Page 69 of Hyperspeed
“It’s fucking brilliant, you asshole!” My yell cut through the ambient noise, loud enough that a few heads turned our way.
I didn’t care, though, because Rev had his dark eyes fixed on mine.
“What?”
“It’s brilliant,” I said, softer this time. “I’m impressed.”
“You’re . . . impressed?”
“You don’t have to sound so surprised,” I teased, repeating his words back to him.
His mouth opened, then closed, then opened, and then closed again. Maybe I’d broken him. Either that, or he was doing a wonderful impression of a fish.
“You know,” I drawled, trying to get us back to normal—or at least somewhere on the spectrum. “I said I enjoyed seeing you speechless, but I didn’t think it’d happen without a single innuendo involved.”
He made a strangled noise, somewhere between a scoff and a cough. “Al helped with the frame and the paint,” he squeaked. Before tacking on quickly, “Not that I need your approval or anything.”
Al looked between Rev and me with an amused smile, eyebrows up to his hairline. “You racing as well, Kai? Slumming it with the petrol heads?”
He was teasing me, but the idea that I was “slumming it” made me uncomfortable. It only took one glance at the vehicles here to see the hard work and passion that each driver put in.
The ASL had the money, the skill, and the tech to build vehicles that were fast as fuck, but I couldn’t tell you who’d built mine. I couldn’t imagine how it felt to create your dream vehicle from scratch—no rules, no red tape, just adding whatever parts you could get your hands on, strategy be damned.
That’s why I was so dazzled by Rev’s creation. Even if Al had helped, that didn’t make it any less impressive. I wasn’t such a shithead that I couldn’t appreciate actual skill. Rev had been hanging around Al since he was eleven. He was twenty-four now, which meant he’d had plenty of time to hone his craft. If I tried to build something like that, it’d fall apart before it even left the garage.
He was a skilful driver, and even when I’d disliked him, I couldn’t deny the fact. But what gave him an edge was that he didn’t just race the machine; he understood it to its core. And based on the telltale twitch in my jeans, I was getting a semi.
I couldn’t tell if it was Rev’s skill on the track, or the mental image of him in nothing but a tool belt, but something was setting me off.
“Nah,” I croaked in response to Al’s question. “I don’t have a vehicle.”
“Mercer wouldn’t last five seconds in the underground chaos.” Rev’s smile was sly. “He’s a big fan of rules and structure.”
“If I had a vehicle as cool as yours, I’d run rings around you, Revvy.”
“It’s dangerous out there, Mercer.Reckless.”
I scoffed. “I can be reckless.”
“Please.” Rev’s answering chuckle was dark and wicked. “You wouldn’t know reckless if it bit you on the ass, mister three-time galactic champ.”
“Why don’t you bite me, and we’ll see?” I grinned, narrowing my eyes. “On the ass this time, since you’ve mauled my lip already.”
“You’re such a child.” He glanced at Al to see if he’d heard, and based on the smile he was failing to stifle, he had.
“You can use my vehicle, Kai.”
We turned to Al in perfect sync.
“I’m not dressed for it.” I plucked at the collar of my white T-shirt. Based on what others were wearing, it seemed like a weak excuse, and of course, Rev homed in on it.
“What’s the matter, hotshot? Scared you won’t be able to ‘run rings’ around me like you promised?” He looked far too pleased with himself, and I couldn’t have that.
I lifted my chin in defiance, turning back to Al. “I hope you’ve got a smaller jumpsuit and helmet with you. If you hand me yours, I’ll disappear like a magic trick.”
He laughed and slapped me on the shoulder. “I’ve got a few in my shuttle. I’ll go grab ’em.”
Rev put a hand on Al’s enormous arm.
