Chapter Ten
Frustration didn’t begin to describe Harley’s mood when he parked the Jeep he’d fixed over the weekend in a small side lot next to Valentina Nolan’s law office. He’d been slightly nervous about this meeting, but the morning with Elle had wiped out all worry. He liked his life straightforward, and he preferred to deal with issues as they arose rather than stew about things. If he had any residual baggage from Aston’s death it was that life was far too short to spend it in a state of turmoil for any longer than absolutely necessary.
Elle might not know it, but she definitely had him in a state of turmoil, and he didn’t like it a bit. He’d started his own business so he could make the rules. After this meeting he was damn well going to make one.
The Nolan office was pretty standard for an older downtown building—vintage wood floors and built-ins filled with awards and citations. The color scheme was neutral except for a few red accents. The logo behind a receptionist’s desk was the outline of a red heart with scrollwork edges that were fairly classy and not off-putting even to a man. In black letters across the center of the heart the company names in two lines read “Valentina Nolan Enterprises. Nolan & Nolan Law Offices PC.”
“Good afternoon, Mr. Holt,” the receptionist said, before Harley could introduce himself. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
He’d never met the woman in his life.
“Thank you. Good to meet you, too…?”
“Dana. And Ms. Mitchell. I’m so glad you could make it. Valentina is waiting for you. Let me tell her you’re here.”
He caught a skeptical eye roll from Elle and lifted his shoulders the tiniest bit to show he agreed. The greeting was designed to be over the top and flattering. What he didn’t know yet was why.
A moment later Valentina appeared from down a short hallway. Dressed in a print flowered blouse and a dark blue skirt, with a big old necklace thing of oversized flowers she looked less like a lawyer than a dinner hostess happy to greet early-arriving guests.
“Harley! Elle! Thank you sooo much for changing your schedules. I got called to a deposition at two o’clock so I knew one would be shortchanging our time together. Come back. Can we get you anything to drink? Coffee? Water? I have sodas as well.”
“Thanks, we just ate, actually. Unless Elle wants something?”
She shook her head, taking in the watercolors in the hallway. He studied them as well, all paintings of flowers, all generically pretty he guessed. They weren’t his taste. Then Valentina led them into a conference room, and surprise got the better of him. The walls were covered with photos of stock cars—at least ten around the room. Some he recognized as iconic—Earnhardt’s black and red number three car, Gordon’s number twenty-four. Others were simply action shots. One was a photo of Johnnie Markham standing beside a teal and hot pink monstrosity bearing the number seventeen.
“I see you’re surprised,” Valentina said, closing the door behind her.
“I didn’t know you were this big a racing fan,” Harley said. “It’s impressive. You know I’m a fan.”
“Good! I’ll be honest. I’ve always been fascinated with auto racing because my father loved it. But until recently I haven’t had the time to put into the legacy he wanted. It was his dream to form a racing team and grow it into a top level business. He left a sizeable amount of money for that very purpose when he passed away ten years ago.”
“That’s a pretty unusual request,” Elle said. “Racing is a very extremely complicated sport. I’m impressed that you’re taking it on.”
Valentina nodded, pleasure beaming from her face. “Well, thank you. It was very unusual. And a surprise. But Father did leave some instructions. And although I haven’t done much until recently, I have spent a lot of time researching and spending time with other team owners. So. Let me come right to the point. I’m ready to start putting my own team together. And, Harley, I’d like you to be part of it.”
The breath he let out did not hide a single molecule of his astonishment. He’d come hoping to convince the woman to help sponsor his driving. This offer could mean so much more.
“I…I’m honored. I had no idea.”
“And I know you’ve been looking for sponsorships—not because I’ve been snooping, but because the word is out in the racing world. It’s not bad. People like you. But money is hard to come by.”
“That is a slight understatement.” The first stirrings of excitement bubbled in his chest.
“Could I ask in what capacity you want him involved?” Elle spoke, bringing a slight sting of reality back into the room. “He’s a talented guy and could do just about any job I’d guess. But he’s my new boss, too. To be honest, I don’t want to lose him before I get a chance at this job.”
He had to admit she made an important point. And she did it with firmness but also friendly interest. Her job aside—which he didn’t want her lose either—he wasn’t interested in giving up his business or handing over its reins.
“Oh there’s no worry of that, my dear. I need an experienced driver. At least, one who’s more experienced than Johnnie. Someone willing to show him the ropes and bring him along. But this is a brand new venture. We would be starting very small. And that’s why I wanted you to be here, too, Elle. I’m impressed with the idea of having a woman on the team. You’ll bring interest, you’ll be a role model, and you have a direct but friendly manner that I think would be very valuable.”
It was exactly what Harley had been thinking.
What amazed him more was that Valentina had, apparently, been bewitched by Elle as quickly as he’d been. He’d been convincing himself all morning that his attraction to her was based on something special, not just the hormones of a guy who’d been too self-absorbed to date much in the past year. Elle had a way about her that cut through BS and made you like her.
“I guess it sounds like we need some details,” he said, and turned to Elle. “Don’t you think?”
“Absolutely.”
The offer was generous but not without strings. Valentina had three drivers, assuming Harley came on board. One was a junior driver with a lot of promise. The second was Johnnie, and it was clear he was Valentina’s pet project. Finally, although Harley reminded her that he was no veteran stock car driver, she pointed out his three year record and his experience before that.
“You have faced the pressure and the fear. You’ve proven that you aren’t going to fold. I want to start with a young stable, and you’re both young and tested. It’s a unique combination.”
He had to admit, she knew how to feed an ego.
