Page 33 of Lights Out (Love in the Paddock #1)

Okay. Is he looking for a way to get my number or is he being practical? I’m trying to figure out a way to get around this when I feel someone staring at me. I shift my gaze briefly from Adrien, looking around the boutique, and then my breath catches in my throat.

Because the person staring at me is Caleb.

Our gazes meet across the room for the briefest of moments, a fleeting glance on my part before I shift my gaze away so nobody can assume anything. But my stomach has flipped upside down in excitement, something it’s done more times with Caleb than it has with any other man I’ve ever met.

Even though my eyes are now on Adrien, I can feel Caleb’s arctic-blue eyes bearing into me from a distance, unwavering since he spotted me.

Suddenly my body grows hot, and I’m not even looking at Caleb. If I’m reacting like this and he’s across the room from me, I can’t imagine how I’ll react when we’re face to face.

“Here,” Adrien says, handing me his phone. “Just put your number in there. I’ll pass it on to the Drago team and they can get with you to set it up.”

I put my number into his phone and hand it back to him.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Caleb is approaching us, weaving his way through the crowd.

It takes all my willpower to continue to look at Adrien instead of him, but I manage to do it until he walks up and claps Adrien on the back.

I allow myself to stare at him, looking so damn hot in his black suit and white dress shirt.

“Adrien,” Caleb says, “I didn’t know you’d be here tonight.”

“Stopping off before a Drago event,” he says, smiling at Caleb. Then Adrien’s gaze shifts back to me. “It’s always a good event for meeting different people.”

Caleb doesn’t say anything, but his expression changes. His jaw is firm, and there’s heat in his eyes.

But it’s not desire. It’s jealousy.

Ooh!

“Caleb,” I say, smiling at him, “it’s good to see you again.”

My voice causes him to blink. He doesn’t smile, but his eyes are locked on mine. “Isla, hello,” he says. “How are you finding Monaco so far?”

“It’s a gorgeous country. And it seems as if I’m discovering more and more things to like about it the longer I stay here,” I say, knowing he’ll understand I’m speaking in code.

“It is beautiful, isn’t it?” Caleb says.

A shiver races through me, but I manage to nod and force myself to look away before anything becomes obvious.

Catherine joins us, and it’s the first time I’ve seen her out of a Collings Motors polo shirt and shorts.

She’s wearing a gorgeous rose-colored halter dress that ties around her neck.

The long gown has a slit up the side, and because she’s wearing nude strappy heels, her legs look incredibly long.

Catherine’s black hair cascades down her back, and her soft pink makeup looks perfect with her coloring and the dress.

I’ve always thought she was beautiful, but seeing her out of Collings Motors clothing and with glam hair and makeup? She’s stunning.

“Hello, Adrien, Isla,” Catherine says. “How are you this evening?”

“I’m good, thank you,” I say.

Small talk is made about tonight’s event, and I realize how much I hate this.

I can’t talk to Caleb like I want to. Or feel his hand on the small of my back or be close enough to inhale the cologne lingering on his skin.

I feel like I can’t even look at him for too long or people will see something in that.

Soon guests are coming up to talk to Adrien and Caleb and take pictures, and Catherine takes a moment to step aside with me. To my surprise, she leans over so she can speak directly in my ear.

“I know it’s hard, but you are handling this so well,” she murmurs. “Nobody would suspect anything. I had to rein Caleb in a few moments ago because he was pissed off when he saw Adrien making a move on you.”

I jerk my head up and look at her. “That was work!”

Or at least I thought there was a fifty-fifty chance it was all work.

Catherine’s eyes sparkle in amusement. “For you, yes. For the other person? Not so much.”

I lean over to talk in her ear now. “He wants to be on Outside the Cockpit .”

Catherine laughs. “Oh, I bet he does,” she says softly. “Adrien loves a hookup.”

Okay, so it wasn’t all work. I still want to interview him, though.

And I will. He just won’t be getting anything other than a handshake after the interview is done, that’s all.

I step back and decide to speak in code again. “Well, I’m currently seeing someone,” I say, smiling at her. “And he has nothing to worry about.”

“I see,” she says, grinning at me. She glances down at the expensive-looking watch on her wrist. “I’ve already got to move Caleb along. He has a dinner tonight, and then of course, qualifying is tomorrow. Are you coming?”

“I’m going to watch the F2 sprint race and do some content for my channels. Then I’ll watch qualifying from the media center.”

“Isla,” Adrien says, coming back over to us. “Sorry to interrupt, but I’ve got to go. It was nice meeting you, and I’ll text you soon.”

