Page 17 of Need for Speed

By the time I got back to L.A. it was drizzling. It’s the middle of the night and I should be exhausted, but I’m so full of energy that I couldn’t sleep even if I wanted to. Talking to Tillman put my mind in perspective. As much as I love racing, I’ve found something I love more. Something that feels more vital. Something that feels real. Sadie. I love Sadie more than I could ever love racing. Not having Sadie around anymore has made me realize that even in our short amount of time, she had become vital to me. I actually feel like there is a piece of me missing without her in my life. Sadie is real. When I’m racing, I’m chasing a high that only lasts for the length of the race. As soon as the car starts to slow down the reality sets in and the high disappears. With Sadie around I don’t need any of that. The only thing I need to remind me of who I am is Sadie. She keeps me level headed.

I’ve made my decision and I find myself taking the route to her place instead of mine. As I pull in front of her house, I see that it is dark. My plan is to wait until morning but the longer I set there the more desperate I become to see her, feel her, hold her. Before I can think twice about it, I’m out of my car and moving to her window. I know a couple of times.

A lamp light appears from behind the curtain and I hold my breath until I see her face peek around the curtain. I watch as relief floods her features. She motions that she will meet me atthe front door. Sadie appears a few seconds later slipping one of my hoodie’s over her head. “Axell, what are you doing here?”

I step forward, “I had to see you.”

“At this time of night?” she asks.

“It couldn’t wait, Sadie,” I tell her as I finish closing the distance between us. I pull her toward me, but she resists. We’re getting soaked, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll stand out here all night until she comes to me with ease, like she used to. “Sadie, I just got done racing. I’ve been doing a lot of that since you left me. I thought it helped. I thought it filled a void, but it doesn’t. I race, and I win, but it doesn’t mean anything without you there by me.”

“Axell…,” Sadie says while trying to move away from me.

I shake my head. “Please, don’t. Let me finish.” She looks up at me. Raindrops causing her hair to cling to her face. “Sadie, before you, racing was the only thing I knew, the only thing I wanted. You showed up and changed it all in such a short amount of time. You showed me so much more. I love you Sadie. I choose you.”

Based on the shuddering breath she pulls in I think she’s crying, but the rain makes it impossible to tell. “Axell, you can’t choose me over racing. You’ll end up resenting and hating me in the end.”

I take her face between my hands and make her look me in the eye. “There was no choice once you entered my life. I love you Sadie. I love youmorethan racing. I’ll always choose you above all else. Tell me you don’t want to give this a try.

Sadie closes her eyes. “Axell, you say all of this now but what about later?”

“I know what happens later. I’ve spent my time without you and I don’t want to ever do that again. I don’t have to worry about later because what I’m saying now will still be true nomatter the length of time. I love you Sadie, I choose you, tell me you don’t love me.”

“I…” she hesitates, and I hold my breath while she takes her time finishing that sentence. “love you. I choose you.” Before she even fully finishes that sentence, I bring my mouth crashing down on hers. Her honeysuckle scent invades my senses and I’ve never felt more at home in my life.

“Damn, you sure know how to get the girl,” Tillman comments.

I smile because I didn’t know if I’d get the girl, but I know I’m lucky as hell that I did. “I’m lucky. So, do you still race?”

Tillman nods. “Yeah, that’s another reason I’m here. I just bought a car, Corvette C7, I want to use it to race but it needs a lot of work to be street ready. Word on the street is that this shop is the best place in town for what I’m looking for.”

“Word on the street?” I ask.

“Yeah, they even say you fixed up Enzo Jones’ car, you know the lead singer of Royal Eternity?”

I nod “We did. I’m sure we can get your car street ready.”

Tillman pats my shoulder. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

Tillman and I continue to catch up. He fills me in on how the racing with Roberto and Manuel is going. Seems not much has changed except the money is even larger than before. Eventually, we make our way back outside to see his car. I make notes of all the changes he wants to make, then we exchanged numbers and I promise to send him a quote tomorrow.

As I head back into the shop, I can’t help but think this day has been far more interesting than I expected.

Chapter 7

Axell

I wake up to the smell of bacon and eggs, my stomach roars in appreciation. I feel the empty bed beside me and know that Sadie has already started the day off. I don’t know how she has so much energy after last night. I had planned on sleeping in. Ace’s wedding isn’t until sunset, so we have most of the day. As soon as I step outside our bedroom I run straight into Jovi. He mumbles he’s sorry, but he looks distracted.

I wrap my arms around Sadie’s waist from behind and lean forward to press a kiss to the top of her head. “Good morning beautiful.”

“Good morning husband,” she replies.

I breathe her in while I still can. The ache in my heart intensifies with the idea of her being gone tomorrow morning with no real way of knowing for sure when she’ll be back. We came to the decision to have Sadie quit her job then re-apply once she gets back to L.A. I didn’t want her to have to feel as if she was on a time crunch or needs to get in a hurry to return. I wanted her to be able to take her time even if that meant I had to be without her for a while. It’s probably the only selfless thing I’ve done for her because when it comes to Sadie, I love her too much to care that I’m selfish with her. “So, you know what’s going on with Jovi?”

She sighs heavily, “Monrowe’s parents grounded her so she’s not coming to the wedding. They’re having a really hard time right now.”

I rest my chin on top of her head. “Damn, I hate to see him like this. I miss my happy go-lucky kid brother. I mean, I knownot everyone gets forever with their first love, but I don’t want him hurting like this.”

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