Leandro Silva drives for one of the best teams in Formula 1. He’s brilliant, and he was considered number one for a long time—until Carrick came along and knocked him off his spot, that is. It’s rumored that they have a mutual dislike for one another.
I’ve admired Leandro’s driving for a long time. He’s one of my favorite drivers, and it helps that he’s Brazilian, not that I’m biased or anything. I’ve wanted to meet him for forever. Of course, I’ve seen him at the track, but I’ve never gotten up the nerve to go over and introduce myself.
I wonder what he’s doing here.
“Hello.” He gives me a panty-dropping smile, a sexy dimple appearing in his cheek.
Oh God.
Did I mention that Leandro is really good-looking? Like really good-looking. Not better than Carrick. Just different. To Carrick’s dirty-blond hair, Leandro’s is black. To Carrick’s blues, Leandro’s eyes are as dark as night. And to Carrick’s golden skin, Leandro’s is olive.
Okay, I’m guessing you get the picture.
“Hi.” I try to smile, but it comes off as more of a grin, and it feels awkward on my face. And that’s probably because I’m staring at him like a starstruck idiot.
It’s just…I’ve watched this guy race on the TV since I was sixteen! He’s a hero back home in Brazil.
“You’re Andi Amaro, right?”
He knows my name!
Hang on…he knows my name?
“How do you know my name?” It comes out sounding a little shorter than I intended, so I give a curious tilt of my head to play it off.
He lets out a deep chuckle. “You’re famous. Did you not know?”
“No.” I screw my face up. “Famous for what exactly?”
He angles his body toward mine. We’re suddenly awfully close for two people who have just met. So close that I can see the hint of chocolate brown that centers his eyes, and I can smell his musky aftershave. But then to be fair, there isn’t exactly a lot of spare room here at the bar.
“There aren’t many female mechanics in Formula One—and definitely none as beautiful as you.”
My cheeks redden.
What? I’m a girl, and Leandro Silva just called me beautiful. He’s a brilliant driver and a hot older guy—well, when I say older, I mean, he’s thirty—so, of course, I’m going to be flattered.
“Sorry, I forgot myself. I expect you to know who I am, but you might not. I’m Leandro Silva.” He holds his hand out to shake mine.
“Of course I know who you are,” I reply, my face flushing, as I slip my hand into his.
His hand is warm and rough. And I feel a spark of something. But nothing like what I feel when Carrick touches me.
Removing my hand from his, I turn back to the bar.
“So, I hear that you are a fellow Brazilian. Well, half-Brazilian. The other half is English, correct?”
I look at him, a smile tugging on my lips. “You know way too much about me.”
He shrugs, a grin touching his eyes. “When I find someone interesting, I make it my business to find out everything I can.”
Is he flirting with me?
It’s no secret that Leandro likes his women. He’s a serial dater, but the women are always models and actresses. Definitely not female mechanics.
And I don’t know why—maybe it’s the Jägerbombs or my feelings over Carrick and Sienna, the jealousy eating away at me—but I find myself leaning in and saying with a flirtatious tilt to my mouth, “And you find me interesting?”
A definite heat enters his eyes. “Very. I’ve wanted to meet you for quite some time now.”
I don’t know why, but I flicker a glance across to Carrick. And when I see that he’s not even looking but talking to Ben, it pisses me off, which in turn fuels me even more to flirt.
I look back to Leandro, giving him my undivided attention. “I’ve wanted to meet you for quite some time, too. I really admire your driving. I’ve seen all of your races.”
Okay, that was lame. I really shouldn’t be allowed to talk to men.
But surprisingly, it seems to work on him, as he leans in even closer.
“You’re a fan?”
“Mmhmm.”
“So, why are you working for Ryan when you clearly should be working for me?”
Resting my arm on the bar, I give a one-shoulder shrug, tipping up the corner of my lips. “Because he offered me a job, and you didn’t.”
“How stupid of me.”
“I know, right?” I bite down on my lip.
