Page 90 of Racing Heat

No one else takes her up on her offer to join us for brunch, not that I expected any of them to. And I’m sure she didn’t either. The team spends a lot of time together, and we all get along well. But small groups have been formed, along with bonds. It doesn’t mean we all have to hang out together all the time. It’s just nice that there’s no drama surrounding the small groups that have formed.

“Shocker,” Amelia says quietly.

I look over at her and giggle. “Yeah, I didn’t think so either. But she has to ask, you know? The politics of it and all.”

“Yes, we wouldn’t want to step out of line.” Mac’s eyes are on me when she says it. Either I’m being paranoid, or she’s onto me. “Driving separately or together?”

Her quick change in subject throws for me a minute, but I manage to not make it any more awkward. “Separately is fine. I have some errands to run anyway.”

We all pile separately into our cars and head to Riff’s, our normal brunch spot, which we found through trial and error of the restaurants around Tampa. It’s one of the perks of where we’re located—there are so many restaurants with a large variety of food to try. I’m in heaven with all my choices. It’s one of the perks of living in a town where a lot of tourists visit.

Once I’m in my Jeep alone, I pick up my phone and shoot Jase a text.

Cassie:Good morning, stud. Just saying hi. All done with training. Heading out for lunch.

We didn’t really talk about the next time we would see each other. I left with a promise that I would reach out. That I wouldn’t ghost him like I had the last time. I wanted to keep that promise.

Jase:Hey, love. Do you need a massage? Are you sore?

I grin at his message.

Cassie:I am sore actually. My neck is bugging me. Could you come and crack it later?”

I start making my way to Riff’s, hoping he answers before I get there so I can reply without any suspicious eyes on me. I’m tempted to let him know that I think Mac is onto me, but I don’t. I want our conversation to remain light. And I don’t know anything for sure, anyway. We didn’t get a lot of sleep last night before leaving his bed at nine this morning, so I don’t want to jump to any conclusions.

Jase:I would love to help you crack that neck. Text me later and we can meet up.

Cassie:Can’t wait.

Pulling into Riff’s, I feel like I’m on a cloud. I haven’t felt like this about a man in a long time. It’s complicated and we’re definitely set up for disaster. I’m not so as naive that I thinkwe’ll end up like Mac and Danny. I just hope that when the dust settles, both of us still have a job. And I still have all my friends.

I was a little angry that Mac had kept this from me and hadn’t let me help her. She shut me out and tried handling it on her own. It dawns on me that that’s exactly what I’m doing. Telling her now isn’t an option. Hendrix and Amelia are my friends, but I’m not going to risk it. Sure, I’m close with them, but not as close as Mac and I are.

I head into the restaurant and see my friends standing at the host’s table.

“You okay?” Mac asks me.

“Yeah, I’m good. Why?”

“You just took forever to get out of your Jeep.” Her voice drops to a low octave, and she steps us away from everyone. “We can ditch and go somewhere to talk. I’ll help you come up with an emergency.”

I almost take her up on it, but I decide against it. “I’m good.”

She just nods, and another pang of guilt sucker punches me in the chest. It seems like I’m telling lie on top of lie today.

Finally, we’re all seated, and each of us has a mimosa in hand.

“Thank fuck for this.” Hendrix takes a big gulp of hers. “It’s been a long freaking week.”

“It’s Sunday,” Amelia points out, laughing.

“Well, I’m counting today as the last day of the week. We start on Mondays in my book.”

I nod in agreement. “Tomorrow is a new week, and we have a chance to be better than we were yesterday.”

“How very poetic of you,” Amelia teases.

“Yes, it sounds very Coach Ford of you.” Mac rolls her eyes. “I was surprised that Watts had him do the speech. I mean, he did well. He just doesn’t usually address us.”