Revolution: A Driven World Novel (The Driven World)
Page 37
Those were the final words he spoke to me, sealing them to my lips with a hard kiss before my helmet was on and he was locking it into place.
It was a kiss that would cause questions. Questions the press would flock to me and ask once the race was over.
But I didn’t care about their questions—because I had all the answers I needed.
Climbing over the screen, I slid into my seat, heart pounding as I tugged on my checkered gloves with a small smile no one could see.
Garret’s words lingered in my mind throughout the rest of the week while we frantically got Donavan’s spare engine into our car. But he did it. And instead of increasing anxiety as race day approached, I grew calmer.
This was where I was meant to be.
This was who I was meant to be here with.
And now, the moment had finally come. The Indianapolis 500. The greatest auto race in the world.
Three-hundred-thousand people packed into the speedway to watch a race that began more than a century ago. A race that didn’t include a woman for over half of that period.
And though it might be one of the oldest races in the country, it was entering a new era with each woman who fought to drive it.
This whole time, I thought I was fighting to win. Garret made me see that I won just by racing.
It was never about the checkered flag at the end of two hundred laps. It was these checkered flags right here—the ones on my hands—the ones that meant I was here, driving for my dream—that mattered.
Gripping the wheel tight, I settled back into the seat and closed my eyes. Deep breaths settled into my lungs like fuel waiting to be ignited.
I knew better than most how one moment could change everything. One reaction. One turn. One bump. One mile per hour. It easily altered the course of the future.
And this week had been a series of life-altering moments.
One confession. One engine. One love.
My future was forever changed. And instead of seeing this race as the end of something like I had when I accepted Renner’s offer, it was now the beginning.
I opened my eyes as my pulse steadied, knowing the starting command was coming.
There was a tapping on my right and my attention snapped to the side windshield.
Garret was holding his phone up to the clear window, Claire’s smile beaming at me from the video call.
We’d called her several times throughout the week. She wanted to be here watching so badly, and even though she was doing so much better, it was still too soon. First, I promised her I’d find a way to get her in the car with me today—something she was skeptical about. Then, I promised her that next year she’d be here, standing right where Garret was now.
It was a promise on both our parts—to fight to get better. To fight to be here.
I laughed, feeling tears slide down my cheeks as she jumped and waved from her bed, her cap today decorated with checkered black and white and my number on the side. Janet smiled next to her on the bed and I caught the way she subtly mouthed ‘thank you.’
With a nod, I lifted my right hand, showing off Garret’s expert needlework skills when I’d asked him to sew the number seven—Claire’s number—onto my glove. I’d told her I’d find a way to get her in the car with me. And then I held up my pointer finger, watching as she did the same.
I was her number one. And his.
But for the race? I was the only one.
And then the announcement came.
Maybe I should’ve hoped Tony George would use ‘drivers’ like he had in the past. But when he didn’t, I felt a swell of pride.
“Lady and gentlemen, start your engines.”
Lady. And gentlemen.
Because I was a lady. And a driver.
And I didn’t need to compromise on one to further the other.
The car rumbled around me as Garret started my engine, the loud roar like an army I was leading into battle.
And then we were off.
REVOLUTION.
One circle.
One lap that brought me back to where I started. At a track. With a car. At the end of a race.
But one revolution had taken me through so many things—experiences, people, emotions—that I no longer saw those same laps, that same car, nor that race the way I did at the start.
And maybe that was the greatest revolution of all—never being able to return to the same place twice.
Life, experiences, love…they all shaped us around the path, and when we returned to where we began, it was impossible for it to look the same.
It was impossible for us to look at ourselves the same.
Earlier, seven-thousand RPMs had come easily with Donavan’s engine.
The car stuck to the ground like my grit glued the tires to the track. Each turn sucked me in and spit me out faster than I’d anticipated. And each straight felt like a runaway—a launchpad with the car moving like a rocket about to take off.
On lap eleven, I crested over two-hundred-forty mph—surpassing the race record of two-hundred-thirty-nine-point-nine.
On lap fifty-eight, I powered into the top ten.
It wasn’t just me and the car that worked like one machine, it was the whole crew. Each pit to refuel or change tires was an example in pit perfection.
But that was what happened when everyone just wanted to get me back out onto that track.
On lap one-hundred-ten, Puglisi crashed into the wall after trying to edge out one of Donavan’s drivers like he had at Daytona while trying to catch up to me.
On lap one-hundred-sixty, I moved into position five.
No woman had ever made it above six before.
And on lap two-hundred, when the checkered flag came out…well…
Numbers didn’t matter as long as you didn’t give up.
And from where I was now, with Garret by my side as he pulled me from the car, the cheers and earth-quaking excitement detonating around us, I wasn’t thinking about third. There was no denying I’d set new records and made new waves. No denying that there were new dreams and new goals waiting for me on the track.
But they were the last things on my mind at that moment.
Because there was no denying I looked at myself and my situation differently.
There was no denying I looked at my world better.
Better because he was in it.
Better because I was where I was meant to be.
Want to keep up with all of the other books in K. Bromberg’s Driven World?
You can visit us anytime at www.kbworlds.com and the best way to stay up to date on all of our latest releases and sales, is to sign up for our official KB Worlds newsletter HERE.
