Page 43 of Played

“The bike broke loose, coming out of a turn as she hit the throttle. There was no time for her to respond.”

“I’m three hours away. Message me as you get updates. I’m on my fucking way.” He’d kill her when he got there. Racing without a full team, she’d risked everything. Someone needed to throttle her ass. Why not him?

***

For the first time in a very long time, River was afraid. Afraid that what she was doing was the wrong thing. When you think you have nothing left to lose, you find out you still have much more at risk. Could her heart take any more? Laurel had sent those fucking pictures right before she raced, and it had thrown her. Sitting in the hotel room’s window seat, River leaned her aching head against the cool glass of the window and watched the rain as it ran down in tiny streams on the pane.

“You’re done, my girl,” she told herself. Why try to fight anymore? Riot was on the verge of destroying her again. Laurel was playing mind gamed to fuck her head up. Archer was trying to kill her on the track. And Mal… well good ol’ Mal had ratted her out to Riot. Who needs friends?

A knock at her hotel room door reminded her she had ordered room service. Moving from her perch, she wrapped her robe tighter around her tired sore, body and opened the door.

“Riot, what are you doing here?” Tugging the robe closed even tighter, she made sure she was completely covered. She stepped back as he pushed past her. “Come in,” she groused.

“Stop with the damn attitude and show me.”

“Show you what?” River tried moving away from him, but the damn wall stopped her as she backed into it, swatting at his hands as they went for the robe. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Show me!”

River stumbled back, looking into an angry face. But it wasn’t that, it was worry. River didn’t want to show him her body, even if it was to reassure Riot she was fine. Because, let’s face it, he had been fucking Laurel for the last few days while leaving her to wonder where he was. “You need to leave. I don’t want you here.” Her heart couldn’t take it, looking at him with those moody blue eyes and his soft brown hair. His jaw tense with attitude. He made her nervous.

“Too bad, sweetheart.” He stalked towards her, closing the gap between them.

“Why are you so pissed off?”

“You took a race… without talking to me about it. The deal is I go out and get you sponsors while you test the bikes and train. What did you not understand?”

“Technically I was testing the bike. I can’t help if you set the race up, you and Ben.” She scrambled for an explanation. One that would make sense to him.Maybe.

“Don’t, River. I’m not in the mood. Ben wasn’t even aware of you racing. What were you thinking?”

“That’s not my fault you didn’t communicate with Ben or me. Plus, I’ve been taking care of myself for years and I’ve never had to answer to anyone.”

“You chose this, we didn’t. If you can’t listen to the people you put in place to oversee things, maybe we shouldn’t do it.”

“Riot, it was one race. If you remember correctly,youpursuedme,not the other way around.”

“You destroyed a bike. It’s completely nonexistent now. Do you ever think about anyone else?Do you?”

“You. I think about you fucking Laurel while you’re telling me you with me one hundred percent!”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Go fuck yourself—and Laurel while you’re at it.” The hurt was an animal clawing to get out. “Your girlfriend sent me pictures of the two of you fucking. I appreciate the headfuck before a race.

“Show me.Now!” He grabbed her—shook her when he hadn’t meant to.

“Fucking get out, you piece of shit!” The slap across his face surprised even River.

Riot was on her in a heartbeat, his hand firmly around her throat, shoving her against the wall. At every turn River had pushed him away, pulling him back when it suited her. Not anymore! “Slap me again, and I swear you won’t like what happens.”

When he let her go and stepped away, she tossed the phone at him. River sat down on the bed, her legs shaking so badly she could barely stay standing. Once he saw the images, he wouldn’t be able to deny it and her world that had once been buttoned up tight would burst wide open.

Riot scrolled through the messages from Laurel to River. Pissy, catty bullshit. Then he saw them… they were blurry, but not him. If she would have taken a fucking minute to look at them instead of jumping to conclusions, she would have seen that for herself. “That’s not me. If you would get out of your own fucking way sometimes, life would be so much easier.”

“What?”

“You heard me. The guy in those pictures isn’t me. You’re so sure I’m lying to you that you can’t see the truth.” Riot tossed the phone on the bed next to her and grabbed his keys.

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