Page 53 of Heartbreaker

“I’ll see what I can do,” she says with that hint of self-deprecation that I’ve come to know and hate in her. “I wouldn’t hold your breath, though.” She starts to step away, but I grip her wrist, tugging her to me before she can get far.

“I’m serious, Lana. You can take the whole thing.”

“Because you’re not there?” she asks. I pull her in close, my face lacking any of the humor that is on hers.

“Stop that,” I say. “Stop thinking you’re not good enough to win. You are, Lana. You’ve been second or third in every race for weeks.” She lifts a shoulder, but I put a hand beneath her chin and tip it up. “You’re good enough to make it into qualifying, Lana. I’m not just saying that because I’m wildly into you, either. I’m saying it because it’s true. I’ve been in this a long time, and I’ve seen people come and go, and you’ve got talent.” It’s clear she wants to look away, but my grip on her chin holds her in place, forcing her to look at me. “Now, go out there and win it, Lana.”

“For you?” she asks with that little smirk, making my cock twitch. If we had more time, I’d drag her into a closet or the locker room and fuck her until she saw things my way. But we don’t, so instead, I simply press my lips to hers, hard and fast.

“No, baby. For you. Do it for you. And for all those little girls who come to see you and think you’re the shit.” She scrunches her nose, a sure sign that she’s getting emotional but wants to hide it, so I kiss her there before stepping back. “Now go,” I say, waving her off, and like the good girl she is, she does as she’s asked, jogging away to the arena.

“You’re good for her,” Demi says as we follow in the same direction but slower.

“You think?”

“Oh yeah. She…” Demi gets a strange look, far off and wandering, like she knows something I don’t. “She was born to be here. She doesn’t know it yet, but she will. Having someone else in her corner, encouraging her, confirming that fact is good for her.” I smile down at the brunette and nod.

“She’s good for me too,” I say, and I’ve never meant anything more in my life.

My stomach is in knots the entire race, not because I wish I were out there, but because Lana is. Every move she makes, every trick and jump, has me holding my breath until she’s back on all four tires.

Is this what it feels like to really, truly care about someone? The constant panic and fear?

Instead of dwelling on that, though, I stand in the pit, giving her a thumbs-up when I can and trying my best to stay out of the crew's way, the strangest mix of complete pride and utter panic flashing through me with every move.

She’s fucking magnificent out there. I know this isn’t what she originally planned to do with her life, that this is just something that fell into her lap, but Demi’s right: she was born to be here. It’s clear to anyone. And when she nails a cross-tread into a nose wheelie, I know in my gut that she’s got the entire thing on lock.

The entire stadium erupts into cheers, and I’m among them. I desperately wish I could see her happy face. Even more so when the results are announced, and she learns she won her first race, just like I told her she would.

I badly want to race onto the field when she wins, but the knowledge that if I do, I’ll be suspended from future races is the only thing that stops me. It’s one of the very few hard-and-fast rules here, and all I need is for it to get back to my dad that I was suspended from another circuit.

Instead, I wait until she’s out of her truck and has handed off her helmet. “You did fucking amazing,” I say, walking alongside her as we head out of the arena. I try to keep my hands to myself while she moves with the cutest little excited skip.

“I can’t believe it. I—” she starts, but it cuts off when, the second we step into the hall, I grip her wrist and start moving.

“Rome,” she says with a soft giggle, following along as I nearly drag her toward the women’s locker room. The perk of there being no other women drivers is that, to my knowledge, no one else needs the locker room after races. This is confirmed when I tug her inside, lock the door, and give the place a quick once-over. When I finish, Lana is watching me with a raised eyebrow, her suit zipped down and hanging at her waist.

“What are you doing?” she asks.

“Making sure it’s all clear,” I say, then step toward her, pulling her into me as I push her back to the line of lockers.

“Roman!” she says with a laugh, but it’s swallowed by my mouth when I press a kiss to hers, hard and deep.

“God, that was so hot,” I groan as I pull her into me, her body lining up with mine.

“What are you doing?” she asks with a giggle as I wind her braid around my hand, using it to direct her face to mine for a hot kiss.

“I thought it was obvious,” I say, kneeling and beginning to remove her boots. Next, I start to push her suit down, leaving it in a pile on the floor before removing her shorts and underwear. Finally, I press a kiss right above where the tight curls sit, then look up at her from my knees. “I’m gonna give the winner her prize.” She rolls her eyes and shakes her head, an entertained smile on her lips. The small laugh turns to a sigh when I part her, pressing a feather-light kiss to her clit.

“It was only one race,” she breathes. “I’m sure you’ll kick my ass again next time. It was a fluke.”

Irritation flares through me at her words and the realization of how much work I still have to do to make her see her own worth.

I’ll do it happily, though.

Instead of continuing my work, I stand, grab her wrist, and pull her to the wall with a bench. Sitting down, I tug her down into my lap, her lower belly across my legs, her hands on the bench. I position her ass up in my lap before I lift a hand and smack it down on the firm skin. The skin turns pink immediately, and she looks over her shoulder at me.

“What was that for?” she asks with a glare, but my hand comes down again, hard, and a breath leaves her lips. More color blooms on her skin, mirrored on her cheeks now, and I rub her ass before repeating this move. This time, I watch her already glistening pussy between her slightly spread legs, and see her tightening.