Page 80 of The Player Penalty
The red sundress matches the wrap on his car, which he noticed. It’s also perfect for the early summer weather. It’s a breezy day, and I’m grateful for the hairpin keeping my French knot in place.
“In that beautiful dress,” he corrects.
Julian puts a hand on my back, guiding me towards his car and the waiting crew members. They nod towards me before returning to their conversation. I’m a regular fixture every week and no longer interesting. That’s fine since I prefer it that way.
“I’m watching with Sarah and Maddie again.” They’ve added me to their tradition, which I enjoy. We watch half the race and spend the other half on something else. Sarah fell asleep halfway through last week, and we let her rest right up until the end when it looked like Jake was about to win.
“There’s been no one here these past few seasons for me. I used to look around and see other guys with their parents or wives and think it would be great if there were a single person who gave a damn about me.” His hand moves up my back to my shoulders to pull me closer. “Thank you for being here with me.”
The anthem starts, and I wish it waited another minute or two later.
29-Julian
Rivers Motorsports Headquarters, North Carolina
“The camera shows there is room.” I pause the video. “Look at the track. That lane was open.”
This is the second week with Sam, our new rookie. Her short hair and freckles aren’t remarkable, but she possesses a chin as stubborn as the rest of her personality.
When Boone first asked me to work with her, I assumed it was payback for Lily rather than the truth: he ran out of patience.
“There wasn’t,” she insists. “Not without hitting his back right side.”
Fear of making a mistake means you end up doing nothing at all.
“Let’s keep going.”
Two more rounds of her insisting there wasn’t a move to make, Boone interrupts us. “You got a minute?”
Oh, absolutely. I’ve got a thousand fucking minutes. Even Boone is better than this.
“How’s it going with her?” he asks.
“It’s not.”
He hums. “She was a constant winner in Xfinity last year. I expected better.”
“There’s a lot of season left; I’ll keep working with her.”
We end up in his office, where I notice Maddie is nowhere to be found and Sarah is behind his desk. She also looks like a cat about to kill her newest play toy.
“What’s wrong?”
“This is so exciting,” she says. “Look. You two are news.”
She hands over her phone for me to read. “It’s a gossip piece on one of the sports sites. Three whole paragraphs. So what?”
“I knew she was perfect for you. I told you, didn’t I?” Sarah says.
It didn’t take Sarah’s prognostications for me to know how well Lily and I fit together. “If you want.”
Boone pinches the bridge of his nose. “Okay, your personal life isn’t my business, but this is different. You’ve been floating from one random to another since your first week here. That’s your thing, and I didn’t judge.”
He judged the fuck out of me. “It still isn’t.”
Boone nods, but it’s not from agreement. “You’re dating Lily Webb, Pete’s daughter.”
Pete backed off once I handed my career over to him. “Is he giving you grief?” He shouldn’t be. I’m honoring my terms precisely as promised.
