Burndown (Nitro Crew Book 1)

by Winter Travers

  The light flashed green, and Brooks was off the line, but it was too close to tell if he had the faster reaction time. Both cars took off from the line, neck and neck.

  “Holy cow,” Meg explained. “You couldn’t even tell who won,” she gasped. “It was like one person was driving both cars.”

  It had been a quick and close race. The times for both lanes flashed on the screen. “Yes!” I shouted. Brooks had won by four tenths of a second. It was basically by the skin of his nose, but it was a win.

  Meg jumped up from the couch and pumped her fist in the air. “Hell yeah!” She held up her hand for Lo to high-five.

  He smacked it with a huge grin on his face. “They won, babe.” Meg and Lo both beamed with pride at the fact Remy had been working on the car that had just won the Brighton Classic.

  Cummings Racing had managed to make it to the big show and bring home the win. “That was so close,” I mumbled.

  There had been no way to tell who had won with the naked eye. It was a good thing they had everything digital and timed.

  “Well, now that is over, I can think about what we are going to have for dinner.” Meg grabbed the four empty beer bottles and two empty wine cooler bottles. Meg and Lo both had opted to have a little hair of the dog to help counteract their hangovers, but I knew water was going to be my safest bet.

  “Tacos.”

  “We had tacos last Tuesday, Lo.”

  He looked up at her. “Not sure what your point is, babe. I want tacos. Lots of them.”

  I had to admit, tacos sounded pretty good. The nausea from too much booze last night was gone, and I needed to work on fueling up my body again. Tacos seemed like a good place to start.

  Meg threw her hands up in the air. “It’s amazing I get any say on what we have for dinner,” she grumbled.

  “She complains like she is annoyed by the fact she needs to cook. It’s all a damn act,” Lo informed me.

  “You know,” Meg called. “Just because I went to culinary school doesn’t mean I want to cook all of the damn time.”

  “Then what exactly does it mean?” Lo asked.

  She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She closed it and tried again. “It means…I like to cook.”

  Lo lowered his head and looked at me. “You wanna make dinner with me since Meg went to culinary school and likes to cook, but doesn’t want to cook?”

  Cooking wasn’t one of my strong points. I could make some basic things, and I hadn’t killed anyone with my cooking. “Uh, I can help. I normally just cook for myself or order in.” Cooking for one was hard sometimes. When all I needed was a plate of food and most recipes made enough for four or six, I sometimes just ordered from a restaurant what I would have spent time making and then just thrown away half of it.

  Meg pointed a finger at Lo. “Sit your ass down. You are not cooking in my kitchen, because I don’t feel like cleaning it for an hour after you are done.”

  He held up his hands and smiled. “I was just trying to help you out, babe.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Suuure,” she drawled. “I will take her help, though.” She looked over at me and smiled. “I can give you the recipe for my tacos. Remy loves them.”

  I stood, holding the blanket up in front of me, and quickly folded it.

  “You gonna give her the recipe to your Taco Night tacos?” Lo asked.

  “Yeah. Although, those aren’t what we’re having tonight because you didn’t let me know three days ago you wanted tacos,” Meg huffed.

  “You need three days’ notice for tacos?” I asked. That seemed like a long time out to know what you wanted to eat.

  “For the ones Meg makes, yeah. Once you have them, you’ll know what I’m talking about darlin’.” Lo sprawled out on the couch and pointed the remote at the TV. “Tonight, we get her regular tacos, which aren’t really regular at all. She makes her own seasoning mix for them. Way better than the stuff in the package.”

  “Come on, Harlyn. We can drink wine coolers and make tacos.” She walked into the kitchen and dumped the empty bottles into the trash.

  I spent the rest of the night getting schooled in the ways of tacos from scratch and hearing tales about Remy from his youth.

  I never would have thought I would like Remy’s mom as much as I did. I had dated guys before and met their parents, but it had always been “hi, nice to meet you,” and “bye.” Spending a full weekend with Meg was unexpected, but it wasn’t anything I would change.

