“The ride by car is pretty beautiful,” he says as if needing to talk up the drive.
He’s not wrong, though. I enjoy my train rides in the mornings and afternoons, but the beautiful winding roads we take are paved with beautiful, historical stone buildings, palm trees, and in some spots, views of the Riviera that are absolutely breathtaking.
“What made you move to Monaco?” I ask as we cross into France.
“Work,” he answers, glancing over at me. “Not only is it a great location for a lot of the races throughout the year, but my team is headquartered in Italy.”
“Amato?”
He nods. “Oldest team on the grid,” he says proudly. “And there are a ton of other business opportunities that are easily accessible here.”
“Do you ever miss home?”
He glances over at me, his mirrored sunglasses give him such a sexy look that I have to turn away.
“I did when I first moved, but my parents eventually bought a place here and now that Annalise works with me, it’s less lonely.
“Tristan and Chloe are busy with school and Chloe has her own competitions, so they don’t make it out as frequently, but they still travel to see me and I race in the States a ton, so I see them then.”
“Competitions?”
He grins wider. “Chloe’s one of the best in our state in fencing.” The pride in his voice is palpable. Soon, though, his smile drops. “I can’t always make it to her meets.”
“I’m sure she knows you’re cheering for her,” I reply, the instinct to comfort him overcoming me.
He peers over at me, not saying anything, his gaze tucked away behind those sunglasses, but I sense the intensity of his stare behind the frames.
I clear my throat. “Your brother’s getting his Ph.D. right?” I ask to change the subject.
He nods.
“Tristan is getting his doctorate in astrophysics. Chloe’s still in undergrad, but eventually wants to get her Ph.D. in economics.”
“That’s amazing. Two doctors in the family.”
“Three, technically. Annalise has her JD.”
“She’s a lawyer? I didn’t know that.”
“She passed the bar, but now she’s my assistant.” He shrugs, a small frown forming on his lips.
I wonder why she isn’t working in the legal field but don’t feel comfortable asking. Annalise and I haven’t spent much time together since I chose not to move into Travis’ apartment. A part of me wonders if she resents me a little or feels I rebuffed her.
I shift in my seat at the discomfort of that thought. Soon, my mind goes to Travis’ two other siblings. His talk about theireducational pursuits remind me of the dreams I had, just a few short months ago.
“I thought about getting my Ph.D.” The words tumble from my mouth.
“Those brochures you had in your bedroom in New York,” he says casually.
I blink. “You saw those?”
He nods. “You don’t like your job?” he asks, briefly separating his attention from the road to look over at me with a twist of his mouth.
Peeling my eyes away from said mouth, I shrug. “I enjoy market research. Especially when working for worthy causes. However, it was never my intention to do it long-term.”
“What would you study?”
“Psychology.” It’s something I spent years thinking about. “But that’s not going to happen anymore,” I quickly add.
