Rules ⇝ Toto Wolff

𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 12

♫ Don't speak, no, don't try
It's been a secret for the longest time ♫

Grace Bauer POV

I thought the weekends were a mess but I was clearly not ready for Monaco. It's for the wealthy, it's a whole show and I am not liking it as much as I thought I would. But there was one thing I was dreading, my ex was kind of healthy and he had once mentioned this type of event. I just hope he doesn't set foot in here or all of this would be useless. I would have to run away somewhere else. 

However, Toto and I have kept our distance the last few days, I guess that having sex wasn't the best idea. The sexual tension was there but he was obviously avoiding me and drowning himself in work. 

"Are you alright?" Angela asks and I nod while nervously looking around. 

I should go home, I have a bad feeling, I think my ex might be here and that is not a risk I am willing to take, especially since the only person who knows is avoiding me besides the occasional look he gives my way to check up on me.

"I am fine, I just wish I was home. The paddock is very crowded" I say looking around the garage. 

"Toto is inside talking to Lewis and some engineers if you need him" She says but I shake my head.

"I am fine on my own, you can relax" I say giving her a smile, she smiles back before heading back to talk to Valtteri. 

I went to the upper floor and observed everyone moving around. It looked like a complete mess but my focus was on another thing. He is here. I saw him and I know he didn't see me. I needed to get the keys to Toto's car, I needed to leave. My mind was a complete mess, I was trying hard not to cry, I trembled through every step going down and had my vision blurry from the tears building up in my eyes. Shit. Am I having a panic attack soon? It's getting hard to breathe. 

"Where are you going? I can call him for yo-" I hear Valtteri's voice but I open the door and everyone goes quiet. Toto turns around and frowns.

"Get out!" He demands while coming in my direction. "What happened?" He whispers and I bring myself to say the words.

"He is here. I need to leave. Can you give me the keys for me to go home?" I ask looking at the floor. 

"Are you for real? You are not going anywhere. You are not running from him, that is not how you are going to move on from that asshole" He says angrily but I frantically shake my head.

"I need to leave. If he sees me here he will know where to find me from now on, he will destroy me. I can't let it happen" I say scaredly. If he got a hold of me again I would rather be dead.

"I am here for you, just stay by my side. You can't let him win, he can't have control of you" He says cupping my face and making me look up at him.

"Don't do this" I beg fearing for my life.

"Do you trust me?" He asks and I instantly nod. "Trust me on this, let it flow. Grab that bottle of water, sit down, breathe calmly and you will come back to normal. I will take care of this and I will make sure you are protected" 

"Okay" I say while he took me to the chair that was obviously his, he gives me his water bottle and stays up for the minutes that followed while I calmed down. If I wore makeup my face would look like I was part of a horror movie. I am glad I am this lazy.

"I am calling everyone back up, you seem as good as new. Let me finish this and then I am all yours"

I just nodded and he brought everyone inside. I picked up my phone and my face was back to normal. I am glad that whenever I cry I can go back to normal in a few minutes, I just get really sleepy, nothing more. I waited a few minutes and it finally finished. 

I followed Toto while he headed outside to the paddock and he grabbed my hand while we walked to the motorhome. People from the team who saw us stopped to look, and even people from other teams stopped to look.

"You are holding my hand" I whisper as he carelessly kept going.

"I know. Is there a problem? I know I am not hurting you" He says looking at me and I shake my head.

"We are in public and you are not necessarily one to hold hands with people" I say confused by his sudden behavior.

"Am I bothering you? Do you have any other boundary?" He asks stopping in his tracks and looking directly into my eyes.

"I am fine, I don't mind you touching me. I just thought you had done it unconsciously" I say shrugging and he nods.

"I rarely do things without meaning to do them, darling. You should know it by now" He smirks and I am taken aback by his flirtatious behavior. Is he on drugs? I don't think so.

"Walk faster please" I say when I see Felix distracted with a few people a few meters away from us. The motorhome was close enough for us to be able to reach without being noticed. 

"Which one is it?" He says looking to where I was previously looking.

"Grey suit" I say turning my back to him because I knew Toto wasn't moving.

"Great, now I can associate a face to the name. He is here with Mercedes, do you know why he chose our hospitality?" He asks bringing his body closer to mine.

"I don't know" I say looking at the path we should be taking. Away from the man who made my life hell.

"Be prepared to follow me in whatever I do. Don't be scared, don't give him the pleasure to see an inch of fear in you. He is nothing compared to me" He whispers leaning closer before kissing me. 

It wasn't just any kiss, it was passionate, it was slow and it was so good. I felt like I could melt in his arms. But why do I feel safe close to him? I should've felt this way with the man who exchanged vows with me and promised to love me. But he became a lunatic as soon as we stepped out of the wedding venue. I should've been careful but here I am getting myself into another problem.