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“Now, Flash, don’t be rude. She’s doing you a favor, and I think you’ll find that there’s a lot more to her than meets the eye, my love.” I scoffed at the insinuation that Georgia was doingmea favor; she needed this as much as I did, but my mother could never say a single bad word about anyone. I loved her for it, but it was also her most infuriating quality.
As soon as my childhood nickname left my mother’s mouth, I felt my anger simmer. My mother knew I could never stay mad at her. I stared at both parents blankly for a moment longer, but I knew I had lost this battle. The fact was, there was no going around my father. He was a legend in the racing world, and if he and Francesco Bianchi, my team principal, had agreed on this, then it would happen, whether I liked it or not.
“Now that you are done throwing a hissy fit, why don’t you head to Matteo’s office and get your schedule for the week? You have a hectic week, both on and off the track, and I expect you to adhere to the schedule that Hermes and Matteo have created for you.”
I grabbed a cookie from the table and turned in the other direction, not daring to look back. Matteo was my dear cousin and manager, but I learned today that he was definitely my manager first and cousin second.
When I arrived at his office, I knocked lightly and walked in without waiting for a response, knowing he was expecting me.
“Ahh Luca, lovely for you to join me this morning. Come, sit. I’m sure you have many questions.” I nodded and sat on the sofa, taking the cup of coffee he had just poured me.
“So, in this folder is your itinerary for the weekend. Tomorrow, you and Georgia will go on a lovely date we have booked for you at a tiny restaurant by the ocean. Very romantic,” he said with a wink. I just shuddered in response and gave him a look that told him to continue, but with fewer adjectives.
“From there, you have drinks with Henri and Edward, a walk around the track, and a little ‘accidental’ meeting in your garage. It’s all explained in this folder, but of course, I’m here for questions.”
I took the folder from him, holding it like a bomb about to explode at any minute. At least I would see more of Edward, my former racing partner from when I raced for Wilmington F1. Edward had turned into one of my closest friends, and it was a relief that he would be helping me with this fiasco.
Matteo chuckled, “I know this seems unfair to you, but trust me, this is good for us. Once we have secured the deals, we’ll end this little nightmare for you.”I nodded, putting the folder into my bag.
“Right, well, best you get going to your workout. Miami is a big one.”
* * *
Georgia
The following day, I woke up with a massive headache, likely from the heat and lack of water, but I decided to blame my situation on Luca. Today was Wednesday, which meant it was date night and the official start of this dating sham. Reaching for my phone, I saw several missed calls from Henri and a text asking if I wanted to get breakfast.
Not really, I thought to myself, but I knew I couldn’t avoid my twin brother forever. I texted him that I would meet him downstairs in an hour and proceeded to prepare for the day. As part of our clothing collection, Valkyrie brought us some cute blue sundresses, which matched the car’s color, for all of the media events this weekend. I wasn’t typically a dress person, but these were nicely made, and the fit was perfect – plus, it was boiling, so the dress was welcome.A benefit of having a women-run team with female drivers was that we had quite a few fashion brands itching to give us clothing. We undoubtedly had better clothes than all of our male counterparts.
As I walked out of my hotel room, I turned to see none other than Luca Rossi, dressed head to toe in Hermes F1 gear. He looked up, eyes meeting mine. For the first time since I had known him, his face was genuinely unreadable. The usual Cheshire cat grin was replaced with a blank stare. I nodded in his direction, but he didn’t move, staring blankly at me as if I were a mirage that was slowly disappearing. As the elevator doors opened, we both hopped inside, making sure to stand as far away from each other as possible.
“So, I, uh, guess I’ll see you tonight?” I wanted to continue ignoring Luca, but as the oppressive silence became unbearable, I had to do something to break the awkwardness. Luca, still not looking at me, just nodded, a slight tilt of his head in my direction.
Great, he’s gone from flirting with me to being mute. Real cute,I thought to myself.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, I zoomed out of the elevator so fast someone would have assumed a zombie was chasing me. Truth be told, it felt like I was being chased by a zombie – the lifeless zombie of Luca Rossi.
As I entered the hotel’s restaurant, Henri spotted me and waved me down.
“Nice dress, you look beautiful,” my brother announced as he got up from our table, kissing me on each cheek.
Kiss ass.
“Thanks, you don’t look too bad yourself. New girlfriend dress you?” I said with a chuckle.
He nodded, a look of annoyance on his face. He was well aware of how I felt about his new girlfriend. Henri had recently begun dating Christine, an influencer who seemed less interested in my brother’s racing and more interested in the VIP suite. But while Christine and I had very little in common, I had to admit, Henri had started dressing considerably better over the last several months.
“So, about yester-”
“Look, I know-” We both said simultaneously. I let out a small laugh and gestured for him to go first.
“I’m sorry you felt ambushed when you went into that meeting,” Henri began. “They had just finished telling me right before you got there. Otherwise, you know I would have said something to you earlier.”
I nodded, knowing full well that Isabelle and Fiona weren’t stupid enough to tell Henri too much in advance. We were practically joined at the hip now, and Henri had never been known for being able to keep a secret.
“I know. I’m sorry I was so angry. It’s just a tough predicament to be in.” My brother nodded, his hand snaking across the table to hold mine.
“Look, Luca seems like an ass, but once you get to know him, he’s not so bad. He’s actually quite funny and surprisingly a great golfer. I think you two will have more in common than you think.”
