Page 33 of The Player Penalty
“You don’t like short tracks. Those were your words last night. I was paying attention.”
Julian sits beside me, places an arm over my shoulder, and pulls me against him. “Less satisfaction isn’t the same as none. It will be a great day; I can feel it.”
He leans into me, and something warm touches the edges of my temple.
My phone alarm goes off.
Julian kissed me. It’s almost my first kiss. I have an official best friend who is possessive of my time. Plus, school is going well, and a career plan is forming.
My life is nearly perfect, and that alone scares me.
“Lily. Your phone.” Julian shakes me. “What’s the alarm for?”
“I don’t remember setting it.”
He picks it up. “Your plans with Maddie and Sarah.”
∞∞∞
“Look at this, I’m doing it.” Maddie shows off her long chain of single crochet stitches. “It’s amazing what’s possible when you stop holding your hook with a death grip.”
“You ready for the next one?” I ask with only half my attention. Bristol is down to the final dozen laps, and Julian is leading.
“Keep at it, boss,” Maddie says.
I don’t answer.
Sarah snaps her fingers and my spell breaks.
“Sorry. I was thinking about a school project.” A small white lie is much better than a confession of the truth: every thought since we left the trailer has been about Julian.
“He’s good, isn’t he? Jake says this is his best season so far,” Sarah says.
Julian took the lead during the 60th lap and has held it ever since. Others come up for the pass and then fail to complete it. Julian may not enjoy a short track, but he can dominate one. Pride and a rare sense of ownership fill me.
“Oh, he’s going to win. I wonder what this will do for Julian’s ranking,” Maddie says. “Boone wants all three of them in the playoffs again this year.”
The 33 car crosses the finish line.
My smile is for Julian. “I knew he would win.”
13-Julian
Rivers Motorsports Headquarters, North Carolina
“Our meeting can now begin,” Jake says as he enters the conference room. He adds fake crowd cheer sounds for additional impact.
“I always appreciate a man who tries for grand entrances,” Boone says. “Let’s keep this brief.”
RMSalways holds an all-hands meeting after every race, ostensibly to review our results and cheer on every achievement, even the ones that don’t matter. The actual meeting occurs afterward, with drivers and a few other staff members.
“Why is he here?” I ask as Jake takes the chair opposite mine. “I thought that third charter was taken.”
“We have an alliance, and that third charter is taken for the entire year. After that…” Boone shrugs his shoulders.
The rookie was given a one-year contract and hasn’t proven she’s worth keeping around any longer than that. Unless she experiences a freak win, her odds of making the playoffs are somewhere between slim and fuck no. She also hasn’t been especially great at finishing a race, which is another big problem.
Also, speaking of rookies. “Have you seen Matteo’s performance recently? He’s ready for a bigger challenge.”
