Page 29 of Retrograde

‘Will we ever be able to trust him?’ Marco said exactly what she’d been thinking.

He usually liked to sugar-coat things, but it seemed that he was equally as worried about his teammate.

After all, if Brett messed up and lost his seat or if it got out to the press, Jules and Marco would have to deal with the fallout.

‘Probably not. But it doesn’t mean we love him any less.’ Julien looked pointedly at Lucie. Could he see right through her? Did he know how she felt about their best friend? Or was he just clarifying that they would be there to support him, too? That she didn’t have to do it alone.

She observed the room. It was packed with businesspeople, higher-ups from the team.

Not just the sponsor they were here for tonight, but other sponsors, too.

The owner of Revolution Racing, who was a step above Jasper.

Every single one of these people would have a negative reaction if news of Brett’s issues surfaced.

They would cut donations, end contracts. It could run the team into the ground.

How was she supposed to monitor Brett’s every waking move without him getting angry?

Would he get angry, or would he thank her for holding him accountable and saving his ass from losing the career he’d fought so hard for?

Jasper hadn’t said it, but he was counting on Lucie.

So was Gabriel. So was everyone . She could feel the pressure mounting, suffocating her.

Lucie needed to get out of this room. Faith was taking a while in the bathroom, so she used that as her get-out clause. ‘I’m going to go help your wifey with her dress.’

‘Sure. If you see Anderson, tell him us three drivers need to start making the rounds again. There’s loads of people we haven’t greeted yet and I can feel the PR team breathing down our necks. You know how Chelsea gets when things aren’t done her way.’

‘Faith?’ Lucie hovered in the long, dimly lit corridor leading to the bathrooms. Both were engaged, and she assumed Brett was in the second one. She knocked on the first.

‘Luce, is that you? I’ll be out in a minute! My dress is almost dry. Brett is saved from my dry-cleaning bill!’ Faith’s voice called out over the noise of the hand dryer.

‘Hi, Sunny.’ Brett flung the door to the second restroom open, swaying slightly as he smirked at Lucie, his eyes glazed over. ‘Fancy seeing you here.’

‘Get back in there, right now.’ Lucie shoved him backwards and slammed the door, angry tears threatening to blur her vision. ‘Show me your pockets.’

‘If you wanted to get in my pants so bad, why didn’t you just say that weeks ago?’ he snorted. Actually snorted , as he laughed at his own bad joke.

‘You’re drunk,’ she stated. It was clear as day. How had he changed so much in fifteen minutes? Was it because now she was looking harder for the signs? Because she was already suspicious? Yet again, she hadn’t paid enough attention. She’d been too busy vlogging.

‘No, Sunny. I’m Brett.’ He grinned at her.

The swaying had raised her suspicions once again, but the snort had done it. Brett never laughed quite like that. His glass may have been vodka-free, but he must have something on him.

‘Pockets, Brett. I’m not fucking around.’ Her jaw ticked.

‘Okay! Jesus.’ He put his hands in his trouser pockets and pulled the lining out, showing her that they were totally empty. ‘I don’t have anything.’

‘Did you somehow manage to snag an alcoholic drink at the bar? I thought one of the guys had been up with you every time.’ She eyed him cautiously.

‘Sunny, I’m sober. Not a drop.’

‘Not even a shot? That guy from the tequila company didn’t persuade you?’ One of their potential new sponsors was a big tequila brand who had been invited along tonight, and their CEO had been pushing everyone at the event to try it out tonight. Maybe he’d got to Brett.

‘One.’ Brett bit his lip, having the decency to look embarrassed.

‘Okay, so you lied to me then,’ she scoffed. ‘You’re too drunk for it to have been just one shot. What else?’ Lucie crossed her arms, and for once, Brett looked scared of her.

‘Nothing.’

‘Stop lying.’

‘Fine.’ He let out an exaggerated sigh like a child having a tantrum and flashed the inside pocket of his tux. That’s when she saw it. The unmistakable flash of silver. How had he possibly managed to sneak a flask into his jacket when she had been helping him get ready in her room?

‘Show it to me.’

Brett took it out and handed it to her, wincing harder than she did when she smelled the whisky. She shook it. There was barely any left.

‘It’s not mine.’

‘Oh! Well, that’s fine then!’

‘I swiped it from Jasper. I know he likes the strong, expensive stuff.’

‘You swiped it from your team principal ? Have you lost your fucking mind? Do you want to lose your entire career?’

‘Stop swearing. It doesn’t suit you.’

‘It doesn’t suit me? Alcoholism doesn’t suit you, Brett. But here we are.’

‘Maybe you just fuck off out of my life, then. Leave me to it.’ His words were like knives.

He had never, in all their years of friendship, said anything like that.

If anything, he’d only ever begged her to stay.

For him to be risking her ? This was worse than Lucie had thought.

He wasn’t miraculously healed after spending time at home, he was merely masking whatever pain he was in, in order to get back behind the wheel of his beloved race car.

And the worst part? She couldn’t blame him.

‘Don’t move. Julien can deal with you for tonight. I’ll give you space.’ She wrenched the door open and was greeted by Faith’s panicked expression.

‘Are you okay? I heard yell—’

‘Fuck your space , Lucie. You might be able to control your little social media interns but are you fuck going to keep controlling me.’ Brett’s voice echoed into the corridor before she could shut the door on him, right as Jasper rounded the corner.

Lucie stared at her boss, eyes wide, and she knew in that moment that Brett was screwed.

‘Don’t you dare speak to her like that, Anderson.’ He kept his voice low, but his tone said it all. If Brett reacted, he could blow his entire career.

‘It’s Lucie, I’ll speak to her however the fuck I want.’ And that was it.

Jasper clenched his jaw and his fist simultaneously, and herded Lucie and Faith behind him as he got in the face of one of his star drivers.

‘No, you won’t. If it wasn’t for her, your career would be done, Brett.

Over. For good. But you’re a damn good driver, and I love you like a son.

You’re not throwing this away. Understood? ’

‘Mmhmm.’ Brett stared at the swirls on the carpet, refusing to make eye contact.

‘You’re taking the rest of the season off.

You can take a few months to do what you need to do, and then we’ll ease you back into team responsibilities over the winter.

But you are not getting back into that car this season.

You’re not to show up at the track, either.

I don’t want to see you anywhere that has any ties to the motorsport industry unless I specifically invite you. ’

‘So, am I done?’ Brett mumbled.

‘No, you idiot. If you can sort your shit out, if you do therapy and prove to me that you’re doing it, you can come back next season.

But not before. I don’t want to lose you, Anderson.

You’re part of the team, and the fans and sponsors love what you bring to the table.

But man, you’ve got issues. Deal with them. ’

‘I’m off the team?’

‘No, you’re taking a step back.’

‘But I’m not racing at Le Mans?’

‘No.’

‘Shit.’ Brett’s eyes welled up with tears, and despite the way he’d just spoken to her, Lucie squeezed past Jasper and wrapped her arms around her best friend.

He wasn’t himself. That much was clear. Brett liked to think he could put on a brave face and just get on with life, but tonight had unveiled the truth.

He still had a long way to go and a lot of trauma to work through, and he couldn’t do it alone.

Whatever he did next, he needed to hit the reset button.

And Lucie knew exactly the place to take him.