Page 29 of Hot Lap
"Don't you 'hello' me, Maiken Violet Lange!” Her dark blue eyes are wide and burning with the flames of maternal outrage. ”What the actual fuck? Reporters were crawling up my ass when I got home, asking me about your 'whirlwind romance' with some race car driver!" She wields air quotes like weapons.
Fuck-fuckity-fuck. “They were told to get off the property.”
“Well, Tanya made that abundantly clear when she called the cops on the assholes. Now, answer my question. What the shit is going on?”
"It's complicated." I glance up at the ceiling, then stare. Floored. I’mflooredby the unbelievable ceiling.
"Complicated? Obviously!”
The ceiling is a dome lit from within, like the inside of a shell. Pale gold curves meet in delicate inlaid patterns, glowing with a soft, impossible light. Not a chandelier, not a fixture. The whole thingglows, moonlight trapped in plaster. It’s quiet, but not silent. I swear I can hear the hum of money in the walls.
“Maiken? Did the video freeze?”
“Hmm? Oh. No, sorry.” Her voice snaps me back to my insane situation. “So, yeah, complicated.”
“Christ, Mai, you've known this guy for, like, five minutes!"
"It was a drunken decision, okay? Now I'm in freaking Qatar trying to figure out what to do about it."
“Cutter? Where the fuck is Cutter?”
“Not Cutter. Qatar, as in the Middle East.”
“What?”
“Yeah. For the Qatar Grand Prix.” God, I’m so fucking exhausted. And screwed.
“Oh.” Mom's face softens slightly. "Baby, are you okay? Really?"
"I don't know. It's been a weird day." I hold up my hand to show her the ring.
"Holyshit. That's not a rock, it’s a boulder." Her eyes widen. "Wait, is the wall gold? Where the hell are you staying?"
"Some five-star hotel. I have my own room."
"Your own… You're not staying with him?"
"He's next door. He has a race to prepare for."
Frankie studies me through the screen. "Okay. I want the whole story and the fucking truth, Mai. How did this happen, and how do you really feel about… Cripes.What’s his name?"
I laugh because the alternative is to cry and no fucking way I’m gonna cry over him and this.
“Reece Pritchard.” I take a long, deep breath. "I barely know him, so I don’t know how I feel about him. But. Last night was the best night ever. He was — is — totally different from any man I’ve ever met. He’s sweet and funny. Like, he was interested inmeand what I think about things. I mean, he seemed genuine, and we had an amazing time, but… I was really shit-faced."
“You slept with him?”
“No, actually. We slept in the same room, but we didn’t fuck. We didn’t even make out.”
Frankie’s face screws up. “What’s wrong with him?”
I laugh. “He’s a gentleman, I guess?”
Mom’s eyes go wide. “I didn’t think those still existed. The last asshole you fell for sure as hell wasn’t one.”
I sigh. "Yeah, well, then Reece’s father burst into the room this morning, called me a whore, and everything went to hell."
"His father didwhat? I don’tthinkso. What’s that piece of shit’s name? I’m gonna cut off his dick. No one talks to my baby like that."
