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“Well, if she does that, I’ll throw in a bonus for you as well, Elle,” Hunter half laughs at the notion.
It just fuels me to hit those goals. Women are underrated in the world of racing, and those that have raced have only lasted a few seasons at most. However, the statistics are even grimmer for lesser-known names and add in the INDY circuit, it’s almost unheard of.
“Again, you don’t know our girl.” Elle smirks as we follow Hunter’s lead and stand up.
“I think it’s time for a tour of the shop, no?” Hunter asks, and I nod.
“Please.” I follow him out of the conference room. He leads us down a long hallway with multitudes of offices on both sides.
“These are our corporate offices. Everyone from human resources, to marketing, to safety, to endorsements and sponsorships run out of these offices.”
Hunter leads us to the end of the hallway and to a set of stairs. “These stairs lead to the shop floor and the workout rooms, conference rooms for the teams, locker rooms, garage for the haulers, and the simulation computer.”
I nod, and we follow him down to the shop floor, which is gigantic and goes on in every direction I look.
“We run two INDY teams and two stock car teams out of this shop. You can see that each team has about a quarter of the shop area.” I glance around at the various corners of the shop. To the right were the stock cars and to the left the INDY setups. A smile graces my face as a rush of warmth flows through my body. “Come on, let’s go meet your team,” Hunter remarks as he heads to the left.
We stop at the first set of cars, the number thirty-one. There’s an older man, a little round in the middle, with his head under the hood. Hunter clears his throat, and the man pops up. “Oh, Hunter, hello.”
“Good morning, Bud. How’s the setup coming along?” Hunter peers around Bud’s head.
“It’s coming. Saint is working on the specs as we speak, and Neil here is installing the engine. Who is this?” he asks looking at me.
“Bud, this is your new driver, Haisley Meyers,” Hunter responds. “Haisley, Bud is the crew chief for the number thirty-one team.”
I hold out my hand to shake his. “Very nice to meet you. I can’t wait till we get out on the track together.”
Bud looks from me to Hunter and back again. He doesn’t offer his hand in response. “Are you fucking with me? A woman?”
Hunter nods. “Yes, Ms. Meyers has an extensive racing history and many accolades on her own accord. She’s also the daughter of NASCAR driver, Michael VanStant.”
“No shit. Is that why you gave her the job?” Bud asks. Hunter steps away for a moment, and I turn to Bud.
“I’m sorry, I must be missing something here,” I interrupt. “My father didn’t get me this job.”
“Well then, did you offer Hunter a blow job or something? Are you his lover?”
“I beg your pardon! Who the hell do you think you are talking to me like that?” I glance at Elle whose eyebrows are furrowed.
“Women have no place in racing,” Bud mumbles as Hunter returns.
“How are things?” Hunter asks as I look at Elle who shakes her head.
“Just fine. Bud was telling me that he was happy to work with us.” I offer a curt, sly smile as Hunter smiles back.
“Wonderful. I’m sure the two of you will be extraordinarily successful on the tracks,” Hunter replies.
“If she doesn’t kill him first,” Elle whispers under her breath.
“Alright, let’s meet the rest of your crew.” Hunter directs us back to the rear of the car. “This here is Neil. He is the mechanic and fill-in tire changer, but mostly mechanic.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Haisley, the new driver.” I offer my hand, and Neil takes it.
“Very nice to meet you. Excited to have you on the team. If you would excuse me, I need to make changes to the engine before we install.” Neil bows his head and scurries off.
Hunter leads Elle and me further into the corner of the car area to a small office. Outside the office are a bunch of men. “These men are your pit crew.” The boys stop what they are doing and stand up. Hunter points to three of them. “Jack, Eric, and Dan are your tire changers. Todd over there is your jack man, and this guy is Mac. He’s the fuel guy.”
I hold out my hand to shake everyone’s hand. When I get to Mac, I vaguely remember his face. “Oh shit,” he mumbles. “Um, nice to meet you,” he comments.