  I was falling for Remy, and I was also falling for his family.

  *

  Chapter 25

  Remy

  She changed the locks.

  Fuck.

  I tried my key one last time, but the damn thing didn’t budge.

  “Christ on a cracker,” I mumbled.

  It was half past three, and I was dog tired.

  After the race, Jay somehow talked Roc into letting some of us pack up early and head back. After a four hour ride back to Leeds Square where we unpacked the truck, I hopped into my car and made the trek to Rockton.

  Now it was four hours later, and I was standing on my mom’s porch, trying to figure out how to break in. The thing about breaking in was, I was likely to wake up Lo, who would greet me with a gun pointed at my head before he asked questions. He wouldn’t shoot, but I really didn’t need that warm greeting from him.

  I had tried calling Harlyn twice, but she hadn’t answered. The girl was dead to the world when she slept. My next option was calling my mom.

  “You know what time it is, boy?”

  I jumped ten feet in the air and spun around to see Lo standing at the bottom of the porch steps. “What the hell?”

  “Heard someone trying to turn the door handle. I didn’t want to wake up Meg or Harlyn so I snuck out the back.”

  “At least you don’t have a gun pointed at me.”

  Lo raised his hand from his side with the gun in it. “I did until I figured out it was you.”

  “I wouldn’t have this problem if you guys hadn’t changed the locks.”

  Lo turned and motioned for me to follow him. “You can blame that on your mother. She went out with Cyn and Paige a month ago. When I woke up, the door handle was sitting on the kitchen counter and the front door was barricaded with two stools in front of it. Your mom plead the fifth. That’s one story I haven’t been able to get out of her.”

  We made our way around the house and up the stairs to the back door. “Have you ever thought of just putting a leash on her? That way, she can do crazy shit, but you can still keep track of her.”

  Lo laughed and held open the door for me. “You should know by now, your mom can’t be leashed. She’s just having fun and not really hurting anything.” He closed the door behind us and locked it.

  I dropped my duffle bag next to the washing machine and kicked off my shoes. “Bed and door knob, Lo, just to name two things she’s hurt.”

  He waved me off. “And all things I can fix. We have a new key for you. We just haven’t seen you to actually give it to you. Your mom can give it to you in the morning.”

  “Sounds good.” I didn’t get to my mom’s often anymore, but it was nice to have a key. “I’m wiped, man. I’ve been driving since four-thirty this afternoon.”

  Lo clapped me on the shoulder. “Get some sleep. You know your mom is gonna freak when she wakes up and sees that you’re here already.”

  That she was. I bid goodnight to Lo and tiptoed to my room, careful to not to wake up my mom.

  I pushed open my bedroom door and quietly shut it behind me. The room was completely dark except for the light from the moon streaming through the window. I could make out the silhouette of Harlyn tucked under the covers, and her dark hair was fanned out on the pillow.

  I rummaged through my drawers to find a pair of shorts to put on and managed to find an old pair of mesh basketball ones. I pulled my shirt over my head, pulled off my pants, and tugged on the shorts.

  Harlyn had no idea I was go
ing to be in bed with her when she woke up, so I didn’t want to scare her by lying in bed with her naked. Although, I hoped once she woke up, my shorts might take a hike.

  After I pulled the covers back, I slid in next to her and molded my body to hers. She snuggled into me, pressing her ass into my groin, and sighed. I draped my arm over her stomach, brushed her hair off the pillow, and laid my head down.

  Normally, it would take me a bit to fall asleep, even when I was tired, but with Harlyn in bed with me, my tiredness took over and I was out within minutes.

  Sleeping next to the woman who consumed your thoughts brought along a peace with it that I had never felt before.

  Harlyn was my peace.

  *

  Chapter 26

  Harlyn

  I snuggled against the wall of warmth and sighed. Remy had the best bed ever.

  “Baby, you keep grinding that sweet ass into my dick, and we’re gonna have a problem real quick.”

