𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞 | 𝐜. 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐳

20

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quick a/n before the chapter starts
rest in peace to Danilo van 't Hoff, who passed in an accident at Spa.
the deepest condolences to his family and friends

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[ MARANELLO, ITALY ]
MAY 2021

REINA WOKE UP to about a thousand missed texts, calls, and FaceTimes from Carlos. She was tempted to go through his messages, but instead of looking at any of them, Reina shut off her phone.

Rolling out of bed, she stumbled to the bathroom. Her eyes were puffy from her previous night's crying, and her hair was a mess. She turned on the faucet, splashing cold water on her face.

A part of her wished this was some bad dream. That what she saw at the club the previous night was just an illusion and that she and Carlos would still be happy together.

But on the other hand, a part of her thought that maybe it was for the best. Carlos was famous, rich, handsome, and well-liked. And even if he was satisfied with a nobody like her, the public would never leave her be. Reina would spend her whole life prodded and picked at by paparazzi, known as the girl who had a lucky workplace affair.

A workplace romance, especially one as high-profile as theirs, would be inappropriate. Reina should have never said yes in the first place, but she let her emotions and weakness get the best of her.

Staring at her reflection in the mirror, Reina sighed. She would have to go into the office today, even though most people who went to Spain for the race got the day off. She had a variety of images to edit and send out that were due.

She got dressed, just putting on a pair of jeans and a black long-sleeve tee. Her hair was in a knot at the nape of her neck, while her makeup was light and minimal.

She said goodbye to her brother and headed into the office. The parking lot at Ferrari SpA headquarters was virtually empty, as none of her coworkers were there. Reina locked her brother's car, which she borrowed, and headed up to the media department, expecting just a few hours of solitary photo editing. But, she was met with a surprise.

Carlos stood at the entrance to her department, waiting, rubbing his lower lip.

Reina huffed, which Carlos heard. His head shot up. "Reina!"

"I'm busy, Carlos," said Reina, pushing past him, using her key card to get into the department.

He followed her in. "Please, can you just listen to me?"

Reina sighed. "No." She made a beeline for her office, picking up her pace.

Carlos, exasperated, exclaimed, "Will you stop being so stubborn?"

That caught her attention. "What did you just call me?"

"I didn't mean that," said Carlos, quickly taking it back. He took a deep breath. "But I wanted to tell you that I wasn't completely transparent with you."

Reina raised her eyebrow.

"Okay. Here goes. So right before you started at Ferrari, about a month or so before, I broke up with my long-term girlfriend," explained Carlos. "I was honestly not planning on romantically meeting anyone for a long time after... but then you came along. I couldn't help it."

Reina just stared at him.

"But, it looks like my ex saw the rumors and the news reports about you and she wasn't happy. She also lives in Spain, so when the race ended, she decided to come to the bar she knows we always party at," continued Carlos. "She was drunk and she tried to convince me to get back together. I tried to stop her."

Reina looked down. Voice quiet, she asked, "Why didn't you tell me about her?"

"Most girls aren't eager to date a man who is only a few months out of a four-year relationship," said Carlos. "Everyone knew about me and my ex. We were really public. I was relieved when I realized you didn't know. I was... I was hoping you would never find out, so I wouldn't scare you away."

Reina rubbed her eyebrow. She looked at her shoes, unable to formulate words.

"Rey, please say something," begged Carlos.

"I..." muttered Reina. "Okay."

"Okay? Okay, what?"

"Okay, thank you for telling me," said Reina.

Carlos sighed. "That's it?"

"I don't know, Carlos!" she responded. "I think... I think this was a mistake."

"What?" he quietly asked.

Reina couldn't meet his eyes. "I'm just... we're just... too different. We made a mistake."

"I... what? A mistake?" he asked, hurt lacing his voice.

"Carlos, we are professionals. This job is the one thing keeping me from going broke; my father is dead and whatever is left of his company is solely dealt by Adrian," said Reina with great difficulty. "I can't afford to screw up this job. I... I wasn't thinking right. We need to stay professional."

"Don't tell me this is about being professional," scoffed Carlos. "That wasn't a problem at all before. Tell me the truth, Reina."

"Fine, you want the truth?" asked Reina. "Carlos, you come from a world of billionaires with luxury cars, boats, and paparazzi, not to mention the beautiful women. Your life, your work, your... everything is so complicated. I've always led a simple life, lived paycheck-to-paycheck, but at least I had privacy. I'm not a perfect millionaire girlfriend and the public knows that. And I guess what I saw last night reminded of that. The beautiful blonde girl wearing an outfit costing my salary just... looked right. Looked right with someone like you. So just forget it, okay?"

"Reina, I don't want her. I want you," said Carlos earnestly, grabbing her hand. "I couldn't care less about fame or money. I've done that my whole life. You are genuine, kind, talented, and hardworking. Not to mention, you are beautiful too. Reina, you take my breath away."

Reina's breathing hitched as her heart started to melt. All she wanted to hear that she was enough, that the little girl from São Paulo with nothing to offer besides a camera was enough. She wanted someone to tell her that her doubts weren't reason enough to throw away the relationship.

"And I know that asking you to be with me is asking you to sacrifice your privacy," he continued. "But I will show you that it's worth it. That we are worth it. So-"

He was cut off. "Just shut up," she muttered. And with that, her lips came crashing down on his.

His heart exploded as he stood with shock, slowly realizing what was happening. Slowly, he melted into the kiss. He placed his hands on her face, caressing her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him in closer.

Gently, after what felt like a heavenly eternity of kissing, the two broke apart. They gave each other a soft smile.

"You have no idea how long I've been wanting to do that," whispered Carlos.

Reina beamed. "Then how about you do it again?"

And so he did. With that, two became one. Who would have known that small party in Ibiza years ago would have lead to this? To Carlos Sainz, driver extraordinaire, with Reina Amaral, an ordinary photographer? That's the funny thing about fate, Reina supposed.

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a/n
well here we are!!

thank you for 7k + 8k reads!

anybody watch today's race?? honestly great performance from charles and carlos