Lifting a hand, he sweeps my hair from my shoulder and brings his mouth close to my ear. “I might be being forward here, but I was wondering if you’d like to get out of here and come to a party with me.”
I tilt my head back, looking him in the eyes. “Is party code for your hotel room?” I raise a brow.
He lets out a throaty deep laugh. It makes me smile. “No, it’s actually code for party. But if you want to go to my hotel room, I would have no problem with that.”
Whoa! Okay. This is moving way too fast, and I’m getting in a little over my head.
I definitely should not be allowed to flirt with men—especially when I’m only doing so to piss someone else off, and it’s clearly not even working.
God, I’m so stupid.
Stepping back a little to put some space between us, I say, “I think we need to put the brakes on this a bit. I need to know a man for longer than five minutes before I even think about sleeping with him.”
A couple of hours, minimum.
Okay, don’t say that.
I turn my body back toward to the bar, leaning into it. “And anyway, I don’t get involved with drivers.” I rest my chin on my hand and grin up at him.
He chuckles. “Yeah, so I’ve heard.”
That straightens me up. “You’ve heard? From whom?”
“Ryan.” He tilts his head in the direction of where Carrick is. “I asked him about you, and after he not so politely told me that you were off-limits, he informed me that you don’t date drivers anyway, so I’d be wasting my time.”
I shoot a look at Carrick. And this time, I find that he’s staring right at me, and he looks pissed.
Good, because I’m feeling majorly pissed off myself. Who the hell does he think he is warning Leandro away from me?
“I can’t believe he did that,” I fume.
“To be fair to Ryan, if you worked for me, I would have done the same thing. I would definitely want to keep you all to myself.”
Something fires up inside of me.
Decision made.
I focus my eyes on Leandro. “Just to be clear, I’m not going to sleep with you, but if the offer to get out of here and go to that party is still on, then I’d really like to take you up on it.”
“Are you coming with me just to piss Ryan off?”
“Partly,” I confess. “Is that a problem?”
“Nope. No problem at all.” He grins, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
“Cool. Well, just give me a minute to let my friend know I’m leaving, and I’ll be back.”
As I weave through the crowd toward Petra, I’m bubbling with anger.
Who the hell does Carrick think he is? He warned Leandro off me! He had no right!
I can’t believe he cockblocked me!
He can sleep with whomever he wants—annoying fucking pop-tarts—but I’m not allowed.
Screw that. Bastard.
Well, not that I’m actually going to have sex with Leandro, but Carrick doesn’t know that. Yes, I know it’s childish, but I’m not feeling very mature right now, and my primary goal is to piss Carrick off.
“Hey.” I tap Petra on the shoulder, pulling her attention from Mike, one of Nico’s pit guys.
So much for talking to Robbie, who is currently sitting in a chair, with a scowl on his face while he nurses a pint of beer.
“Hey, where’s my drink?” she complains to my empty hands.
“Oh, sorry. I forgot,” I say, distracted
. “But guess who I just met at the bar?”
“Matt Damon?”
“No. Why? Is he here?” I swivel my head on my neck. It’s not unusual to see celebrities out and about while the Prix is happening.
“No!” She laughs. “It’s just a dream of mine to meet Matt Damon in a bar. Or should I call it a sexual fantasy?”
“Okay, TMI. Anyway, it was Leandro Silva.” I put a dramatic effect to his name.
“Leandro’s here?” Her head starts to swivel on her neck just like mine did moments ago. I see when she spots him because her eyes spark. “God, he’s so fucking hot,” she says with a weird moaning sound to her voice, which freaks me out a little.
Shaking it off, I say, “Yep, and he just invited me to go to a party with him.”
Her eyes widen. “Seriously? You’re going, right? Please tell me you’re going!”
With a mind of their own, my eyes search out Carrick. He’s not looking at me, but I can tell that he’s listening to our conversation in the way that his chin is tilted in our direction.
“I told him yes…” Taking hold of Petra’s elbow, I steer her away from prying ears. “But now, I’m not so sure,” I whisper.
