WHAT. IN. THE. HELL. JUST. Happened?
My heart was racing as I tried to keep my breathing under control. Glancing up, I saw her again. This time some asshole had his hand on her, leading her away. When she lifted her hand to wave goodbye, my heart felt like it jumped to my throat.
“Dude, are you okay?”
Turning my attention to Dalton, I brushed the feelings away. I was probably just tired and it had been too long since I’d actually had sex.
“Yeah, Deuce and I ran into someone and . . . you know what. Never mind,” I said, waving my hand to dismiss the conversation.
“How’s the car looking?” I asked.
Dalton went into his normal spiel about how the car was and how he thought it would run. I watched him intently as he talked, but I didn’t hear a damn word he said. My mind was thinking of a beautiful¸ dark-haired beauty with flawless skin, sensual lips, and emerald eyes. Damn, her smile about knocked me off my feet.
Deuce whined at my feet and I was wondering if he was missing her as well. The way her energy rushed through my body when I held her. I hadn’t experienced anything like that before with anyone else since Casey.
My heart ached as I focused on the race and not Paislie.
Paislie. What a beautiful name. It suited her.
“Malcolm? Did you even hear what I just said?”
My eyes snapped up as I gave him a nod. “Sure I did, just trying to get in the right frame of mind.”
His eyes narrowed as he looked at me. “You okay, dude? You seem like you’re preoccupied with something.”
Paislie. Her soft lips . . . a voice like an angel . . . and she fucking loves dogs. Lucky ass, Deuce, getting to lick her.
“Nope. I’m fine.”
Dalton slapped me on the shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Good. You know what you need?”
Lifting my brow, I asked, “What’s that?”
“A good lay. When was the last time you were with anyone?”
“Too long.”
Ashley popped into my head as I pulled my phone out and said, “I’m taking Deuce back to the bus.”
“All right. Try going for a quick run. You’ve got to burn some energy.”
With a wave of my hand, I started off toward my bus as I sent Ashley a text.
Me: How’s it going?
It didn’t take her long to reply.
Ashley: Good. You?
Me: Wondering if you’re missing me yet.
Ashley: Awe. That’s sweet. I am.
I wanted more than anything to tell her I wanted her . . . but I knew she was trying to move on and start a relationship with someone, and for some ungodly known reason I couldn’t stop thinking about Paislie. I was using Ashley as a means to distract my thoughts.
Me: Miss you too, Ashley. How is the new relationship going?
Ashley: It’s going good. Are you okay?
I clenched my jaw while I picked up my pace. I was happy for Ashley. I honestly was. At the same time I was jealous as hell that some fucker was getting her all to himself.
Me: Doing great. About to get focused. Was thinking about you.
Ashley: Good luck today, Malcolm.
Me: Thanks, Ash. Talk to you later.
I needed to clear my head. As I approached my bus, I saw a few girls hanging out talking to Tom, the rookie who took over Emmit’s spot.
He glanced up and smiled as he motioned to the blonde with his head. “Malcolm, you’ve got a die-hard fan here who’s been wanting to meet you.”
With a smile, I walked up while she looked down at Deuce. “Oh my goodness! He’s adorable.” When she looked back up at me from a squatting position, she licked her lips.
“Why don’t you come in and get to know him better,” I said with a wink.
Her eyes lit up as Tom chuckled.
Five minutes later my jeans were down and she was sucking me off. My hands grabbed her head as I fucked her mouth, trying like hell to forget those green eyes haunting my every thought.
Russ spoke in my ears as I came into my pit box. “Five, four, three, two, one.”
“Four tires and fuel. Make that track bar adjustment, go!” Dalton called out.
“Clear,” Russ said.
“Go. Go. Go,” Dalton said as I took off back onto the track. I was sitting in third place and my car was finally driving right.
“Where is Tom?” I asked.
“Running in tenth,” Russ said.
I spent the next ten laps focusing on one thing. Winning.
“Bumper. Door. Door. Bumper. Clear!”
Passing the number eleven car pushed me into first place with six laps to go. I fucking loved this feeling. The feel of the car flying around the track, the power of controlling it was an adrenaline rush for sure.
“So, if I win . . . we’re jumping, right?” I asked Dalton.
“Drive!” he replied with as I smiled.
Lap traffic was coming up as Russ guided me right along.
“Where is he?” I asked.
Russ came over the headphones. “Dropping back now at three car lengths back.”
“Come on, baby . . . don’t let me down,” I said as I drove the fuck out of my car.
“Three to go.”
My heart was racing as fast as my car as I thought about Paislie. She’d had a VIP pass and I prayed like hell I’d see her in victory lane. I also wanted to find out who the asshole was she was with. For some odd reason, guilt washed over me as I thought about the girl I let give me head before the race.
“Fucking hell,” I whispered, trying to refocus. I had never let this kind of shit in when I raced. Never.
“White flag. One to go, Malcolm. Take it easy around the lap traffic. You’ve got this . . . plenty of room between you and the eleven car.”
“Come on,” I whispered as I held onto the steering wheel and took my last turn.
The moment I saw the checkered flag flying, I let out a holler. “Woo! We did it, boys!”
“Number two!” Dalton yelled out.
Pulling up to the finish line, I took the checkered flag and drove around the track. This feeling was unlike anything. Best damn feeling in the world.
“Coming in,” I said as I brought the car up. Seeing my pit crew caused me to smile even bigger. These guys were like family. Slipping out of everything, I crawled out of the car and stood on the window.
