by Jenni Linn
A group of guys are moving in our direction--Dixon at the front. I haven't seen Dixon around for a while, and though it's been at least a week since his and my brothers’ fight, his face is still showing signs of bruising. Vance's face has cleared up, so when Vance said Dixon was worse off, he wasn't lying. Dixon's eyes move to me, and they narrow. He's always been an asshole, but most of the time, he's joking around. This is the first time I'm frightened of him. I take a step back and put myself into the center of our group.
“You should thank me, Dick! I think I made your face more appealing,” Vance calls out. Jeez, Vance!
Dixon's eyes move from me to Vance. He cracks a smile and it's not a friendly one. He stops a couple feet away from our group. “What do you want?” Vance asks.
“Your car,” is all Dixon says.
Vance bursts out in laughter. “My car? Fuck you. You're not getting my car.”
'We race...” he pauses, “for slips.” That's pretty ballsy, and cocky. It's rare when anyone races for slips; it's something you usually only see in movies. So, to say I'm shocked is an understatement. Vance's silence pulls my attention towards him. His eyes are narrowed. He cannot be thinking about doing this. He's not that stupid. Dixon has to be up to something.
“I don't want your piece of shit.” Vance throws out. “I'll pass.” I feel myself relax.
Dixon smiles then turns to the guy next to him. “See Zach, I told you he was a pussy.” Zach and all the guys around them laugh.
“Yeah, you were right,” Zach agrees with Dixon. They're trying to get under Vance's skin.
“You're a stupid fuck, Dixon.” Vance spits, “Didn't you learn your lesson?”
“It's easy to overpower a drunk guy. Let’s let our cars do the talking this time.”
“I think my fists spoke volumes. Get the fuck out of here,” Vance dismisses Dixon, whose eyes are still slits; this clearly isn't what he expected. It's not what I expected either, and I'm quite proud of my brother. Dixon moves closer to Vance, who remains on guard. “You'll be sorry,” Dixon hisses then continues walking past with his friends following behind, looking smug.
“Jeez,” I mutter.
“Yeah, that was intense,” Taylor agrees.
“Pussy? Me?” Vance laughs. “I love pussy, but I definitely ain't one.”
“Ew,” I whine and turn to look down at the lineup. I don’t see Chase's Z or the black Camaro, so I tug on Tay's shirt. “I think Chase is coming up.” I move towards the fence, allowing myself to see around the bend. Kyle's Camaro is about four cars back.
The car at the line begins to roar as if it were to take off, but remains in place. Smoke pours from the rear tires and within seconds the line is engulfed in gray smoke. The crowd cheers on as the driver continues to let loose and drive down the track; the smoke billowing out everywhere. The smell of burning rubber is inescapable. The track officials clear the track and start hosing it down.
With a little bit of time to spare until Chase and Kyle race, Taylor and I decide to move back to the group. Vance is occupied with the girl he has pinned against his car. Vaughn's arm is wrapped around another chick, and I can see his mouth forming words into her ear.
I lean into Tay. “This is like an opening of a bad porno.”
Taylor laughs. “Those girls may be your saving grace tonight.”
“How so?”
“They occupy your brothers and then you're free to be with your man.”
I grab her arm in excitement, “Oh shit, Tay. You are so right!”
She throws her blonde locks over her shoulder, “I know, I'm a genius.”
“You so are!”
“Are what?” Wes asks when we join him and Vin, along with some others.
“A genius.” Taylor smiles at Wes and leans into him.
He smiles down at her with a, “You are, baby,” and leans forward to capture her lips with his. And then there's tongue. Looking away now. So while they add to the whole ‘porno’ vibe, I move back to the fence to wait for Chase. I grab onto the chain-linking and once I reach it, a little Honda Civic, and a BMW 3 series lineup. I scoff. This is an easy win. Seconds later the BMW is off, but the Civic remains at the line. No way. I blink once and then the Civic is off; catching up the BMW easily.
“Whoa,” I whisper to myself. Watching the little Honda fly down the track and pass the beamer was insane! The numbers flash up on the board above. The Civic ran a low nine; quite impressive. I glance back down at the track as another set moves up. Chase is one set away. I turn towards the group and wave my hands to grab their attention. A small gust of wind rushes by as the next set of cars move down the track. Wes notices me first. “They're coming up!” I yell.
