Read Online Ride by Cat Johnson - Free Book Online Page A

admit she liked it. His strong hand holding hers made her feel safe, but the direction he was leading them didn’t. As he pulled her toward the main doors, she planted her sneakers firmly and tugged against his grasp.
    He stopped. “Did you forget something?”
    “Um, no. It’s just there are so many people outside. Maybe we can leave through a back door?” She had already scoped out all the back exits.
    Apparently Chase and these other guys were some sort of celebrities, though she wasn’t sure what kind. People had lined up to get Chase’s autograph, so maybe he’d be convinced to avoid a fan mob scene out in the hallway.
    He paused and glanced at the entrance. Luckily there was a small group of people milling around out there. “I guess a few people didn’t get tickets. Sure. We can head out the back if you want. Though the way I’ve been riding most of this year, I’m not sure I’d be the one the fans would be hanging around waiting for.”
    She nodded, not understanding his self-deprecating grin or why how he rode would dictate how many fans waited for him. Come to think of it, she wasn’t sure what he rode either. It must be horses, she guessed. Cowboys ride horses. Right?
    It didn’t matter. Leesa was simply relieved they’d be going out the back way where she’d be less likely to be killed by Bruno and his hit squad.
    Chase paused, settling his gaze on the bag hanging on her shoulder whose weight had her listing slightly to the left. “Do you want me to carry that for you? It looks pretty heavy.”
    “Um, no. That’s okay. It’s not that heavy.” Shit . She’d have to explain the giant bag she was toting around. “I’m, uh, on my way out of town for a little vacation. I was just killing some time in the casino before my bus leaves.”
    Killing some time. Trying not to get killed. Whatever.
    “What time is that?”
    His question took her by surprise. She was a horrid liar. “What?”
    “Your bus. When do you have to leave?”
    “Oh, I uh hadn’t made exact plans. I was just going to hop on a bus whenever I felt like it.”
    He grinned wide. “A free spirit, huh?”
    Leesa shrugged. “Yup, that’s me. I go wherever the wind blows me.”
    He had no idea how funny that idea was. He should have seen her with her nose in a book studying twenty-four-seven back in college. She used to have every moment of every day scheduled and timed, right down to her meals and when she’d shower. Things had sure changed.
    “I’m glad about that.” His smile that reached all the way to his eyes told her he truly was.
    “Why?” Damn, she could really like this guy.
    “Because maybe you being a free spirit means you’ll stick around for a bit.” In spite of Chase’s ever-present grin and good mood, he still seemed to search right down to her very soul when he stared deeply into her eyes.
    Leesa swallowed hard. “Maybe.”
    For what felt like a ridiculously long time, another one of those moments passed between them. It didn’t matter the room was full of strangers and noise. Just like it had happened on stage at the club, it felt as if they were the only two people in the world.
    She shook off the feeling. “Shall we go upstairs?”
    “Sure.”
    The look on Chase’s face could only be categorized as gleeful. Then her hand was squeezed by his and she was being pulled toward the back door. She held her breath with fear as Chase reached out and pushed the door wide, then, gentleman that he was, waited for her to walk through first.
    Peering into the hallway, left and then right, she looked for the faces she dreaded seeing. She pulled the hat a little lower over her forehead. Seeing the coast was clear for now, she asked, “Which way to the elevator?”
    Chase tilted his head to the right. “It’s just up here a ways.”
    Leesa nodded, hoping just up here a ways in cowboy-speak meant closer rather than farther.
    Soon , she thought. Soon they’d be upstairs in Chase’s room on a floor he’d said