Adrenaline

“Yeah!” I shouted out as I got drenched in champagne. After being congratulated by the crew and Dalton, the media jumped in and started with all the interviews. I fucking loved it.

  My heart was still pumping hard as we did all the press photos. I felt a slap on my back as I turned to see Mr. Elliot standing there. “Malcolm, I’d like to introduce you to Trey Rogers, he’s a running back for the Dallas Cowboys and a huge fan of NASCAR. He’d love to meet you.”

  Ugh. I’d heard about this guy. He had a reputation for wanting drivers to take him out for runs. The guy was known as being a class-ass prick.

  With a smile on my face, I turned and followed my boss. I froze in place when we walked up to a small group of VIP’s. Those beautiful emerald eyes were all I could see.

  “Paislie,” I said a little too enthusiastically.

  Her eyes lit up as she flashed me a huge grin. “Congratulations, Malcolm.”

  “Do you two know each other?” the oversized guy standing there asked. Not wanting to pull my eyes off Paislie, I smiled and said, “We’re acquaintances.”

  Mr. Elliot cleared his throat and said, “Malcolm, this is Trey Rogers.”

  Moving my focus onto Trey, I reached my hand out and shook it.

  “Running back for the Cowboys?”

  His chest practically puffed out as he said, “That’s right.”

  “Man, I like the Cowboys, but I’m more of Texans fan, though,” I said with a laugh and slap on his arm.

  The guy looked tense and a little pissed off. I couldn’t decide if it was because my immediate attention was on Paislie, or the fact that I basically just told him his football team sucked.

  “Great race, dude. My girl here had her money on you.”

  Snapping my eyes back over to Paislie, I couldn’t help but notice the look she gave Trey. Either they weren’t serious enough for him to be claiming her, or she was pissed about something else. I couldn’t help the damn smile that spread over my face.

  I bet this girl was pure spit and fire.

  “You rooted for me, huh?”

  Her gaze turned to me. “I did. It was fun watching you fight for first place.”

  With a quick scan of her body, I smirked. “I usually get what I want. One way or another.”

  Her lips parted as her eyes drifted to mine. I wondered if her attraction to me was as strong as mine was to her? With the way she was eye fucking me right now I’d say the answer was yes.

  Mr. Elliot cleared his throat as he filled in the dead air space. “So, Ms.?”

  “Paislie Pruitt,” she replied with a polite smile.

  “So, Paislie, do you work for the Cowboys as well? Is that how you met Trey?” Mr. Elliot asked.

  Paislie about let out a roar of laughter. “Oh no! No sir, I don’t work for the Cowboys. I work as a physical therapist in the Dallas area.”

  I lifted my eyes. “Really? Physical therapist?” And she lived in Dallas. Fucking hell yes. This was my lucky day.

  With a nod, she replied, “Yep.”

  Trey was getting a bit upset the attention was not on him. “I thought there for a bit you weren’t going to be able to pull off a win. You pulled through at the end, though. Of course I’m sure it’s because the number seven’s tire blew.”

  I slowly looked back at Trey.

  Fucker. “That might have had something to do with it. I’d like to think it was my driving skills and the flawless car we had.”

  Trey stared me down for a good thirty seconds. “Oh, of course. Yeah.”

  Dalton walked over and bumped my arm. “Not to be rude, but it’s time for the press conference.”

  I gave him a quick head nod before turning back to Trey. Reaching my hand out, I said, “It was a pleasure meeting you. We’ll make sure you’re taken care of in April when we hit Texas Motor Speedway.”

  “Yeah, same here. I’ll be sure to hook you up with some tickets to a game, even if you are a Texans’ fan.”

  I forced a smile as I shook his hand again. Before leaving, I reached for Paislie’s hand. When her hand landed in mine, I was pretty sure we both felt the energy from that touch. Her mouth dropped open as she inhaled a quick breath. The feeling zipping through my body was a rush I’d never experienced before.

  “Paislie, it was nice bumping into you.”

  She fought to hold back her laugh as she smiled the most brilliant smile I’d ever seen. It was then I noticed she had a dimple in her left cheek and one on her chin.