It takes him a few tries to get Vance to part from the girl he’s with. I cringe, but remind myself it's a good thing. I turn away when he pulls her back to his front, but not before I catch him nip at her ear.
The next two cars zoom by and Chase's Z moves forward, along with Kyle's Camaro. I bounce with excitement and a small smile spreads upon my lips at the thought of Chase racing. That's my man!
The group joins me at the fence just as they take off. It’s only seconds until they're off the line. Their exhausts are roaring as they press on the gas, only pausing as they shift gears. Chase is off the line first--giving him a good lead--but the Camaro catches up easily. The Z jolts as Chase shifts. He's losing ground but not by much. They're neck and neck as they zoom by us. Vance is yelling, “Yeah, baby!” The cars disappear until they’re specks, and then their times appear above.
“WHOO!” Vance yells.
“Damn, that is an awesome time!” Wes comments.
I glance back at them both. Vance is all smiles and Wes looks impressed. I think we're all shocked at how well the Z did. We all move to greet the guys, who pull up just as we make it back to our cars. Kyle comes bounding from his car as soon as he's parked. There’s a massive smile on his face; it's contagious. “That was fucking amazing!” He holds up the time slip. “I want to do it again!”
Chase exits his car and joins up.
“Did I win?” Kyle asks excitedly. It's pretty adorable; looks like we've nabbed another one. Vance moves towards Kyle. “Chase had you off the line, which gave him a better reaction time. That’s what you need.” Kyle's smile falters slightly, and he looks down at his slip.
“But I was faster?”
“In the end? Yeah,” I tell him, and his smile returns.
“Sweet!” he looks up, “I wanna go again. Who's with me?” He looks around and ends on me. “C'mon, V!”
“What? For real?”
“Yeah, I'll even let you win,” he says playfully, and I roll my eyes.
It takes me a second to answer. “Alright. I'm in.”
Kyle jumps up, and he takes off towards his car. I laugh at his eagerness. Taylor pats me on the back, and everyone else throws out words of encouragement. I allow myself to steal a glance at Chase, who gives me two thumbs up. I know that he’s mimicking me but he adds in his signature wink. Oh.
As soon as I get in my car and start the engine, my heart begins to pound. “You got this, V.” I repeat the words as I reverse out of my spot. Thankfully, I wasn't hurt when my car broke down, but it was extremely intimidating. That shit stays with you. Kyle's Camaro is idling ahead; he’s waiting for me to line up next to him. We move up into the queue line and wait. In my peripheral vision I can see a lot of movement, so I look to my right, thinking that Kyle is trying to get my attention. Nope. Kyle is full-on headbanging, and I burst out laughing. He smiles, and I just shake my head. This kid.
One by one we move up until we're next. I put on my face mask and then my helmet. I glance back over at Kyle who now has his hand out of the window with his pointer and pinky fingers up in the ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ sign. The cars ahead of us take off down the track. The officials motion us forward, so I give my car some gas and coast up until the front tires align perfectly into the duvet. Kyle moves a little too far up, and the guy w
aves him back. I giggle a little then get myself into focus. Deep breaths. In. Out.
Amber.
Amber.
Go!
Without thought, my hands and feet move on their own. My engine roars, and I slam it into second. It howls in each gear until I've hit my last. I focus ahead--even though I can see Kyle has the lead--I'm right on his ass. This is extremely satisfying.
We cross the finish line, and I remove my foot from the gas, allowing my car to slow and downshift. I made it! My car didn't break, and it ran amazingly! I yell out in excitement. I move the car around the bend at the end of the lane and pull up behind Kyle at the booth to grab my time slip.
“Nice run!” the guy tells me, and I thank him.
I pull up beside Kyle's Camaro and jump out once I pull my key out of the ignition. Everyone greets me, and Chase pulls me into a hug but breaks away quickly--to my displeasure. Vance pulls me into his side. “That was great! How did it feel?” he asks.
“Awesome!” I gush.
