Book 2: Beginning Again -Carlos Sainz

Chapter 1 + dedication + AN

This book is dedicated to my editor, my best friend, and my non-sexual life partner. I hope this book was a good birthday present, considering it took me like a year to finish. Thank you for doing life with me and becoming as obsessed with F1 as I was (and definitely still am). You mean the world to me and I hope your future boyfriend knows that you'd leave both of us in a second for Carlos <3 Thanks for pushing me to start posting here :) love you.

First of all, thank you to everyone who read, starred, and enjoyed book 1. I really lost the bet with my editor on how many people would read it. Soooo here's book 2! Warning- it's definitely longer than the first. Oops. Once again just a reminder that this is a work of fiction and is completely made up. Please be nice, I am not a writer, just a girl who wrote this for entertainment and a creative outlet :) With that being said, please enjoy Marie's story! Like/share and I might just start writing a third one lol.

Chapter 1: 2017

The Spanish heat was still somehow lingering in the dead of the night as Marie walked with her arm linked through her best friend Erin's. The two girls had absolutely no idea where they were headed, letting the man they had just met a few hours earlier lead them through the streets of Madrid. He spoke of this afterparty like it was heaven on earth when he extended the invitation to the girls at the club. Normally the most rational girls in the room, the pair decided to try something different and have some fun on this girls trip. So there they were, still buzzed, giggling while following easily the most handsome man they had ever seen.

"Okay, this looks really nice. Do you know if he's rich?" Marie whispered to Erin as they both focused on not falling after a long night in heels.

"No idea. But he wore khakis to a club, so it's a tossup. If this sucks, I have been eyeing Uber prices all night," Erin replied, glancing over to her best friend.

"Here is it ladies. Welcome to the afterparty," the guy said as he opened the door for them. The house was modest on the outside, but beautifully decorated on the inside. Marie eyed a pool in the back and smiled to herself. She was sure the view was great out there and made a note to check it out later. Inside, people milled about, but stayed mostly congregated by the bar. The trio decided that was a good place to start.

"Cheers," the stranger said. Marie had definitely asked his name several times but could not remember it for the life of her. "To a beautiful night," he spoke as he knocked back his shot. The girls winced as theirs went down, making the mystery man smile. He turned back to the bar to get them all another round. While he was preoccupied, the girls decided to go mingle and make the most of their night.

As soon as Erin had found some new guys to entertain herself with, Marie slipped outside, letting a cool breeze pass over her sweaty skin. She loved people, but her social battery was almost empty after the long evening. Marie looked over her shoulder to check on her friend, who was doing what she did best, flirting. Erin's skills were admirable when it came to men. Multiple times, she had a man wrapped around her finger in the matter of the time it took to order and finish one drink. It was a talent, one that Marie certainly envied at some times. But it was also something she was insecure about. Most of the time, any of the guys she liked would only talk to her to ask her about Erin. Marie sat down at the edge of the pool, kicking off her sandals to dip her toes in. The view was better than she imagined, looking down on the twinkling lights of the city below. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to clear her head when she felt a presence enter her space.

"Hi."

Marie's head snapped to her left to see who had just sat down. Her eyes took in the deeply tanned man and his gorgeous brown eyes. He had some day-old scruff lingering on his chin, making him look older than he was. He ran a hand through his long, dark hair, letting it flop back down to where it rested over his forehead. Although she would come to deny it, she was attracted to him immediately. And when he saw the shocked look on her face, his smile all but sealed the deal for her.