Driving Me Crazy

Chapter Thirty

Katana

Despite my severe jet lag, I don't miss the beauty of the city we have just arrived in. Monza is a gorgeous city that takes my breath away. Having been from the Midwest and never leaving The States has really made everything such a masterpiece to me. The air smells sweeter and it's so much easier to breathe. I stand there with my eyes closed, breathing in the fresh air and taking in my new home for the week.

Charles taps the back of my elbow and chuckles lightly as he breaks me out of my trance. I give him a light smile and walk toward the car waiting to take us to the paddock. They set everything up prior to the actual race so that the drivers have somewhere to prepare and stay while they're in the city. Charles allows me to get into the car first while Lando does the same from the other side and the driver packs our things into the trunk. Camryn and I end up sitting together on one side of the long, black car and the boys sit opposite of us. Not much is said on the drive as Camryn and I are too busy gaping at the world around us.

When we arrive at the track, I take in the beauty around us. Without the fans present, the atmosphere is so relaxed while also buzzing with excitement. Drivers walk around casually with assistants running around like crazy. The boys carry all suitcases as we arrive at the McLaren suite. I took over carrying Moose while Charles insisted he takes my bags. We make our way to Lando's bedroom where they reveal a slightly larger bed to accommodate Camryn along with him. After we drop all of their things off, I look around awkwardly before asking, "Where do I go?"

Lando looks at Charles and gives an awkward smile before turning back to me and saying, "Uhh, McLaren couldn't accommodate you at this race so you'll be staying with Ferrari." My mouth drops and I slowly turn towards Charles who is rubbing the back of his neck nervously and avoiding eye contact with me. When he finally looks me in my eyes, he says, "I think I forgot to tell you..." before letting his words die off. In response, I shout, "You think?"

Turning, I storm out of the bedroom and began walking down the paddock to the Ferrari suite. Charles follows suit while Camryn and Lando stay behind to unpack some of their things. When he catches back up with me and slightly jogs to do so, he says breathlessly, "I'm sorry for not telling you, I wasn't sure what to do."

"It would have been fine had you just told me," I say in response. It's not like we haven't shared a bed before. He has already proven that he is a great cuddler. I hate to say that the man is growing on me, having him around is definitely nice, dating or not.

↫↬

After everything is situated in the room and the tension between Charles and I has dissipated slightly, we decide to explore the city. "I know it's killing you to explore so let me show you the city," he said, winning my heart over with words. I get dressed in a little blue sundress and strappy sandals before leaving.

Walking around the city is amazing on its own. Charles stopped us at a coffee shop where I got a double espresso that blew Starbucks espresso out of the air. Now energized more than ever, we continue walking down the path. I can't get over how amazing it is to be out of America. The food smells amazing, the architecture is perfect, and the man next to me isn't so bad himself.

"This way," Charles says as he drags me toward a path leading through some trees. I absentmindedly follow and take in the gorgeous scenery. The trees are so full and the life within them is buzzing around us. As we follow the path, we arrive at a pond where the sun shines perfectly across it. There is a bench at the end where we take a seat so that I can take in the scenery and people around us.

I love people-watching, in a non-creepy way. It's amazing how different but alike people are, especially when they think nobody is watching. I lean my head against Charles' shoulder and take in my surroundings. A couple walks past us, hand in hand. The girl gapes at the scenery while he looks only at her. After that, a couple with a daughter walk past us. The daughter, no more than 3 or 4, begs her parents to "swing" her as they walk. Chuckling, they grab her hands and swing her back and forth while they walk forward. She laughs with her whole body and shouts, "Again! Again!" The sight of the family reminds me of what I no longer have, but one day I hope to be a better mother than my own. I understand that Indi's death was hard on them, but they immediately pushed me out of their life as if she was their kid over me.

I look up at Charles who has sat here silently with me and say, "Thank you for giving me this opportunity. I really love it here." He smiles at me and kisses the top of my head lightly as we both sit there for another minute. Soon after, we decide to get food and he makes a few calls before winking at me and pulling me along the trail.

The whole world seems so small and fragile as I walk down the wooded trail hand in hand with Charles. It's almost as if nobody exists except for us right now. Walking out onto the busy street changed that quickly, but we arrived at a restaurant shortly after making our way back onto the street. The restaurant we arrived at had low lighting and smelled phenomenal. Walking past other tables, I see plates upon plates of pasta and I am immediately in love.

They sat us in the back, away from everyone else I imagine due to my famous guest. The table is secluded in the back where there isn't much noise and not many people can see us. Charles pulls out my chair and allows me to sit before taking his designated seat across from me.

"What a gentleman," I say with a smile. He shoots me a beaming smile that has my core melting and my stomach fluttering.

"Only for you," He says lightly as we look over the menus. I will be drowning in pasta before the night is over, but at least I have my knight in shining armor to walk me home.