“I'm so proud of you!” he squeezes me, then releases me from his grasp. Even though I initially had no intention of racing, I'm so glad that I did it.
“That was so hot!” Kyle says and everyone stops to looks at him. “What?” he puts his hands up in surrender.
“You seem cool, but she's off-limits,” Vance informs him.
“Oh, is she with you?” he looks between me and Vance. I begin to gag as Vance yells out, “Fuck no.” He moves away from me at record speed. “No, bro, no. V's my sister.”
“Oh,” Kyle laughs, “My bad.”
A loud car pulls up behind my RSX and Kyle's Camaro and all our attention turns to the car as the tinted window slides down. “Yo man, let's do this.” The guy yells out. I glance back at my brothers, and it's Wes who's moving into action. This must be his first race of the night.
Wes rushes off and the group lingers around. Kyle gets Vance to go for a run and--just after they leave--I feel hands upon my hips. “I have to agree with Kyle. That was hot,” Chase says in my ear, causing me to bite my lip.
“Oh yeah?” I turn around to face him and his hands fall to his side.
“Oh, yeah,” he confirms. His gaze moves from my lips to my eyes as he takes a step closer. “If we weren't standing here surrounded by all these people, I'd show you.”
I clench my legs together. Yes, please! My expression must tell him what I'm thinking because he pulls me flush to him. My hands instinctively go to his chiseled chest and his breath tickles my ear as he whispers, “Later. I promise.” My hands pull his shirt into tight fists. He laughs as he tries to remove them.
“You have to let go.” I loosen my grasp, and he takes a step back.
I pull myself together and look around quickly; everyone has moved to the fence. “You can't make promises like that. Now I'm all excited.” His eyes widen at that, and he shifts on his feet. Ha! Two can play this game. I flash my teeth at him.
“Fuck.” I hear him mutter.
“I know…” This time I move to him, getting super close and personal to tease him.
“What?” he asks.
“Let's race…”
Cosmo
Veronica smiles wickedly before turning to run to her car. I am definitely looking forward to ‘later’. My mind begins to wander but, thankfully, the sound of the car's exhaust pulls me from my thoughts. I bound to my car and quickly jump into the driver’s seat, turning over the ignition and reversing out of the spot.
As soon as I pull up next to Veronica's RSX, my eyes find hers. I can't help but think how beautiful she is. She blows me a kiss and then her car moves forward. Such a tease. I cannot wait to get my lips on her. Also my hands...and my tongue. My pants are becoming tight. I guide my car up until we're beside each other again.
Slowly, set by set, we move forward until we're up next. I'm super stoked to be doing this, and not just because it's racing--it’s racing with my girl. There are two kinds of girls; one that sits with you, or one that cheers you on. Both are great, but V? She's a unique kind all her own, and it's quickly become my favorite kind.
Movement in front of me snaps me out of my thoughts--a man is waving me forward. I quickly comply. I eagerly prepare myself. V's engine roars next to me just as the first light on the tree flashes. Then the second blazes, followed by the third. In milliseconds, it's green and I'm on the gas. The car launches forward. I shift into second as soon as I hit the rev line and quickly glance to my right. I don't see V's car.
The gentlemanly thing to do is to let her win, but she'd know. She’s very competitive and she would never be happy with it. So, I give it my all and make it my goal to do better than the last time. I shift into the fifth and final gear and press my foot down on the gas pedal without removing any pressure until I cross the finish line. Once my car crosses the line indicating the end of the track, I let off the pedal and apply the brakes--shifting down into each gear until I approach the booth. I glance up into my rearview mirror and Veronica is right behind me. I move around the bend and drive up towards our spot and park my car next to Vance's; V does the same.
We get out at the same time, and the whole group moves towards us, giving us words of encouragement. I move closer to V, “Could you see?” I ask, teasing her.
Her eyebrows furrow in confusion. “What?”
“With all that dust I kicked up? Could you see? I smoked you!” I joke.
Her eyes instantly narrow at me, and she pushes my shoulder. “You jerk,” Her hands go to her hips, “I'll have you know, I was right next to you!”
“It's okay, we can't all be winners.” I continue to poke at her.
