Page 47 of Moto
“I wanted to see you.”
She raises her eyebrows doubtfully.
“Why is that so hard to believe?”
“I don’t know. Maybe because you fucked me and then just left. Doesn’t exactly leave a girl with the warm and fuzzies.”
“I had to go.” I cop out.
“It’s fine, Reese,” she bemoans. “I just thought our friendship at least warranted a good-bye.”
“It did. And I know it’s not fine. So don’t bullshit me.”
“I’m not bullshitting you. I know who you are—”
“You don’t know anything about me,” I cut her off.
“Then enlighten me. Why are you here?” she insists.
“Because . . . I needed . . . to take a step back . . .” I let the sentence linger.
“A step back? From . . .racing?”She fills in the blanks.
I nod.
“Why?” Kayla’s response is incredulous.
“Let’s just say my much-anticipated return was anticlimactic.”
By the look on Kayla’s face, it’s clear she has no idea what I’m talking about. And why would she? She knows zip about racing or my world. And how it suddenly came crashing down all around me.
“I stalled out on the second to last lap. I was in the fucking lead and then . . . nothin’.” I cut my throat the same way the engine cut out. “Machine fucking malfunction.” Of all the goddamn things.
By the look on Kayla’s face, my catastrophe doesn’t amount to jack shit on her scale of importance. “Maybe the universe is trying to tell you something,” she states snidely, without an ounce of remorse.
She isn’t going to make this easy for me; she wants to see me squirm, which she can do like no other, but I don’t care. I’m swallowing my pride for the first time and am going to lay it all out on the line. I’ve crashed and burned before; I’m not afraid to do it again. But if she thinks I’m going to drive off without a fight, she has no idea who she’s dealing with. I’ve fought for everything I have, and I’ll fight for her, too.
“I think it is,” I agree. “And I think I’m going to listen. I’m done for the season.” It destroys me to admit that. “There are only two races left. And no chance of a comeback with that last disaster.” I scratch my face. This rock and a hard place is killing me.
“So what are you going to do?” She acts uninterested, but she’s still entertaining me, so I take it as a good sign.
“I thought I’d get reacquainted with the area.”
“But you hate it here,” she states the obvious.
“I have my issues, that’s true, but maybe it won’t be so bad if you’re with me.”
“Me?” Her eyebrows shoot up.
“You. C’mon.” I jerk my head. “Let’s go for a ride.”
There’s an abundance of trepidation in Kayla’s dark eyes. “I don’t think so.”
“Why not? Because you don’t like bikes?”
“Because I don’t like bikers,” she reminds me.Yeah, right.
“That’s bullshit. Or you wouldn’t have slept with me.”
