Didn’t matter how hard I trained, I couldn’t clear it.
A slow clap started behind me.
“That was painful to watch,” Liam said, approaching me. “What’s next? You gonna stare longingly into the distance while sad music plays?”
I groaned, straightening up. “Don’t you have some rookie to yell at?”
“You’re my priority.” He stopped a few feet away, arms crossed over his chest. “And right now, my priority looks like shit.”
I dragged the towel over my face.
He didn’t take the hint. “You’re not pushing your limits. You’re driving yourself into the ground.”
I grabbed my water bottle and took a long swig before answering. “Same thing.”
“No,” he said, his tone sharpening. “It’s not.”
I clenched my jaw, staring at the weight rack.
“Talk to me.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“You’re kidding yourself.”
I took a deep drink of water and refused to make eye contact.
“You’ve been in the gym every morning before sunrise. You’re on the sim until midnight. You haven’t let your body or your brain recover since Singapore, and it’s showing.” Liam gestured at me, frustration bleeding into his voice. “You want to know what I see? A driver who’s overworked, overtired, and so deep in his own head that he’s screwing himself over before he even gets to Austin.”
My fingers twitched around the water bottle.
“And another thing.” Liam crossed his arms. “Why the hell are you even here?”
I frowned. “What?”
“You have a gym at home. A perfectly equipped, private gym that I have personally designed to make your life easier. And yet, for the past three days, you’ve been dragging your ass here.” He tilted his head, eyes narrowing. “Why?”
I rolled out my shoulders, keeping my expression blank. “Needed a change of scenery.”
“Bullshit.”
“Christ, Liam?—”
“No.” He stepped closer. “What’s going on with Violet?”
I wiped my face with the towel, forcing my voice level. “Nothing.”
“That is more believable if you don’t sound like you’re lying through your teeth.”
I clenched my jaw.
“Talk to me, man.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
He gave me a look. “So, she’s not why you’re throwing yourself at the sim for hours, sweating your ass off in here, and trying to outwork a problem that has nothing to do with your training?”
I rubbed a hand down my face. “Jesus.”
