Off the Track Series Book 2
Elsa has been alone nearly all her life. Thrown into a career she didn't choose out of sheer need. But now, for the first time in nearly a decade life has given her the chance to take up her dreams and join the Ferrari te...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Texas Grand Prix weekend is marked by a lot of firsts.
My first time in Texas.
The first race weekend Pierre doesn't speak to me even once.
The first race day that falls to Amelia's birthday, and Charles' first time planning her party. And by Charles, I mean fifty fifty between the two of us because the man is not detail orientated a bit.
The first time we don't leave Ferrari hospitality the entire race.
Granted it's absolutely hot as hell in this sun so I'm more than happy to sit in the air conditioning and watch the cars on telly. Amelia, not so much. She's an absolute anxious wreck. And given what happened last year I can't blame her a bit. Security is heightened this weekend but for her that's only made it harder to push the thoughts of last year out of mind. Sweet Charles has come to check on her every chance he gets, spending about one hundred times the amount of time in hospitality he normally does.
It's absolutely precious how they take care of each other.
The love in their eyes when the talk is so apparent.
I wonder if I'll ever be lucky enough to have something look at me like that one day.
Probably not at this pace.
Clad in a Ferrari red leather mini dress I'm feeling confident as I strut up to Amelia's party. A server hands me champagne on entry and I give myself a second to pause and check the details.
Thankfully the heat went down with the sun and the evenings already a full crush. When Amelia's father sent me an invite list longer than most people's wedding list I figured it would be this way and stocked the bar to accommodate. A bar that looks stunning under the garden trellis, a perfect compliment to the pale purple lights shining on the oak trees all around.
Yup, I deserve a full on pat on the back for this one.
"Boo!" An Australian voice I've grown far too accustomed to doesn't succeed in making me jump.
Drinking him in like a glass of water the man sure can pull off a suit. He's nothing short of dashing, "What do you think?" I gesture toward the party seeking his approval.
"I think Charles should take up wedding coordination and abandon racing." His cheeky smile and teasing tone work on me.
With an easy punch to the arm he surrenders "I know it was you. You're a wonder as always."
His compliment colors my cheeks. "Thank you."
"Make the rounds with me?" He proposes.
And make the rounds we do. The entire whose who of the car industry is at this party, and there's no shortage of people I need to connect with. Hours of introductions, car talk and catch-ups fly by under the moon as we tackle them together.
I usually dread this sort of social politics but with Daniel by my side I'm actually enjoying it. He oozes charm and takes every chance he gets to label me as the 'Better looking Albert Einstein of the Luxury Car Industry' No matter how much I protest.
I feel electric by his side.
Unstoppable.
When coldplay plays and he whisks me out onto the dance floor I'd officially lost all sense of time and likely my head too. Looking into his eyes as we sway feels like pure magic.
Like someone sprinkled post dust on this evening and didn't tell me.
I feel lots of things I shouldn't feel for just a friend with him.
It's dangerous.
But it feels like we're inevitable.
Fated.
Even after all this time.
If this is all a dream, don't pinch me. I never want to wake up. Let me just spend the rest of my days dancing with him, looking into those dark brown eyes that hold my world.
"So, Pierre asked me if we slept together in Canada today." It's a statement, but his eyes are asking me a question.
Why.
"He saw mw leaving the hotel in your hoodie." I elaborate. Of course Pierre asked him. Couldn't be bothered to take me at my word.
Still can't be arsed to speak to me.
"What's going on with you two?" He's studying me so intently my breath catches.
What's going on? Truthfully I'm not sure. Giving the best answer I can "He thinks we're somewhere in between exclusive. But he's not speaking to me at the moment."
A weird relationship status if I've ever heard one.
Daniel looks away but I swear his face tells of jealousy.
He wants me. I know it. But neither of us have been brave enough to go there.
Last time hurt too much.
Biting his lip, Daniel looks back at me again "And what do you want?"
There goes my heart, skipping again.
You. It's on the tip of my tongue.
Am I really willing to risk this again? To do exactly what I promised myself I wouldn't.
Tonight feels like a second chance. A second shot at insane, passionate romance.
A second chance I desperately want. Heart pounding, I tread lightly. "Someone I probably shouldn't."
We nearly slow to a halt at the words, like we're the only two people in the world right now. My eyes are screaming that it's him I want and I can see his mind racing. He looks down at me like he wants to kiss me. Needs too even.
For a long pause neither of us speak.
"You feel like a part of me I never I was missing." Daniel barely speaks above a whisper.
Looking at me the way all women want to be looked at by a man. Like his life hinges on this very moment why me. Like we could have it all together. Like I mean something to him. Like I mean everything to him.
I don't know what to say.
I'm actually fucking speechless.
"I really want to kiss you right now." He says and I feel more alive than I ever thought possible.
Like I've been hibernating all this time and I didn't even know it.
Like this moment changes everything.
"Why don't you?" I blink up at him.
There's nothing I want more than his kiss right now. A kiss to seal that this is real. This is happening.
"Because I don't know what you want." His voice is heavy with emotion.
My heart is absolutely pounding out of my chest yet I feel more at peace than ever in my life.
He needs to hear me say the words, so I do. "You. I want you." I choke it out feeling absolutely electric in this moment.
He seals it, bending down to kiss me. The crowd be damned, this is real. There's no fireworks planned for the evening but when his tongue slips into my mouth I fucking feel this.