  Fuck, that is cute as hell. Why was a girl like Paislie with a douche like Trey? It made no sense at all.

  “It most certainly was. Congratulations again on your win.”

  With wink, I replied, “Thank you.”

  I followed Dalton toward the press house and took a chance at glancing over my shoulder. Trey was busy talking to Mr. Elliot, but Paislie was watching me walk off.

  When she lifted her hand to wave goodbye, I lifted mine before turning back and looking straight ahead.

  Why did it feel like I was fighting for oxygen to breathe?

  One more look over my shoulder showed Paislie still watching me. My chest tightened and I wasn’t sure how I should be feeling.

  “You okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  I ran my hand through my hair and tried to understand why, for the first time in years, the smile of one girl made my heart about jump out of my chest.

  “I’m fine. Just tired,” I mumbled.

  Pulling my phone out, I texted myself a message.

  Me: Paislie Pruitt—Dallas PT

  Shoving the phone into my back pocket, I turned to Dalton. “There isn’t anyone in my bus is there?”

  Dalton frowned. “Yeah. A hot little number Tom said you had fun with earlier. You know I don’t care what happens after the race, just not before it Malcolm. I need you to stay focused.”

  Before walking up to start the interview, I hit his chest and said, “It was a moment of weakness . . . I know your rule. Get rid of her, would you? I’m tired and just want to pull out after this.”

  Dalton pulled his head back in surprise. “Um . . . okay. You sure?”

  With a pat on his shoulder, I grinned and said, “I’ve never been more sure.”

  SLIPPING INTO THE LIMO, I slid as far over to the other side as I could. Trey sat down and looked at me. “How in the fuck did you know Malcolm Wallace, and why didn’t you tell me you knew him?”

  Narrowing my eyes at him, I decided to turn this conversation around. “Who were you talking to earlier? Before we got to the track, after you gave me an orgasm?”

  His eyes filled with something I was very used to seeing. Deceit.

  “It was no one. I told you.”

  “Trey, as much as you probably don’t believe this, I’ve got good intuition and I call bullshit. Who is she?”

  He swallowed hard before laughing and trying to blow me off. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Paislie. You’re being paranoid.”

  We sat in silence as the limo drove back to Caesar’s Palace. When we pulled up to the front and the door opened, I stayed in my seat. Trey looked back at me with a confused expression.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m going to the airport.”

  His eyes grew angry. “Get the hell out of the car, Paislie. This is crazy.”

  Looking down, I took in a deep breath and slowly blew it out before glancing back up at him. “My father dropped me off at an orphanage when I was eight years old, and every time he came back into my life I hoped it was because he wanted me. It never was and I quickly learned in life to tell when a man was lying to me. You see, my father’s been doing it for years. Please send my suitcase to my house.”

  Trey stood there staring at me with a stunned expression. “Paislie, please let me explain. She’s just a girl I’ve been dating off and on and—”

  Holding my hand up, I said, “Stop. I don’t need your excuses, Trey. I need you to please make sure my stuff is sent to me.”

&nb
sp; He closed his eyes and nodded as he pushed the button to roll the privacy glass down. “Please take Ms. Pruitt to the airport.”

  Trey took one last look at me before taking a step back and shutting the door to the limo. He didn’t even try. Just like that . . . he let me go. I tried to ignore the pain in my chest. Even if I didn’t care for him, it still hurt.

  He was found out and did what they all do. Walk away.

  The moment the limo pulled away, I let my tears fall as I stared out at the Vegas lights zipping by.

  I hate men.

  The knock on my office door pulled me out of my thoughts. Turning from the window I was looking out, I called out, “Come in.”

  Stephanie, the receptionist, came walking in. “Your appointment at four canceled. And Trey called again.”

  I rolled my eyes and walked over to my desk. “Did you tell him to go fuck himself?”

  Stephanie covered her mouth and giggled. “No! But if you really want me to, that might be kind of fun.”

  With a slight smile, I shook my head. “I don’t think the other patients would take that very well if they heard you tell someone that.”

