Page 90 of Kiss & Collide
He ended the call and sat staring at his phone for several minutes. There were so many people he should probably call.Dad. Sam and Tyler. His grandmother and the aunts. But there was only one person he really wanted to tell first: Violet.
He needed to talk it through with her. She was so much smarter about this stuff than he was. She’d be able to pick through all this conflicting shit in his head and help him see it clearly.
He stood up, stripping out of his race suit and Nomex long underwear and changing back into his street clothes. Grabbing his bag, he headed out through the garage. The pit crew was there, still working on the cars ahead of tomorrow’s race. Someone had put music on—something by the Stooges. Seemed Violet’s musical taste had worked its way through the whole team. The crew was talking and laughing as they worked. The scene was a far cry from when he’d first arrived at Pinnacle, everyone silent, sullen, and distrusting.
Rabia and Leon were on the far side of the garage, heads together as they discussed something on Rabia’s laptop. Some other driver would be taking advantage of Rabia’s new design. He’d be in Allegri’s car, an undeniable marvel, but right now he didn’t feel that same thrill imagining it.
HE WAS LYINGon Violet’s bed, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling of her hotel room, trying and failing to picture what the next year of his life would look like, when the door clicked open and she came in.
His eyes skated over her appreciatively. She was wearing another one of her killer suits, this one in dark purple, with skinny pants that showed off her ass in ways that should be illegal.
She registered him on the bed, surprise showing in her eyes. “I thought you’d still be at the track,” she said, setting her bag down on the desk.
He watched her back as she fiddled with her things, plugging in her phone and pulling some stuff out of her bag. Something seemed off about her, different from this morning in the bathroom. When she’d come in just now, there hadn’t been even a hint of a smile when she saw him, and there was a tension in the set of her shoulders and the ramrod straightness of her back.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, fine,” she said quickly.
He sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. “I have something to tell you.” He leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees. “It’s early still, but my agent got a call from Antonio Cenelli.”
She finally turned around to face him, eyes wide. “Does that mean …”
“They want me for next season.”
“That’s …” She looked down at the floor and hooked her hair behind her ear. “That’s excellent. Congratulations.”
This wasn’t the reaction he’d expected from her. Something was definitely off.
“Yeah, but I’m not sure.”
She leaned back against the desk and crossed her arms over her chest. “What aren’t you sure about? It’sAllegri.”
“I know. I should be ecstatic. And I am. It’s amazing. But—there’s Pinnacle to think about.”
Violet shook her head firmly. “No. Forget fucking Pinnacle. If you have an offer from Allegri you need to take it.”
The force of her pushback surprised him. She’d spent so much time and energy turning him into a star, all for the sakeof Pinnacle. Now she was okay with just watching him walk away from all that?
“Violet, what about all your hard work?”
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
He stood up, running a hand through his hair. “Everything you’ve done for me, turning me into this big star, all the sponsorship money it’s brought in. You’re seriously okay with it walking back out the door to another team?”
“Your sponsorship deals are yours, not the team’s. That’s the deal. This is yourcareer.”
“But … it’s more thanmydeals. Carillon, ILM, HeatTech … they all want to sponsor Pinnacle next season because of me. If I leave, that might not happen.”
Violet was clenching her teeth so hard he could see a little muscle in her jaw flexing. He could feel the tension radiating off her and he didn’t understand it. “What happens to Pinnacle isn’t your concern. You need to look out for yourself.”
He scoffed. “Come on, Violet. What happens at Pinnacle matters to me, regardless of where I end up.”
“Why?”
“Because …” He crossed over to her and touched her shoulder, picking up a silky lock of her black hair and rubbing it between two fingers. “Because it affects you. I care about you. You built this. Not for me, for Pinnacle. I’m not going to be the one to tear it apart.”
Violet squeezed her eyes shut and drew in a deep breath. Chase was too close, and he was too …good, putting her first and looking at her like she was hiseverything. Her, the girl who hadn’t had a relationship last longer than six hours in years. Her, the girl who hadn’t even been able to save this fucking team.
