She tuts at my misuse of her name and stops in her stride, her eyes meeting mine across her shoulder. “Tomorrow.” She pushes the largest smile I have ever seen across her lips before walking out the room.
“Great,” I mutter as Cowan steps up behind me, patting me hard on the back. “Piss off,” I grunt and he laughs softly.
“Must be bad if you’ve got a babysitter.” His snarky comment pisses me off instantly.
“She’s not a babysitter,” I bite back at my teammate, which is the worst thing I could do.
“Yeah, okay.” He grabs his water bottle and perches himself next to his radio engineer and places his headphones on.
Agitation bites at the base of my neck, as I stride towards him. I pull the headphones off his head, and he looks up at me, brows furrowed.
“She’s not a fucking babysitter.” My teeth clench, and my voice is tight.
“All right.” He holds his hand up as if surrendering and I nod.
“Prick,” I mutter as I storm towards my room, slamming the door behind me.
I always knew me and Cowan were going to be like fire and petrol. We both wanted this too much; He isn’t a team player, even though my dad tells me he is. We’re both out for ourselves, all twenty drivers on the grid are. There was nothing wrong with that, but we had to work together sometimes.
This is just the start of the season. I want to be world champion, and I know I can do it.
Moving down the tunnel, I tap the metal beam that runs across as I make my way to my ready room. Slouched with my back against the wall, legs hanging over the small single bed, I throw tennis balls at the wall as my mind ticks over with thoughts.
So much had happened in the last three months. My dad and my ex, Anaïs, are married. I had a new teammate come in, and now I’m having to have some stranger shadow me for the entire season. It was far from ideal, but I promised my dad I would be better in accepting these inconveniences that were thrown at me.
Letting the two tennis balls fall from my hand, I scrub my face and let out an exasperated sigh. There is a knock on the door and my dad steps into the room, his eyes scoping around like he has never seen it before. Yet, it’s the same every set up.
“I’ve been looking for you,” he says, his hand rubbing back and forth over his chin.
The new gold wedding band that is wrapped around his finger catches my attention. It makes my chest ache, though I’m not quite sure why. I don’t feel anything for Anaïs, but the hollow pain still teeters away inside of me at the loss.
She moved on, and I am right where I started.
“Well, you’ve found me.” I tear my eyes away and bend down to collect the balls from the floor, scooping them into my hands before I begin to throw them against the wall again.
“You clearly have the hump.” My dad’s arms are crossed against his chest.
“Nope.” I drop in a one worded answer.
My dad takes a sharp inhale. “Look?—”
“Save your breath. It’s done. I agreed to let this Orca Boo shadow me, but don’t expect me to be best friends with her.” I slice my gaze to him, and his lips press to a grin. I smile back, but not without rolling my eyes first.
“Way to go, champ.” I don’t miss the lace of humour in his voice as he turns his back. “Oh,” he says, spinning on his heel, “don’t forget dinner tonight. Seven, don’t be late.”
“Wouldn’t dare.” I wink and he chuckles softly before closing the door behind him.
Once I know he is gone, I drop the balls again and bring my hand to my chest. I try to rub the ache away, ignoring the tightness that pulls across it.
Walking towards the restaurant,I greet the server and I am shown to the table where my dad and his wife—my ex-girlfriend—are sitting.
He stands, pulling me into an embrace as he pats me on the back. Anaïs pushes to her feet, skating across the floor towards me. I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her into me then place a kiss on her cheek.
“Nice to see you,” she says and I scoff, shaking my head.
“I saw you a few hours ago,” I grunt, taking my seat.
“Fine, nice to see youagain.” Her lips twitch into a smile as my dad laughs beside her, letting his arm hang around the back of her chair.
