Page 6 of All That Glitters (Endurance #1)

Helen

Clasping the earring to my ear, I felt it’s weight, like so many other things, settle against my shoulder. It had been a struggle, and a failed one at that, to get the parting look from Ashton out of my mind.

My stomach had been in ever tightening and ever multiplying knots. There were bigger things to focus on, to give my mental attention to, but I couldn’t seem to redirect all that energy.

The words died on my tongue each time I started to tell Hale that I wasn’t going to dinner at the Glitterati’s, but I knew he still didn’t want to go, either.

If I didn’t, he wouldn’t and he needed to.

He needed to get out of the house and back around other people in a casual setting.

He needed to relax. This dinner would accomplish that.

There would be enough people to distract him.

I wasn’t in a socializing mood. I wasn’t interested in small talk. I didn’t want to see Ashton any more than Hale did, especially after…

My feelings for him kind of snuck up on me one summer and I buried them as far down as I possibly could. I had to hope Ashton never picked up on it the way Hale had.

There was a knock on my bedroom door, then Hale poked his head in. “Are you almost ready?”

I nodded. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

He stared at me for a moment longer, then retreated and closed the door again.

I turned to the mirror one last time. Everything about my make-up was flawless and there wasn’t a single dark hair out of place on my head.

The self-styled up-do was nothing short of miraculous and as long as a gust of wind didn’t hit me in just the wrong way, it should stay in place.

The black and white block patterned pantsuit rested against my skin with its soft, flowing fabric. The look was simple, but stylish and that’s how I felt. On the outside.

On the inside? I was a damn mess.

My hands were clammy.

My heart beat double time.

My stomach was uneasy.

And nothing, absolutely nothing about this was normal for me.

I handled business with unshakeable professionalism. It didn’t matter if it was in the form of a meeting, a dinner, or a party.

I would usually look at a gathering like tonight as both a social and business function. Part of me represented Troye, LTD . Another part of me was the sister of a driver and the friend of several others.

But the anticipation of seeing Ashton had me off my game and I was afraid it would land me right in the middle of his if I didn’t pull myself together.

Hale stood at the windows in the front room, the very one Ashton’s presence had overpowered a few days ago. The sun had nearly set, but there was enough light to give definition to the low foliage and dunes that were visible beyond the front gate and across the highway.

The back of the house looked out over the ocean. Hale’s room upstairs, across and down the hall from mine had a balcony that opened to it. My room faced the driveway. I was more comfortable seeing what or who was coming at all times.

I’m not sure what that said about me.

“Okay. I’m ready.”

“You know, we could…” He left the words hanging over his shoulder.

“Don’t tempt me.”

“Tell me what I have to say.”

“The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave. Nothing says we have to stay the whole time.” We always stayed way beyond when everyone else had left. That was then, though. And this was now. Everything had changed.

A tight smile crossed his lips as he offered his arm and escorted me out.

A breeze kicked up causing me to shiver and my hand automatically went to the top of my head.

The salty ocean air made my nose twitch.

North Florida weather in January was unpredictable at best. Seventies one week, forties, or even thirties the next.

We were on the cold side right now and according to the weather services, it wasn’t likely to get any warmer between now and the green flag at Daytona.

“Your Jeep or mine?”

“Mine. It’s the best one, after all.”

I lifted a brow, giving Hale a dubious look. He was well acquainted with it and ignored it every single time.

Both vehicles had every bell and whistle. They weren’t the newest models, but they were still pretentious as hell.

“You’re only saying that because of the colors.”

“Black bests teal every time.”

“Oh please. You know you’re jealous that yours has no personality.”

“Mine has every bit as much personality as yours.”

“Does not. Mine stands out, turns heads. Yours blends in.”

It was the same banter we’d been tossing back and forth since the Jeeps were gifted to us by our parents as birthday gifts several years ago.

Hale held my door for me and I climbed up into the leather seat, settling into the familiar comfort.

“What did you think of Ashton?” Hale asked, climbing behind the wheel and starting the engine.

We’d avoided the topic completely and I think we’d both been grateful for that.

