Read Harley's Achilles (The Rock Series Book 3) for Free Online

around his middle and Harley stiffened. I leaned in a bit and spoke in his ear.
    “What’s wrong?”
    “Nothing,” he answered quickly. “You might want to hold on tighter.”
    “Don’t kill me,” I joked.
    Harley fired up the Tomahawk and I handed him a helmet, putting on my own. I gripped him tightly as he lurched out of the driveway and took a side street behind the buildings. I always had a sense of being free on my bike, as if the whole world didn’t exist and I was in my own make believe world. Flying free with Harley was a different feeling altogether. His body moved fluidly with the Tomahawk, as if it were actually meant for him. He came to a stop behind the diner and I climbed off, setting my helmet in the saddlebag. Harley got off and took his helmet off. A huge grin was plastered on his face as he handed me the helmet.
    “What a fucking ride!”
    “Glad you liked it.”
    “Tell me I can do that again sometime?”
    If it kept that smile on his face, I’d let him ride it every damn day. I nodded and Harley clapped his hands together. I laughed and followed him inside the diner. The guys had grabbed a table, and I sat off to the side, trying to stay inconspicuous. I watched him as he sat and joked with the guys. This was the Harley I wanted to see, not the one who looked like his life was over every time he visited his parents. I balled my fists under the table as I thought about Harley’s life.
    “Achilles?”
    “Yes?” I answered automatically. I glanced over to see Harley eyeing me with a worried look.
    “You look…mad. Is everything okay?”
    “I’m fine, I promise,” I assured him.
    I was battling my attraction to the guy every day and I was fine?
    Ha.
    I ate, but I didn’t taste it. I was too preoccupied with watching Harley as he laughed with the guys. There were times I could see that happiness right under the surface, but when Harley went home, the sadness was back. I wanted to heal him, to tell him he was so much more than he knew. I was still trying to reach the surface, kicking and screaming to break it; what good was I to Harley if I wasn’t whole either? Part of me was still lying in that desert, listening to my fellow soldiers dying in the night. I’d seen a shrink, but they could only do so much.
    Harley stole one of the French fries off my plate and dunked it in ketchup. He turned to me with a grin and I cracked a smile. He was so childlike at times, I forget he’s older than me.
    “You didn’t want that, right?” Harley waggled the fry in front of me.
    “No. I’m done. Have at it.”
    Harley searched my features closely and then leaned in, lowering his voice. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
    “You don’t have to worry about me, Harley. I’m here for you, not the other way around.”
    “Tough shit. I’m not blind, and I can see that something is wrong.”
    I glanced around the crowded table and shook my head. I wasn’t going to vomit my woes onto these guys.
    “You’re coming to my house after this,” he ordered.
    “I kind of have to, remember?”
    “You’re not just going to drop me off is what I mean.”
    “How do you know something is wrong with me? Maybe I’m just quiet.” I glared at him, hoping he’d back off.
    “I’ve spent months with you, Achilles. Were you quiet? Yes. Are you still? No. I think I know you just enough to see when something is bothering you. I’d like to think we’re friends.”
    Friends? Oh God, I wanted so much more from Harley than friendship, but that wasn’t my call, and I was going to be the good bodyguard and leave my charge alone. At least, sexually. I couldn’t deny the fact that I’d wanted him from the second I’d laid eyes on him; Harley wasn’t just good looking, he was kind-hearted and funny. He had “California surfer” written all over him, from his light brown hair with highlights, to his caramel-brown eyes — not to mention his copper-tanned skin and rocking