In all honesty, my anger and confidence has started to wilt now that I’m here telling Petra with Carrick only a few feet away.
“What?” She looks aghast. “Why not?” Then, she flickers a glance in Carrick’s direction and looks straight back to me.
I’m rewarded with a disapproving look.
“I just think…maybe it would be a mistake to leave with Leandro,” I quietly tell her.
“How? It’s not like you’re going to have sex with the guy. You’re just going to a party with him.”
“But I’m not going for the right reason,” I whisper. “I only said yes after Leandro told me that Carrick had warned him off me.”
“What” Her mouth pops open, forming an O. “You’re shitting me?”
I see a few of the guys heads turn at her yelling, one being Carrick’s.
“Pet…” I chastise, my eyes briefly meeting with Carrick’s curious ones.
“Shit. Sorry.” She puts her hand over her mouth and talks through her fingers. “He seriously did that?” she whispers.
“Yeah, he seriously did that, and it pissed me off. And then I found myself saying yes to going to this party with Leandro, but I’m going for the wrong reason.”
She takes her hand from her mouth and rests it on my shoulder. “Andi, if you were going to revenge shag Leandro—which I would totally recommend if you weren’t you—God, I would tell you to revenge shag that hot Brazilian until you couldn’t walk. But because you are you and I know you’d torture yourself for about a year after doing so, then I say no to any shagging. But I do say a big fat yes to going to this party with him.”
“But what if he tries to kiss me?”
“Then, snog his face off!”
I give her something between a disapproving and humorous look.
“Okay,” she says placatingly. “Let’s say he does try to kiss you and you don’t want him to, then you push him off and say no thanks. Seriously, honey, you’re overthinking this. Just go have fun with the hot older man.”
I bite my lip, hesitating.
“Look, do you want me to come with you? Act as a buffer?”
“Would you?” I brighten up. I’m such a chicken.
“Of course. A change of scenery would be good right now, and I’m sure Leandro has some hot friends at this party.”
I notice that something in her tone is off. “Petra, is everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything is fine.” She smiles, and it’s as forced as mine have been all night.
I give her an unconvinced look. “You sure?”
She flicks a quick glance in Robbie’s direction. Then, she looks back at me, plastering a bright smile on her face. “Sure, I’m sure.”
She’s so not okay, but I’m not going to press it with her. She’ll tell me when she’s ready to.
“Thanks.” I wrap my arm around her shoulder, giving her a squeeze. “You know that you’re the best female friend I’ve ever had, right?”
“I’m the only female friend you’ve ever had.”
“True.”
I give her a cheeky grin, and she laughs.
Reaching past Ben, she grabs her clutch off the table. “Right, boys, we’re loving and leaving you. See you all tomorrow.”
“Where are you going?” That’s Carrick, and he’s not looking at Petra. He’s looking at me.
I open my mouth, but nothing except for air comes out.
Thankfully, Petra notices my struggle and answers for me, “Leandro Silva just invited Andi to a party, so we’re going there.”
His eyes widen, anger sparking to life in them.
Feeling uncomfortable, I avert my eyes to the floor. I don’t even dare to look at Sienna right now.
“Sacking us off for a rival team?” Ben dramatically slaps a hand to his chest. “That hurts.”
“Sorry, Benny Boy, you know I love you, but no way can a girl turn down a night partying with Leandro Silva.” Petra flashes him a smile.
Tugging me by the hand, she leads me off into the crowd, heading back to the bar where Leandro awaits.
We’ve made it halfway when I feel a hand curl around my arm, pulling me to a stop.
Carrick.
I lose my hold on Petra. She casts a glance over her shoulder.
Seeing that Carrick is behind me, she nods her head in the direction of the bar. “I’ll go introduce myself to Leandro. See you in a few.”
I give her an uneasy smile, and then I watch as she goes.
Heart pounding, I turn to face Carrick. “What do you want?” My words come out short.
Hurt flickers across his countenance, but that doesn’t stop him from saying what he’s here to say, “Are you really leaving with Silva?”
