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“Thanks. Megan helped me pick this out.” My dress is green and flowy, a sleeveless design that ends high on my thighs. I vetoed the spiky heels she suggested in favor of wedge sandals. “You look good, too.”
There are cameras on us, around us. But whatever seemed to have been distracting him lately isn’t bugging him today.
Jameson bends down to brush his lips over my cheek. “I’m sorry I got pulled away on the plane.”
“Eden kept us company. Why didn’t you tell me you and Theo have a sister?”
“I guess I’m as protective about her as she is of me. Plus, with Eden, you kind of need to experience her firsthand.”
We both glance over to see her gesturing wildly, a tiny bag shaped like a cupcake around her shoulder.
Cameras crowd us. I resist the urge to duck my face as they click everywhere.
“Jameson, what’s your take on the allegations against the ARI team for contract tampering and other infringements?”
He tenses. He was probably looking forward to a day off from the media. “I trust that everything is being resolved to the satisfaction of all parties.”
The answer rolls off his lips. It’s so lawyer coded, even for Jameson, that it sounds less like an answer than a shield. But he’s already grabbed my hand and is tugging me after him.
Watching qualifying together is a total rush. All twenty cars in a tightly choreographed sequence, each vying for the fastest possible lap to determine the final start grid for the next day. Ignite steals the front spot from ARI and Navarro, who line up second. Dekker’s temporary replacement is in fifth.
That night, we all go out. Ten of us, with a couple of security guards in case things get rowdy. We end up at a low-lit club tucked between concrete buildings, with pulsing bass and bodies pressed close.
Eden drags me and Megan out to the dance floor. “He keeps looking for you,” Eden shouts into my ear. “Jamie, I mean.”
I follow her glance. His lips curve when his gaze meets mine, and my heart gives a little kick.
A while later, Eden and I emerge from the stalls in the bathroom at the same time.
“You came back for him,” I say. “You were worried after the crash, and that’s why you came back.”
She laughs as she dries her hands. “Jamie’s good at taking care of business. He’s terrible at taking care of himself.” The music vibrates through the door as she meets my gaze. “Theo told me you gave Daddy shit about Jamie at the hospital in Miami. Was he exaggerating?”
I wince. “They probably heard me all the way back in Michigan.”
Her smile widens, like she sees something she’s been searching for.
“Damn,” she says softly. “I was not prepared to like you this much. Come on.” She loops my arm in hers and leads the way back outside. I’m still not sure what to make of her, but she loves her brothers. I can get behind that.
I drag Eden and Megan back out to the floor, and Jameson even joins us after a few songs. Eventually, I catch myself yawning and check my phone. It’s two a.m., and between my academy and work responsibilities, I’m not used to staying up until the morning hours.
Jameson notices. “It’s late. Let’s go,” he says in my ear.
I’m grateful when he grabs my hand and tugs me toward the door. The others follow and the group of us stumble back out onto the street, the hairs on my neck curling from sweat and my face tired from laughing.
Theo mumbles, an arm around Megan and another around me. Jameson comes up behind us, raising his eyebrow at Theo’s arm though he doesn’t press it.
“Can’t believe we’re finalists.” Megan grins at me, her expression blissful and buzzed. “I’m so happy you’re here. Never thought I’d actually want someone else to win as much as I want to.”
Warmth fills me as I reach across Theo to grab her hand. “Me too.”
“If one of us makes it, I see more flats in our future. These fucking shoes.” She kicks the pavement lightly in her strappy heels, wincing.
I glance down at my more sensible wedges. “Switch me.”
“Really? I love you.”
We trade and I walk back in the highest heels ever, soaking in the jokes and laughter swirling around us.
