AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Saint
Monday before St. Petersburg
I arrived early to the shop, hoping to work on some adjustments before the rest of the team arrived for our Monday morning meeting. Thankfully, no races yet, but we have a bunch to start preparing for. The fabrication team has started working on the car for St. Petersburg. The first race of the season is a road race, and I’m not sure if Haisley is ready or not. The test track didn’t go as smoothly as I’d hoped and that was all due to Chad Adams and his crew chief.
“Knock, knock,” I hear, looking up to see Mac standing in my doorway.
“Hey. Morning, what’s up?” I ask and close my laptop.
Mac shakes his head. “Nothing much. Neil wants to work on the wheel setup Haisley sent adjustments for. Meeting is in the conference room in five.”
“Thanks. Why the conference room?” I ask, grabbing my clipboard and papers.
“Guess both teams are going to be there,” he offers as an answer.
“Fucking wonderful. Hey, have you seen Haisley yet?” I inquire.
Mac shakes his head. “No, I haven’t. Doesn’t mean she ain’t here. I’m going to go help the fabrication crew.”
“Alright, sounds good. Sure, you don’t want to come into the meeting with us?” I ask smiling, knowing full well that Mac hates these meetings.
“I’m good.” He smiles back and heads out of my office. I pick up my phone, sliding it into my pocket, and head for the conference room.
These Monday morning meetings are a weekly occurrence. During the race season, they are used to review footage for what went right and what went wrong. The teams share ideas and discuss changes to be made. Hunter usually gives a little talk, and we all get back to work. Driver, crew chief, car chief, and mechanic, plus any of the shop engineers are required to be present.
I enter the conference room and see Bud sitting next to Drake and Chad Adams. I take a seat across from them next to Neil and Spenser, one of our team’s in-shop engineers. I have nothing to say to Chad or his crew chief.
“You okay?” Neil whispers as he nudges my arm.
“I’m fine. Just want to get working on the car for St. Pete’s,” I whisper back, attempting not to give much away. I look up as Haisley enters the room. All the guys already in here go silent as she moves and sits next to me at the table.
“Morning,” she says slyly.
“Morning. Have a good weekend?” I ask in an attempt to make small talk.
“It was fine. Thanks for asking. How about you?”
I shrug. “Same ole, same ole.” I can feel Drake and Bud watching us, and I’m correct as I lift my eyes to meet Drake’s. He is staring at Haisley with a slightly wicked grin on his face. I huff and shake my head, turning my attention back to the papers in front of me. On the top was my checklist for what I needed to accomplish before we loaded the hauler on Thursday. We have practice on Friday with qualifying on Saturday before the race on Sunday.
“You seem lost in thought,” Haisley says as I lift my head to meet her eyes.
“Just thinking about all of the shit we need to do before Thursday. Speaking of…have you been in the simulator yet running sims for St. Pete’s?” I question.
“That’s the plan for today after a quick workout,” she answers as Hunter strolls into the conference room. I nod, and we turn our attention to the boss.
“Good morning, everyone! This is an exciting Monday meeting. Both teams are here, and I’m excited to introduce our newest driver, Haisley Meyers.” Hunter pauses while everyone claps. “We also are excited to be bringing Drake Andrews over from the NASCAR circuit to be the new crew chief for Chad’s team. Welcome the both of you.” Again, everyone claps, and I offer a half-hearted smile in Drake’s direction.
“Well, with that out of the way, let’s get discussing the upcoming St. Petersburg road race. Last year we finished in the top twenty. I want to see if we can place better this year. What do we have going on with the cars?” Hunter finally sits in the chair at the head of the table and waits for us to answer. I remain quiet, allowing Bud to talk, even though he has no clue what we’re doing with the setup. Then again, neither do I because I need to get Haisley into the simulator to find out.
I scribble a few words on my clipboard and turn my attention to Chad, who is describing slight changes he wants to make to the car to handle better. I assume he’s talking as Drake is new to the company and to him.
The meeting drags on, and I find Haisley checking her phone here and there. At some points I can see her glare across the table at Drake before shoving it back into her bag. She’s dressed in a Wadsworth racing shirt and a pair of jeans today. Her hair is up in a ponytail, and I’m not sure if she’s wearing any makeup or not because I normally don’t notice those things. Don’t get me wrong, I notice certain things about women, but makeup isn’t one of those.
I must be in a daze because I don’t hear Hunter dismiss the meeting. It’s not until Neil swats my arm again that I realize the meeting is over. I offer him a quick nod and grab my clipboard to head out. Hunter is talking to Drake and Chad as I exit. I look around for Haisley, but she’s not in the area. I let it go for the moment and focus on getting the car ready for Thursday.
***
The morning flies by, and I’m interrupted by a knock on the door. I look up to find Bud standing there.
