Page 70 of Brand
Looked like we found something to do then.
“Hell yeah!” Ky roared and slapped Cami on the knee as he stood. “Let’s go!”
I kissed her, then pulled her to her feet as I got up.
Both cars were parked right out front of the compound. Cami’s Charger was looking like it could have used a rinse off sitting next to the seventy-nine Chevelle that I had no doubt Ky had spent half the day waxing it to make it shine.
“Hey, Chris,” I called out as I saw him walking across the lot, presumably coming from the bar. “Are you done for the day?”
“Yeah, man,” he answered as he stepped up between the two cars. His arms crossed over his chest and I wondered if he’d had a bad day. Well, good thing we were off to do something that would take his mind off of everything.
“Ky’s taking Cami to the strip so she can test the limits of her baby.” I didn’t have to look over at Cami to know that she was smiling. I pulled the door open just as Cami sunk down into the driver’s seat. “Come with us. Ride with Ky.”
I ducked into the car without giving him a chance to back out. The engine revved and then Cami reversed slowly, so as not to run over Chris. Her window was down and I looked out wondering what the hell the two of them were waiting on.
“Get in the damn car. Let’s go.”
Cami waited until they were ready to go, then pulled out behind Ky even though I knew where we were going. I knew Cami wasn’t a speed demon, and that Ky would most likely beat us there. And sure enough, halfway there, Ky’s car took off like a bat outta hell.
“Well, this should be fun,” Cami said, watching the taillights of the SS fade in the distance.
“Just do what you feel comfortable with. I know you’ve thought about it, just let go and go for it, beautiful.”
“I love you,” she whispered, her eyes glued to the road.
“Love you, too.”
We pulled into the dirt lot that led to the strip. Chris was leaning against the SS looking a little like someone had kicked his puppy. I guessed he really must have had a bad day. Damn. I needed to get a moment to talk to him, but it might have to wait because I wasn’t going to let Cami go at this alone.
Ky was a ways off, walking down the semi-worn paved strip that went on beyond where my eyes could see, especially at this time of night.
“You good?” I asked Chris as I walked up to him.
“Yeah, fine.”
“What’s going on?” I pushed a bit harder.
“Ky’s checking to make sure it’s clear.”
Before I could say anything else, a bunch of the brothers rolled up on their bikes and parked a little ways off.
We all stood around making conversation until Ky walked back up.
“Is it clear?” I asked and received a pinched brow of confusion in return. “The strip, is it all good?”
“Oh, yeah. Good.”
“Chris you ride with Ky. I’m sitting in with Cami.”
“No,” Chris said taking a few steps away from the SS. “I think I’ve had enough of Ky’s speed for one night. Lake, you’re up.”
I shrugged and dropped down into the seat.
Technically we were in racing position, but I knew that it wasn’t really one. I’m pretty sure we all knew Ky would smoke Cami, and not in a mean way. That was just how he was and Cami, I imagined, would be a little shy on pushing the pedal to the floor. But that was alright, as long as she was having a good time, that was all that mattered.
Engines revved, gears shifted, and tires squealed, leaving behind a cloud of burnt rubber. Ky took off like a shot and Cami, well, she did better than I expected. She handled the car perfectly and accelerated much faster than I would have imagined. But she decided that eighty was a good cutting off point, though we both knew the car would go faster.
So.