  She shrugged and silently agreed with her smile.

  “So, what did he do? I kind of thought you liked this guy. You even went to Vegas with him.”

  Picking up a chart, I acted like I was looking through it. “It wasn’t a good fit.”

  “Bummer. He was so cute. And that body!” She used her hand to fan herself. “Speaking of hot bodies, that hottie from SMU will be coming in tomorrow. Oh happy day!”

  Chuckling, I dropped the file onto my desk and shook my head at her. I worked for a large physical therapy clinic in Southlake Texas that I’d interned for and was hired on right after I finished school. It was a great place to work and I mostly dealt with athletes from Southern Methodist University.

  “Okay, so if you’re not going to give me the deets on Trey, I’ll let it slide. I wonder if he had something to do with these, though?”

  She handed me an envelope with my name written across it. “Please be Dallas tickets for this season. Oh please!” Stephanie chanted.

  Hitting her with the large manila envelope, I snickered. “Stop it.”

  Stephanie stood there and stared at me. “Well, are you going to open it?”

  With a frustrated sigh, I opened it up and dumped the contents out on my desk. Picking them up, I saw a VIP pass for Texas Motor Speedway. Smiling, I opened up the letter and read it. My mouth dropped as I sat down in my chair.

  “Oh. My. God.”

  “What is it? Paislie! What’s wrong?”

  Slowly trying to clear my head, I looked up at her and said, “They’re um . . . tickets for this weekend’s race.”

  Her lip snarled as she looked at the tickets. “NASCAR? Do you even like racing?”

  My heart felt as if it was about to burst from my chest as I looked back at the note and read it again.

  Paislie,

  Deuce requests your presence at a dinner function Thursday evening at Texas Motor Speedway.

  Enclosed you will find one all-inclusive pass for this weekend. With this pass you are able to come and go as you wish. When arriving at the speedway, please use Gate One and show them the VIP pass and let them know you are a guest of Elliot Racing.

  We really hope you can make it.

  Deuce and Malcolm

  Covering my mouth, I felt like a little girl in a candy store. “Paislie Pruitt. Are you blushing?”

  I dropped my hand and pinched my eyebrows together as I gave her a huff. “No. I’m just really surprised. How in the world did he know where I worked?”

  “Who?!” Stephanie exclaimed.

  “Malcolm Wallace. He’s a driver . . . a um . . . a NASCAR driver.”

  Crossing her arms over her chest she asked, “And how do you know a NASCAR driver? Oh my god . . . first a Dallas football player and now this! Where are you going to meet these guys?”

  With a dry laugh, I stood and started to usher her out of my office. “We’ll talk about it later. Right now I have a phone call to make.”

  She grabbed onto the door jam and held on for dear life. “With who? Him? The driver? Is he cute? Hotter than Trey?”

  Placing my hand on her forehead, I pushed her out of the way and shut the door as she called out, “I’m googling him right now!”

  I picked the letter back up and took in a deep breath while I reached for my cell phone. My hand was shaking as I dialed the number.

  “Jesus H. Christ, what in the hell is wrong with me? He probably thinks he’s going to get lucky or something. Like all of them.”

  The thought of Malcolm only wanting to see me for sex hurt more than it made me angry. I practically broke the glass on my phone hitting the numbers as I dialed him.

  “This is, Malcolm.”

  My body melted as did all the anger I felt. For Pete’s sake, what is wrong with me? Oh, I know what’s wrong . . . I’d fuck this guy just to hear that voice whisper in my ear.

  Looking upward, I mouthed, forgive me father.

  “Hello?”

  “Malcolm? Hi, it’s um . . . it’s Paislie. Paislie Pruitt.”

  “Paislie, how are you?”

  I could hear the smile in his voice as I grinned from ear to ear. I felt like a teenage girl talking to her crush.

  “Well, I’m a bit surprised by a package I received today. How in the world did you know where I worked?”

  Malcolm let out a soft, yet deep laugh. “Let’s just say I had to do my homework. And when I talked to Trey Rogers he happened to mention he was no longer seeing you and might have let it slip where you worked.”

