Page 72 of Racing Heat

“You don’t even have any way to mow your lawn. This is the barest garage I’m ever seen.”

He looks around. “Yeah, well, I have a service that takes care of the lawn, so there’s no need for any of that.”

“That’s so weird to me,” I say with a shake of my head.

“Not everyone is trying to be the all-American man,” he teases me.

“I don’t need for you to be an ‘all-American’ man,” I say, putting quotes up. “I just never knew a man who didn’t like to do things for himself.”

He shrugs. “I’m an Englishman. I don’t give two shits about being manly. I’d rather spend my time running, working out, and coaching the team. Not worrying that my lawn isn’t the correct length or that the HOA will bitch about my mulch.”

I nod. “I can see that.”

“Come on, why don’t you come into the actual house, where I do spend my time.” He grabs my hand and pulls me into the house.

It’s dark when we enter, but he’s able to turn a light on. The garage opens to the kitchen, which has empty countertops and stainless-steel appliances. There’s not much in the way of decorations, from what I can see. The island has two chairs infront of it, and I imagine that’s where he spends his time eating. I doubt there’s a furnished dining room ready for guests.

“So,” he says, grinning at me. “Would you like the tour?”

“I would.” I’ve been all keyed up to get in here and take off his clothes. He’s not the only one who wishes to explore every inch. I’ve had that same fantasy since the car last night.

“Well, then, come on.” He leads me into the living room. It has a large couch and a comfortable-looking chaise. It’s dimly lit but I think it’s gray. “Living room,” he tells me as we head into the next section. “Some empty rooms that I guess I should, or could, do something with.”

“Wow, you’re really living the life here,” I tease.

“I don’t have much use for all this space. I mostly just spend time in the living room, kitchen, and my room. I set up one of the other bedrooms to be a home office, and the basement has a weight bench and free weights that I bought when I got here.”

“It’s nice. But there are no personal touches.”

He shrugs. “There are pictures of my family in my office, but yeah, that’s about it. Not much here to see. I’m sure it’s not like your place.”

I drop his hand and step farther into the living room, looking around. It looks like if I take the short hall, it’ll lead me to the front room and the stairs.

“Yeah, I put up all my pictures from college,” I tell him. “Awards and things that I won. I don’t know, I just liked the idea of it feeling like home. I’ve never lived alone before, so I guess I didn’t want to be lonely.”

He shrugs. “I’m not lonely.”

“I didn’t say you were. I just said that’s what I needed to feel like I wasn’t alone. Have you lived alone before?”

“I’ve had a lot of practice at it. I had a single most of college and then again when I went pro. After the divorce, I was alone again. I’m pretty good at living alone.”

“It shows,” I say with a laugh.

“I’ll make it home eventually. Or when I find something that’s more suited for me. But for now, this is what I have. Do you want a drink or something?”

“No,” I tell him. I’m feeling bold, so I say what I’ve been thinking since we pulled into that garage. “Take me upstairs. I want to see your bedroom.”

“As you wish, love.” He grabs my hand and guides me to the front of the house, where the stairs are waiting.

I follow him up. It’s so quiet in his house right now that I’m sure he can hear my heart hammering in my chest. I’m not so much nervous as I am excited about going upstairs with him. At the top of the stairs are five doors; three are open. One is a bathroom. I can see it from the top of the steps. He takes me into the room that’s on the left and off to the side from the rest.

The master suite.

He drops my hand when we walk in and switches on a light by the side of the bed. “Give me a minute. I want to do something.” He walks over to the dresser and grabs a lighter from a box sitting on top of it. He pulls out some candles and begins to light them. It brings a romantic glow to the room.

“I thought this light might be better than what we had in the car.” He looks over his shoulder and winks at me. “I kind of hated that I didn’t get a chance to really take my time with you.”

“Is this your way of telling me that this is going to last all night?”