Page 25 of Out of Control

“Seems to be. We’ll know more with testing. See if we can get it dialed in a bit better once we see the track conditions and figure out how best to adjust to them.”

“I’m hearing medium tires are what everyone’s doing.”

I purse my lips and nod. “And I’m thinking hard might be the way to go.”

Philo tilts his head to the side and studies me. Yes, I will speak my mind. No problem there. “I guess we’ll see what we end up with.”

“I guess we will,” I murmur just as someone motions Philo over to them. He apologizes as he excuses himself.

Cruz and I are both left to stare after him. “Medium is the way to go,” Cruz says.

Ah, his royal highness speaks. No doubt he has the best wisdom in all the kingdom.

“I differ in opinion.” I turn to face him now. To meet the eyes of the man I’ve wanted to knock off his pedestal my entire career. Is he better than I am? Who knows? In this field of twenty drivers, it’s a matter of mere inches or the slightest of circumstances that catapults one of us to the podium over the other. We’re all talented, all practiced, all disciplined . . . it just depends on the day that our slight difference in skill or machinery helps or hurts us.

And despite or because of that, we’re both standing here. Both deserving. It’s just that one of us wasn’t born with a silver spoon in our mouths and is given things because of how bright that Navarro serving spoon shines.

“You would differ, wouldn’t you, just to be difficult,” Cruz finally says.

“You don’t have to like that I’m on your team, Navarro. Just as I don’t have to like that I’m on yours. But it is what it is and we can both be professional. Or at least I can. You’d think with that last name and all, you’d be able to do the same.”

His chin stiffens as he struggles with my backhanded insult. “I’ve seen how you treat teammates, Rossi. A little clip from behind. A sudden loss of radio comms so you can’t hear the directive to defend for your number one. You think I don’t know you play dirty? It’s not a big secret. Everybody knows.”

I chuckle and it holds zero amusement. So this is what he’s been waiting to say to me? Why he’s been hanging around to get me alone so he can get this total bullshit off his chest.

Fuck him.

“Then I guess you can take that as fair warning, right?” I say with a lift of my eyebrows and a glance around.

“I don’t think you have a fucking clue who you’re messing with,” Cruz says.

“Is that a threat or a promise because I mean . . . that’s no way to take a new teammate under your wing.” My smile is a complete fuck you. “I’m sure Philo would be shocked to hear you speak like that to me.”

“Like you’d tell him.”

I shrug. “I’m a wildcard. Nothing’s off the table. Isn’t that what you expect of me?”

“You’re an arrogant prick.”

“And you’ll learn to love me. Everybody does. Eventually. Don’t believe what they tell you about me though. I’m even better.” I wink, step in closer, and lower my voice. “Do you want to know what the upside to being your teammate is, Navarro?”

“No, but I’m sure you’ll tell me.”

I can’t resist. He wants to fuck with my head, I’ll fuck with his. “Seeing as we’re supposed to be family and all now, I finally get to meet your sister,” I say, and by his quick uptick of breath, I’d say it works.

“Over my dead body,” he grits out.

I slap him on the back and laugh loudly. “You drive better angry. You can thank me later when you fly around the track with the fastest lap time.”

But as I walk away, Spanish cussing is muttered at my back.

Serves the fucker right. He wants to issue me a warning? I’ll fire right the fuck back.

Last season was rough at Apex, but regret is a useless emotion. I can’t change what happened—between my teammate Lachlan and me, between my ex, Blair, and me—or the shitty way I treated them both. I can only move forward and hope I’m a better man because of it.

I chuckle. Moving forward doesn’t mean I’m not still a prick though. That part has been ingrained in me for years. When push comes to shove and all that.

“Thank you,” I say to my PR handler, Carina, when she hands me my cell phone as I walk into our team garage. I’m about to say something more but the words die on my lips when I look up and lock eyes with Sofia across the space.