Page 23 of Rivals

Maxton shakes his head as if I’m missing the big picture here. “Did you even read your contract before you signed on the dotted line?”

My eyes narrow into a glare. Maxton might be my best friend but I’m not above beating his damn ass if he doesn’t quit talking in damn circles. “Are you always this annoying?”

“Your contract says you can’t have any kind of outside relationship with any member of the Revv-It Racing Team. If they are employed by the team, they are off limits. Sutton is off limits. If you break the rule and they find out, you could both be without a job.” Maxton steps around me. Clearly, he’s annoyed but I swear it’s like he just punched me in the gut without even knowing. “Before you start the press tour where you’re supposed to be a likable guy, you might want to remove that stick up your ass.”

I stand there long after he leaves. I hear the door slam shut behind him. When I can move again, I check the time and see I only have a few minutes before the car will be here to pick me up to head to the airport. I quickly zip up my suitcase and rush downstairs to my office. I rummage through my drawer of files until I find my Revv-It Racing contract. As I skim through it, I’m praying Maxton is wrong. I mean I don’t know what will happen between Sutton and me. There’s a possibility it’s nothing but if it’s in our contract that we don’t even get the opportunity to see, well it’s going to suck. Finally, I find the portion of the contract that Maxton must have been talking about. Sure enough, it’s there, in black and white. No two Revv-It employees can share a romantic relationship. Things must be kept completely professional. Both guilty parties will be released for breach of contract immediately.

“Shit!” I throw the contract across the room and watch as the pages scatter in the air and slowly fall to the floor. I signed this years ago without fully digesting what anything meant. I just saw the amount of the money I’d be making and signed my life away. Even if I had really paid attention to this portion of the contract I wouldn't have cared. There was no Sutton then. I would have never guessed she’d show up and turn my life upside down while fixing it all at the same time. A car horn from outside notifies me that it’s time to leave. I gather my suitcase, my mind a jumbled mess and head out of my house, making sure to lock it up tight. As I slide into the backseat of the car, all I can think is what in the hell am I going to do now? I’ve had a taste of Sutton Pierce and I don’t think it’ll ever be enough.

Twenty-Four

Sutton

I’m exhausted as I pull myself from my bed. I knew I would be it was all part of Evanna’s plan. She decided we should stay up as late as possible last night so I’d be tired enough to sleep on the plane today because I’m kind of freaking out over flying. Okay, not kind of, but totally freaking out. I’ve never been in a plane before and it’s scaring the hell out of me.

It doesn’t really help that I’m going to be seeing Rathe for the first time since we kissed. I’m not sure what to expect from him or our situation. It’s dumb. I’ve never been a girl to worry about where I stood with a guy but it’s different with Rathe.

Yesterday, I spent hours with Evanna shopping. We went to just about every store in the mall. I have an entire new wardrobe although I still say it’s unnecessary. I mean, I’ve also never been a girl to dress up or be concerned about lacy bras and underwear but apparently Evanna is. It took me a good two hours to get everything hung up and situated in my room and then another two to pack thanks to Evanna’s help of unpacking basically everything I tried to sneak into my suitcase. She seems convinced that this press tour is going to be an excuse for things between Rathe and I to escalate. I completely disagree but I guess we’ll see.

“You better have your ass out of bed,” Evanna says, as she barrels into my room. I sit up and give her a look that causes her to laugh. “Oh good, you’re up!”

“Yeah, imagine that. Although, I will admit I feel like I got ran over by a semi at some point.”

She hands me a can of cold soda and I take a huge chug. Is it ladylike? Definitely not. Do I care? Not in the least. “That’s just how it feels after shopping for hours. You get used to it after a while.”

I shake my head. “Nope, not me. I have enough clothes to last me ten years, so I won’t be shopping any time soon.”

“You’re such a strange girl sometimes,” Evanna says, as she plops down on the bed next to me. We sit in the quiet for a moment, listening to the clock on my nightstand tick away. “So, are you ready to go today?”

“I mean, I’m packed but mentally, I’m not anywhere near ready. I don’t know what I’m more nervous about, the plane or having to see Rathe again.”

Evanna rolls her eyes. “First of all, you’ll probably sleep most of the plane ride so no need to worry there. As far as Rathe goes, just act as if everything is normal unless he acts differently.”

“Do you think he’ll act differently?” I ask.

Evanna shrugs. “I don’t know. He’s hard to read. I do know that he’s into you and I have a feeling he’s going to want more than just one kiss.”

“It wasn’t just one kiss,” I add.

She gives me a look. “You know what I mean. That being said, I wouldn’t be shocked if he reverted back to his ass hat ways. Guys like him have a hard time letting anyone in. They like to be in control and a girl like you throws them off their game. They fight against you and whatever they feel for you because they think it will be easier, but in the long run they give in, hopefully before it’s too late.”

“A girl like me?”

Evanna nods her head. “Yep, a game changer. You are one of those girls who can change a guy's entire life if he lets you. They realize that pretty quickly, but that also means they have to give up some control. They have to let you in, and they get scared, whether they admit it or not. Eventually, they realize it’s all a waste of time and they have to come back and ask for forgiveness.”

Her thought process causes me to laugh. “That’s a very detailed concept. I give you an A for effort but I’m not sure you’re totally right. At least, not where Rathe is concerned.”

“And why do you think that?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. He doesn’t seem like the type of guy to care about a game changer, as you called me.”

“None of them give a damn about a game changer until they meet her. That’s why it throws their world off for a while. They never see it coming until it’s there,” Evanna says it with a matter of fact attitude.

I nod my head. “If you say so.”

“I don’t have to say so. I know so. Anyways, things will work out however they are meant to with you and Rathe so for now don’t worry about that. Just have fun and enjoy all these awesome opportunities. This is like a chance of a lifetime that you are being given so enjoy it.” Evanna gives me the most encouraging smile.

I know she’s right. I just always have this dumb little voice in the back of my head telling me I’m not good enough. I know it’s technically wrong but it’s still there and sometimes it wins. Sometimes, I really do feel like I’m not good enough. If I told Evanna she’d say it’s a side effect of being in the system. Of our parents neglect and abandonment that left us feeling like we don’t belong or that we aren’t good enough because they left us. Instead of telling her, I nod my head and agree. “You’re right. I’ll just try to enjoy it.”

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