes it was morning, the sun streaming in through the gaps in the curtains.

It was Saturday. A day where Neera could do absolutely nothing if she so wished. She did have to run to the grocery store but that was it. She could lounge about the house and have that boxset marathon. Watch the Amazon series she had picked out for herself as a treat. And think about what to wear for a barbecue.