Page 55 of Start Your Engines

I lift my head to glare at her. “My heart isn’t anywhere. I might go for a week. It would only be for a change of scenery. Friends without benefits.”

“Do you want to go?”

My breath catches in my throat, and I stare through the glass of my office door to Connor, who is laughing with Jimmy. I drop my head back on my desk.

Jacs starts on at me again. “So Mr. Vet wants you. Connor wants you?—”

“Connor and I can’t be together. We had a drunk kiss, and then he got a call from Niki. It was what I needed to convince me we shouldn’t have kissed. I’m his boss, my dad hates him, and he’s my brother’s best friend. I need to remain professional.” My words are muffled against the desk, but she catches every word.

“And yet, minutes ago, he gave you fuck-me eyes through your doorway, and you blushed. And he’s arranged for food to be delivered to your office every evening to ensure you eat.”

I lift my head, and my eyes pinch as I stare at her. “He did that?”

She nods smugly and puts her hands behind her head. Her chair tips back slightly.

“But—”

Suddenly, my door flies open, and my dad strides in. The season break means everyone panics and must conduct as much business as possible. My phone vibrates again. It’s Mr. Vet. I pop it in my drawer.

Dad’s ears are the colour of beetroot, and I prepare for a rant about a decision I’ve made. I still need to confront him.

“Give me a minute, Jacs. And close the door behind you. Not that it makes a difference, because some people are too rude to knock,” I add. It’s like water on oil with my dad.

Again, I catch Connor’s eye as Jacs leaves my office and closes the door. They can’t be fuck-me eyes.

“What do you want, Dad?”

“You need to treat Antoine better,” Dad huffs.

“Antoine needs to be a better driver,” I retort. “I thought we agreed that I was in charge.”

My reply is half-hearted because I suspect he’s continued to speak to board members behind my back.

“That was when I trusted your decisions.” My dad slams his hands on my desk. The temptation to recoil is strong, but I raise my eyebrow instead. “You’re favouring Connor because why? He’s the reason for your failed driving career and accident.”

“Connor is the better driver. That’s been clear all season.” I don’t add that Antoine is the real reason I crashed as a teenager. Dad won’t listen, and I suspect there’s another reason for his adoration of Antoine.

I bang a fist on my desk to avoid stroking or hiding my scar. It’s not something to be ashamed of. “Is Antoine one of the investors you’re lining up?” My dad’s face doesn’t change. And the truth hits me. “What Ralf said was right. You’re not looking for investors. You’re searching for buyers, and Antoine is one ofthem. That’s why you’ve been hanging out with Jean. I thought I could trust you. I knew, sure as shit, I shouldn’t trust them.”

My dad refuses to make eye contact. Instead, he continues to huff as he walks across the office to stare out the window.

“You don’t believe in me, do you? Why have you let me run this team if you were going to sell it?”

He turns, and his features soften. “Jumps.” I bristle. “Niki was supposed to run this team before he disappeared. Don’t get me wrong, you’re not doing badly?—”

“I’m doing much better than you did when you ran this place into the ground last year.”

His shoulders hunch, and his face reddens. Shit, I don’t want to give him another heart attack.

“Don’t give me attitude, Senna. I’m selling this team at the end of the season because it’s the right thing to do. It’s right for my health and for this family. Niki disappeared because of his crash. You’re working every hour you can and not having a life. You should be having babies.”

I grab the arms of my chair to prevent from striding over and smacking him in the face.

“I don’t want babies. I want to run this team,” I shout. Everyone outside my office will hear what I just said, including Connor. It’s true I don’t want babies, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want a relationship, which is entirely possible. All the other team bosses have partners.

But the only man I want is the one I can’t date.

My dad collapses in a chair. I can barely keep up with my moods, let alone his. “What is going on, Dad? Where did the baby thing come from?”

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