Page 108 of Burnout
He smiles and his brows lift slightly. “You invited me.”
I did. I’ve invited him to every event, but he’s never shown up.
“I was visiting some family nearby and thought I’d check it out. That was impressive.”
“Thanks.” My pulse speeds up at the sight of my old team owner. Mike’s gaze shifts to Avery.
“Hello,” he says.
“Hi.” Avery waves and smiles politely.
“This is Avery,” I tell him, then look to her. “Mike is the owner of my old racing team, Thorne.”
“Oh.” Her tone implies she’s made the connection. “Nice to meet you.”
“Same to you.” He gives me his attention again. A serious expression that has me anxious and excited. “Can we talk?”
“I see Quinn and Colter not far behind us.” She smiles at Mike again. “Nice to meet you.”
We both watch her go. As the seconds tick by, I grow more curious. It isn’t like him to show up unannounced. The ideas I had about him popping by to lure me back after seeing I can be a part of a team seem like the dreams of a silly kid. What does he care if I can do freestyle? His business is racing.
“When you first told me you were doing freestyle, I thought you were kidding.”
“Colter and I are old friends,” I say by way of explanation. “He needed help and I had some time to kill.”
He nods thoughtfully. “Thinking of making the switch full-time?”
He wants to know if I’m planning on racing next season. It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him it’s no longer any of his business. I’ve always liked Mike, but I’m still salty he dropped me. Ultimately, I decide being an asshole won’t do me any favors.
“No. This was just something to focus on while I’m figuring out my next steps. Racing is still my dream.”
“That was a hell of a performance to be a side gig.”
“The team is great. They let me train with them, and I just tag along and do a few tricks.”
He nods thoughtfully. “Being humble looks good on you. I hope it doesn’t sound too condescending when I say I’m proud of you.”
His words swirl around in my head. If I’ve changed, it’s because I’ve seen what it’s like to have a team around me that wants me to succeed. Colter, Brooklyn, all the rest of the guys. Most of all Avery.
“Thanks, Mike.” I clear my throat. “How’s the team looking?”
“Good. Things are good. The full team is heading back to headquarters next week.”
“That’s great.”
His soft chuckle tells me he knows I’m bullshitting. Some of my anger has dissipated, but I’m still not quite ready to pretend I’m ecstatic that they’re all doing fantastic when I’m without a team.
He doesn’t say anything else and somehow, I know now he’s never going to invite me back.
I clench my jaw as I watch my dreams of rejoining the team go up in smoke. There is no other plan. “Well, I should get going. Thanks for stopping by, Mike.”
I start to push past him, eager to get away from him and sit in my disappointment. I wanted him to see me succeeding on a freestyle team and he did. It just didn’t have the results I wanted.
Mike throws a hand out to stop me. “Actually, there’s one other thing.”
THIRTY-SIX
“Congratulations!”Colter raises a glass toward the middle of the table and smiles at Knox. “I knew you’d land on your feet.”
