Pole Position

by Sofia Grey

  The faded jeans fit him like a second skin, and I couldn’t help glancing down to his groin. The thought of a week of uninterrupted sex with him made my mouth go dry.

  Jon cleared his throat and I dragged my attention back. “It’s a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Five cylinder, two point seven liter diesel engine. Zero to sixty in eleven seconds and one-sixty brake horsepower.” He scratched his chin, and thought for a moment. “Turbo-charged, four-speed automatic gearbox.”

  I huffed a laugh. “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about. It’s all just numbers and letters.”

  He rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. “It’s got a stereo system with iPod connection, built-in navigation—”

  “I don’t need a navigation system. I know where we’re going.”

  “It’s got masses of room for all your luggage. I’ve seen when women go on holiday, they take everything except the kitchen sink.”

  I stuck out my tongue at him. “I have one rucksack. That’s it.”

  “Do you want to take it out for a test drive?”

  Did I? It was huge, and heavy, and looked a bit like a tank. It was also undeniably expensive, but I’d be driving over a hundred miles in it tomorrow. It’d be a good idea to get the feel of it now.

  “Are you coming with me?”

  “Do I need to?” I could tell he was finding this great fun.

  “Get in, please.”

  ****

  The Jeep was actually good to drive. We took it out for a trip round the country lanes. I kept it well under the speed limit and drove as gently as I could, trying to avoid any bumps. I could tell Jon hadn’t taken his painkillers. He winced and paled as we went over a speed bump, and he clenched his fingers a few times. He didn’t complain though, just encouraged me to get familiar with the car. Half an hour later, we were back at his parents’.

  I asked him about his pills.

  “I don’t want to take them all the time. I’m hanging on until bedtime when I’ll take another dose.” He flashed me a grin. “I’m hoping a little TLC from you might take my mind off the pain for the moment.”

  He had to make do with a kiss.

  While I’d been out, Jon had changed the number for his phone, and arranged a new phone to be delivered for me. His thoughtfulness warmed me.

  I gave Mum a call, to check everything was still okay for us to arrive the day after.

  “That will be perfect.” She sounded excited. “And I wanted to ask you something. We don’t fly out to Spain until Friday, but since you’re coming up on Tuesday, we were thinking of leaving on Wednesday and having a couple of nights at Aunty Sheila’s. What do you think?” My parents rarely took holidays, and I was happy to oblige. It also meant Jon and I would have more private time together.

  ****

  Jon was tired and grumpy by dinnertime and getting visibly irritated by his mum fussing over him. He ate some soup and picked at the salad, made little conversation, and then suggested we go to bed as soon as I’d finished eating. It was only eight o’clock.

  “I need to talk to you first.” Trevor was firm, and Jon scowled. His light-hearted mood from earlier had vanished.

  “Dad, I’m tired and aching. Can it wait until tomorrow?”

  “You’re going away tomorrow, and won’t be back for almost two weeks. We’ve got some business matters to sort out before you go.”

  I didn’t know what to do. Sara had already left the kitchen as soon as she’d finished her meal, and there was no sign of Mrs. P. I decided to make myself useful and clear the table while they talked.

  Trevor pulled his laptop forward. “We’re due in Houston on Tuesday the fifteenth, and the new engine will be ready for testing on the sixteenth.”

  Jon looked up, interest flickering on his face. His bad mood forgotten, they talked in an incomprehensible language of specifications and strange terms, while poring over a set of documents on Trevor’s laptop. I loaded the dishwasher, put away a few things and slowly brewed some fresh coffee, before sliding into the chair next to Jon. He smiled briefly at me, took my hand, and turned his attention back to Trevor.

  The discussion seemed to have reached a natural pause, so I spoke up.

  “How long will you be away?”

  Jon glanced at his dad first. “It’s likely to be about a month.” He spoke carefully, I got the impression there was something he wasn’t telling me.

  A month. I was gutted. In my mind, we had six weeks together until his next race. In reality, we just had the time in Anglesey, and then he was off to America. I swallowed and tried to sound casual.

  “I know it’s Donington Park in October, so what happens after that? Do you get some time off then?”

  There was a long pause. Jon and Trevor looked at each other and some unspoken message passed between them.

  “I’m going to see what your mum’s up to.” Trevor got up and left the kitchen, closing the door behind him.

  I smiled tentatively at Jon, still holding his hand.

  He gazed into my eyes, raised my hand to his mouth, and gently kissed the palm.

