Page 26
CHAPTER 26
ROSALIE
TEN MINUTES BEFORE RACE START
AJ stood there, leaning against my car, and handed me my helmet as I ran up to him.
“Good talk with your pop?” he asked as he rubbed a tear streak from my cheek.
“Yeah, it was a great talk! Now, it’s time for me to kick some serious butt.” I opened my driver’s door and set my helmet on the passenger seat.
AJ smirked and waited for me to slide inside before he shut the door for me. I buckled my five-point harness, and he leaned down on the window.
“I’ll be waiting for you at the finish line, baby girl.”
I smiled at him and turned my car on, revving the engine a few times. I nodded in approval. She sounded good.
“That’s cute, but we both know I’ll be the one waiting for you there, AJ,” I replied playfully.
He reached in and ran his finger under my chin, making my pulse flutter with the look of desire in his eyes.
“I love you, Rosalie.”
And with that, my heart exploded in my chest, and I felt my cheeks flush. He chuckled as he leaned away from the window and winked as he backed up.
Gosh darn him!
I pulled the belt release and threw my door open. Running over to him, I jumped, and he caught me in his arms. I kissed him, my lips crashing into his with fever and force. This man was my entire world.
“AJ, you are my everything. I… I just love you too, okay?!”
He held me, and I knew all of my friends and family and onlookers from the event were staring at us, but I didn’t give a crap! No matter who won this race, that would never change, and I wanted him to know that. No, I needed him to know that I didn’t care about that missing year anymore, and I just wanted to look to the future together.
“I love you, Rosalie.”
His words played on repeat in my head like a beautiful chorus of my favorite song. He set me down and pulled away from our kiss. He stroked a hand from my cheek to my hair as my friends whistled and yelled at us to get a room. His smirk grew.
“I know, baby girl. Now, you’d better get back into that car before we just leave in mine to go somewhere more private.”
I giggled and leaned up to kiss him one more time before I backed away toward my car.
“Don’t worry. If you can keep up, we can finish this race and still have fun after!”
He chuckled and walked back over to his car as I got into mine, putting the harness back in place. I grabbed my helmet and tugged it on, tightening the strap, and started my car. I slowly rolled through the rows of cars, AJ right behind me, and we pulled up to the front of the parking lot. The two cars in front of us lined up next to each other, and I parked behind the driver on the right. AJ pulled behind the driver on the left. We looked over at each other, and my smile grew.
Okay, it’s way stuffy in this helmet now. Dang him, trying to get me all flustered right before the race.
I reached forward and rolled down the windows. As the cool beach breeze started to fill the interior of my car, I took a few deep, slow breaths. A calm started to settle over me. I closed my eyes, just feeling the engine rumbling through the steering wheel. This was it—a moment I had been dreaming about, participating in an official street race where the stakes were higher than any other race I’d done before. And it was even more special because one of the other racers was the man I loved.
Dad walked between the cars, getting us all lined up before walking back over to Mom and giving us the lowdown on the racing rules.
The drivers revved in response to him asking if we were ready. My body tensed with anticipation, hand on the wheel and one on the shifter, my feet ready to shift up into higher gears as fast as possible.
And when Mom dropped her arms, the two cars in front of me lurched forward, and I was hot on their heels with AJ close to me.
We flew out of the parking lot and onto the streets of LA. Thankfully, people had quickly stopped traffic in the first few blocks of the race, so we were able to get up to speeds before entering in some high traffic areas.
The two front runner cars jostled for first position, making me focus on instant tweaks on my car’s accelerator and brakes to avoid a crash.
I knew AJ was right behind me, waiting for me to make a move that he could take advantage of.
“Just look where you want to go. Don’t focus on what they are doing.”
It was one of the most impactful pieces of racing advice my dad had ever told me. He’d said I was doing it naturally most of the time, but when you started to do it intentionally, your driving game hit a whole different gear. And he was right. Once I got the hang of consciously looking, it became second nature.
I kept my eyes on the shoulder next to the right car.
Not yet. Not yet. Now!
I slammed my foot on the gas as I shifted gears. My car surged ahead, and I made it through the narrow space between the other driver’s car and the concrete wall barrier. As I passed, I kept accelerating until I put a couple of cars’ distance between us. AJ also made it through the gap, and he was right behind me. I knew he was just biding his time to try to overtake me. We kept driving down all the twists and turns in the city, flying through red lights and four-ways, where one of the back cars almost caused an accident. This was crazy and dangerous, and I loved every freaking second of it.
We were coming up on the first checkpoint. I could see the bright muscle car from a block away as it sat, parked on the side of the road. I knew it was a straight shot between checkpoints one and two, so I stepped on it.
Let’s try to break some record speeds tonight.