“To go to a party, yes.”
“He’s bad news, Andressa.”
“He seems okay to me.” I fold my arms over my chest.
“He’s a player. He uses women for sex and then discards them like trash.”
“So do you.”
Sighing, he shakes his head. “But we’re not talking about me. I just…” He pinches the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.
Dropping his hand, he stares at me, and I can’t tell if it’s pity or sadness that’s in his eyes right now.
“I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Silva is only using you to get at me, to try to psych me out for the next race because I beat him today. It’s how he works.”
Okay, so it was pity.
He thinks I can only get a man when one is trying to psych him out for his next race.
Mother-effing bastard.
“Wow!” I let out an incredulous laugh. “So, you’re telling me that he’s just using me to get at you? Do you have any idea how bloody arrogant that sounds? You know what, Carrick? Fuck you!”
I spin on my heel, more than ready to get away from him, but he grabs my wrist, stopping my flight.
“Just fucking wait,” he growls.
“No. Now, get your hands off me.”
Instead of doing as I ask, he tugs me to him so that my body is flush with his. His other hand goes to my back, fingers pressing into my skin, holding me in place. The feel of his hard body against mine is painfully familiar. And an ache starts to throb deep inside of me.
My heart is beating out of my chest, and my palms are starting to sweat. Because more than anything, I want to feel his skin pressed up against mine. Every naked inch of him. I want to lick and kiss and taste every single part of him.
“I don’t want you to go with him.” His voice is low, raw.
And it exposes me.
“Yeah, well, I didn’t want you to bring Sienna here, but we don’t always get what we want.” The words are out before I can stop them.
I watch his face blank as his chin jerks back.
Mortifica
tion and regret shower down over me like a bad storm.
I shouldn’t have said that. I just basically told him how I feel in a roundabout way.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
I definitely need to get away from him—now.
As if my prayer is answered, I see a furious Sienna stomping toward us. And to be fair, she’s right to be angry. Carrick is currently pressed up against me after he left her to try to stop me from leaving with Leandro.
I’d be angry, too.
Actually, I am angry. I’m bloody furious.
He’s here with Sienna. He shouldn’t be behaving this way with me. It’s definitely a case of him having his cake and wanting to eat it.
Well, there’ll be no eating of this cake tonight. Or ever again.
I’m done.
“Speaking of your girlfriend, she’s coming over, and she doesn’t look happy.”
He doesn’t say anything. He’s just staring at me like he hasn’t even heard what I said.
“Did you hear me, Carrick? Sienna is coming over, so let me go.”
But he doesn’t let go. He just continues to stare into my eyes, and my resolve is starting to break.
“Carrick, please, you need to let me go.” My words come out in a pleading whisper.
Suddenly, his hands drop away from me like I just shocked him. His eyes are bright with a panic I don’t understand.
Without another word, I’m out of there, pushing my way through the crowd to the bar.
“All right?” Petra asks me, eyeing me carefully the instant I get to her and Leandro.
“Perfect.” I force a smile, trying to ignore the adrenaline soaring through my veins.
Then, I turn to Leandro and say, “Ready to go?”
“More than ready.” He smiles.
Resting his hand on the small of my back, he guides me out of the bar.
And I don’t look back once.
“OH MY GOD! I couldn’t believe it when that guy got up on the bar and started to strip!” Petra laughs as we stumble out of the taxi.
“That was crazy!” I laugh. “But he definitely had the body to strip.”
“Right?” Petra grins at me, flashing her eyes.
It’s two a.m., and we’re just getting back from the party that Leandro took us to.
When we arrived there, we met up with Leandro’s mechanics. They were all great guys. Petra and I had such a good time. And Leandro was awesome. I had such a laugh with him. The guy is hilarious. He kept telling me jokes and cracking me up. And you know, I didn’t once think about how hard today had been for me. Or about Carrick. And contrary to what Carrick had said, Leandro didn’t hit on me once. He was a true gentleman.