Page 62 of Wild Card

I began to move, but Mallory tugged me back.

“He’s okay…look at him.” The twinkle in her green eyes had some kind of calming effect on me. I knew she understood why I was particular about his safety, so I gave her a nod and watched as my brother warmed his tires and crawled up to the starting line.

“Talk me through what he has to do.” Mallory rubbed my back in easy strokes.

Had my breathing become more restricted?

I swallowed thickly. “He has to drive down to those water barrels, drift around it without hitting the flag right there”—I pointed with my finger toward the yellow barrels and orange flags—“then they race back here, and whoever crosses first wins.”

“Are there other racers who will challenge the winner?”

I watched as the makeshift board, one of those usually used in gyms, beeped loudly, indicating the startup. With the click of a button, the numbers began to climb right as someone waved a flag. The cars punched into first gear and darted from their starting positions with a roar and squeal of the tires.

I tried to breathe correctly as I trailed after my brother with my eyes. I felt Mallory’s hand warm my back with gentle caresses, bringing her question back to mind.

“Yeah, there are a few challengers, I think.” I tracked my brother’s black car as it sailed down the asphalt, the orange Mustang neck and neck with him.

“Breathe.” Mallory kept rubbing soothing strokes along my back, and for the first time in my life, I felt like I wasn’t alone. It felt like I finally had someone to help me bear some of the burdens that usually pinned me to the ground, like worrying about my kid brother participating in illegal street races, the fact that he was involved in about a million other illegal activities, or my mom potentially losing her house.

My hand found Mallory’s, and I tugged it up, pressing her knuckles to my lips.

Kyle cranked his wheel hard to the left as his car circled the barrels, the tail of his gleaming muscle car gracefully flaring out just enough to clear the flag. It was a perfect drift, and pride inflated my chest as I watched his competitor hit his flag with his taillight.

“Oh my god, he’s going to win.” Mallory slapped her palm against the bar in front of us.

A grin split my face as I slid her in front of me and brought my hands around her, settling them on her waist. Her head fit under my chin perfectly as she clapped and cheered for my brother. The nose of his car sailed over the finish line with more than a few paces between him and the Mustang trailing him.

His car was surrounded within minutes by girls and a few guys ready to congratulate him. He saw us from where we were, giving us a nod and a massive smile. I noticed his eyes kept darting around like he was looking for someone. The furrow in his brow told me it was the one girl who’d been at all his races but was suddenly missing.

I looked down at the girl in front of me and spun her in my arms.

“I’m glad you’re here. I like having you with me.” I leaned in, pressing my mouth to hers. The kiss released a tightness in my chest that seemed to build when I didn’t touch or have my mouth on her.

“You still need to explain.” She breathed the words as she tilted her head, deepening our kiss.

“I know.” I brought my hand up her back, sliding my tongue against hers, groaning into her mouth.

“We can’t keep doing this every time we need to have a conversation…” She broke away long enough to grab the collar of my t-shirt, drawing me closer. “We need to talk.”

I nodded, keeping my hands tucked into her back pockets, pulling her against my growing erection.

“Holy shit, get a room, bro.” Kyle stepped up, slapping me on the back.

We broke away, and Mallory ducked her head, laughing.

We stayed, watching every race my younger brother competed in until there wasn’t anyone left to race. Our afternoon was spent treating Kyle to lunch and dessert, and our mom came and joined us once her shift ended. She and Mallory started talking about gardening, which somehow transitioned to their love of some crime show they both seemed to watch obsessively.

That’s when Kyle pulled me aside and stuck a wad of cash in my hand. “Today’s earnings.”

I looked down at the massive roll of green and quickly lifted my eyes to my little brother.

“Since when do these races pay this kind of cash?”

Kyle winced, which told me enough.

“If you’re doing anything to skim off the top, Scotty will kill you. Family or not, he won’t hesitate,” I warned, feeling a fresh wave of panic settle in my stomach.

“I’m not. I swear.” He put his hands up. “Look, I may have started working for him a little more than I led you to believe. He’s also letting me do work on the cars that rotate in, as a part-time mechanic.”

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