  Rolling my eyes, I mumbled, “Figures.”

  “Sorry, what was that?”

  I waved my hand as if he could see me. “Nothing, sorry.”

  “So?”

  Chewing nervously on my lip, I replied back with my own, “So?”

  He let out a small chuckle as he said, “Will you be able to make it at least for dinner?”

  My finger moved over the handwritten note. “With Deuce? Your boxer, right?”

  “That’s right.”

  I wanted to giggle, but I stayed strong. “Is he looking for a casual evening or would I have to dress up? I’m not much of a formal kind of girl.”

  “Totally casual. He’s super easy to please.”

  A thought occurred to me as my smile faded. “Um . . . will Trey be there as well?”

  There was silence followed by, “Fuck no, that asshole isn’t going to be there.”

  Oh God . . . why did that turn me on.

  “Then count me in.”

  “Perfect! How about seven?”

  I chewed on my thumbnail as I quickly thought this through. Hadn’t I just given up on men again, and now I’m planning on meeting one for dinner? Of course, I’m really having dinner with his dog.

  Frowning, I hit my palm on my forehead. Get it together, Paislie.

  “Go to Gate One you said?”

  “Yes. Show the security guard your pass and I’ll be sure to let him know where to bring you.”

  Covering my mouth to hold my silly excitement in, I tried to respond like this was just another night and nothing special about it. “Sounds good. I’ll see ya Thursday.”

  “Perfect! See ya then, Paislie.”

  My stomach jumped as I placed my hand on it. “Okay, see ya then.”

  Once I hit End, I dragged in a few deep breaths as I placed my hands on my desk.

  “Holy hells bells,” I said as I started laughing. I’d only talked to this man twice and yet each time he brought out emotions I’d never before experienced in my life. I wasn’t sure if I should be thrilled beyond belief, or scared shitless.

  Either way, I was counting down the hours until I got to see him again.

  WITH A TOWEL WRAPPED AROUND my waist, I walked out of the bathroom only to find Ashley standing in my kitchen.

  Fuck.

  “Ash?”

/>   She spun around and raked her eyes over my body before looking back up at me. “Hey. I see you’re still looking fine as ever.”

  “Um . . . what are you doing here?”

  She leaned back against the counter and looked at me with a serious look as she leaned in closer and stared hard. Her mouth dropped open as she gasped. “Oh my God. You met someone!”

  My head pulled back in shock. “What?”

  Pointing her finger at me, a huge smile moved over her face. “You. Met. Someone.”

  Right about that time, the door to the bus opened and Autumn came bouncing in. “Hey, big brother! Did we surprise you?”

  I looked between Autumn and Ashley. “How . . . how did y’all meet up? I’m so damn confused.”

  Ashley laughed and said, “I left my little black dress at your ranch a few months back. Remember after that night of fun in Dallas and we went back to the ranch?”

  I nodded my head. “Well, I needed it and I called the main number thinking Clarisse would answer, but Autumn did instead. We got to talking and found out we had a lot in common.”

  I wrinkled my forehead as I looked between them. “Okay, so you both decided to come to the race together?”

  Autumn chuckled. “I’ve never missed one of your Texas races, and I don’t plan on it now. I asked Ashley if I could stay at her place this weekend. Sophie is staying with Mom and Pop.”

  Ashely wiggled her eyebrows. “We’re having a girls’ weekend.”

  I raked my hand through my wet hair. “This is . . . weird.”

  “Why? Because we used to be fuck buddies and now I’m friends with your sister?”

  Autumn set her bag on the counter and mumbled, “Gross, visual not needed.”

  “Wait!! Back to what we were talking about. You met someone didn’t you?”

  Autumn sucked in a breath. “W-what! You’re dating someone?”

  “No!” I said as I shook my head. “And no I haven’t met anyone, Ash.”

  She walked closer to me and I wondered where that familiar pull was that I used to get around her. Any time I ever saw her I only had one thing on my mind. Sex. The only thing on my mind now was how to get her and my sister off of my bus.

  Ashley smiled and slowly shook her head. “I see it in your eyes, Wallace. You met someone.”