Lando Norris has known Stephania Anderson almost his whole life, but the childhood friends had a rough falling out when she started dating his then teammate. Now four years later, he finds himself back in her life and he has to deal with the feelin...
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29. Waste Your Time With Me
It had been three days since that charged moment between Stephania and Lando—the one where they had almost kissed. It lingered in Stephania's mind, hovering like a storm cloud, dark and heavy, yet oddly thrilling. They hadn't talked about it, hadn't even come close to addressing the near kiss that seemed to have ignited something neither of them were prepared for.
For the past few days, their texts had been as they always were: light-hearted, familiar, full of inside jokes and memories from a friendship that had just been rekindled after four long years apart. But even in their easy banter, Stephania could sense the unspoken tension that now threaded through their conversations. It was as if they were both waiting for the other to bring up what had happened that night, yet too afraid to do so, worried that acknowledging it would change everything between them.
For Lando, the situation was agonizingly familiar. He had always had feelings for Stephania, even when they were kids. She had been the first person he ever had a crush on, and those feelings had never really gone away. Seeing her again after all these years, after she had endured so much with Carlos, only made them stronger. But now, Lando found himself caught between wanting to confess those feelings and not wanting to push Stephania into something she wasn't ready for, especially after the turmoil of her last relationship.
Stephania, on the other hand, was a swirl of confusion. She was so happy to have Lando back in her life—he was the piece of her past that had been missing, the friend who had always known her best. But now, things felt different. The almost-kiss had awakened something inside her, something she wasn't sure she was ready to face. After what she had been through with Carlos, the last thing she needed was more confusion. She didn't want to risk ruining the precious friendship she had just regained with Lando, yet she couldn't deny that something had shifted between them.
What did that almost-kiss mean? Was it just a momentary lapse, or was it a sign of something deeper? Stephania couldn't shake the thought from her mind. She found herself replaying the night in her head, wondering if she had imagined the intensity in Lando's eyes, the way his breath had hitched when he leaned in.
But the most unsettling thing was how it had made her feel. There was a part of her, a small but insistent part, that had wanted to close that last inch between them, to see what it would be like to kiss Lando, to cross the line between friendship and something more. Yet, the thought of it scared her as much as it intrigued her. Was she ready for that? Could she even consider it, with all the emotional baggage she still carried from Carlos?
Three days had passed, and still, Stephania was no closer to understanding her feelings. The only thing she knew for certain was that things between her and Lando had changed, and there was no going back to the way they were before.
...
Lando took a deep breath as he walked through the paddock, trying to focus on the task at hand. The familiar hum of the racetrack, the scent of burning rubber, and the rush of adrenaline—it was all supposed to help him get in the zone. But today, his mind kept drifting back to her.
