Page 58 of Close Contact
I raised a brow, teasing. “I can if you can’t do anything about it right now.”
He groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “I’ll get you back for this. Next time I see you, I’m going to bend you over the nearest surface.”
“You really are competitive.”
“Only when the stakes are this high.”
The hallway seemed to quiet more, whatever crowds that were around the corner fading. I couldn’t stop myself from blurting, “I signed with Ferrari.”
He blinked, going still. “You—what?”
“I was on my way to the press room after you left,” I explained, barely able to contain my elation. “Silvio stopped me. I was supposed to meet with them next week, but… they wanted to sign me. Four years. It’s done.”
Callum’s mouth parted slightly. I watched it land. Reverence flickered across his face. “You’re—” He swallowed. “You’re going to Ferrari? You’ll be free from Luminis after this season?”
“Mhmm.” I dragged my fingers up his wrist. “I didn’t want to tell the world first.”
He looked at me like I was the sun and the checkered flag and every wet dream he’d ever had.Then hetugged me back into him and threw caution to the wind when he full-on kissed me, releasing my hand to snake his around my back and dip me backwards like we were in a movie. And yeah, I whimpered, completely forgetting where we were. He righted me, but I felt lightheaded when he let me go. “You’re fucking unreal,” he whispered against my mouth. “You win Monaco and sign with Ferrari in the same goddamn hour. You’re not real.”
I giggled, wrapping my arms around his neck and leaning in for another kiss. “I can’t believe it.”
“Do you expect me not to lose my fucking mind over this news?” he rasped, eyes blown wide as he slipped his hands underthe hem of my fireproofs. I shivered. “You’re a fucking fever dream. A goddamn miracle. I’m so fucking lucky I got to watch you win.”
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Oh, my God. I’m so fucking proud of you, Aurélie. You deserve this.” He cupped my face and kissed me hard, fingers tangling in the strands of hair that had come loose from my braids. When his tongue swept across mine, my toes curled in my boots. “Shower. Change. Do whatever you need to do. But tonight… I’ll let you come first.”
“Not for the first time today, then,” I joked, sighing contentedly before withdrawing from his embrace.
We both hesitated a second longer. I didn’t want to go, and clearly, neither did he. Placing on the podium meant an exorbitant amount of work obligations, and right now, we were both itching to rip each other’s clothes off.
“Go.” His voice was hoarse. “Or I swear to God, I’ll take you right here and fuck you like you just won the whole championship.”
“Promises, promises,” I teased, teeth sinking into my bottom lip, and he glared at me so filthily that I couldn’t help but laugh. Slowly, I backed away, because if I didn’t leave, I’d climb him like a tree and remind him I’d just won the most prestigious race in the world, and he’d fucking let me. “I’m going.”
“Later, Aurélie.”
“Later, Cal,” I echoed, dizzy and breathless. His eyes dragged over me like they were committing me to memory, and my pulse thrummed everywhere.
And then I turned and walked off as if I hadn’t just threatened to beg him for it in French or told him I’d be wearing scarlet red next year.
I steppedinto my hospitality suite, still damp from the podium celebration, champagne drying sticky on my skin. Victory still coursed through my veins, but paused in the doorway the moment I saw them—my family seated stiffly on the couch—a different kind of tension coiled in my chest. My mother’s eyes shone withunshedtears, my father’s arms were crossed, andÉtienne’sexpression hovered somewhere between indifference and disdain.
“Aurélie,” my mother began, standing to embrace me. “You were brilliant out there.”
“Merci,Maman,” I said, leaning into her hug. Her warmth was fleeting, though, as she stepped back and glanced at my father. He hadn’t moved.
“P1in Monaco,”Étiennesaid, his tone clipped. “Quite the accomplishment.”
I tilted my head, catching the edge in his words. “Some would call that winning a GrandPrix, but thank you,” I replied cautiously. He was probably still raw from how I’d shut him down in front of the press the other day, and honestly, I couldn’t blame him. I’d spent a lifetime feeling that way, too.
“We need to talk,” my father said, his voice heavy. He gestured to the empty chair across from him. “Sit.”
The exhilaration from the race, my new contract, and the high fromCallum began to ebb, replaced by a familiar unease. The kind that said I wasn’t in trouble, perse, but I was about to get a stern talking to. Still, I complied, sitting across from them, my race suit cold against my skin and making my already sore muscles ache more.
“We’ve spoken to the team principal atLuminis. They aren’t going to renew your contract. Any idea why?”
I crossed my arms, mirroring my father’s pose. “They weren’t equipped to handle the heat that came with hiring someone different. That’s on them, not me. Besides, I’ve already signed a new contract.”
