Page 33 of Drive Me Wild
“It’s okay, Mum. Really,” I reassure her. “I appreciate it, but honestly, it’s not that big of a deal.”
It’s not that I want to go alone, but I also don’t want to make my parents uncomfortable. They’re the most important people in my life, and the last thing I want is for them to feel as if I’m going there to look for something they couldn’t provide.
She sighs as if she doesn’t quite believe me, but lets it go. We catch up for a few more minutes with my mum telling me about a seminar she’s attending in Brugge next week. It’s called “Sexual Health is Mental Health,” and there’s supposed to be some new exfoliating lube—whatever that means—in the welcome bags. Never fear, she’s more than happy to pass it along to me so I can “experiment.”
Ending the call, I head down to the pit garage to get some action shots of the drivers preparing for qualifying round. The rest of the afternoon is a swirl of commotion and camaraderie with Blake and Theo maintaining McAllister’s streak of placing pole and second on the grid, respectively.
On race day, I wake up early so I can grab breakfast at the motorhome before I start my day. I’m scrolling through Instagram and eating a buttered croissant when Theo bursts into the cafeteria. The energy of the room is sleepy until his arrival. For someone who doesn’t drink coffee very often, Theo always has an abundance of energy. I need at least half of a latte in the morning to even understand the English language, and I need a full latte to speak it.
“I have exciting news,” he announces. Placing himself in the seat next to me, he turns his body so our knees are touching.
My entire body flushes at the minute contact. What is this physical response I have to him? His proximity reminds my body of each day I haven’t had his hands, breath, lips, on it. It’sobnoxious how good-looking he is. Really fucking obnoxious. “You won a lot of points atCall of Duty?”
Theo groans loudly, the sound sending heatwaves from my nipples to my other erogenous zones.What is wrong with me?Clearly my lady parts are not on the same wavelength as my brain.I need to have a team meeting so my body stops this insane urge to jump Theo’s bones whenever he’s within a meter of me. Thank God he was gentlemanly enough not to sleep with me when I drunkenly threw myself at him. I’m like a cat in heat with this ridiculous urge to rub my body all over him. Is it normal to react to someone like this? Simply from being in the same space as them?
“You don’t win points at COD, princess,” he explains slowly. “Well, you do, but it’s a currency, not indicating that you’re winning or whatever.”
I roll my eyes. “Just be happy I know the names of some of your favorite games, babes.”
“Name a few.”
Well, shit.I didn’t think he was going to call me out like that. Um. “World of War… or whatever, something like that.Super Mario Kart,Minecraft… um,Halo?”
“Who needs porn when I can just record you saying, ‘World of Warwhatever?’”Theo laughs.
I lower my voice to what I hope is a sultry tone. “Can I interest you in a game ofMario Party?”
Theo clutches his sides as he laughs. I swear I’d do cartwheels in my knickers to keep hearing that chuckle. “You trying to seduce me again, Bancroft?”
The emphasis he puts onagainis not lost on me. “Why do you think I’m trying to seduce you? Because I want to play with your joystick?”
I watch as the pupils of his expressive blue eyes expand ever so slightly, indicating the effect my words have on him.Shit. Why did I have to say something like that? I am not this openly flirtatious, especially not with someone whose joystick is something I’ve been trying to purposefullynotplay with.
Grabbing my coffee from the table, I take a large sip. It’s still burning hot, scalding off at least one layer of taste buds, but I need something to cover my lips so he can’t see the look of pure horror I’m struggling to contain.
“I’m kidding, Theo,” I reassure him moments later when he’s still staring at me with undisguised lust. “Drunkenly seducing you in Monaco was a moment of weakness.”
A moment of weakness where I told Theo I wanted to suck him like a Tootsie Pop.
He leans his head down, the smell of his cologne invading my personal space, swirling around me in an intoxicating cloak. “Are you saying I’m your weakness, Bancroft?”
“No,” I say.Liar, liar, pants on fire.“You’re… a devil on my shoulder.”
“I may be a devil,” his lips brush against my ear, his hot breath sending a shiver up my spine, “but you’re an angel who so desperately wants to sin.”
My chest swells with desire, each breath I take aching independently of the other. I want to taste his lips, swirl my tongue around his mouth, and suck the air right out of his lungs. But that’s not somethingfriendsdo. “So, what’s the exciting news you have?”
Theo leans back, a smile still playing on his face. He slams papers down on the table, causing my coffee to slosh over the rim of my travel mug. The edges of the papers get stained by the spilled drink, so I quickly pick them up.
“Wait!” He grabs the papers from my hands, clutching them to his chest like I’m going to snatch them away. “Don’t. No touching!”
He taps his fingers against the table, taking his sweet time. I roll my eyes at his theatrical performance to build up tension. “Oh, go on then, Walker. No need for dramatics.”
Theo sets the papers down once again, but this time, motions for me to pick them up. The first page is a booking confirmation for a four-day stay at a Le Mans hotel with a fancy French name. The second page is an email from Martin with details about a trackside suite to watch the 24 Hueres du Mans. The final few pages are articles on the top sites to see and the best restaurants the city has to offer.
Once I’ve shuffled through the pages no less than four times, I put them down and fix my eyes on Theo, my eyes widening in confusion. “What is this?”
“We’re going to Le Mans.”
