~TESSA~
THE FOLLOWING DAY...
The moment we pulled into the Bishop Bikes lot, I felt it... that sound.
A deep, rumbling chorus of engines under repair.
Ryder smiled... he looked happier here.
Like something loosened in his shoulders the second he stepped out of that polished world and into this one...
“Welcome back to the heart of the beast,” he said, glancing back at me as he tossed his helmet onto a nearby bench.
I followed him into the open garage bay, where three guys were arguing over what sounded like a faulty timing chain.
The place was half chaos... half choreography.
I mean... tools clinked. Classic rock blasted from an old radio.
There was a rhythm to basically everything.
And when they saw Ryder?
Everything stopped.
“Look who actually showed up,” Knox said, stepp
