Page 34 of Drive To Survive

“That’s what friends are for.” She and Tate followed me into the house.

“This way, Rhett.” I cocked my head to indicate for him to follow me to the upper floor. I didn’t want to leave him downstairs on his own in a strange house. I’d made the decision to bring them both here, which meant I’d assumed responsibility for him. Oddly enough, it didn’t freak me out like I thought it would.

Once I’d settled Everly on the bed in one of the spare rooms, I took Rhett’s hand, cocked my head at Tate, and returned with him and Rhett to the first floor, leaving Everly alone with Madison. In all likelihood, she did have the flu and would recover with rest and plenty of fluids. But I wanted him to check and make sure something more sinister wasn’t going on.

“Hungry, bud?” I queried.

“Can I have ice cream?”

I arched a brow and canted my head. “Does your mum let you have ice cream before your dinner?”

“All the time,” he said, but the flush spreading across his plump cheeks gave him away.

“Dinner first,” I said. “And then, if you finish it all, you can have ice cream.”

Tate snickered, and I inwardly groaned. He’d give me grief for this. I glared at him. He just smiled wider. The twat.

Rhett’s head lowered, defeated by indisputable logic. “Okay.”

I opened a few cupboards and managed to rustle up a plate of mac and cheese. By the time I’d dished up a bowl of chocolate ice cream—the only flavor I had and, luckily, one he liked—and turned on the TV in the kitchen, Madison appeared.

The three of us wandered out onto the back deck. I picked a chair that allowed me to keep an eye on Rhett.

“So?” I asked, my eyes on Madison.

“My guess is the flu, but without a test, I couldn’t say for sure,” she said. “It’s still early in the season, although I’ve started to see a few cases pop up in London, and I guess it’s the same here. The worst is that it seems to be a particularly virulent strain this year. She needs rest and plenty of fluids. Try to keep her warm, too, which might sound counterintuitive when she’s burning up. No cranking up the air-conditioning, hoping that’ll help her. Try not to worry. She’s young and otherwise healthy. She’ll bounce back in a few days, maybe a week. I left her sleeping, but you probably want to check on her in a couple of hours and try to get her to eat something.”

“Will do,” I said. “I appreciate your coming over in the middle of your holiday.”

“Holiday?” Madison’s eyebrows flew up in surprise. “We came because Tate wanted to check up on you, and the two week break between races was the best time to do that.”

I fucking knew it.

Tate groaned. “Thanks for throwing me under the bus, babe.”

“Oh, you didn’t tell him why we were here? Well, more fool you.”

I loved Madison.

“I’ll call by in a couple days and see how she’s doing,” she continued. “But in the meantime, if you’re worried, get in touch.”

“I thought you were flying back to London tomorrow.”

“We were, and Tate still will be. He needs to get over to Azerbaijan by Monday.” She leaned forward and squeezed my arm. “I just thought you might appreciate a bit of support with Everly.”

Yeah, I fucking loved Madison.

“You’ve got a woman in a million here, Tate.”

“Tell me about it.” They got to their feet and Tate picked up Madison’s medical bag. I walked them to the door, waved them off, then returned to the kitchen, where I’d left Rhett. I raked a hand through my hair.

How the fuck do I entertain a six-year-old kid?

“So, Rhett,” I said. “Do you like video games?”

NICO

My elbow slipped off the arm of the chair, waking me with a jolt. I groaned and rubbed my eyes, then squinted at my watch. Four fifteen. I got to my feet and stretched out my back, then padded over to the bed to check on Everly. Her breathing sounded labored, wheezy, and I could make out her damp forehead in the muted light coming from the streetlights in front of my house.

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