Getaway Car [HS]

Chapter Twenty-Seven

The Cobra is everything she dreamt it would be.

Her dad once drove one as a birthday gift from a friend of his in the industry, but she never did anything but watch. On the sidelines, she dreamt of the day she could drive one, a day she assumed would never come, but here it is.

In the ten minutes it took for her to follow his directions to the mystery location he planned for them to go to, she thinks she was the happiest she's been since before her dad died. It brought her closer to him, in a way. Holding the same steering wheel he once held, hearing the gorgeous engine roaring like a great beast, feeling the wind whooshing through her hair—it was nothing short of magic.

The whole time, Harry watched her with a smile fighting its way to show on his face. Her little manipulation at the parking garage was something he tucked away for later, making a note to get her back for it another time. For the moment, he took pleasure in watching her in her element. The image of her grinning behind the wheel with the wind whipping her hair back from her face at a speed that far exceeded the limit set for the road was breathtaking. There was a certain discomfort to it due to this. He shifted in his seat, unsure what to make of the feeling stirring in the pit of his stomach, and it didn't go away until she followed his instructions to drive into the private raceway.

With the car put in park, she leans her head back on the seat and takes a deep breath to steady herself.

Harry sits with his arm propped on the passenger's side door, and the smile that's been begging to show on his face finally makes its appearance as he asks, "What's the verdict?"

Her head rolls to the side to meet his gaze. There's a hazy bliss visible on her face, not unlike the expression he's witnessed it wear as she comes down from the peak of an orgasm, and her lips curl up from her teeth in a smile to match his.

"You are my favorite person on earth right now. I'm so serious," she says. "How the fuck did you get your hands on this lovely creature"—her hand caresses the steering wheel affectionately as those two words are said—"in the first place?"

His previously sweet smile turns downright devious at this as he recalls the day, years ago, when he came across it.

"Well," he starts, and she already knows she's in for a treat based on the way he utters the word, "The debt with Leo isn't about money, even if he makes it seem like that. You're just doing jobs for him until he decides you're out. When I found this out, I was pissed. I knew he'd never let me have m'freedom back, so I got drunk." The smile widens for a second as if he cannot control himself. "And, back then, Leo trusted me enough to give me access to his funds..."

At the direction she thinks the story is about to take, pride flares up inside of her on his behalf. On behalf of the younger, wilder version of him that had yet to be fully broken by Leo's torment. There's a part of her that wishes that were the Harry she first met. Then, she's reminded of the good parts of him, however small they may be, that still exist today and cannot imagine wanting him to be different. She cannot imagine wanting another man to cut her pancakes for her, protect her, and argue with her.

The car is parked just beyond the automatic gates to the raceway. Neither of them makes a move to get out or continue driving, they stay locked into this moment.

"There's a reason Louis handles his finances. Back then, it was me. He actually trusted me to an extent until I emptied one of his accounts buying this. He was angry, for sure, but he was mostly just shocked and sort of impressed," he explains. "I thought he'd kill me for it. If m'being honest, that's why I did it. I wanted him to after I realized he could keep me trapped forever, but...I think he knew that. And that's why he let me keep it and get away with nothing more than a beating, so it could always be a reminder that he couldn't be outsmarted."