Quarter Mile Hearts(73)
A quick look of surprise registers on his face but vanishes just as quickly
“Are you sure you want to go up against me on this one? You remember what happened to your Uncle Donnie…” I suck in a breath, shocked that he has gone there. How fucking dare he. “And your dad’s been injured. It’s not too late. My offer still stands.” Advancing on me slowly, I reach back and tighten my grip on the wrench that is sticking out of my back pocket.
“She’s not interested.” Max’s loud voice booms from behind Zach, and I crane around to see him standing there, arms folded across his chest. He walks over, and my body sags slightly with relief that he is back.
“Max.” Zach’s mouth curls up at the corner as he turns to face him. “You really shouldn’t leave her alone. Who knows what trouble she’ll get into?”
Max’s temper snaps when he marches over to get in Zach’s face. “Get the fuck out of here and keep away from her.” His voice is eerily calm, but the muscle in his jaw ticks as he tries to rein in his temper. Zach lets out a cold burst of laughter which echoes around the garage. Holding his hands up in a ‘keep calm’ gesture, he starts to back away with a wide smile on his face. This is all one big joke to him. I am going to wipe that smug fucking smile off his face when I beat him on the drag strip.
The hard look in his eyes makes my blood run cold. “See you Saturday, Leigh.” He winks at me before he turns and walks out the door. Max takes a step forward, but I grab his hand, stopping him in his tracks. We watch as he climbs into his Mitshibushi Evo and pulls out of the lot in a cloud of dust and squealing tires.
All the fight drains out of me and I feel even more weary now that the confrontation with Zach is over. Max holds out his arms, and I let him envelop me, drawing me into his solid chest and pressing his lips to the top of my head. Tremors work their way through my body making Max hold me tighter.
“Shh, he’s gone. I’m sorry I took so long.” His voice soothes me, but I grip him tighter anyway. “What did he mean about your uncle?” Of course, Max didn’t live in town then; he didn’t move here until much later, and I can’t imagine any reason why he would know about the accident. Pulling back to look at him, I inhale a deep shaky breath and push it out slowly, giving myself time to slow the hammering of my heart and gather my thoughts. This is not something I’ve had to talk about in a long time.
“My Uncle Donnie was a racer.” I pause and see realization steal across Max’s face as he starts to join some dots. “He was my dad’s best friend and my mom’s brother. They used to race at the quarter mile and then one night they went to a race a few towns over. Dad wasn’t racing but Uncle Donnie was, and so was Tom Anderson.” Max’s jaw tightens as his brain works out where this is going. “There was a ridiculously high bet, and on the last turn, Uncle Donnie crashed. He died on impact.”
“That’s why you won’t date racers,” he says more to himself, as if he now finally understands part of the reason why I was so reluctant to be with him.
I dip my head. “Yeah, my mom left not long after he died. It ripped my family apart; I didn’t want that for me. But… Then you happened.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Why would you; it was a long time ago.”
“And that’s what Zach meant when he was threatening you?”
“Yeah, I don’t know what he thinks he can do if we’re on the drag strip. Maybe he’s trying to rattle me.”
“He won’t get near you. I promise.” He draws me tighter into his body and presses a kiss to the top of my head. I squeeze my eyes tightly shut, warding off the unwanted tears that are threatening. Zach has rattled me, and I need to get it together. This is exactly what he wants, and I can’t fall apart now. Not when I need to win this race.
“I got takeout from the diner and beer.” His soft voice interrupts my negativity, and I pull back to smile up at him. At this moment that sounds like just what I need, and I can’t help but thinking that Max is kind of amazing right now.
“Sounds good.” I try to sound strong, but inside, I’m slowly starting to fall apart. Concern furrows his brow as he regards me a minute longer, pushing strands of hair behind my ear. His fingers intertwine with mine. Picking up the abandoned takeout, he leads me into the office.
There is a sofa against one wall of the office that sometimes doubles as a break room. I sink onto the big leather sofa, grateful that my dad didn’t listen to me when I said it was too big and he didn’t need a sofa this size in the office. My stomach growls as I unwrap my burger. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until just now. We have been working all day nonstop, and I am grateful for the cold beer to wash it down.