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“I love you,” I say, pulling out the travel-sized packet of wipes. I clean up my undereye area with one side, then remove what’s left of my lipstick with the other.

“So, things are going well with Mason?”

I chuckle. “Aside from no aeroplane sex? Very good.”

“Good. I like him,” she says. “Mason was right there to defend me when that crap went down in Miami, and that was a very telling sign of the kind of man he is.”

I remember that day in the motorhome, when a member of our comms team dragged Isla when he thought she was out of earshot.

And he made the big mistake of doing it in front of Caleb and Mason.

My brother stood up for Isla, and that was the start of their love story. But so did Mason. I remember thinking it was another thing for me to crush on about him.

I throw the wipe into the bin. I brush out my hair, and thankfully, it looks good. Then I leave the bathroom so Isla can use it. I pause by Mason’s seat before returning to the front of the aeroplane. “Do you care for company for the rest of the flight?” I flirt.

“Sure. Could you send Caleb back so we can talk about the issues with the rotating rear wing?”

“You’re so cute. And you’re getting my company anyway, so hang on to that rotating rear-wing convo for your engineering meetings. I’m going to get my things.” I turn to walk back up the cabin aisle, but Mason calls after me.

“Catherine?”

I pause and turn around. “Yeah?”

“I really, really like you.”

My heart swells. “I really, really like you back.” I head to my seat and gather up my laptop and bag.

And return to sit with the driver who is overtaking all obstacles to get to my heart.

Chapter Twenty-Five

I take in the view as the SUV swings up the drive to the Collings Motors headquarters. The sprawling campus houses operations for both the Formula 1 and GT3 teams, with everything from design and manufacturing to testing and team management. The main building is ahead of us, done in a sleek, contemporary glass design. It’s surrounded by lots of shrubbery and greenery, and a large fountain and reflecting pool out front. The whole facility is set on fifty acres of countryside in Surrey, making it feel private and serene.

It’s a beautiful campus.

I’m excited to go upstairs to the marketing department and speak with the head of the team’s online retail store. But first, I need to take care of my brother.

“Caleb, I just want to run through your schedule,” I say from the back seat. Mum and Dad are in one SUV, as they’re going to drop Mum off at their house first, and the four of us—Caleb, Isla, Mason, and me—are in a separate vehicle.

“Pre-sim meeting with JP at nine,” Caleb begins. “Simulator from ten to one. Lunch for one hour, then the dreaded media obligations from two to three. At four, I’ll work out with Ben, have one final debrief with engineering, and meet you in the lobby at five thirty to head out to the airport.”

“This is helpful, seeing that it’s my schedule, too,” Mason says.

It’s true. Mason and Caleb have mirror schedules, except their meetings with their respective race engineers and personal trainers.

“Now, I want you to be open-minded before I tell you about what you are doing for the media team,” I say.

Mason snorts. Isla coughs. I ignore them and decide to plunge right into the bad news for my big brother. “Today, they’re shooting the special apparel collection they’re launching for Singapore,” I tell him. “So you’ll be modelling.”

Silence.

“I’m good with it, but then again, I’m the helpful driver,” Mason says, a mischievous smile lighting up his face.

“Shut up,” Caleb says.

“Babe, it won’t be that bad,” Isla reassures him. “You put on a shirt, look all fit in it, take some pictures, done! At least you aren’t running around on a hippity hop.”

“Space hopper,” Caleb corrects.