They waved as I passed by, and I knew they would be radioing over to Dad to let him know where we were. I had to lower my speed to take a wide corner, and then I gassed it to get back those lost RPMs.
I looked back in my rearview and smiled, my heart pounding as I saw AJ’s car make the turn as well with ease.
Damn, the way he drives is sexy as heck. I’ve got to remember to tell him when I beat him!
But right now, if I wanted to beat him, I needed to stay focused. AJ wasn’t the only driver behind me. If I made a big mistake, those other two could catch right back up to me.
We passed checkpoint two, and this was where the race started to get interesting. There were at least three solid options to get to checkpoint three, and sure enough, when I went left, AJ took a different direction. I didn’t see the other two drivers either, so I knew they must have gone a different way as well. But this route went on some of the roads I had driven on and drifted on since I had been eighteen, so I knew them really well. I knew which corner was safest to drift longer on and which ones to tap the brakes a little on in case someone was around the blind corners. As I wound through the curves, my mind went ahead to the next checkpoint. There was really no obvious choice on that path, so should I try to go the route with the least number of curves? Or try it in order to avoid the traffic on the straightaway?
The straighter one might be the best choice, if it was an hour or two later, but there was a concert getting out around now, so that road could have way more cars on it than if I took a couple of side streets. Not worth the risk, so option curvy path it was!
I got closer to the checkpoint, and I saw a flash of yellow in front of me just as I was coming out of my last corner. AJ had pulled ahead of me.
How the heck was he faster than me in the last leg?!
I shook my head. No time to worry about that. I just needed to focus on catching up and getting the lead again. I doubted anyone else had managed to look up events in LA today like I had, so I might have the information I needed to get in front during this next checkpoint.
I drifted past the checkpoint car and waved at them. Then, I gassed off down the road, dipping off a side street as I saw AJ’s car driving straight. This was my chance. Hopefully, he didn’t see me pick a different route for a minute or two, so I could stand a chance of passing if he hit a little traffic. And to my relief, that was exactly what happened because by the next checkpoint, AJ was just a few cars behind me, and the other two drivers were nowhere in sight.
But with less than half the race to go, the one thing I had been hoping wouldn’t happen did.
Just as AJ and I blasted through a red-light intersection, I saw red and blue flashing lights suddenly turn on behind us.
We had just raced through a red in front of a cop.
Just great.
I sighed, exasperated because, now, not only did I need to stay in the lead, but I also needed to make sure cops didn’t follow me to the warehouse. I slammed on the brakes and abruptly turned right. AJ continued straight, but I knew he would soon be dipping through alleyways and side streets in an attempt to lose them. I’d been on the run from cops with him before. The cop must have called for backup because just as I thought I was in the clear, another couple of sets of lights lit me up at another four-way.
Gosh dang it! What’s a girl gotta do to win the Best Street Racer title, huh?
Guess I’m just going to have to add excellent at felony evasion to my list of skills.
I started to drive fast down a hill, away from the cops, and they were a few cars away. Then, when I got to the bottom, I pulled my hand brake and flipped the car in a half circle and slammed on the gas again. The cops parted as I flew between them back up the hill. I gave a little whoop when I checked behind me and saw them trying to turn without crashing into each other. I broke over the top of the hill and turned right, back on course to go to the next checkpoint. I had to take a couple of other small detours leading up to it, but when I passed, I saw the guy watching the checkpoint holding out three fingers. Which meant there were only three drivers left in the race now.
My mind raced for a minute, wondering who had dropped out.
Oh snap! I hope it’s not AJ! No, don’t even think that way. Positive thoughts only, Rosalie. Of course, he wouldn’t be the one to get caught by the cops or crash. It has to be one of the other two racers.
But I would be lying to myself if I said that my little pep talk completely eased my worry that AJ wasn’t in the race anymore.
It wasn’t until after the next checkpoint that my worry was put to rest when, out of nowhere, his car came flying out of an alleyway to my left and drifted right next to my back tire.
This was it—the final leg of the race. And AJ was fighting for it.
As much as I love you, there is no way I’m going to let you just win!
But AJ’s car was FAST, like there was no doubt that Dad had rebuilt that engine to be a beast on a straightaway. He pulled up alongside me, and I glanced over at him. He gave me a wink and started to pull in front. I turned my attention back to the road.
Less than half a mile to get there! Whoever got to the alleyway first would be the winner.
I shifted into my car's best gear, and my car started to pull ahead, inch by inch, until we were even. In the last few hundred feet, my hood was ahead of his. I hit the alleyway first, and it was over. We drifted into the warehouse back-to-back, and the crowd waiting went crazy!
I had just won the biggest street race in my entire life.
