Chapter 383

"My shoe!" Kelsey yelped, trying to grab it.

But Michael was faster. He stepped on Kelsey's slipper with the tip of his shoe, trapping her foot on top of his.

Michael's leather shoes were hard and cold.

Kelsey was only worried about her shoe and got a bit angry. "Michael, you're stepping on my shoe!"

Kelsey loved solid colors, especially white. Her loungewear and slippers were mostly white. This pair of slippers, with their fluffy bunny ears, was a gift from Jack just last week. Kelsey adored them.

But now, one of the bunny ears was getting squished under Michael's foot. The soles were so dirty, what a shame for her pure white slippers!

Michael sneered. "You stepped on my foot."

Kelsey rolled her eyes, thinking, 'If you hadn't stepped on my shoe first, would I have stepped on your foot? Do you think I enjoy doing that?'

Kelsey grumbled inwardly but held back because she might need to ask Michael for a ride later.

Kelsey steadied herself and quietly lifted her foot off Michael's shoe.

Michael smirked and moved his foot away. He squatted down, picked up Kelsey's slipper, and dusted it off with his other hand. Then he reached out to hold her ankle.

Startled, Kelsey pulled back. "What are you doing?"

Michael didn't answer or look up. He continued to reach out, grasping her slender ankle.

Kelsey felt the heat from Michael's palm. Just as she was about to pull her foot back, Michael had already wiped the dust off the soles of her feet with his hand, then slipped the slipper onto her foot and gently placed it back on the ground.

For some reason, Michael's actions had a carefulness that made Kelsey feel like she was being treated like a treasure in his hands.

Michael stood up. "Shall I call a cab for you?"

As he spoke, he took out his phone to call a cab.

Kelsey quickly blocked his phone screen with her hand. "No! If I wanted to call a cab, I would have done it myself."

She spoke in a low voice, glancing towards her house at times as if she were a thief.

Michael smirked. "So you like to sneak around?"

Kelsey rolled her eyes at him. "What nonsense are you talking about? I just don't want my parents and Zaire to worry about me. I'll handle my own problems; they've got enough on their plate already. Besides, it's hard to get a cab at this hour and in this area. I was going to drive, but I didn't want to wake them up. Michael, since you're heading back anyway, can you give me a ride? If it's too much trouble, I can pay you."

"No need, I don't need your money." Michael took out a black car key from his pocket. "Let's go; my car is parked a bit far."

Seeing Michael agree, Kelsey breathed a sigh of relief.

She followed Michael for about a hundred feet and then saw his vehicle, stunned.

Kelsey asked, "You came on a motorcycle?"

Michael had already reached the bike and handed her a helmet. "What, getting cold feet?"

Kelsey bit her lip and took the helmet. "No way. Let's go."

It was just her first time on a motorcycle.

She put on the helmet; Michael, already on the bike, wearing black leather gloves, patted the seat behind him. "Hop on."

Kelsey looked at the small remaining space on the seat, feeling hesitant.

Although she had never ridden a motorcycle, she had seen others on the road. The guy carried the girl, who clung to his back; such a posture was undeniably intimate. Knowing Michael's mischievous nature, getting on his motorcycle seemed like playing with fire.

Seeing Kelsey hesitate, Michael laughed. "What, scared?"

Kelsey didn't respond. Indeed, she was scared. She was afraid that once she got on, she wouldn't be able to get off.

Michael adjusted the dashboard without looking at her. "You can still change your mind."

Kelsey thought for a moment. "I'll call a cab."

Michael didn't say anything, continuing to fiddle with the dashboard.

Since she wasn't taking his ride, she had to return the helmet. But for some reason, Kelsey couldn't undo the buckle. She was almost sweating, but the buckle wouldn't budge.

With no other option, Kelsey asked Michael for help, "Can you help me? I can't seem to undo it."

Michael glanced at her. "You locked the buckle."

Kelsey didn't understand; she felt uneasy. "What now? Do you have a key?"

Michael chuckled but patiently explained, "This kind of buckle is complicated. There's no key; you have to go to a shop and have it unlocked by a professional."

Kelsey looked at him suspiciously. "Really? You're not tricking me, are you?"

Kelsey knew nothing about motorcycles or these advanced gadgets. She had to take Michael's word for it.

Michael didn't argue with her; he took out his phone and made a call, putting it on speaker.

The call was quickly answered by a man's voice, "Hey Michael, what's up so late?"

Michael said, "I need to know how to unlock a helmet buckle that's stuck."

"Stuck?" The voice sounded surprised.

"Yeah." Michael glanced at Kelsey, repeating seriously, "Stuck."

There was a long silence before the voice came through. "You have to come to my shop. I'll use tools to unlock it. But Michael, you are already an experienced rider; how did you get a helmet buckle stuck?"

Kelsey's cheeks burned with embarrassment. How humiliating.

The thought of showing up at the shop with the helmet on and facing ridicule made Kelsey want to crawl under a rock.

Michael didn't explain much, just said, "A mistake."

The other side said, "Are you coming over? I'm at the shop; I'll wait for you."

Michael looked at Kelsey, seeking her opinion.

Kelsey thought she couldn't go see Jack with the helmet on, so she nodded.

Michael smiled and told the person on the phone, "Wait for us."

He hung up and placed his hands on the handlebars, looking at Kelsey. He was waiting for her to get on.

Kelsey knew this wasn't the time to be coy. She could just keep her distance once on the bike.

With that thought, Kelsey reluctantly got on the bike.