  “Well?” I wasn’t going to be fobbed off.

  He sighed. “I was hoping to leave this until after our holiday. I’ve been invited to try out for the Torro Rosso team.” I must have looked blank. He smiled encouragingly. “Torro Rosso? Used to be Minardi? Formula 1 Grand Prix racing team?”

  I stared, not comprehending.

  He gave me a tentative grin. “You could say ‘congratulations’. The F3 season isn’t over yet, and they’ve already invited me to trial for them.”

  I groped for something sensible to say. “And er, where are they based?”

  “Faenza.” I must have looked blank again. “Italy.”

  “Oh,” I looked down and tried to fix a smile on my face. “Well, I guess, congratulations.”

  He sat back in his chair, a beaming smile creeping across his face. “It’s brilliant news. I thought I’d have to do at least a couple of years at F3, but it’s a new team, and they want to bring on some relatively unknown drivers. Which is perfect timing for me.”

  I bit my lip and tried to look interested. This was why Sara had been upset at dinner, why she and Jon had been sniping at each other. She was as scared about him moving to Formula 1 as I was. And he’d be based in Italy.

  As Jon chattered on happily, the most animated I’d seen him all evening, I sat there and let it all wash over me. We had these next two weeks together, and then I would have to bring things to a halt, if he hadn’t already done so by then.

  Two weeks left. It was nothing. I didn’t want to waste a minute.

  I interrupted him, silencing him with a kiss. “It’s wonderful news, and I’m so proud of you. Why don’t we go and celebrate in bed?”

  Chapter 18

  18.1 Jon

  It amused me that I had more luggage than Anita. Along with my clothes and toiletries, I had my laptop case, camera bag, and a pile of books and magazines.

  We had a sharp exchange of words as we prepared to leave. Rather annoyingly, and reminiscent of my mother, she insisted I take some of my painkillers. For heaven’s sake, I wasn’t a child. I could take care of myself. We compromised on a half dose and finally left mid-morning. The meds made me feel woozy and nauseous, and I wanted to make the most of this break. I was painfully aware we’d be apart for a month after this. It’d been bad enough just spending a long weekend apart, a month would be a nightmare.

  She drove carefully, but once she had the feel of the Jeep she became more confident, and I dozed some of the way. The motorway part of the journey up the M56 was slow and tedious, and there had been an accident farther up, which we couldn’t avoid. I set my iPod playing a random mix of Foo Fighters tracks and closed my eyes to rest. I was especially aware we’d be driving past a car wreck, and I was keen to avoid seeing it.

  I knew when we approached the accident. Anita sucked in a breath when we stopped yet again in the queue to crawl past it. I kept my eyes shut tight and focused on D
ave Grohl’s rasping vocals. I felt her hand seek mine and flutter over it, unwilling to wake me, but wanting the comfort of my touch. Coward that I was, I stayed still, and pretended to be asleep. Once we were past it, the car sped up to a normal traveling pace, and I figured it was safe to “wake up”. I yawned, stretched, and opened my eyes to smile at her.

  “Everything okay?”

  She smiled back, but it looked forced. “Fine. I was thinking of stopping for coffee, do you mind? There’s a service station a couple of miles up.” She briefly held out her left hand and squeezed mine.

  “No problem. Coffee sounds good.”

  She held my hand tight as we left the car in search of a drink. It took all my effort, but I finally coaxed her back into a happy mood, fooling about and cracking silly jokes. We drank bad coffee, ate surprisingly good croissants and bought some chocolate to nibble on for the rest of the journey. She looked tired and pale, and I wondered how she had been affected by my accident. It was bad enough being in it, to watch it happening must have been hard. I knew my dad had shown her the video footage. He’d offered to show me, but I declined. I just wanted to forget all about it.

  We had a leisurely drive the rest of the way. The A55 route along the pretty North Wales coastline was quiet, and we admired the sights and reminisced over the places we’d holidayed as children. By mutual agreement, we stopped in the pretty, walled town of Conwy for a late lunch, and wandered round being tourists, taking photographs and eating ice creams. I mentioned I’d never explored the castle there, and we agreed to come back some day and do so.

  With our good mood fully restored, we set off for the last leg of the journey. This was new territory for me, and she gave me a running commentary along the dual carriageway across the island.

  She became excited as we approached a small village on the road to Holyhead. “We’re coming up to Valley, close to the air base, so watch out for low flying jets.” She gave me a big grin. “I’m coming off the main road here, we’re going the scenic route for the last few miles.”

