“Are you sure?” Keanna says. Now she looks worried and guilty, and all those other emotions that make her chew on her thumbnail.
I give her a heartwarming smile. “I’m positive. Let’s go.”
I make sure to take her hand as soon as we leave, in case any of those girls are watching. I know it should be common knowledge by now thatJett Adams Has A Girlfriend, but some people still don’t know, or they choose not to care.
It is kind of cool getting all this attention from girls and guys and everyone now that I’m mildly famous in the motocross world, but I’d never want Keanna to feel threatened.
Our dinner is pretty amazing, but I don’t eat too much or else I’ll puke out on the track tonight. After eating and watching some TV, I get a text from Marcus to meet him down at the arena next door. Practice starts in half an hour and then the heat race will start promptly at seven.
“Could I maybe stay here while you practice?” Keanna says. She peers up at me from the hotel bed with puppy dog eyes. “It’s just that I have to be there all alone when you’re riding and it gets boring. I’d rather just go there right before the official race starts.”
I laugh because I can tell it took a lot of guts for her to ask that. “Of course,” I say, leaning down and kissing her. “Let me get your pass.”
I’m already digging in my suitcase for my lucky underwear, so I reach for the VIP pass Marcus sent me for Keanna and me. Mine says I’m a racer and hers says she part of the pit crew. It’s a slight lie, but that’s the only way to get anyone access to the pit area of the stadium, otherwise she’d have to stay up in the stands with everyone else.
“Here’s your pass,” I say, handing her the laminated card strung on a lanyard. “Do you know where my lucky underwear are?”
She frowns. “Did you remember to get them out of the dryer?”
“Dammit.” I cover my face with my hands and look up at the ceiling. “No.Shit.”
“Baby, you’ll be fine,” she assures me. “Underwear doesn’t make you win races.”
I breathe in deeply and let it out slowly. I won every single race this summer while wearing them. I know it’s a silly superstition, but it’s important to me.
I stand in front of where she sits on the mattress, and put my hands on either side of her legs. “I love you.”
“I love you,” she says back just before I kiss her.
“See you at the races?”
She nods. “See you at the races.”