“Keep it up. You'll be going to bed alone tonight.” Her eyes scan our surroundings as if she forgot herself. I barely care anymore.
My face to hers, “You're up here,” I point to my temple, “I won't be alone.”
Her face softens, “I hate you,” she whispers with a playful smile.
I wink at her, “Whatever you say.” I move away from her as Taylor comes to her side.
She purrs, “What are you two up to?” Her eyes move between us.
My eyes remain on Veronica as I answer, “Nothing, yet.” I smirk and join the guys standing towards the front of Wes'car.
The night continues smoothly, and it's a great time for us all. Wes wins money, I kill Vance in a race, and V is all smiles--that’s my favorite part. “Alright folks, it's been a great season,” The male voice speaks to the crowd from the call box, “Again, we appreciate your support and hope to see you next May. Y'all don't have to go home, but ya gotta get up outta here! Goodnight!”
People begin to scatter out, walking to their cars.
“We going to the diner?” Wes looks around as he asks.
Vance is busy sucking face with the girl that's been on his arm all night and he breaks away for a second to answer. “They don't have anything I'm hungry for.” He bites at the girls' lip.
Kyle walks around the group and shakes hands with everyone. He hugs V, and my eyes catch something he slips into her hand. She looks down as he moves away to his car, and I move up behind her. There’s a number written on the slip. I laugh low in her ear and reach around to grab it from her. “You won't be needing that.” I crumble it up and shove it in my pocket.
“I don't know,” she says turning around to face me. “The guy I'm dating is being a jerk.”
“Hmm, I think he will make it up to you.”
She smirks. “He better.”
“I'll meet you at my place,” I whisper in her ear.
Forty minutes later, I pull into my driveway. V's car appears not long after and I'm already out of my car and leaning against my rear bumper. As soon as she's within reach, I pull her to me and my lips crash onto hers. Our tongues meet, and it's oh-so-sweet. She shivers, and I don't know if it's from us or the cool night air. I rub my hands along her arms, hoping to bring her some warmth. Our mouths slow, and I reluctantly break away from her. “I've wanted to do that all night,”
I tell her, “Let's get inside.” I grab her hand and pull her with me to the front door.
“Are your parents’ home?” she asks.
“No idea.” I don’t notice any cars, but I'm sure some could be tucked away in the garage. I fucking pray no one is home because I want to hear V screaming my name later. As we enter the house, all seems quiet, and I can assume no one is present. “Doesn't seem like anyone's here.”
We move up to my room, but just before entering, I turn and pick Veronica up. She squeals out in surprise, “What are you doing?!” I waltz into my room and close my door with my foot before crossing to my bed. I toss V onto my mattress, and the sight of her on it instantly has me hard. She leans up and grabs me by my shirt, pulling me to her. I place my arms on either side of her, not wanting to completely suffocate her. She doesn't give me any time. Her mouth is on mine. Her kiss is searing. Her legs wrap around my waist which rubs her groin right against my dick. A soft moan vibrates through V, and I can tell she enjoyed that as much as I did. She does it again, and I can feel everything tighten. If she does that a couple more times, I may end up releasing early. This is something I've never experienced before. I pull my lips from hers and move down her jaw, and even lower onto her neck. She rolls her hips again, and this time it's me who's moaning. “Baby,” I whisper.
“Yeah,” her voice is soft.
“You gotta stop doing that, or this will end sooner than I'd like.” The wicked girl does it again and laughs. “You evil tease.” I lift my weight off of her and my dick is throbbing. She tightens her legs around me and pulls me back to her but her lips nip at my ear.
“I want to make you feel good,” she whispers. It's so fucking sexy. My head drops onto her shoulder. Her hands move down to my pants. Before I know it she’s unzipping them and reaching inside. Her hand reaches around my shaft, and I groan at the contact.
“Fuck.” I hiss.
Her legs loosen from around my waist, and with her free hand, she pushes me until I'm on my back. She pulls my pants and boxers from around my hips, down my legs, and throws them on the floor. Her eyes widen, and then she licks her lips as her hand grabs me again. She begins to stroke. I moan out, letting her know how good it feels.