Page 32 of Midnight Racers

Jordan’s hand emerged from his car and he shot his pistol into the air.

The race was on.

I slammed my gearbox into first and hit my accelerator, but Charlotte had already taken off, wheels screaming as she and Megan decided to re-enact Thelma and Louise’s final scene. That car had been sitting in the corner since she had been replaced a while ago. The two women whooped and shouted since they’d taken off first and I couldn’t stop the grin that danced on my lips.

My foot pressed heavily on the accelerator as I chased Charlotte’s sexy ass around the track. Jordan’s black car appeared beside mine, and the two of us led the males racing today. I always aimed to win these races, yet, today I was happy to watch the two hooligans in front of me driving that car like speed demons on a day out of Purgatory.

She handled that car as if she was born to drive, weaving to avoid us overtaking her on the straight sections. James Jones had put the wrong child in the driving seat because she was able to hold both Jordan and me behind her by her counter manoeuvres.

I’d seen Dale racing, and he lacked the finesse to achieve that.

Part of me thought they would tire or slip up, but with every lap Charlotte’s confidence with the car grew. She took the corners at highspeed, barely breaking going into them. She was ticking every box in my brain, and my dick was paying attention to the spectacle as well. It was rare that my two brains agreed at the same time.

My heart hammered with adrenalin, my hands gripping the steering wheel as I chased the woman who was fast becoming my ultimate fantasy.

Several times, Jordan tried to overtake the women, but Charlotte swerved to cut off his attempt. My lips pursed together when a hand appeared out the passenger window to flick him the bird. Megan must be having the time of her life since he refused to take her out in one of the cars.

Girl power had taken on a new meaning and oestrogen was on a rampage today.

They won, the screams emitting from their car enough to spread joy around everyone. There wasn’t one of the guys who weren’t smiling when they emerged victorious and jumping around out of the car. Even Jordan cracked a smile and held his arms open to engulf Megan.

She continued to jump up and down, screaming of how they won.

“You look pleased with yourself,” I said to Charlotte.

She shrugged one shoulder. “I may be a smidgen amused.” She held her thumb and forefinger close together in a pinching motion.

Her joy was infectious, and the brightness illuminating from her captivated me. She wasn’t just beautiful, she possessed that rare quality of being ethereal which made my breath catch.

“There she is!” Declan shouted. The guys raced forward to lift Charlotte and carry her around above their heads while she laughed. Part of me had been worried since we were such a close group that worked both jobs together. I hadn’t been sure if she would fit in and be accepted, but they treated her like one of the guys.

“She’s a bad influence on my wife,” Jordan griped as he came to stand beside me. Megan had joined in the celebrations as Charlotte was on solid ground again.

“I’m more interested in how she got that car to move at those speeds,” I replied.

“You think we can put two cars in a race?” Jordan asked.

“Maybe. She knows her stuff and I get the impression she was held back in her last job.”

Jordan nudged me with his elbow. “Then give her free reign and let her fly. I’d like to see her kick Dale’s ass since he sent one of his goons to our door.” He wandered off and I watched as he moved forward to congratulate Charlotte.

Emotions never found their way into either of my jobs, but suddenly I faced the biggest dilemma of my life. Charlotte was the woman Grandma told me was out there waiting for me, the one who made me stop and re-evaluate everything that went before her. For the first time in my life, I felt fear because she could be the greatest thing that ever walked into my life—or my ultimate demise.

***

Chapter Twelve

Charlotte

The weekend had been great with everyone going out to eat after the race. Yet, inside I was a mess. Flynn had disappeared off the face of the earth, his demeanour different since we got in his car together to come home. It left me feeling as if I’d done something wrong and needed to apologise for it.

I’d finished dinner for both me and Pixie and had nothing better to do with myself on Wednesday night, so I returned to the factory since some of the parts I had ordered had arrived. Flynn and Jordan had both made it clear that no one followed conventional hours and they didn’t work to minimum or maximum hours, just to a race schedule.

I had re-organised the tools on Monday, changed the stores on Tuesday, and my orders had finally started to arrive today. Since I was feeling unsettled, I left Pixie sleeping on her favourite sofa in the conservatory and drove into work. Everything I did was with precision, so I set up a clear counter and placed every new piece that had arrived out in the same way a surgeon would before they operated.

The rest of my orders were arriving by the end of the week, and I had already taken a spare room and started to adapt it for my printers and associated parts. Beside the car, I wheeled a mobile workstation over to ensure nothing was lost during my work. The entire engine bay was photographed by the camera connected to the computer system so I could view everything on the main screen in the workshop.

This was a routine of mine and tended to calm my nerves. I counted everything and recorded it on my worksheet, my fingers skimming over where I had placed all the tools and the parts. Working on an already setup car was one thing, but it was an entirely different beast to start to redesign a racing car. One nut could change the fate of a race, and I took my job seriously, and a huge part of that was the forensic preparation of any work to be carried out.

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