Page 20 of Rivals

“Both darlin’,” I tell her. She shakes her head and rolls her eyes. This girl is going to have me racing around more than just a track.

Twenty

Sutton

I’m stuffed with food. As much as I hate to admit it, Rathe was right, this food was amazing. I mean talk about melt in your mouth cheeseburger. I could live off these without a second thought. I’m also a little tipsy at this point. The more I drink, the better looking Rathe becomes which is hard to believe because he’s already got that tall, dark and handsome thing going for him anyways. My stomach feels the flutter every time our eyes meet over the table. I’m acting like some high school girl with a crush, but I don’t know what else to do. Rathe causes some unusual reactions out of me for whatever reason.

Another drink is sitting in front of me. I take a sip before a song that I have never been able to ignore comes blaring through the bar. I Love Rock n’ Roll by Joan Jett is playing which means I’m dancing, even if I look silly doing it. I jump up from my seat only to stumble into the table next to ours. Thankfully, it’s empty, but Rathe has some lighting fast reflexes because he’s also out of his seat, his large strong hands locked around my elbows to steady me. His voice is deep and there’s a slight hint of amusement in it. “Whoa there, where do you think you’re going?”

I smirk up at him. “This is not a song to ignore. I’m going to dance. The question is...are you coming with me?”

Rathe chuckles and shakes his head. “Not a chance in hell darlin’. I don’t dance.”

“Well, that’s a damn shame. I guess you’ll be watching me then.” I turn away from him and strut, more than necessary, towards the dance floor. I feel his eyes on my hips as they sway from side to side. My skin flushes from the heat of it. The moment that I hit the dance floor, the music and rhythm hits me and Rathe is forgotten as I begin to move to the music and sing along. The song is about halfway through when I let my faux leather moto jacket fall from my shoulders, onto the floor. Under the lights on the dancefloor I’m hot or maybe, it’s just all the movement. Either way the jacket needs to go for now.

I feel his presence near before I even turn around to see him standing just a few feet away with a wicked smile on his face, his eyes darkened with lust and my jacket laying over his arm. I make my way back towards him. “You’re so much trouble, Sutton.”

I toss my hair to the side and smile at him sweetly. “I have no idea what you mean.”

Rathe pulls his bottom lip between his teeth and leans forward. I can smell the small hint of whiskey on his breath and the warmth of his body sends shivers down my spine. My stomach flutters again. “I think you know exactly what I mean. You’re putting on a show for me, not that I’m complaining.”

“Who said the show was for you?” I make a spectacle of looking around the bar at the others sitting around. “I could be showing off for any of them.” Rathe’s eyes narrow and for a moment I think he’s upset but he wraps his arms around my waist and yanks me into his body so quickly my head spins. The song has changed to some slow country song. Rathe moves us to the beat and I find it easy to follow him. “I thought you didn’t dance.”

He shrugs. “I can make an exception every now and then. Besides, I may have wanted an excuse to hold you.”

I laugh. “Sure, you did. You hate me, so why would you want to hold me?”

“I don’t hate you Sutton.” His eyes seem serious but maybe that’s just the alcohol in my veins making me think that.

“You’re so confusing,” I tell him, as the song ends, and I pull away from him. I grab my jacket and slip it back on before gathering my belongings.

I hear him following me before I even feel his hand wrap around my wrist. “Where are you going?”

“Home, I should have never come here with you. I’m giving my own self whiplash.” I yank my wrist from his grip and turn back around.

“First of all, you can’t drive. Actually, neither of us can drive right now, so we’ll have to call an Uber or something. Second of all, I’m confused as hell right now,” Rathe says.

Frustration builds within the confines of my body. I run my hands through my hair but really, I want to yank it out. I want to scream at the top of my lungs. I don’t do well with frustration. “That makes two of us. One minute, I can’t stand you. You’re an ass and hateful. Then there’s this confusing line of the fact we are teammates but also rivals. I don’t even know what to do with that. The next minute, you’re staring at me with those chocolate brown eyes and I’m melting inside like some lovesick puppy. I’m attracted to you in a way I've never been attracted to anyone before and I don’t know what the hell to do with it. It’s ridiculous.”

Silence falls between us. My breathing is labored, and the world is a little spinney thanks to the alcohol and now embarrassment. I swear I just keep embarrassing myself in front of him. It’s becoming a problem. I open my mouth to apologize, but when I look up, Rathe is right in front of me. His mouth crashes down on mine. There’s a hint of mint and whiskey on his tongue and I swear I get drunk just off his kiss. I dig my nails into his sides as an anchor because I’m pretty sure I’m about to float away. There’s a split second where I think about how bad this could turn out. I have no reason to be kissing him. It’ll just complicate things, but then Rathe groans and I feel it all the way to my toes and I know it doesn’t matter. I don’t give a damn about the complications because for the first time in my life I feel like I’m home.

Twenty-One

Rathe

I could blame it on the alcohol. I should blame it on the alcohol, but it’d be a lie. If I truly want to be honest with myself, I’ve wanted to kiss Sutton from the moment she climbed out of the car and pulled her helmet off. Seeing her under that helmet shifted my world,, but it wasn’t until right now that I realized that maybe that shift wasn’t so bad. She’s gotten under my skin and left me feeling open and vulnerable at times. I’ve been an ass as a defensive mechanism with her. She scares me off and on the track. I run my hands up her back until they tangle in her hair. God, she smells like heaven. She shouldn’t feel this good, this right. Sutton is so soft everywhere which I guess in some way I didn’t expect because she can out race most of the guys on the track. She’s going to be my undoing.

Her nails dig into my ribcage and I press her back against the wall of the building. Sutton’s words come back to me as her mouth molds to mine, as if it was always meant to be there. As if she is where I belong. I had no idea she was just as confused as I was about her feelings for me. Actually, I had no idea she had feelings for me at all but I’m damn glad I’m not alone on that battlefield. I’ve fought against every last feeling, thought and dream I’ve had about Sutton...until now. I’m not fighting anymore, I'm embracing them.

I grip her hands in mine and pin them above her head as I move my mouth to her neck. Her pulse is erratic and only causes the blood in my veins to pump harder. She moans and my grip tightens on her hands. All I can see or feel or smell right now is Sutton. Headlights flash across us and we instantly jump apart. I release her hands, reluctantly but when I look up the flush on her cheeks is all I need to remember what just transpired between us. She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth and I’m so tempted to step back into her and kiss those lips until the sun comes up in the morning, but I know we can’t continue that here. “I should go pay the bill. Will you order us an Uber?” I ask her. My voice is thick with lust and I can tell she knows it.

She nods her head and quietly replies, “Yeah, I can do that.”

I stalk away without looking back, not because I don’t want to but because I’m worried if I do that, I won’t make it back inside to pay for our meal. I’ll be too tempted to turn back around and claim every damn part of Sutton Pierce...just like she did me. The worst part is she doesn’t even know it yet.

Twenty-Two

Sutton

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