Page 39 of Formula Chance

She nods and takes my hand. “You’ll do fine. Better than fine. You’re Nash Sinclair.”

I can’t help the small smile that tugs at my lips. “Is that supposed to be a pep talk?”

“It’s a fact,” she says simply, and I can’t help but get lost in her eyes, her smile, the confidence in her words. “You’ve got this.”

We just lie there for a moment, the silence stretching between us. It’s not uncomfortable, though. It’s… grounding. Her presence, her belief in me—it’s more than I deserve.

“Why do you still care?” I ask, the words escaping before I can stop them. In the dream, she didn’t care. She was hurt by the way I’d treated her, and it was my fault I couldn’t save her from the flames.

That pain.

Bex blinks, taken aback. “What do you mean?”

“I mean… after everything,” I say, my voice rough. “After the way we ended, the way I treated you in the hospital… why do you still care?”

Her features soften, and she reaches up to cup my cheek. “Because I never stopped,” she says quietly. “Caring about you, I mean. No matter what happened, no matter the time that passed… I never stopped caring for you. I still lo—”

“Bex…” I start, but I don’t know how to finish. My chest tightens, a pang of something sharp and aching cutting through me with an underlying hint of panic.

She shakes her head, a sad smile playing on her lips. “It’s okay, Nash. I’m not asking for anything. I just… I need you to know that I’m not going to dwell on our past. Unless you want this to be a onetime thing, I’m going to look toward the future.”

Her words hang in the air, oppressive because I’m not sure if I can look past tomorrow. And all I can think about is the nightmare—the flames, her screams, the way I couldn’t reach her. It felt like a premonition, a warning. We didn’t work out the first time and I felt we had really tried. She’s here now, but for how long?

How long before I lose her again?

I can’t get too close. I can’t risk it. Because if I lose her again, I don’t know if I’ll survive it.

But that selfish part of me deep down isn’t willing to walk away. What we had last night… it was better than what we ever had before. I’m not sure if it’s the experiences we bring, the new lease on our careers or perhaps we’re just different people. I just know that I want… something with her.

“I don’t know if I can give you much,” I admit, pinning her with a look so she understands my truth.

Her smile is faint as she nods. “I know.”

“Maybe we just take it one day at a time,” I suggest.

“Okay.”

“Maybe without any expectations for now.”

“I understand.”

I know she does. I can hear the disappointment in her voice and my gut tells me that will never be enough for someone like her. I’m already shoring up to suffer the fallout when she concludes that she needs more than what I might be able to give her.

The ache in my chest deepens, but I don’t say anything else. I can’t. Instead, I shift to my back, pulling her with me. She doesn’t resist, her head resting on my chest as her arm wraps around my waist.

“I’m here, Nash,” she murmurs, her voice soft and soothing. “I’m here.”

And for now, that’s enough.

CHAPTER 14

Bex

The conference roomat the Guildford headquarters is small, its walls bare except for a single screen displaying the replay of the Jeddah race. It’s just me, Hendrik, Matthieu and Nash seated around the sleek black table, our goal today to further deconstruct what happened and apply our learned lessons to Melbourne.

Bernie isn’t present because he’s officially in backup driver position now and won’t be called upon to attend any strategy sessions, although he’ll continue to work in the simulator on the off chance he’s needed.

But for now, we are focusing on Nash and Matthieu and the strategies we will employ for them individually and as a team.

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