Are you interested in reading the bestselling books that inspired the Driven World? You can find them HERE.
If you loved Revolution…
Here are my recommendations based on what you might have loved most!
If you enjoyed reading about a female race car driver, check out my steamy romcom, Fastest Girl in Town, featuring a female NASCAR driver with a speeding habit and a sexy Sheriff determined to keep her in line!
If you love stories with unique female leads, I’ve also got Tequila, featuring a female fighter pilot, and Reputation, featuring a female pop star!
If you loved the enemies-to-lovers push and pull, check out my Odyssey Duet starting with The Fall of Troy! This is a smokin’ hot student-professor forbidden romance!
And if you want to read Gwen’s story, check out my emotional and heartwarming small-town Carmel Cove series! The series starts with Beholden and Gwen’s book will be coming soon!
Standalones
Reputation
Redemption
Revolution (A Driven World Novel)
Carmel Cove Series
Beholden
Bespoken (Coming September 2020)
Besotted (January 2021)
Befallen (Spring 2021)
The Odyssey Duet
The Fall of Troy
/> The Judgment of Paris
Country Love Collection
Tequila
Ready to Run
Fastest Girl in Town
Last Name
I’ll Be Your Santa Tonight
Winter Games Series
Up in the Air
On the Edge
Enjoy the Ride
In Too Deep
Over the Top
The Gentlemen’s Guild Series
The Artist’s Touch
The Sculptor’s Seduction
The Painter’s Passion
The Passion & Perseverance Trilogy
(A Pride and Prejudice Retelling)
First Impressions
Second Chances
Third Time is the Charm
Besotted (January 2021)
Want to #staysharp with everything that’s coming?
Join my newsletter!
To Mr. GQ – Always for you, babe.
To Brandy – Thank you for always being my sounding board. Sorry for making you cry.
To Kassa, Katie, Karina, Jaime, and Jayce – You guys are the real MVPs for this one! Thank you for devouring this one for me. You’re the best!
To Tara – Thanks for always letting me bounce things off of you and for being the sweetest.
To Najla - Thank you for always striving to bring my vision perfectly to life.
To Ellie, Rosa, and Stacey - Thank you for stepping up and making this baby perfect!
To all the Bloggers - Thank you. A million times. For every little thing.
To Kristy– Thank you for this opportunity. For the chance to write in your world. For the chance to bring this story to life. And thank you for being the person you are, your kindness, compassion, and care when organizing all of this and being open to everything is unmatched.
And, of course, to my loyal Readers—Thank you always for all of your support! Once again, I hope you enjoy where this crazy road is taking us!
Hey there!
So, you want to know a little bit about me and my writing? Awesome! Even though I write *a lot*… writing about myself always proves to be difficult. I wonder if my ‘About Me’ could just consist of memes… that would be fantastic!
Alright, let’s give this a go. First and foremost, I should warn you that I have a serious obsession with coffee. If you’ve already found my Instagram, you know this. Other things I love? Wine. Friends (the real ones and the TV show), laughing so hard I cry, painting, snowboarding, cooking, traveling, reading, and, of course, writing. OH, and Disney movies.
Rebecca Sharp is a pen name. One of these days maybe I’ll include my real name at the end of a book or something. Anyway, I’m also a dentist living in PA with my amazing husband who we affectionately refer to as Mr. GQ.
Okay, okay. That’s enough about me. Let’s move onto my books. I (currently) write contemporary and new adult romances. My first book was published in the Fall of 2016 and I haven’t slowed down since. I love strong heroines and bad boys that turn out to be good men. There will always be a happy ending because I just can’t stomach anything else. Let’s see… Happily Ever Afters? Check. Hot alphas? Check. Feisty heroines? Check.
Oh! And I love hearing from readers! I really, really do. I’ve been so blessed to make so many friendships through this whole adventure and I would love to meet you and chat with you! How to go about that? Well, you have a ton of options!
If you just want to be emailed with cover reveals, new releases, etc. sign up for my mailing list on my website here. I also host a giveaway in there every month that is exclusive to subscribers, so be sure to check it out: www.drrebeccasharp.com
If you want to see hilarious coffee memes, wine memes, life memes, interspersed with book teasers and info, Follow me on Instagram here: www.instagram.com/drrebeccasharp
If you want all of that good stuff, but on Facebook, as well as the ability to message me privately, go ahead and follow my Facebook page here: www.facebook.com/drrebeccasharp
If you love my work and want the inside scoop on my books, upcoming releases, secret projects, and exclusive giveaways, join my Sexy Little Sharpies reader group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1539118689482683/
And as always, you can follow me on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/drrebeccasharp) and Amazon (http://amzn.to/2n8ffbK) to stay updated that way with new releases and info.
I’m pretty sure at any of those places you have the option to message me in some way or another so feel free to do it! You can also just email me directly at author@drrebeccasharp.com!
Happy reading, loves!
xx
Rebecca
Driven
Fueled
Crashed
Raced
Aced
Slow Burn
Sweet Ache
Hard Beat
Down Shift
UnRaveled
Sweet Cheeks
Sweet Rivalry
The Player
The Catch
Cuffed
Combust
Cockpit
Control
Faking It
Resist
Reveal
Then You Happened
Hard to Handle