‘In a bad way?’
I shake my head. ‘No, not a bad way, just a lot. I feel like I have a lot to think about right now. Stuff I shouldn’t be thinking about until after the season’s over, but it’ll be fine. Plenty fine for us to beat your ass this weekend.’
Cole laughs and rolls his eyes. It’s big smack talk when his team are still looking likely to bring home both championships this year, but I’m nowhere near giving up on Johannes’s chances.
‘You’re going to be fine. You’re a smart guy, Caleb. You know what to do.’
I get out of the car and wave the others off, declining their invitation to join a big dinner tonight with everyone. I have a virtual meeting with my PhD adviser this evening that I can’t put off any longer.
After the meeting, I tap out a casual text to Jo and hit send before I can rethink it.
Because fuck it.
ChapterNineteen
Johannes
Italy in September is beautiful, cool breezes in the evening cutting through the heat from the day’s rays.
It’s nice to be out on a patio with the guys, eating and drinking all the stuff we really shouldn’t before a race weekend. But we’re all here and it’s too nice of an evening to pass up. Nils has hung out with us so much recently that he feels like a regular part of the group, but tonight is the first night he gets to hang out with Kian in a causal, relaxed setting away from the track.
To say I’m a little scared of how excited he is right now would be an understatement. His face practically lit up when I invited him to dinner and he found out that Kian was going to be there.
‘No hero-worshipping,’ I remind him on the walk up to the restaurant. He makes me no promises, and the second we find the happy couple, the Hendersohm race engineers and Elijah out on the patio, he’s gawking like he didn’t share the track with Kian for a year. Yes, he spent most of that year right at the back, but it still counts.
But the second we get to the table, he edges himself into the seat next to Ki and is quick to start talking his ear off about his career and everything he achieved. It’s adorable really.
We order pizzas and bruschetta to share and it’s the perfect vibe for our first night in Italy.
‘Okay, so, I have some news,’ Elijah says, clinking a spoon against his beer bottle.
‘You’re a twat– we already know that,’ Harper quickly pipes up, only to be pinched into silence by his husband.
‘When you’re quite finished?’
Harper mocks zipping his lips as Kian slips an arm around the back of his chair.
I ignore the little flip of jealousy in my stomach. I close myeyes for a second to re-centre and an image of Caleb holding me on the beach in Zandvoort pops up, causing me to shiver.
‘So, I’m going to be a father. Again. Angie is fourteen weeks pregnant with baby number three.’
‘Oh, man.’ Kian practically hops up out of his seat to give his best friend the biggest hug. ‘Congratulations. Hoping for a boy this time?’
‘Nah, we’re not bothered as long as they’re happy and healthy. Angie’s mostly just glad that her third trimester will coincide with winter break– so I’ll hopefully be home for the birth.’ The grin on Elijah’s face is just pure ecstasy. Kids have never really been on my agenda, but I’ve seen how this man dotes on his and can completely understand why he’s so happy.
‘So happy for you, man! That’s fantastic news.’ I congratulate him, as the rest of the table offers up similar sentiments.
The conversation moves on to baby names. Nils is offering up a fun selection of Norwegian names for both genders, when my phone pings in my pocket.
Two new messages from Caleb. I feel like a giddy teenager.
The first message is nothing more than a picture, which is taking its time to download, but underneath:
I know it’s last minute and I’m not sure how busy your schedule is tomorrow night, but this seems like fate if you ask me.
I bite my lip in frustration as I wait, but then…
He’s right. It’s fate. A country-music festival not too far away, and I don’t have anything on that evening that can’t be moved.
