The rumble of the Camaro’s V8 engine makes our presence known, and Zach looks up with an unpleasant smile stretching over his face.
Oh, fucking hell.
I grip the steering wheel tightly, and my palms slip. All color drains from my face as my heart rate picks up. But not in a good way. Not in the way Max makes it.
“Breathe, Storm,” he instructs, and I force myself to take a breath as I pull up next to Zach’s Challenger, release the hood, and climb out.
“Nice ride.” He nods at the Camaro. “And here I thought you’d go with an import.”
“Nope, American muscle all the way.” I flash him a fake smile and pray I sound more confident than I feel. My insides have turned to jelly, and I want to collapse on the ground and wait there until it is all over.
Zach makes a really irritating clicking sound in the back of his throat as he walks around the car and peers down at the engine. Max’s hand runs up and down my back, his touch soothing me while Zach continues to have a good poke around. Finally, he seems satisfied that we’ve not made any modifications and I’m not hiding any nitrous in the car. Even when he moves away, Aaron continues to fiddle with things, more to keep himself busy than anything else.
As I look around and take stock of my surroundings, I notice a small crowd sitting in the bleachers. It didn’t occur to me that there would be anyone here other than us, but now as I scan the faces, I recognize Dad and Nurse McCartney, Ryder, Kyle, and even Causey and Sugar. It gives me a little boost that they would come to support me, but it also makes me more nervous. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Zach approaching and stand a little straighter.
“Once around the track, and winner takes all,” he says in a lazy voice, as if we are all boring him already.
“Wait, what?” Max grabs his arm to stop him from walking away. Zach looks down at Max’s hand in disgust before bringing his gaze upwards. They flash with anger, but it is nothing compared to the unadulterated rage that is burning in Max’s, making them almost glow.
“The deal was a quarter-mile race,” Max points out, his voice tight with anger.
“Thought this would make it more interesting.” His beady eyes fix on Max.
“And dangerous.”
“If you don’t think your girlfriend is up to it, she can back away now, run back to wherever it is she’s been hiding for the last four years, and let the rest of us get on with it.”
Aaron appears at my elbow and mutters under his breath, “Don’t let him goad you.”
Zach’s words mildly annoy me, but I’m not letting the likes of him intimidate me.
“I’ll do the lap.” I speak up, my voice unwavering, and throw in a glare for good measure.
Aaron drops his head forward. “Oh man,” he mutters.
Max dips his head and presses a kiss to my temple. “How did I know you were going to say that?” But he gives me a smile of admiration; he knows I have to do this.
Zach’s icy stare bores into me, and I don’t think he was actually expecting me to agree, or maybe he was just trying to rattle me even more. He moves to walk away, but Max stops him again. He spins around and Max squares up to him, bringing them nose to nose, equal in height and in muscle.
“Anything happens to her and I’m coming for you,” he threatens in a low voice, and Zach pales a little before yanking his arm out of Max’s grasp and marches over to Tate and his other friends.
Aaron grabs me in a hug that crushes my bones. “Good luck, cuz,” he mumbles into my hair before releasing me quickly and slams down the hood.
I reach for Max who stands beside me. “Max, I…”
“Listen…” He turns to face me, gripping my shoulders. “He’s done this on purpose; he knows that you don’t know the track and that you only prepared for a quarter-mile race. I’ve been here with Causey before, so listen up. The track is 2.5 miles long. There are nine turns; count them off as you go. I’m not going into all of them, but they will all test you.”
“I’ve never been around a track like this.”
“You know what to do, just go with your instinct. I’ve seen how you drive and why you don’t need a computer to tell you when to change gear.”
“But…”
“The fastest stretch is after turn five. Don’t let him get the better of you there. I reckon your car is lighter, so you might be able to use it to your advantage. Turn eight is the fastest. There’s a dip before the apex on turn nine, it is crucial you get a good line on the last one. Make sure you speed up as you come out of it, then floor it down the straight.”