Page 67 of Start Your Engines

“And we’ve played Need for Speed and Mario Kart every day.” Nothing stops the internal Connor burn. Gaming against him nearly killed me the other day—all that swearing and banter.

“Gaming doesn’t count. And it was fun driving your car even when you screamed as I got close to the hedge to let those tourists pass.” He gives me a nudge that has me nearly toppling off the sofa. He wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me back. “It’s good to know how you sound when you scream.”

I turn to face him. Our lips are so close I could kiss him. Maybe I’m not the only one dealing with forbidden thoughts. Fuck, I’m so confused.

I take a breath. “Anyway, we’re meant to work on Operation Get Connor Driving. But we should call it Operation Make Connor Love Driving Again.”

He shrugs, but his gaze lingers on my lips. I shove him away. I can’t deal with all these emotions. “So you don’t like driving because of the crashes and…?”

“And the politics and the enabled shitty behaviour of people like Antoine who can be dangerous twats because they have power and money,” he practically snarls.

“I still need to replace him. I’m not allowed to do business right now because of shutdown, but I keep thinking about it.”When I’m not thinking about you.

“Tawny would be good, and she’s got what she needs to move up in terms of license and skill. She has ideas for how to maximise the cars, too.”

“Jacs’s sister?” I roll my shoulders.

I like her, and she’s an exceptional driver who’s precisely what the team needs. But she and Connor flirted on our night out, although it was me he kissed. So what if she and Connor flirt if it’d be good for the team?

“She would be brilliant.” I’m a prick for being jealous. He’s not mine. I retuck my legs as I remember his hand against my thigh under the hem of my dress when we kissed. He smells of beer and spice like he did that night.

“She’d benefit from a female boss who doesn’t sideline her success.” Guilt bites my ankles. It’s hard to be a woman in this business. I could help shield her from the crap. I need to raise women as I’ve always done, not be jealous of them. “Her boss hasn’t given her the respect she deserves, so I reckon she’d move even though she’d go from top dog in F2 to a newbie in F1 in the middle of the season.”

“How do you know all of this?” The question is out of my mouth before I stop it. “Do you chat?”

“Are you jealous, Sen?” His lip tilts.

The bastard knows exactly what’s going on in my head. It’s like cocky eighteen-year-old Connor has entered the room. Only it’s not my teenage heart fluttering. It’s all adult, and that stare has put the heat right between my legs.

“No chance.”

A wave of hair falls out of my ponytail, and he tucks it behind my ear. I make a fist to stop me from grabbing the T-shirt clinging to his chest.

“For the record, Coults.” His voice lowers. My belly performs Olympic-level gymnastics with flips and rolls. “She and Jacs called me yesterday. But it’s just friendship. She’s not my type. I like the bosses, not the drivers.”

Fuck.

“Like Graham Hill. He was a boss and a driver,” I stutter, pointing at the screen.

I’m too scared to ask what he feels for me.

“Like Graham Hill,” he agrees and settles into the sofa with a sigh.

Thoughts itch my brain as we stare at the screen. “So if you no longer love driving, why stay with the team?”

He pulls my legs onto his lap, and I don’t resist him. His heat penetrates my skin.

“Partly for Niki. But mostly for you. I’m not leaving you in the lurch like others have. You need me, don’t you?”

As I stare into those big blue eyes, I’m sure he knows all the ways I need him. “Yes. I need you.”

“Then, even though I’ll run through everything I hate about driving as I wait for races to start, I’ll drive and I’ll do it for you.”

“For me?” It comes out like a squeak rather than a question full of self-assurance.

“For you,” he confirms. “It’s all for you.”

My mouth goes dry. His thumbs tap on my thighs. I can’t resist him for much longer, and my reasons for not letting him close are fading into nothing.

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