“Sophia?” Rayna’s concerned face cuts into my trance on the monitors and my spinning thoughts.
“Rayna!” I reply with a smile to mask my distraction.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
“Yeah, just focusing on the monitors.” I point up to the monitors, which I now realise are blank.
Shit.
“Let’s walk.” She gestures to follow her and I take her up on the offer.
We make our way to the back of the pit and walk aimlessly.
“How have you been doing the last few weeks since the last time we caught up?” Rayna asks, her caring hand on my back.
“Actually, pretty good. You caught me in the middle of thinking about some of my therapy sessions and where I am at.” Rayna is a safe place, and no one can help spilling their heart out to her. “I have a ways to go, but I feel like I am slowly getting there and getting things together.”
“I’m really glad to hear that, Sophia. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you, okay? I am always here for you. I also understand where you are coming from and what you are working towards overcoming,” Rayna says, squeezing my shoulder before dropping her arm to her side.
“Thanks, Rayna. I appreciate it.” I really do appreciate her support, knowing it’s coming from a place of love and experience in the same situation.
“You should be really proud of the work you have been doing so far in this new role while dealing with everything else. I have been really impressed with how you handle yourself, and I can see your confidence in the role is getting there. Micah has nothing but rave reviews on how you are adapting and improving your knowledge and skills,” she praises. “Would you be interested in leading a new project?”
Surprise and pride flood over me. “I would love to. What do you have in mind?”
She nods. “I’d like for you to look into our motocross development. I have heard that you used to be involved competitively at the Nationals-level and eventually moved over to the mechanical side. It’s not a quick project. There’s a bunch of pre-lim research and development work to be done, but I think you will be the best fit. You’ll be paid for the work you do on the project, and you can bring in whoever you want from our team to help when needed. I’m leaving it up to you, just wanting updates along the way when you get some progression. I can organise for the equipment to be set up and ready to go at the next track in Bathurst, so you can head there and work over the mid-season break. I have a motorhome that you can use as it has a customised area to travel with bikes and equipment and then you're able to take the bikes to the MudPit motocross course. How do you feel about that?”
“I would love to do that! Thanks for the opportunity!” I reply.
Taking advantage of the lull in work, we walk towards the motorhomes and trailers area behind the pit boxes where Rayna shows me which motorhome I’ll have access to, handing me the key to it.
“I’ll get on the horn now, organising your access with them and authorising you to stay on track. I’ll also organise with MudPit—you’ll be doing testing at their courses eventually—so they are ready to go when you are.” She pulls out her phone as I can see her mentally listing everything she needs to do to set me up for this. “I’ll confirm everything via email as soon as I’m all done,” she says before taking off to complete her mission.
And right on fucking cue, out walks Javi, his leather suit unzipped, hanging down around his waist. His black, tattooed arms are a stark contrast against the brilliant white of the tight tank, which does nothing but stick slick to every muscle on his torso. His hair a mix between flat and scuffed up by his hand, trying to rescue the helmet hair. My mouth goes dry, but I quickly recover my gaping mouth, thankful Rayna is not here to see my reaction.
I can’t look him in the face. It’s been a few days since our sexting, and every time I look at him, I can only see the messages he sent me and the meaning behind them. I mean, he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about me formonths?What do I do with that information? I can’t act on it, but I did encourage it. He had been so nice and supportive at the MudPit event. I faulted.
“Heading for some lunch?” he asks me.
“That’s okay, I’m…” I start, but I can’t finish the sentence once I lock eyes with Javi. How does he have this control over me?
“In the mood for just a coffee?” Javi asks, a little hopeful.
Damn. A coffee is always a good idea, and I am a cup down from my daily quota. Okay, act confident.
“Sure,” I reply and head towards him. “Just a coffee, and then I have to head back to the pit.”
“It’s a date.” The smirk he gives sends sparks down to my stomach, and I hope the flush doesn’t show on my face.
Instead, I roll my eyes at him and continue walking without him. “You coming, cupcake?”
I hear him jog after me. “Cupcake?! You’ve been talking to Riley?!”
Laughing, I reply, “He let the nickname slip at the MudPit event when you went to the bathroom. Gotta say, I like it. Would you like us to get some cupcake decals for your bike? I’m sure the Design Team could get some tasty-looking ones.”
“Riley, that fucking ass. You eatonepink, overloaded damn cupcake on TV, and you’re scarred for life,” he curses, shaking his head with a smile.
We walk silently for a few minutes, our arms brushing every few strides.
