“You don’t have a choice.” He stepped closer, dropping his voice. “One phone call to your university and your funding disappears. You can spend the next decade trying to afford it on your own.”
My throat burned. I’d walked away from him once. Lived in tiny flats, funded my degrees with my mother’s inheritance, scraped and fought for every inch of freedom. I knew exactly how hard it was to build a life without him.
I couldn’t do it again. Not now.
I’d walked back into his trap, thinking I was finally smart enough to use him the way he used everyone else. I’d been arrogant enough to think I could take his money and keep my soul.
Instead, I’d handed him the weapon he was using to gut me.
If I’d just stayed away, never taken his deal, I never would have truly gotten to know Griffin. I never would have fallen for him.
The water in the en-suite shut off.
The abrupt silence was more jarring than the knock on the door had been. Then Griffin started humming and I missed the silence. A happy, ridiculously off-key tune that was so quintessentially him. He was happy. He’d won. The race and me. Any second he was going to walk out here and see the man who had just finished laying the groundwork for his destruction.
Julian’s entire demeanor shifted. The predator receded, replaced in a blink by the charming, paternal Team Principal of Aedris Racing. The mask was so perfect, so instantaneous, it made my skin crawl.
The bedroom door opened.
“Oi, Princess. Do me a favor and hop up on the counter, yeah? I skipped breakfast and I’m starving for something sweet.”
My face flamed as Griffin emerged, totally oblivious to Julian’s presence. He wore a pair of joggers and that easy, confident grin that made my stomach flip.
It faltered the second he saw my father.
“Julian.” Griffin stiffened and the towel in his hands stilled as he scrubbed it over his damp hair.
A flush crept up his neck as he registered my father’s presence, the silence in the room, and what he’d just said.
He cleared his throat, the easy grin turning sheepish. “Right. Morning. Didn’t realize we had company.”
My father’s smile widened, and my stomach cramped.
“I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“Not at all,” Griffin said, his voice a little too breezy. His gaze flickered between us, trying to read the tension that was thick enough to choke on.
“I was just telling Violet how pleased I am,” my father said, his tone infuriatingly pleasant. “With yesterday’s result, of course. But with everything, really.” His gaze danced from Griffin to me pointedly. “This entire arrangement has worked out splendidly. Better than I’d hoped.”
Griffin’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Arrangement?”
“You, Violet, little Hazel. It’s good for you. Good for the team.” My father clapped his hands together softly. “A driver with a stable home life is a focused driver. Your performance proves it. I’m glad you two finally worked things out.”
A deep line formed between Griffin’s brows as he processed the unexpected turn of events. If I were in his shoes, I’d struggle to believe Julian’s one eighty too. This warm, approving man was not the cold, demanding team boss who had made his life hell for months.
My eyes bore into him, begging him to see through the charade. But guarded suspicion gave way to a flicker of fragile hope.
He thought this was a blessing. A truce. He had no idea it was a declaration of ownership
“Right,” Griffin said slowly. “Well. Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me.” Julian waved a magnanimous hand as he moved toward the door. “Just keep up the good work. Both of you.” He paused, his hand on the doorknob, and his gaze met mine one last time. It was sharp, cold, and full of triumph. A silent, final reminder of who was in control. “I’ll see you in Mexico.”
The door clicked shut behind him, leaving a ringing silence in its wake.
A shaky laugh escaped Griffin. He ran a hand through his damp hair, turning to me with a look of pure, unadulterated relief. “Well. That was... unexpected. I think that’s the first time he’s ever looked at me like he doesn’t regret signing me.”
He was happy. He was free. He thought the war was over.
