Redline | L.Norris

sixteen

The next morning started slow, just the way Isla liked it. The kitchen smelled like espresso and sun-dried tomatoes, and Robin was already out in the garden kicking a football against the old stone wall. She padded around barefoot, her hair still damp from a quick shower, trying to ignore the nerves she shouldn't have. It was just a gathering. Her dad's friends. Maybe a neighbor. Maybe a driver.

Nothing she couldn't handle... right?

Max had texted her that morning asking how her escape had been so far. She replied to him that as much as she was questioning seeing her dad over the break, it was exactly what she needed. Even though the man wouldn't budge on who was showing up and kept hoping Seb was in the area.

By early afternoon, the house was buzzing. A few locals arrived with trays of food, the kind of people who treated the Räikkönen's like normal neighbors instead of celebrities. Minttu floated from guest to guest like a hostess born for the role. Isla stuck to the edge of the patio, a glass of sparkling water in hand, sunglasses firmly on.

As much as her dad said he was okay with the party, he was nowhere to be found. Something that shouldn't shock her at this point. It was a wonder how her stepmom had put up with him this long.

She was mid-sip when she heard Robin shout something in Italian from the driveway. Not that she didn't try to learn the language, it just never stuck. Which is why she had no idea what the kid had said, only that he sounded excited.

Then a voice followed, one she definitely recognized.

"Oh good, you didn't vanish again."

She nearly choked on the water.

Turning toward the sound, she saw him, Lando Norris, stepping out of a sleek rental car like he did this kind of thing all the time. Laid-back, grinning, wearing sunglasses too big for his face and a t-shirt that said 'Ciao Bella' in faded letters.

"Seriously?" Isla muttered, eyes darting toward the house. Her dad was nowhere in sight. Coward.

Lando walked up, casual as ever, hands in his pockets. "Nice place. Very... Tuscan countryside Vogue spread."

"What are you doing here?"

"Kimi invited me," he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Said there'd be food. And that you'd pretend not to be mad about it."

She shot a glare at the back door, still empty of any tall Finnish figure who might've warned her.

"Unbelievable."

Lando leaned on the edge of the railing beside her. "Look, if it makes you feel better, I only said yes because I figured you wouldn't actually be here. You're impossible to pin down lately."

She looked down, knowing there were a string of messages from him that she hadn't opened. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk to him, she just wanted to fall off the face of the earth for a few days.

That, and Lando had a way of making her over think things when it involves him.

"I needed a break." Was the weak reply she gave him.

"From me?" he teased.

"From everything," she corrected, though the corner of her mouth betrayed her with a twitch of amusement.

He smiled, not his usual cheeky grin, but something quieter. "Then maybe I'm here for the same reason."

They stood there for a moment, not saying much, letting the summer air do the talking. The laughter of guests drifted from the garden, plates clinked, and somewhere, someone started playing old Italian jazz on a speaker.