Page 63 of Octane

Jackson: Okay. Be careful.

“Okay, that will have to do for now, Carissa announces as she zips up the bag. “Let’s go,”

I follow Carissa down the hallway, neither one of us looking at Daniel on the way out. I feel his eyes on me, and the heat from his anger fills the room. As I walk past him, he grabs me around my throat and throws me over the back of the sofa.

I scream, but I’m able to roll off of it and back onto my feet before he has a chance to get to me again. Carissa grabs a hold of his arm, but he pushes her away.

“Don’t touch her!” she shouts.

My purse is still hanging from my forearm, and I remember the mace that’s in there. I pull it out quickly, silently thanking Jackson, then spray Daniel in the face. He screams in pain and drops to the floor.

I run to the door, slamming it closed behind Carissa and me, never looking back.

Jackson pops out from behind the corner as we rush to the elevator. He’s already pressed the up button and is waiting for it to return. When we get in, he enters his access code into the keypad.

5689

I didn’t mean to look, but I can’t take it back. I don’t think he would mind me knowing it, but I would feel better about it if he told me outright.

“Are you girls hurt?” He asks us.

“No. He tried to keep me from leaving, but I used the mace you gave me.”

He smiles proudly, and we exit the elevator when it reaches the penthouse. I thought the first time I entered Jackson’s home would have been for a happier occasion. Not after a terrifying escape from my abusive boyfriend.

Ex-boyfriend.

I want to be able to appreciate the Carrara marble floors, the plush furnishings, and the three-sixty view of the city below. Instead, I rush through the open door that Jackson is holding and pace across the floor, wringing my hands with worry.

“Daniel has a video of us,” I exclaim before Jackson even has a chance to close the door.

“What kind of video?” Jackson inquires with confusion.

“From the garage at your office last week. When we almost kissed the first time.”

“First time?” Carissa chimes in. “There was more than one?”

I shoot her a look. I don’t know if Jackson wants anyone else knowing about us yet.

“What does the video show exactly?” His chocolate eyes are focused intently on my face, waiting for my answer.

“Us leaning in for a kiss in your garage, but then it stops. It doesn’t show me pulling away before our lips have a chance to touch. Jackson, I’m so sorry. He threatened to leak it if I left him, but I did it anyway, and now we’re going to get kicked out of the league.”

Carissa’s teeth are worrying her bottom lip as I walk past Jackson, pacing across the floor. He pulls me back in front of him, cupping my cheeks in his hands.

“Look at me,” he commands. “I don’t care about that. The only thing that matters to me is that you’re out of there. Okay?”

I take a deep breath and nod.

“And the league isn’t really going to care about that video. Relationships between drivers or drivers and other team members are frowned upon, but as long as nothing ugly happens, they generally look the other way.”

“Define ugly,” I ask him.

“Nasty breakups, negative attention in the media. Things like that. A video that shows us not actually kissing isn’t going to get the kind of attention that Daniel thinks it will.”

“Really?” My eyebrows rise, relieved to hear that the video won’t cause us to be kicked out of the league.

“I promise. That being said, you need to prepare yourself for the fallout if he does release it.” He continues when he sees the confused look on my face. “People can be nasty, and I can see rumors starting about how you ended up on my team. Especially because you were signed to a cup series team without ever racing in the minors.”

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