I whooped in the car as I pulled through the crowd and parked it. AJ pulled his car beside mine, and I couldn’t get out of it fast enough. I tossed my helmet into the back seat and unbuckled my harness, then threw my door open and slammed it behind me. AJ was out of his car and walking around to the front when I ran into his arms.
He picked me up off my feet and kissed me with his mask on. I had never wanted to rip it off him more than I did right at this very moment.
He spun me in a half circle and set me back down, and I practically bounced in place from all the adrenaline still pumping through my veins. Then, I turned and had person after person congratulating me and some wanting photos with me. It was a little overwhelming, to be honest. I wasn’t used to this kind of attention. But it did make me smile that I was getting it not because of who my dad was, but because I was a top street racer myself now.
The crowd picked me up and carried me to the middle of the warehouse, where my friends all jumped around and patted me on my back. And AJ wrapped his arm around my shoulders and kissed the side of my head. Everyone’s words were blending together, so I didn’t really hear much of what anyone had to say, but their energy was easy to read. I looked slowly at the group of people around me. My brother was standing a bit away, but he was there, and he gave me a nod and a rare smile. My friends, loud and happy, were next to me, and my mom was close too. But where was Dad? I’d honestly expected him to be the first one after AJ to come and see me.
But before I could go looking for him, Mom walked up to me and gave me a hug. That was when I saw Dad over her shoulder, standing back over by my car by himself.
“Your dad wants to talk to you, Rosalie. Think you can give him a few minutes?” Mom asked with a smile on her face.
I nodded, a little confused as to why Dad was hanging out over there instead of here, celebrating with everyone else, but I made my way through the crowd and over toward Dad.
“Hey, Dad. Why are you over here all by yourself?”
Dad looked at me and smiled before grabbing something off the trunk of my car. When he turned, my heart lodged in my throat.
“I want you to have my jacket. Well, I mean, it’s not exactly my jacket, but I bought this one when I left the hospital after you and your brother were born. My jacket has brought me a lot of luck over the years, so I hope it does the same for you. From the moment your favorite toy was a plush toy car, I knew this would one day belong to you, and you’ve earned it.”
In Dad’s hands was a yellow jacket with the Flywheels logo across the back and the word Flywheels on the front. The opposite colors of Dad’s black jacket with yellow details.
“Are you serious?” I whispered.
The warehouse was full of noise, but the surrounding space seemed to dim, so only Dad’s words were loud.
“Yeah, Rosalie. I’m so proud of you.”
He placed the jacket in my hands, and I glanced down at it. Running the fabric through my fingers, I saw my name embroidered on the tag inside.
And I lost it. Tears started spilling from my eyes. This was such a special gift. The fact that he’d had it for all these years, waiting for the right moment to give it to me? I couldn’t believe it. I rubbed my eyes, and Dad gave me a knowing smile.
Dad was my rock. I couldn’t have gotten through everything in life without him, and looking back, I remembered all the times he had been there for me. From when I was being teased in elementary school by the other girls because I never wore dresses to school to whenever I had boy problems and needed someone to talk to. Anytime Mom and I got into a big argument or I was struggling with math homework. It was always Dad who had been there for me. I felt the tears prick at the corners of my eyes, and I stifled a sob.
“Are you going to be all right?” Dad asked as he gently pushed my arm with his fist.
“Y-yeah! I will. Just give me a couple of minutes so I can pull myself together before I join you guys.” I wiped another tear from my eye as I held the jacket.
Dad gave me an understanding nod and walked away, leaving me to compose myself behind my car. I looked over at the crowd. My friends, my family, and my love were all standing in the middle of the warehouse, celebrating a good night of street racing, and I couldn’t be happier. I glanced down at the jacket, the one that was a twin to my dad’s but so uniquely mine.
I pulled it on, and it clung to my body perfectly. I just couldn’t believe it. Today was so darn perfect. I slipped it off again and was about to go open my car door and put it inside. But just as I was about to do that and rejoin everyone, his voice called from behind me in the shadows.
“Hey there, little mama.”
My blood ran cold as my entire body stiffened and the hairs on the back of my neck stood upright. I slowly turned, but before I could say anything, Kordell placed his hand over my mouth while pressing a finger over the front of his helmet.
“Shh. Get in the car, Rosalie.”
I shook my head.
I have to get away. I have to warn AJ. I… I have to move!
Finally, my body caught up with my brain, and I grabbed around his wrist and tried to yank it off me, but I couldn’t. Kordell was just too strong, and before I knew it, he was yanking open my car door and shoving me inside. I knocked my head against the center console as I fell. I groaned as I reached up and rubbed it. His hands wrapped around my body and moved me over to the passenger seat.
He quickly slid into the driver’s seat, and before I could try to turn to unlock the passenger door, he stepped on the gas, and we sped out of the warehouse.