Page 62 of Full Throttle 2

“They would never.”

“Exactly! My team should never discuss Lockwood business with you, and the entire team does it, from Gonzo to Brian to my dad. I don’t understand why you can’t see that as a problem.”

“I can’t protect you if I don’t know what’s going on.”

“What you’re doing is not protection. It’s control! You want to control me.”

“Bullshit. I want you to live long enough so that we can have a future. Maybe even a family. Earlier, you talked about having an X on your chest. Other teams are already gunning for you! You’ve proved your point. You’re a winner. You’re the first. You’re an incredible driver. Why can’t that be enough?”

Colby’s heart was going to beat out of her chest. “Because it’s not. You sound like you want me to quit altogether.”

“Probably because I do. I mean...you’re stressed the fuck out. You might be borderline anorexic, and you just almost killed yourself. What has to happen before you decide to leave this all behind?”

Colby felt as if he’d slapped her. “Wow! Borderline anorexic? That’s...wow.”

Liam had gone too far, but he needed Colby to understand the ramifications of her actions. He wasn’t trying to hurt her.

Liam reached out to touch her, but Colby drew back.

Her eyes were glassy from anger and unshed tears. “What you don’t seem to get is that I’m a James. For me, racing is more than just a career. It’s part of who I am. I thought you understood that.”

“What you don’t understand is that it’s hard to watch you deal with all of the bullshit that comes your way and how it’s mentally and physically affecting you. You’re literally wasting away before my eyes.”

Colby pressed her lips together. “I understand.”

Liam thought he was finally breaking through. “Do you? Do you really understand?”

She nodded. “I do. I’m not giving up racing, and you can’t deal with everything that comes with it, which means as much as we might love each other, we are at an impasse.”

Liam couldn’t believe Colby was being so pigheaded. “We are at an impasse?”

Her heart was breaking. Colby glanced away. “Maybe we need some time a part to figure things out.”

When they’d met, Liam had no idea how everything would play out. The world of racing was new to him. Being in an interracial relationship and dating a Black woman was also new. However, Liam could deal with the racism. He didn’t give a shit about racists, but how it was affecting Colby was a different matter. How was he supposed to protect and support her?

Every minute she was behind the wheel of a car, Liam feared for her life. Hell, when Colby wasn’t behind the wheel of a car, he was terrified some deranged fan or foe might hurt her.

Over the past year, Liam had had it with NASCAR and was ready to settle down. He had enough money for them to do whatever the hell they wanted. But at this point in Colby’s life, he couldn’t imagine her wanting to be married, having children, and just enjoying life. It was at this moment that Liam realized they weren’t on the same page and weren’t even close. Heclosed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. His chest felt tight. The anger had left his body only to be filled with an overwhelming sense of sadness. “Maybe we do need to take some time apart.”

Holding back tears, Colby never could have predicted this was how her day was going to go. What was she supposed to do? She was angry that Liam was doing this to them. Why did she have to choose between her passion and the love of her life?

Liam stepped forward and leaned into her body before gently placing a kiss on her forehead. “Please take care of yourself.”

Colby stood as still as a statue as she watched him gather his things and walk out the door.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Lila walked into her bedroom to find Brian stretched out on her bed with his hands clasped behind his head, staring up at the ceiling.

She crawled onto the bed and burrowed herself into his side. “You know everything is going to be alright.”

He sighed. “You heard?”

“Yeah, Colby told me, and then I sat with her until she fell asleep.”

“They are both as stubborn as a mule.”

“They are, but Colby’s right about this one.”

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