The catch was, she had her own head mechanic who was happy to work with Harley’s staff, but his would be the final word. Harley had never heard of him. She also had her branding established, and she pointed out the picture of the pink and teal car.
Out of the corner of his eye he caught Elle putting a hand over her mouth. She quickly covered the motion by pinching her lip thoughtfully and passing off her opinion of the color scheme as contemplation.
“I think it’s bold,” she said. “Certainly will stand out. But I know Harley has a very personal stake in the colors he’s chosen.”
He looked at her in surprise. While he had no desire to paint his Monte Carlo to look like an ice cream cone, he also didn’t want to be contrary right off the bat. This was looking like money he’d never have found on his own, and he could negotiate a lot of things. Still, to have Elle standing up for his interests was pretty damn fine.
Valentina waved her hand carelessly. “There would be many details to discuss. The main thing is, your car’s maintenance and repairs, your fees, your work, would be paid for, and I’d be the proud sponsor. It could be lucrative for both of us in the long run. Elle, I would want you to be the team spokesperson. You would be the figurehead for the crew. I think we could use your looks and your talent to Harley’s advantage. And yours.”
This time he watched Elle think carefully before speaking. “Valentina, I am honored that you’re willing to put so much trust in someone you don’t know at all. Even Harley and I don’t know each other that well yet, so this is pretty big stuff.”
“It is, and I don’t expect an answer this minute. I’m giving you a lot to think about.”
“Yes, ma’am. But the thing I want to say is, your first impression of me might not be entirely correct. I am not willing to be the lovely assistant. I’m happy to represent whatever Harley does or decides, but I’m a serious car chick and I’m very good at what I do. I’ll take the time to prove that, but I won’t be fluff.”
Valentina actually clapped her hands together and stared directly into Harley’s eyes with a delighted grin. “Did you hear her? Do you see why I was exactly right about this? Elle, my darling girl, you are exactly the way I want you to be. I have no doubt you could give me precisely the profile I’m hoping for in this endeavor.”
“She’s proving to be someone unique, that’s for sure.”
Harley couldn’t come up with anything more intelligent than that without sounding infatuated. The fact that he was, absolutely, infatuated with Elle Mitchell made playing everything cool that much harder.
“So, that’s my offer. Here’s a sample contract—we’d spell everything out in more detail if this is something you’re interested in taking on. You’ll see dollar amounts. Those, too, are somewhat negotiable, but I do have finite funds, so we can’t be unreasonable.”
“Very few people can afford to be…extravagant,” Elle said. “I understand.”
Harley took his first look at the financial offer and sat back in the chair. It was fair but generous. He’d be able to do everything that needed to be done to the Monte Carlo to get it ready. Perhaps even for a brand new race in six weeks?
“If I were to decide to do this, can you have us up and ready by the Sapphire Falls festival week?”
“I could.” She nodded slowly. “I know a little about that as well. You have a venue, but it’s not insured, and it needs some minor repairs to make it minimally safe. You need to raise about ten thousand dollars, is that about right?”
“Right. I’m up to around half.”
“I can contribute some, a thousand I’d say, but I don’t have the resources to cover the whole thing. I don’t want to anyway. I don’t plan on making a home base—I want to concentrate on the racing. I hope that makes sense. So, if you can raise the money, say four thousand more, then we’ll debut you and Nolan Racing mid-June at the festival. If not, there are several other choices in early July.”
Harley found himself choking up, because he suddenly understood he’d never truly held out hope of succeeding in his plan to get the race set up. The money simply wasn’t flowing in as he’d hoped. Now, all at once, there was hope. It was faint, but he could see it happening. He cleared his throat and steadied his voice.
“My brother passed away on June eleventh five years ago. That would be my target date for the race.”
“It’s not much time,” Valentina said. “If it was to happen we’d need to get promotions running for it almost immediately.”
He nodded and started slightly when a soft touch landed on his arm. He looked into Elle’s shining eyes. “Let’s talk about this for a day or so,” she said softly. “It’s a very big decision.”
“That has to be the plan,” he agreed. “Can we take a couple of days, Valentina?”
“I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
She stood. He and Elle followed her lead. She took each of their hands in turn, and her clasp was firm and supremely confident. She was formidable. Harley decided he’d just as soon never sit opposite her side in court.
Nobody prolonged the good-byes. Valentina simply reiterated her excitement and hope that they’d call soon with good news. Then she returned to her office with a wave.
Elle followed Harley out the door in silence. He couldn’t read her features or her body language. She looked neither excited nor unhappy. aybe it was the first time he’d seen her shell-shocked. Not that he could blame her. The world looked almost like a different place—slightly skewed, a little pink and teal.
They climbed into the Jeep and he turned on the air, but he didn’t move out of park. His legs, arms, torso—everything felt weighted and hot. His heart pounded chaotically until he managed a couple of calming breaths. Then excitement filtered back in, and a rush of adrenaline set his pulse skittering again. Finally he turned to Elle.
“I don’t even know what to say. I came to beg her for partial sponsorship. I’ve been trying to reach her for weeks after hearing that she’d been showing an interest in racing. I had no idea how deep that interest went. This is like a dream come true.”
“Are you sure?”
Elle wasn’t smiling.
“You aren’t?”
“No, I’m not. How can I be? All we have is her word that she has money. Her interest in getting this going now seems wildly spur-of-the-moment. She’s asking you to give up almost all control. I think you have a lot of questions to form and ask.”
“Okay—I concede that absolutely. But given that, what do you think?”
He wasn’t prepared for the answer she gave.
“I think you should say no.”