Page 102 of A Follow-Through in Faking
Valentina wastes no time driving onto the track. Or more accurately, flying across it. I barely hold back my amazed screams as she drifts into the corner. Adrenaline and fear go through me in tidal waves, but I welcome the odd sensation. The F1 champion beside me even starts talking to me to distract me, and we end up having an easy, genuine conversation about our careers.
“You know, I may drive three hundred-something kilometers on the track, but you actually serve… about a hundred and seventy kilometers on average?” she asks, and I smile as awe settles in my chest because she’s right. The speed of my serve is fucking impressive when comparing it to the speed of a sports car.
“Yeah, that’s my average. My fastest ever was two hundred and twenty,” I reply, grinning when she lets out a whistle.
By the time everything is done and I get out of the car, happiness has consumed every part of me. I run straight toward Santi, without whom this would have never happened, and I kiss him deeply, fully, until I’m sure I’ve shown my gratitude through my kiss.
Then I add, “Thank you so much for the best birthday present ever.” He kisses me again, lingering longer than I did.
“The best for now. I’ll outdo myself next year, and then the year after, and then the year after,” he promises, pressing his forehead to mine.
“A lifetime full of you outdoing yourself every year sounds perfect to me.”
“A lifetime with you by my side sounds perfect for me,” he adds, and I melt fully against his body as he presses his mouth back onto mine and wraps his arms around me.
“I love you,mi corazón.”
“I love you,mi mariquita.”
The End
