Page 35 of Rider Forbidden
“Tonight, remember?”
I nod my head, albeit slightly “Tonight.” I whisper.
He winks and then leaves.
Shit, what have I got myself into here?
When I make my way down for breakfast shortly afterwards, after I’ve spoken to Elijah before school, there’s a coffee waiting for me, just as I like it. Jack stands up and places a hand in the small of my back, he says into my hair “I don't get coffee for everyone you know.”
I look up at him and give him a small smile. Denny and Sophie are quiet at the table watching us. He’s being obvious. I mean, I know I told Sophie something happened and at least the others have gone to the track but still, now Denny is looking at us very strangely.
Jack turns to Denny “You ready?”
Denny nods, knocking back the last of his coffee. “Yeah, you girls coming later? Jacks gonna try and beat his time after lunch.”
I nod “Sure, we’ll be there.”
Sophie speaks up “We’re gonna chill by the pool, we’ll be there around 12. Robyn and I have a little catching up to do!”
We do just that. We relax by the pool; I think about nothing other than tonight and what’s going to happen. I tell Sophie some of what’s happened, but I don't go into detail. I tell her about the game of ‘never have I ever’ though - I figure that the boys will fill her in if I don't. She is as stunned as the others were. Although after last night and this morning, I can’t exactly now say that was my only experience - and after tonight, it won't be true at all.
*****
The track is only twenty minutes away on foot, so Sophie and I decide to walk. It's hot, around ninety degrees, I have a pretty bodycon sundress on with my converse and a baseball cap and my hair in a ponytail. Shades on and we’re equipped with our water ready for the walk.
Sophie can't wait to see Rocco again, she is smitten. They had the best night ever apparently and she’s looking forward to round two tonight. He should be at the track today.
I'm just excited to see Jack again. How stupid is that? I know I should back off from him. If my dad found out that something had happened - he’s such a control freak - he could ruin Jacks career in a second if he wanted to, and everyone else involved too. People that I’ve grown attached to.
It's just while I'm here in Spain that’s all, things seem heightened and we’re in each other’s company all the time - when we're back home things will go back to normal. I’ll go back to being a mum and he’ll go back to being a man-whore. Harsh I know, but true.
We get to the track, get a drink, and make our way over to the guys. Jack is just getting on his bike and sees us. My heart skips a beat seeing him in all his leathers again, straddling that amazing bike. He’s going to be fucking me later.
Jesus Robyn, get your mind out of the gutter.
“Hey.” He nods to us and he looks down at the bottle of water in my hand. “Can I have some?”
I go over to him and give him the bottle - his fingers graze mine as he grabs it. I watch him lift the bottle to his lips and watch his throat move as he gulps down the water. He gives it back to me and I take a drink and put the lid back on. Something in his eyes flash – yeah, he definitely saw Dom drink out of my drink yesterday - it's not lost on him that I wouldn't drink it after that - but I will after Jack does it.
“Good luck on beating your time.”
He smiles at me. “Luck? Like I need luck.”
I roll my eyes and walk away as he chuckles.
He puts his helmet on and Denny sets him off, Harry has his headset on too so that he can communicate to Jack. We go to the screens to watch him. He does a couple of laps, and I watch him weave in and out of the way of other drivers, so gracefully leaning and swaying as he needs to with perfection. It's like an art-form - and he has it down perfectly. I hear Harry saying that time is about to start and then he’s off trying to beat his personal record. He has to do five laps of this track. It's on the third when it happens. We’re all watching. We can hear Jacks voice on the speaker. We hear him say there’s a problem with the exhaust, he says he’s giving up on the record and pulling up. He’s on the track, we’re watching him but then it happens, someone from behind doesn't see that he’s having an issue and clips him. He loses control of the balance of his bike and slides into the side reservation. It's in slow motion. It looks bad. He separates from the bike, him sliding one way and his bike sliding the other. Fuck.
We hear Jacks voice over the speaker “Fuck, can't control it - shit . . .”
Then it goes quiet. I watch the screen, it has zoomed in on the accident. I hear Harry shout “Jack! Jack!” then “fuck” as he throws the headset down and gets on a walkie talky.
I grab onto Sophie's arm, I feel sick. A cart pulls up for Harry and he jumps on it, presumably to head down to Jack. I want to go, but I know it’s not my place, these guys have known him and been at his side for a long time.
I watch the screen and see Jack stand up. I nearly fall over with relief. He’s OK. I need to see him.
Sophie looks at me, relief all over her face. “Thank fuck. He’s OK.”
I sigh “Sophie, Jesus do you think he is?”