“Yeah!” I shouted out as I got drenched in champagne. After being congratulated by the crew and Dalton, the media jumped in and started with all the interviews. I fucking loved it.
My heart was still pumping hard as we did all the press photos. I felt a slap on my back as I turned to see Mr. Elliot standing there. “Malcolm, I’d like to introduce you to Trey Rogers, he’s a running back for the Dallas Cowboys and a huge fan of NASCAR. He’d love to meet you.”
Ugh. I’d heard about this guy. He had a reputation for wanting drivers to take him out for runs. The guy was known as being a class-ass prick.
With a smile on my face, I turned and followed my boss. I froze in place when we walked up to a small group of VIP’s. Those beautiful emerald eyes were all I could see.
“Paislie,” I said a little too enthusiastically.
Her eyes lit up as she flashed me a huge grin. “Congratulations, Malcolm.”
“Do you two know each other?” the oversized guy standing there asked. Not wanting to pull my eyes off Paislie, I smiled and said, “We’re acquaintances.”
Mr. Elliot cleared his throat and said, “Malcolm, this is Trey Rogers.”
Moving my focus onto Trey, I reached my hand out and shook it.
“Running back for the Cowboys?”
His chest practically puffed out as he said, “That’s right.”
“Man, I like the Cowboys, but I’m more of Texans fan, though,” I said with a laugh and slap on his arm.
The guy looked tense and a little pissed off. I couldn’t decide if it was because my immediate attention was on Paislie, or the fact that I basically just told him his football team sucked.
“Great race, dude. My girl here had her money on you.”
Snapping my eyes back over to Paislie, I couldn’t help but notice the look she gave Trey. Either they weren’t serious enough for him to be claiming her, or she was pissed about something else. I couldn’t help the damn smile that spread over my face.
I bet this girl was pure spit and fire.
“You rooted for me, huh?”
Her gaze turned to me. “I did. It was fun watching you fight for first place.”
With a quick scan of her body, I smirked. “I usually get what I want. One way or another.”
Her lips parted as her eyes drifted to mine. I wondered if her attraction to me was as strong as mine was to her? With the way she was eye fucking me right now I’d say the answer was yes.
Mr. Elliot cleared his throat as he filled in the dead air space. “So, Ms.?”
“Paislie Pruitt,” she replied with a polite smile.
“So, Paislie, do you work for the Cowboys as well? Is that how you met Trey?” Mr. Elliot asked.
Paislie about let out a roar of laughter. “Oh no! No sir, I don’t work for the Cowboys. I work as a physical therapist in the Dallas area.”
I lifted my eyes. “Really? Physical therapist?” And she lived in Dallas. Fucking hell yes. This was my lucky day.
With a nod, she replied, “Yep.”
Trey was getting a bit upset the attention was not on him. “I thought there for a bit you weren’t going to be able to pull off a win. You pulled through at the end, though. Of course I’m sure it’s because the number seven’s tire blew.”
I slowly looked back at Trey.
Fucker. “That might have had something to do with it. I’d like to think it was my driving skills and the flawless car we had.”
Trey stared me down for a good thirty seconds. “Oh, of course. Yeah.”
Dalton walked over and bumped my arm. “Not to be rude, but it’s time for the press conference.”
I gave him a quick head nod before turning back to Trey. Reaching my hand out, I said, “It was a pleasure meeting you. We’ll make sure you’re taken care of in April when we hit Texas Motor Speedway.”
“Yeah, same here. I’ll be sure to hook you up with some tickets to a game, even if you are a Texans’ fan.”
I forced a smile as I shook his hand again. Before leaving, I reached for Paislie’s hand. When her hand landed in mine, I was pretty sure we both felt the energy from that touch. Her mouth dropped open as she inhaled a quick breath. The feeling zipping through my body was a rush I’d never experienced before.
“Paislie, it was nice bumping into you.”
She fought to hold back her laugh as she smiled the most brilliant smile I’d ever seen. It was then I noticed she had a dimple in her left cheek and one on her chin.
Fuck, that is cute as hell. Why was a girl like Paislie with a douche like Trey? It made no sense at all.
“It most certainly was. Congratulations again on your win.”
With wink, I replied, “Thank you.”
I followed Dalton toward the press house and took a chance at glancing over my shoulder. Trey was busy talking to Mr. Elliot, but Paislie was watching me walk off.
When she lifted her hand to wave goodbye, I lifted mine before turning back and looking straight ahead.
Why did it feel like I was fighting for oxygen to breathe?
One more look over my shoulder showed Paislie still watching me. My chest tightened and I wasn’t sure how I should be feeling.
“You okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
I ran my hand through my hair and tried to understand why, for the first time in years, the smile of one girl made my heart about jump out of my chest.
“I’m fine. Just tired,” I mumbled.
Pulling my phone out, I texted myself a message.
Me: Paislie Pruitt—Dallas PT
Shoving the phone into my back pocket, I turned to Dalton. “There isn’t anyone in my bus is there?”
Dalton frowned. “Yeah. A hot little number Tom said you had fun with earlier. You know I don’t care what happens after the race, just not before it Malcolm. I need you to stay focused.”
Before walking up to start the interview, I hit his chest and said, “It was a moment of weakness . . . I know your rule. Get rid of her, would you? I’m tired and just want to pull out after this.”
Dalton pulled his head back in surprise. “Um . . . okay. You sure?”
With a pat on his shoulder, I grinned and said, “I’ve never been more sure.”