I’m not intimidated by Morelli. If fists were flying, I could take him. He might be tall, but he’s skinny. I have at least forty pounds on him, and I’ve won fights with bigger and scarier dudes on the ice.
“Zara isn’t racing for you.” I insist. “We had a deal, and?—”
“The deal,” he interrupts me. “Was that you and Lev would bring me Smith and I’d allow you to quit racing. But you didn’t bring me anyone. Our JJ fucked up all on her own and now owes me a small fortune. So, the way I see it, she’s going to race for me until she pays her debt. And you two will continue racing, unless you want the mayor to receive a very interesting video in his inbox showing him how his own son is breaking the law that he bet his entire political career on.”
The most infuriating part of all this is that I had a feeling Morelli would find a way to go back on his word one way or another. As it is, he found the only thing that will truly keep me and Lev wrapped around his little finger.
While we might have decided to call his bluff on releasing that video—because let’s face it, if he did that this whole racing thing would go away and his bottom line would be hurt—there’s no way we can walk away if Zara is racing for him. Especially after what happened tonight.
I don’t really care what happens to me, but I would protect Zara with my dying breath. I know Lev is on the same page, and the only way we can try to keep Zara safe is to keep racing. At least for now.
Zara
Leaving Dad’s old Ducati in the old hangar gives me anxiety.
But under the circumstances, I think it’s my safest option. Before tonight I wouldn’t have trusted Cal not to fuck with my bike to fix the race to his advantage, but since I’m now racing for the house, I don’t think he will. My ex-boyfriend is a scumbag; there’s no doubt about it. But he isn’t totally stupid, and I’m sure he knows better than to cross someone like Mason Morelli.
I might be new in town, but I’ve heard all the rumors about his family being one of the most notable mafia families in the country. They’re smart enough to have a front of official, mostly above board businesses; but if the rumors are true, their underground dealings go from drugs, to money laundering, to human trafficking. I’ve even heard they might be fueling a couple of civil wars in faraway lands by selling weapons to foreign governments and the rebels they fight against. So my best bet is to complete the five races I owe Mason without making any waves.
The only silver lining to my situation is that now that the guys know, we can try to find a way to get Chance and Lev off the hook, too.
By the time all our bikes are secured in the dilapidated hangar, most of the crowd of spectators has dispersed.
Even Wren has gone home after I texted her that I was ok. If anything, that’s another positive considering my cover being blown. I can come here on my own, and I don’t have to risk Wren or DJ getting caught in Star Cove with a motorcycle in their possession.
I’m bone tired, and when Lev asks me if I want to go back to his place, I agree. “Let me text my mom.” I say. “She’s probably back from that fundraiser by now and probably asleep, but I don’t want to risk a repeat of that time when we went to get frozen custard and fell asleep. She’ll find the text when she wakes up, and like that we can sleep in.”
“You can sleep in,” Chance sighs, wrapping one arm around my waist so that I’m effectively sandwiched between him and Lev. “We have practice at seven am sharp. Coach Harrison doesn’t believe in giving us the morning off after a game. Lev, do you mind if I stay too?”
“Knock yourself out.” Lev says. “Zee can sleep in and we can bring breakfast after practice. We have a lot to talk about.”
Our overall situation might be pure chaos, but right now, walking between Lev and Chance, with their strong arms around me I couldn’t feel any safer.
“Sorry to crash your fucking party of three,” Ares’s voice reaches me from behind us. “But we do have a lot to talk about, and I don’t think it can wait until the morning.”
“Tough shit,” Chance bites out, turning to glare at his older brother. “We all need to sleep, you included. Nothing is going to change in a few hours, so you’re going to have to wait. If you aren’t too much of a pain in our asses, Lev and I might get breakfast for you too.”
To my surprise, Ares doesn’t argue. “Fine. But I’m staying over at Lev’s too. I want to keep my eye on all of you.”
“Why?” Chance barks out a laugh. “Do you think we’re gonna skip town or something? Where would we even go?”
Ares quickens his pace to come to stand in front of us right before the end of the clearing. “That’s not why. You went and got yourself mixed up with some very questionable people. And we’ve all seen what almost happened to Zara. Someone obviously wants to hurt her. I’m not staying to keep you from leaving; I’m staying to protect your asses.”
His eyes lock with mine when he says that, and my heart clenches at the storm of emotions I see in the gray depths of Ares’s gaze.
Our last interaction before everything blew up in my face right before I could cross that finish line was fraught with tension and animosity.
Right now I have no idea where Ares’s heart is. We were falling for each other, but the reality of seeing me with Lev and Chance hit him hard. Finding out about the races and my involvement in them couldn’t have happened at a worst time.
The fact that he’s concerned about my safety should give me some hope, though. Unless he’s just doing it out of some sense of duty because he’s a police officer. But if that were true, we would be in a jail cell right now rather than going home, right?
I’m so tired that I wish we didn’t have to walk through the woods and through most of campus to get back to the Gamma house where Chance left his truck.
We haven’t even left the hangar’s clearing yet, and I’m struggling to keep my eyes open.
“Do you guys want a ride back to the frat house?”
Heather’s offer would feel like a godsend if this were any other night and Chance, Lev, and I weren’t all coming out of Mason and Cal’s hangar sporting race suits.
