Sweet Carolina(23)
Caro clutched her menu as if it might sprout wings and fly at any second. Dell's assertion didn't do anything to shore up her resolve, but she wasn't going to tell him. She put on her best “business etiquette” face and said, “To address your issues…Number one: there are enough people waiting for me to fall on my face, or at the very least, steer Hawkins Racing into the wall without making the rumors of sexual favors a reality. If you don't think I know about the track talk, think again. I know what they're saying about me, and I know if the rumors became true, I'd lose even more ground. I've got plenty to prove, Dell – to myself, and to everyone who has ever said a woman can't own a successful race team.
“Number two: I've seen no evidence to indicate you've ever done anything slow.” He opened his mouth to protest and Caro cut him off with a wave of her hand. He closed his mouth and she continued, using the opportunity to change the subject to the one they should be discussing anyway. “I don't know what's gotten into you, Dell Wayne, but you've got to rein in your impulses – on the track. You took too many chances today. Yeah, you won, but there were any number of stunts that could have ended badly for you and the car. You were lucky today – that's all. You didn't win because you were the best driver, or because you had the best car. You won because you were lucky.”
“If you think that, you don't have any business running a race team. You may have something to prove, Caro, and I don't mind you using me to do it, but I drive to win, and as long as I'm the one in the car, I'll decide how best to go about it.”
“Oh really?” Caro countered. “Well, that attitude lost you one ride this season already. It might cost you another.”
“No, it won't. You aren't going to fire me, Caro. Who would drive for you? Wilson? You and I both know you aren't going to prove your point to anyone with him behind the wheel, so let's get this straight right now. I drive. I don't listen to non-drivers who think they can tell me how to do my job, and that includes you. I brought home a trophy for Hawkins Racing today. So, I didn't get another notch carved into my helmet after the race, but you got what you wanted – another notch carved in the stick you're trying to ram up everyone's butt. So how about this? I won't screw Hawkins Racing,” his leer made his veiled meaning clear – “and you don't tell me how to drive? That way, we both get what we want.”
Dell stood and tossed his menu on the table. “I'll see you at the airport,” he said before stalking out of the restaurant leaving Caro stunned and alone.
She didn't know how long she sat, staring at the doorway, clutching the menu in a death grip, but when the waiter came to take her order, she dug some bills out of her purse and dropped them on the table. “I've changed my mind,” she said. “I'm not hungry after all.”
Dell was right about one thing. She wasn't going to fire him. She needed him. But that didn't give him license to drive like a maniac. Sure, she wanted him to win – that was the whole point of racing, of any competition, for that matter. But the way he was driving, she'd be lucky if he didn't drive Hawkins Racing right into bankruptcy. Today's purse would help, but the bottom line was, she couldn't afford for Dell to destroy many more cars, and still stay in business. The debts she inherited along with the race team were considerable.
As she gathered her things for the ride to the airport and their commuter flight to Las Vegas, she idly wondered if perhaps this had been her father's plan all along. He couldn't bear to sell the race team – it meant too much to him to do it while he was alive – but he hadn't wanted her to run it either. So maybe he left it in this sorry financial state in order to force her to sell. She did a quick estimate and decided if she sold right now, the assets – thanks to Dell's win today, would cover the debt with perhaps a little bit left over.
That was probably the smart thing to do, but it was also the one thing she wasn't going to do. She loved racing. Always had, and owning and running Hawkins Racing was her dream. Dell's win would keep her dream alive for another race or two, and if he won, or at least ran well in those, he would buy her more time. Somehow, she had to convince Dell to be more conservative on the track. The occasional win was nice, but consistently running in the top ten was good too.
They took the hotel shuttle to the airport in silence and cleared security before Caro decided it was time to address the other issue between them. Dell chose a seat in the waiting area facing the window with his back to the rest of the travelers. Caro ignored his cold shoulder as she joined him.
“Look, Dell. About what happened in the hauler…”