  “Holy crap.” I rolled away from the warm wall on my back and came face-to-face with a sleepy looking Remy. “What the heck are you doing here?”

  He smiled. “Last I checked, this was my bed. At least, it used to be my bed.”

  “I mean, how did you get here?” I pulled the blanket up to my chin, still shocked to see Remy.

  “I drove.”

  For God’s sake. “I see I have smart-ass Remy in bed with me this morning.”

  “I’ve been waiting for you to wake up for twenty minutes. I’m a little impatient.”

  I flopped onto my back. “You could have woken me up.”

  He shrugged and scooted closer to me. “I learned early on from my mom that waking a sleeping woman is never a good idea.”

  “Smart,” I mumbled.

  He dropped his arm over my stomach and held his head up with his raised hand. “You know when you sleep, you have the cutest snore.”

  “I don’t snore!”

  He nodded his head. “You do, baby. Not all of the time, but you definitely sound like a four cylinder.”

  I scoffed and smacked him on the chest. A bare chest, I might add. “You did not just compare to me to a damn engine.”

  “A cute engine,” he specified.

  “The fact you think an engine can be cute is a little bit worrisome.”

  He tugged the blanket from under my chin and pulled it down to my waist. “I spend a lot of time around cars, baby.”

  As if that would explain it all. “Perhaps I need to get you out of the garage more.”

  “I’d be open to that.” His fingers inched up the hem of my shirt and brushed against my skin.

  “We’re in your mother’s house, Remy,” I reminded him.

  I had worn his shirt to bed again, and his hands traveled south, over my panties. “I fully know where I am, baby. But I also know it has been two weeks since I’ve felt your soft skin. You can’t expect me to wait much longer.”

  His hand cupped my mound, and I squirmed under his touch. “Remy, please. We can’t do this right now. Your mom and Lo are right outside the door.”

  He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my neck. “Are you worried about my mom hearing us?”

  I nodded my head yes but bucked my hips into his touch.

  “Your mouth is saying one thing, but your body is saying something entirely different.” He trailed kisses across my chest, sending goosebumps over my body.

  “Remy, oh God, please. We can’t do this right now,” I pleaded. If he kept kissing me, I was going to lose all thought and let him take me right there in his mom’s house.

  “Harlyn, breakfast is on the table,” Meg called. She knocked on the door, and I squealed as it opened slowing.

  I tugged my shirt down and whipped the blanket over Remy and me. “Get down,” I squawked.

  “What in the world?” Meg called.

  “Uh, I forgot to tell you, babe. Remy came in early this morning.”

  I peeked over the top of the blanket. Lo was standing in the doorway and grabbed Meg’s arm. “Let’s give these two some privacy.”

  Meg pointed at the bed. “You’re home!”

  “Yeah, Ma. I’m home,” Remy rumbled from under the blanket.

  “You didn’t come say hi to me,” Meg complained.

  “It was really early. I didn’t want to wake you up,” Remy explained. Hell, he had somehow gotten into bed with me without me knowing.

  “But why did you wake Lo?”

  Remy sighed. “Because he heard me trying to get in. Thankfully, he did wake up or I would have been sleeping on the front porch. You changed the locks and didn’t tell me.”

  “If you would call me more often, I’m sure I would have told you. That’s what happens when you don’t talk to your mother. You don’t know things,” Meg scolded.

  “You think maybe we can have this conversation when I’m not in bed with my girlfriend after not seeing her for two weeks?”

  Oh hell, Remy. That was not what I had wanted him to say.

  “Five minutes, and your butt better be sitting at my table.” Meg flounced out the door with a smirking Lo following her.

  I ducked under the covers and glared at Remy. “That was the best thing you could say to her?”

  “It’s the truth, baby. And this is your fault. If you wouldn’t have agreed to the kidnapping and stayed in Leeds Square, then we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.” He grabbed me around the waist and pulled me on top of him. “We should both be naked right now and having a whole hell of a lot more fun. Instead, we’re going to get dressed and eat breakfast with Mom and Lo.”