“Okay, great,” I say, smiling at him. “Thank you.”

Adrien says his goodbyes and walks off.

Caleb is still talking to people, and it hits me that this is how we’re going to have to be while we are dating in secret. Each of us greeting each other, being friendly, but oh so careful not to give anything away, spending more time apart than together, even when we are at the same party.

This is my first time doing this, and I already don’t like it. Every look, every word spoken, every interaction has to be carefully measured for fear of tipping people off. I swear this is more stressful and harder than being live on-air.

“Catherine, it’s so good to see you,” a woman says. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight!”

Catherine begins a conversation with her, and I’m left alone for a moment.

Caleb suddenly steals a glance in my direction and then heads back over to me.

With so many people around, we can’t talk freely, but at least I have a few minutes with him before he leaves.

We won’t see each other tonight. I will go over for dinner tomorrow, but I have to leave early because of the race on Sunday. And then?

If he wins, he’ll have to go to the Prince’s Ball, hosted by Prince Andreas and Princess Chantal of Monaco. Then no doubt off to some glamorous nightclub to celebrate with drinks and dancing.

Meanwhile, I’ll be back at my hotel, packing to head back to France for a very long trip back to Miami.

And I’ll be alone.

I swallow. Navigating this is going to be hard.

But as Caleb draws closer, I know it will be worth it. He moves over to the side, a few feet away from Catherine, and I join him.

“It’s good bumping into you again,” he says. Then his eyes grow intense and he lowers his voice. “And you’ve obviously met Adrien.”

A shiver ripples through me from the way his jaw sets after he says Adrien’s name. Caleb is definitely jealous.

“Yes, he wants to be on Outside the Cockpit, ” I explain.

Now his eyes flash. “Does he?”

“Yes, and I want him to. It will be an interesting interview.”

To my shock, Caleb puts his hand on my forearm, his fingers gently grasping my skin, and then he dips his head close to mine. His crisp citrus cologne envelops my senses, and I greedily drink in the familiar scent.

“Adrien will put moves on you,” he says, his voice just a rumble. Electricity rushes through me, both from his fingers on my arm and the warmth of his breath caressing the side of my face.

I put my hand on his suit jacket, lightly holding the exquisite fabric, and move my lips next to his ear, as if the room is very loud and this is the only way I can speak to him. “And does that bother you?” I murmur huskily.

I move back, reluctantly shifting out of his grasp, and smile up at him.

“Yes,” Caleb says, his jaw twitching.

“Well, that is good info to know,” I say. “Although it’s irrelevant to me. My interests lie in one specific place. And not the one you felt compelled to warn me about.”

His eyes soften, and a sheepish expression passes over his face. “I know. But when I walked in and saw what I saw? It drove me crazy .”

“Perhaps you should just worry about driving your car, Mr. Collings,” I flirt back.

A huge smile passes over his face, and I feel one spreading across my own.

“Sometimes I can be an idiot,” he confesses.

“Good. Because I can be, too,” I say happily.

“Caleb,” Catherine says, stepping next to him. “We need to go.”

He nods. “Right.”

A pang hits me. “Good seeing you again.”

“Yes, you, too,” Caleb says, his eyes full of longing. “Good night, Isla.”

Catherine says good night, and I watch them walk back through the crowd and out the door. I take another sip of champagne. This is my first taste of what dating Caleb—at least in the short term—will be like.

It’s much harder than I thought. It’s hard to be in a room with him and not be with him. To be afraid someone will pick up on one single look, a smile, a laugh, and run with some story about us. This is all new to me. I feel like I’m breaking the rules, when in reality, I’m not.

I feel my phone vibrate in my clutch. I set my champagne on a tray and retrieve it. I see it’s a text from Caleb:

Sorry I was an idiot. I know you’re seeing only me.

My heart flutters happily inside my chest. I text him back:

It’s okay. It was kind of nice to know you were jealous.

Caleb Collings is typing …

Well soak it up because I won’t be that stupid ever again.

I chuckle as I reply:

Noted. Have fun tonight. I’m about to head back to the hotel.

Caleb immediately responds:

I won’t. I’d rather be with you, and seeing you made me realise what I’m missing tonight.

This is why everything—the secrecy, the pressure, what people will say, risking future assignments with The Downforce Network—will be worth it.

It’s worth it because I have a man who values me. Who not only thinks of me, but shares thoughts like this with me, so I know what is on his mind.

And in his heart.

I decide I’ll be going back to my hotel soon. I want to get to bed early, because I’d like to accomplish a lot tomorrow.

And hopefully that will include seeing Caleb win the pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix.