Page 73 of Fighting For Light
I think about our little post-wedding dinner and the calm that blanketed our family. Cordelia is not just a light in my darkness, but she is a new beginning. She carries a new generation of the Coldwells that will have nothing but good attached to it.
***
Cordelia is standing off to the side of the track with her camera in her hands. It’s mid-afternoon, and the race is about to start. We got our pep talk from coach, which consisted of cussing us out anddon’t mess it up. Good talk, coach.
She lifts the camera to her eye and points it at me. I lift my helmet and smile wide at her while making the hang ten sign. She lowers the camera to give the signal back. She’s wearing a cowboy hat, baggy jeans, and a form-fitting tank top highlighting her belly. I love this look on her and really like that hat. Maybeshe would keep it on later. I pull my helmet back down and fix my goggles.Head in the game, dumbass. Quit looking at your beautiful wife.
The organizers call for us to line up, and we all slowly head to our place in front of the gates. Despite my best effort not to, I look up at her again. I get my fill, then force my eyes away, tracking my line. The countdown starts, and the gates drop. The rest of the world disappears.
Thirty minutes later, I pull in first, throwing dirt. My teammates roll in after me. We just solidified our first-place standing, putting us at least six points ahead of any other team. It would be hard to beat unless three out of four of us wipe out. I’m confident about how we will perform tomorrow with freestyle.
I glance up at Cordi, but she’s not standing there anymore. I turn to find her slowly making her way to me. Her kisses after a race are becoming one of my favorite things about racing. I used to look forward to cutting up with the boys or hanging out with Cordi simply because I enjoyed spending time with her. Now, as my wife, throw in the adrenaline coursing through my veins, I just want to pick her up and take her to bed.
Throwing my leg over my bike, I lean my butt against it and wait for her to close the distance between us. The guys are talking and high-fiving, but all I see is her. Coach pats my back, and Cordi takes a step between my spread legs, unhooks my strap underneath my chin, and pulls my helmet off before crashing her lips to mine. With one hand on her stomach and the other on her butt, I pull her tighter between my legs. Her other hand holds the side of my face, and she thrusts her tongue against mine, making me groan before she rips her mouth away.
Deacon whistles and says, “Hey, Cordelia. Want to come give me some that lovin’?” he asks, patting his cheek. I get up topunch him in the face, but Cordi’s grip on me is too tight to move further.
So I stare at him with a deadly look. “Refer to my wife like that again, and you will regret having a tongue.”
He pales a bit and shuts his mouth, holding up his hands. “No disrespect, man.” He drops his hands and puts one on his chest. “I’m sorry, Cordelia. It was just a joke.”
She rolls her eyes. “It’s fine, but you’re a dumbass, Deacon.” He shrugs and chuckles. Cordi returns her focus to me and kisses me gently. “You did good, daredevil. I’m proud of you,” she whispers across my lips. Her praise shoots through me like a bolt of lightning. No one has ever said that to me. It’s one thing to hear Mom saying she’s proud of me for the man I’ve become. It is something entirely different to hear my wife say those words. I really feel like Superman now.
35
Kai
After our talk theother night, I feel like a new man. To have Cordi tell me how proud of me she is felt damn good, and I’mreadyfor freestyle. I swear I’m about to grow wings and actually fly away.
“How are you feeling, babe?” Cordi asks me, preparing her camera for freestyle with a different lens.
“Great, I feel really good,” I admit, and she smiles brightly, lifting her camera to snap a picture. “You don’t usually grab pictures this close.”
She shrugs. “I’m trying new things.” I nod and kiss her cheek, slapping her butt as she turns. She winks and walks to the stands to where Mom is.
Mom seemed fine coming in today. She didn’t seem nervous or overtly concerned about anything, which made me feel a little better. If we keep her moving between my brothers and me, then she will be harder to track down. She might go to Bali with Liam for the hell of it. At the very least, it will keep my father guessing.
It’s my turn, and I take my last look at Cordelia, thinking about what we’re going to do after I’m done. My blood buzzes with adrenaline, and I smile to myself.
I glance at Mom next to Cordelia and see a man in the row behind them. He has a baseball hat on, but he’s not looking around like every other spectator. Mom’s bodyguard clearly hasn’t spotted him because he’s dressed like a fan.Idiot.The man behind them is staring at my wife and mother. I glance at my jumps, suddenly feeling pulled in two different directions. Even if I dropped my bike now and sprinted up there, leaping over the six-foot pit wall, there’s no way I’d reach him in time before he took off. Clarence is huge, which is great from an attacking standpoint but not for chasing. The organization makes every spectator go through metal detectors, so I doubt he has a gun. But I suppose he could have gotten through with a knife. Although hands can be weapons, too.
In other words, I have to hedge my bets that he’s here to mess with our heads instead of hurt either of them. I’m called up next and take a deep breath, willing the icy sliver of fear wrapping itself around my spine to thaw. I have a job to do right now, and that’s not die.
I finish my lastone-handed hart attackand kick up dirt over to where Mom and Cordi are leaving the stands. The man is gone. I stop near them and yell, “Meet me at the garage.” Cordi looks at me funny and nods. Clarence smartly seems to realize that something is off, so he stays close to them as they head back to our team area.
Flipping my kickstand, I pull my helmet off and start packing up immediately. I need to get them out of here now. When Mom and Cordi saunter over to me, Mom’s face is her usual, serene expression, meaning you have no idea what she’s thinking. I nod at Clarence, and he turns to watch the surrounding area.
“We need to get back to the trailer. Now,” I mutter to Mom as calmly as I can.
She catches on that there’s a problem and grabs the few things I had waiting by my bike.
After we get back to the trailer, I hustle them in and leave Clarence standing outside.
“I’ll be right back. I need to make a phone call.”
Cordi opens her mouth as if to say something, but Mom grabs her hand. “We’ll be here,” Mom says. Cordi shuts her mouth, and I close the door behind me. Clarence nods to me, and I grab my phone from my locked toolbox to dial Emerson while looking around the perimeter of the campers. Everything seems quiet and normal.
“Em, someone was here watching Mom and Cordi. He’s at least five-ten, brown hair, and fit.”