After Ashton left the other day, Hale had gone upstairs without a word, then came back down, told me he’d see me later and left, as well. He hadn’t come back until much, much later.

“What do you mean?”

“He seemed different.”

“Well, we knew that, though.”

“Yeah. I guess. I just…” He steered us out of the drive and headed north on A1A.

The Glitterati base of operations in the US was housed north of St. Augustine and south of Ponte Vedra Beach.

It was an unusual location for a race team headquarters when most were located in Indianapolis and Charlotte.

There were some scattered throughout the country in Texas, California, and a few closer down in Daytona, too.

Ashton’s father, Leonardo Glitterati inherited the current property from his father. It was Ashton’s grandfather who’d started the building of the compound after one of his cars won its class in the ’67 24-hour race at Daytona. Over the years it was expanded, changed, expanded again.

Very few people outside the racing world knew that the Glitterati family lived and worked in the same place. The garage and offices were roughly the distance of a football field from the house.

The setup was unique and had always fascinated me. It reminded me of the old stock car drivers who built their cars on the same piece of property where they lived.

The haulers and motorhomes they transported the cars, mobile engineering centers, and family in were stored at a facility also owned by Leonardo.

“I don’t think I was ready for how angry and uncompromising he was,” Hale said. “Ash was unwilling to listen from the second he walked through the door.”

I could see that.

The air had been heavy with tension when I’d walked in to find them facing off with each other. I’d never seen them that way and I had to admit it alarmed me.

Would they ever be friends again? Would Ashton ever come around? Would he ever be ready to talk to Hale without the anger being front and center? And if not, what would that mean for Hale’s friendship with Brax? What would that mean for me and my friendships with Ashton and Brax?

“Why are we going? I mean, outside of the optics, why are we going?”

“Maybe the optics are the only reason.” That wasn’t the truth, at least not for me. For Hale, though, I could pretend they were.

I’d been obsessing over a look that really could’ve meant nothing, especially given Ashton’s confrontational state of mind.

But…

He’d never looked at me like that, with heat and hunger, with so much anger. Every time I closed my eyes, he was there, staring at me with that slight smirk, that dark look.

“Do you think he really believes I did it on purpose?”

“On the surface, it seems so, but deep down, I… I don’t know. Between all the films from every angle possible and talking to his team, I suppose anything is possible. Even under the best of circumstances, Ashton has never been the most level-headed.”

“Do you think anyone else does? You know, think that I wrecked him on purpose?”

I reached for his hand and he clasped mine. I think we both needed reassurance. “Every driver out there knows you, knows your character. They all know you’re not that type.”

“I thought Ashton knew that, too.”

“Wrecks happen and hindsight is always twenty-twenty. I’m sure if you had that day back, knowing what you know now, you’d do something different going in.”

“Yeah… I told him as much. I miss him being around.”

“I know. Me, too.”

As close as Hale and I were as siblings, he and Ashton Glitterati had been attached at the hip from the moment they met on a go-kart track. From there… Nights out as they got older. Video game marathons in the off season. Weekends away. And so many double dates it was ridiculous.

It hurt Hale when Ashton didn’t return calls after he was out of the hospital, that he didn’t text, that he blamed Hale to the point of silence, that he hadn’t tried to get in touch before.

Ashton had never been the type to avoid someone who’d wronged him and I don’t think Hale understood why he was the exception. And really, I didn’t either.

Tail lights ahead of us turned through a large iron gate set back from the road.

The Glitterati compound was lit up in the early evening darkness. A small private drive to the left led beyond to the garage and racing base of operations. We followed behind the other cars until the sprawling multi-story house came into view.

Lights shimmered in nearly every window and there were people milling around outside, greeting each other, strolling casually into the house. Some I’d know, some I wouldn’t. That wasn’t unusual though. Drivers came and went, crews came and went, spouses and girlfriends sometimes came and went, too.

“Too late to get out of this now, huh?” Hale asked, pulling to the side of a car and parking at an angle, making it easy to get out of the tight confines once we were ready to leave.

“Yeah.”

My nerves took over and everything below the surface was a trembling, shaking mess. I wanted to throw up. It was an awful feeling.