“Fear smells like croissants,” Lucy whispered. “I’ve decided.”
“Fine. Then we smell like double fear.” Ivy pointed at me. “You.”
“Bonjour,” I said faintly.
“You are under no obligation to tell them anything personal beyond what’s medically relevant,” she said. “They’ve probably already reviewed your chart from Silverstone because ‘duty of care’ is their favorite phrase to hide behind, but they do not get details out of you. If they push for specifics, you say?—”
“‘My physician has already documented everything relevant. Please refer to my file,’” I recited. We’d gone over this in the kitchen while the kettle boiled and Marco whispered apologies in my general direction.
“Good girl,” Callum murmured, so low only I could hear.
My body betrayed me instantly. Heat sparked low and molten in my spine, shamefully sharp and needy. My thighs pressed together under the table. Not now, I told myself. But his voice had a way of reaching parts of me that logic couldn’t touch. He didn’t even glance at me. Just pretended like he hadn’t set me on fire with two words and a flex of vocal cords.
I exhaled slowly, pretending I wasn’t blushing like a sinner in a confessional booth.
“There’s something else you should know.” My voice came out quieter than I intended. “I refused bloodwork in Silverstone. It was before I knew for sure, but I was already suspicious. And after the crash, I didn’t want any chance of that showing up in my chart. I didn’t want the word ‘pregnant’ anywhere near my name. Not where Henric or the team or someone colluding with Morel could get ahold of it.”
Lucy’s eyes filled up again, lips parted, like the thought of that kind of privacy invasion hurt her as much as it hurt me.“That’s not fair,” she whispered. “You shouldn’t have to protect yourself from the people who are supposed to protect you.”
“I know,” I said. “But I did. I’ve spent the whole season doing just that. Against other drivers, the FIA, my team sabotaging my car.” I heaved a sigh, rubbing my forehead.
Ivy’s knuckles went white on her mug. “Then we don’t give them a single inch. You say what you want, nothing more.”
I nodded once, jaw tight.
Ivy pointed at Callum next. “You. You stay. You do not pick a fight, no matter how much they deserve it. You let me prod where I need to and you back her up. Minimal Scottish snarling. We need you soothing, not feral.”
He lifted a shoulder. “No promises.”
“Fraser.”
He groaned. “Fine. I will attempt to keep my temper to indoor levels.”
“Thank you.” Her gaze slid to Kimi. “You are on Luminis official watch. If they try to push being in the room during your examination, you stall, you redirect, you downrightrefuse. I don’t care. They don’t get access to her. It’s doctor-patient confidentiality.”
Kimi nodded like she’d just asked him to pass the salt. “I can do that,” he said. “It would be my pleasure.”
“Marco.” Ivy pinned him with a look. “You are on paparazzi and staff watch. Any drone, any long lens, any resort employee hovering with their phone out, you charm them into oblivion. You are the golden boy. Use it.”
Marco flinched, then straightened a little. “Copy that,” he said. “If there is one thing I can do, it is be distracting.”
“Perfect. Distract away.”
“Worst case scenario, I pull my shirt off and reveal my tattoos to the world.”
I blinked. “Wait. You’d do that for me?”
His expression faltered. Something flickered behind his chocolate brown eyes—shame, maybe, or guilt dressed up in bravado. “I would,” he admitted quietly, meeting my gaze across the table. “I’m sorry, Aurélie. This… all of this is my fault. You don’t deserve it.”
He looked at Callum next. “Neither do you, mate. So if taking the heat from my Nonna and my mother is what it takes, so be it. I’ll put on a fucking bikini if it helps because nothing I do now will make this right. I crashed your honeyday, or sex island, or whatever the hell you’re calling it. And you’ve been through some serious shit and I just?—”
“Marco,” Callum said, voice calm but firm. Marco stopped mid-spiral, glancing between us. “We know. Thank you.”
Something unspoken passed between them. Marco swallowed and gave a quick nod.
Ivy’s voice gentled when she turned to Lucy. “They will be signing NDAs before they can step foot in this villa. You don’t owe anyone anything, especially not when this is a working holiday for you now, but if you want to stay?—”
“I’m staying,” Lucy said immediately. Her voice was small but steady.
