Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 40297 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40297 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
I scrubbed a hand over my jaw, irritation grinding hard through me before I finally exhaled. “Fine. But keep your damn head on straight.”
Racer chuckled low. “Always do.”
Edge’s growl reverberated through the comms. “I’m serious. If you put one fucking scratch on my ride, you might as well crash the whole thing and make sure you go out in the flames.”
Racer snorted. “Don’t fucking insult me, asshole.”
Twenty minutes later, he rolled toward the start line in Reaper’s Edge. The race started ugly and only got worse from there. There were no clean lines and too many undisciplined drivers who had no respect for the road or each other. It was fucking brutal.
Drivers shoved each other through corners, clipped bumpers intentionally, forced bad passes, and treated every turn like attempted murder. One bastard nearly sent another car directly into a barrier just trying to gain half a car length.
From his muttering over the comms, it was clear that Racer was pissed, but he adapted fast.
That was the thing about him—he drove like the machine belonged to his nervous system. Aggressive when necessary, but precise when it counted. He slid through chaos smoother than anybody else on the track, threading impossible gaps while everybody around him drove like rabid animals.
Still, it wasn’t clean. Twice I saw him get boxed dangerously near the makeshift barriers, and one turn got tight enough that we all held our breath until Racer immediately recovered and kept pushing harder.
Midnight swore through comms. “Shit, that was close.”
By the final lap, the entire crowd was screaming. When Racer crossed the finish line first by less than half a car length, the whole place erupted. But even from here, I could make out his murderous expression when he climbed out of the car.
It shouldn’t have been that fucking close. But with the conditions he was working with, I considered him lucky to be in one piece.
Racer collected his winnings, moving through the betting groups while talking to the men handling payouts. He played it perfectly—cocky enough to fit in but relaxed enough not to raise alarms.
I could already tell from the look in his eyes when he finally drifted back toward Midnight that he’d seen and heard enough.
We slipped out as quietly as we’d arrived, disappearing back into the Florida night without drawing attention. But the mood among us had shifted completely.
We weren’t dealing with opportunists anymore. These were reckless bastards who thought fast money mattered more than human lives.
This had just gone from a threat to our territory to a situation that we needed to handle before bodies started dropping.
13
CECILY
Iwas tired as I folded a pair of leggings into the duffel bag on my bed, my hands moving on autopilot. The house was quiet, but my mind was anything but calm.
My thoughts kept drifting to how well Ares took care of me whenever I spent the night. In the mornings, he kissed me awake instead of letting me sleep through my alarm. He even made me perfectly balanced breakfasts without any prodding. The meals were high protein with just the right amount of carbs, exactly what my body needed before a brutal training day.
Not only was the food delicious, but his choices had made it clear that he’d put a lot of thought into what to make for me. He’d even admitted to doing research. And timed everything so I walked into the pool with minutes to spare.
His thoughtfulness told me that he took my dreams seriously. Being with him was better than anything I’d ever imagined. And that realization made my chest ache.
I zipped the bag halfway and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at nothing and wondering if his support of my goals would make it easier for him to let me go when the time came. Maybe he’d understand that the Olympics had to come first. But the thought of walking away from him made my stomach twist into knots.
I had no idea how I was going to survive the loss now that I knew what it was like to be with him. I’d let myself get in way too deep. Which was why I had to end this.
If we were going to rip the bandage off, it needed to happen soon. Before the Olympic selection process kicked into high gear, and I had to upend my entire life again. I couldn’t afford to be heartbroken and try to make the team at the same time. There was too much on the line for me.
I needed to be in control. And I wasn’t sure I could do that when the man who owned my heart was thousands of miles away. It was better for me to go through the pain now so that I’d have a better chance at focusing later.
I stood, slung the duffel over my shoulder, and took a deep breath. With the decision made, I knew I should leave the bag behind. But despite everything, I still couldn’t bring myself to do it. Deep down, I knew it was because I wanted one more night with him, even though I’d packed for a heck of a lot more since he’d asked me to.