  “You don’t know that for a fact,” I whispered.

  He pressed a kiss to my lips. “I do, baby. Because if my mom wouldn’t have knocked on the door, I would be buried balls deep in you right now.”

  A gasp escaped my lips, and a tremor rocked my body at his brash yet hot words. “Do you have a lock on your door?”

  Remy roared with laughter and rolled us over. His body pressed down on me, and he had a huge smile on his face. “The time for locking the door is over, baby. Now all we can do is eat breakfast and hope we can escape before the day is over.”

  “Don’t you have to work?” I asked.

  “And don’t you?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I called Roc yesterday and told him I was visiting friends back home. I don't have work. Now you.”

  “Roc also gave us the day off. I guess after winning yesterday, it finally put him in a good mood. Although, before that, he suspended Frankie.”

  “Suspended,” I gasped. “What in the heck for?”

  He chuckled. “Brooks ignored her for the millionth time, and she finally got sick of it. Jay says she threw a wrench at him.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand. “Oh, my God.”

  “Yeah. No one is saying anything about it right now. Thankfully, before Frankie left, she had the car dialed in perfectly so her leaving didn’t mess with the race yesterday, but if anything would have broken or needed adjusting, we would have been fucked.”

  “Have you talked to her?” I didn’t know Frankie that well, but from what I did know, I liked her.

  “Yeah. She’s headed back home. Said something about working for her brothers, but I don’t think that is going to happen. Frankie wants to make a name for herself, and that isn’t possible at home.” He patted my hip. “We need to get dressed and out in the kitchen. I know my mom wasn’t kidding when she said five minutes.”

  “Just one second.”

  “What’s wrong, baby?” he asked.

  I leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips. “There. Now I’m better.” A sweet smile spread across my lips, and I rolled off the bed. I managed to jump up out of bed without getting tangled in the sheets and grabbed my shorts I had tossed on the dresser last night. “What are we doing today?”

  Remy put his arms behind his head and watched me drag his shirt off. “Holy fuck, baby. You taking your shirt off is not going to make me want to get out of
bed.”

  I balled it up and tossed it on his head. “I’ve got a bra on, butthead. No peep show for you.”

  He uncovered his eyes and whistled. “Still, I am not complaining about the view I have right now.”

  “Can we get back to what you have planned for us today?” I crouched down and pulled my duffle bag from under the bed. Remy reached out and brushed my hair from my shoulders.

  “I hate to break it to you, baby, but when I come back home, I don’t make plans because I know my mom has plans for me.”

  I grabbed an ice blue tank top that had pretty pink flowers along the hem and zipped the bag shut. I looked up at Remy, and he trailed his fingers up my neck and along my jawline. He cupped my face and leaned forward. “That’s kind of how the past two days have been.”

  A smirk spread across his lips. “Yeah, but that’s my mom. You learn to like it.” He pressed a sweet kiss to my lips.

  “I like your mom,” I whispered.

  “And she likes you.”

  That made me happy.

  Super happy.

  “I like you, too.” It made me so happy that I was saying everything that was bouncing around in my head. “In case you didn’t know.”

  His thumb brushed back and forth on my cheek. He was a breath away, and my insides were becoming mush from his sweet touch. “I had a feeling you might like me, seeing as you let me touch your butt, but it’s nice to hear it out loud.”

  I dropped my forehead to his and burst out laughing.

  “You guys have one minute to get your asses out here before I come back in,” Meg called through the door.

  Remy wrapped his arms around me, pulling me up with him as he stood, and squeezed me in a tight hug. “You ready for this, baby?”

  I knew he was talking about the plans his mom had for us today, but it felt like he was also asking if I was ready to see where we were going together.

  The answer to both was hell yes.

  *

  Chapter 27

  Remy

  “Your grandma is a badass biker chick.”