Page 143 of Lemon Crush

“I’m not a risk taker. Do you know I’ve never competed in an actual sport in my life? Video games and bar trivia don’t count.”

“I was never going to say they did.”

“Thank you for getting it.” She spun on her heel, pointing her water bottle toward the paddock. “Chick went all out for this. Did you see that RV? Bernie gave me a crash course in stretching and another in speeding. I’m super flexible now, thanks to her.”

She really was.

“Morgan showed up.Everyoneis here.” The water bottle now pointed at the stands. “Five of my mother’s oldest friends came here to support her car. Cyndy, Dayna, Eddie, Susan… Beatrice even flew in fromLondon. They made Jiminy T-shirts and hats, Wade. Well, Eddie is wearing a ‘Free Robert Duvall’ T-shirt, which is related to this ongoing Trivial Pursuit joke he had with Mom, but he’s holding asignand everything. And Phoebe keeps calling and demanding we FaceTime because she wants to be apart of it, even though she’s dealing with a three-week-old baby and our two dogs.”

That made me smile.Ourtwodogs.

I was easy to please.

Meanwhile, August wasn’t done spiraling.

“If I crash and burn in front of them—hopefully not literally—after making such a big deal out of this? I will never get over it.” She stopped pacing again. “You were right from the start. I should have thought this through and realized it was a horrible idea for me. The good news is that the car is still in the race. That’s all that matters. It might even be better this way. No one will notice if I chicken out, go home and hide under the bed for the rest of my life. They’re probably expecting it.”

I needed to put a stop to this now.

“Unlock Myrtle, Gus.”

“What? Why?”

“Please.”

She made an “Ugh, fine” face and pushed her key fob. As soon as I heard the beep, I opened up her door, put her in the back seat and came around to sit beside her.

“Don’t try to distract me with your big sexy body and its ability to manhandle me like I’m a paperweight,” she said with a suspicious look. “I’m panicking.”

“Would it be okay if I addressed a few of your concerns?”

“It won’t help, but you can try.”

“Chick didn’t fly out here for the race,” I told her. “He flew out for you—okay, and to get away from that over-amorous wrestler, but he really came to be here foryou. I imagine the same is true for your mother’s friends. They came to support you. Meanwhile, Bernie’s stretching and speeding might have started out for you, but they also distracted her from her grandmother blues, which were becoming an issue. And Kingston has enough film tomake two documentaries, whether or not you ever agree to his interview.”

She stared at my hand’s slow movement up and down her arm. The honeysuckle-and-jasmine scent in her hair was getting to me in the close quarters.

Focus up, man. She needs you.

“You’ve done more than enough to make yourself and your mother proud. You don’t have to race if you don’t want to. People will notice, but not one of them will think any less of you.”

She dug her forehead into my chest and shook her head. “That’s the whole problem of me, Wade.Iwill think less of me and Idowant this. At least, I want to want it. But as usual, whenever I get close enough to a deadline or finish line that people expect me to cross with flying colors, I hesitate.”

“You know that’s not true.” I blew out a breath against her hair. “I swear, Retta women are the most stubborn females on the planet. You hold yourselves to impossibly high standards. You finished two books. You joined a Lemons team and got them all behind your vision. You survived a hurricane, let a grumpy old mechanic into your life, and designed the perfect memorial to Sam’s life with the car she loved. Those aren’t insignificant accomplishments, August. You might not be able to see it, but I do. And you dazzle me every day.”

She lifted her head and stared into my eyes, her lips parting in surprise. “Idazzleyou?”

I wrapped my hand around hers, holding the water bottle with her so she’d know I was telling the truth. “If we’re being honest, you always have.”

Tell her.

I swallowed hard around the tightness in my throat. “You know whatever you end up deciding to do, Gus—race or no race, stay or go—I’ll always be on your side, and at your side.”

She leaned forward and kissed me before I could tell her that the reason I would be there was because I loved her.

I’d tell her in a minute.

29

---