Page 18 of Rush
‘No, this isn’t good enough. You’re not just meant to beprotecting me, Sloan. You’re protecting my girl, too. I need to know that we’re safe.’
‘The guys are out scanning the perimeter now, and we’ve got a second team in.’ There was nothing Sloan could say to defend himself and Jesse was getting more anxious by the minute, pacing back and forth.
‘Did he have a camera, or was he just being a creep?’ Savi questioned him with a far gentler, less snappy approach. Maybe he should come and work for her instead.
‘We didn’t get a chance to see.’
‘Great. I need to go and call my PR team so they can be prepared.’ Jesse all but shooed Sloan back out of the cabin and reached for his phone. ‘Sav, I suggest you speak to your team.’
Offering her apologies to Jesse’s no doubt soon-to-be-fired security guard as his boss stormed off into his office, Savi sat on the sofa and debated whether to make the call.
It seemed silly, telling her bosses that she was dating someone high profile and it might hit the headlines. It almost felt like she was bragging, making herself sound like she was as big a deal as him. Would Jasper understand? Would he reassure her or would he scold her for not being upfront when she signed her contract? Maybe it was better to keep quiet for now, let Jesse’s team take care of damage control.
‘Baby…’ Jesse stood in the doorway, white as a ghost.
‘What’s wrong?’ She shot up.
He held his phone out to her, and she felt sick to her stomach. There on his screen was an article.Jesse Montalvo and Mystery Woman Snapped During a Wild Night of Passion.There were multiple shots of the two of them in a compromising position from the night before, lights on, curtains open. That man must have caught them through the window, and they were so wrapped up in the moment that they hadn’t noticed. The only saving grace? Her face was buried in the covers.
8
Savi had never been so glad to be back at the racetrack. After two weeks cooped up at the cabin, avoiding being seen in public and walking around with the curtains closed like she was a hostage, Monza felt like her safe haven.
‘Savannah.’ Marco appeared next to her at the coffee cart, his curls dishevelled. Savi knew he had a girl here with him this weekend, but could he not control his newfound urges?
‘De Luca.’ Savi grabbed three cubes of sugar and dropped them in her deliciously strong pool of liquid. The caffeine hit was needed after the long flight from Tennessee.
‘Good couple of weeks off?’ He nudged her arm in an overly friendly manner. It was just as well the IEC race season was spread out with longish breaks between races, because he was all up in her personal space and she could only handle him in small doses.
‘Yep. You?’ She started walking and he trailed behind her.
‘Wonderful.’
‘Which port was your favourite? Saint Lucia, Dubrovnik?’
‘Hmm, Saint Lucia. Great company. So, which position was yours and Jesse Montalvo’s favourite?’ he challenged.
Savi stopped in her tracks, almost spilling her coffeewhen he bumped into her. ‘How the hell do you know about that?’ she whispered.
‘You told me the morning of your flight that you were going to Tennessee… Then all of a sudden, photos have gone viral of Jesse Montalvo with a girl with hair just like yours,’he twirled a strand round his fingers, ‘in the Tennessee mountains.’
‘Shit…’ Her face got hot.
‘But also, I know you have a tattoo of a horseshoe on your ankle. I saw it at Julien’s party when you jumped in the pool. It was visible in the photos… after I zoomed in which yes, is weird, sorry. Curiosity got the better of me, but it confirmed my theory. You’ve been sleeping with him!’
She kept that tattoo hidden because she’d got it done underage and it was awful and faded. She should’ve known someone would notice it at some point. She was surprised people weren’t roasting her for it on social media, commenting on how bad it was.
‘You can’t tell anyone it was me, Marco. Please. I will do anything.’
‘Anything? Like being my own personal assistant for the season?’ He gave her a cheeky grin and if she didn’t know better, she’d think he was being serious. ‘I’m kidding, I’ve got one of those already. Your secret is safe with me. But seriously, you’re dating a country music superstar? How did that come about?’
‘It’s not a new thing, we’ve been dating four years. Ever since we met at a county fair back home.’
‘That is the most hillbilly thing I’ve ever heard.’
‘Shut up.’ Savi kept walking, desperate to get away from him.
‘That’s no way to talk to someone who knows what you did in the mountains.’