  I peered out of the windows, looking for the jets she mentioned, but there were none. The scenery though, was spectacular. We popped over a stone bridge and through a series of small hamlets before arriving at a seaside resort called Trearddur Bay. She pulled onto an even smaller road that wove along a series of breathtaking bays and beaches, some rocky and some sandy. We were heading inland again and climbing now, and I saw the sea crashing onto the rocks way below us. She glanced across, a smile playing on her face. “You’re right, this is a good car. We get a great view from up here.”

  She pointed out Holyhead Mountain, looming ahead of us. “Mum and Dad’s house is in the shadow of the mountain. It deflects the worst of the weather, which means it’s surprisingly sheltered.”

  Next came a narrow farm track and she drove as carefully as she could, trying her best not to jolt me. Thankfully, the suspension cushioned most of the bumping, but it was still uncomfortable.

  “And here we are. Welcome to Bryn Dinas.” There was a clear note of pride in her voice as she pulled onto a graveled parking area and killed the engine.

  The guest house was built in the local gray-stone and sprawled around a central courtyard, with several outbuildings and flower gardens visible. I saw a small play area with two swings and a children’s slide, and several picnic tables and benches on the grass.

  A shorter, plumper version of Anita emerged from the house, a border collie bouncing at her side. Anita scrambled from the car, and ran to her. They embraced for a few moments, the dog leaping up at her and barking a vigorous welcome. I figured it was time to say hello.

  I opened my door and climbed down. The dog ran to me, and Anita grabbed its collar just as it tried to jump up. “Down, Maddie.” The dog ignored her. “Mum, can you please take Maddie? I don’t want her bumping into Jon.” Her mother obliged, quieting the dog a little.

  Taking my hand firmly in her own, Anita turned to her mother. “Mum, this is Jon. Jon, meet my mum, Kathy.”

  Her mother took my hand with barely concealed interest. “Very pleased to meet you. Anita said you’d been in an accident, but didn’t tell me any more. For all I knew you’d be on crutches or missing a leg or something.”

  I smiled. I liked her already. “No, just a few bumps and sprains.”

  “And three cracked ribs—” interrupted Anita “—which is why I don’t want Maddie knocking you over.”

  Her mum smiled. “Walking wounded then, but you must be tired from the journey. Come on in and have a seat, I’ll get the tea brewed.”

  They chattered happily together while Kathy settled me in a comfortable armchair by a sunny window. As soon as I sat, the exhaustion caught up with me, which was ridiculous since we’d been sitting almost all the way here. Anita glanced at me, concern written on her face.

  “I’m fine,” I reassured her. “You go and catch up. I’ll stay here.” She smiled and dashed off.

  Minutes later, a tall, bald man strode into the lounge. “You must be Jon. I’m Geoff, Anita’s father, no don’t get up.” He bent down and shook my hand with a firm grip that made me wince. He had to have seen the bandages, because he released my hand immediately. “Sorry, how foolish of me. Anita said you’d had an accident, but you looked so well I forgot to ask how you are.” His gray eyes stared keenly at me.

  “Thanks, I’ll be fine. Just a few knocks and bangs.”

  “You’re not a biker are you?”

  Anita and her Mum walked in behind him. Anita gave him a hug while her mother spoke sternly. “Now then, Geoff, let the poor lad have some tea before you subject him to the inquisition.”

  I smiled gratefully and spoke in an undertone to Anita, who settled herself on the arm of my chair. “You didn’t tell your parents anything about my accident?”

  She winked at me. I understood straight away. They’d no idea what I did for a living, or what had happened. That made things much easier.

  “No, I didn’t.” She turned to her parents. “Jon was in a car crash last week, but it wasn’t his fault. He was trying to avoid an overturned car when he got caught up in the wreckage.” She took my hand protectively. “And he’s not a biker.”

  “You weren’t in the car at the time, then?” Her father looked relieved.

  “No, Dad. Jon was on his own.”

  Geoff looked at me. “You’ll indulge me. Anita is our only child, and we’ve spent all our lives dreading the day when she brings home some dirty great biker in a leather jacket. I hate motorbikes, dangerous things.”

  “I can assure you, I don’t ride and have never ridden a motorbike. Although”—I gave Anita a teasing grin—”I do own a leather jacket.”

  18.2 Jon

  It was a good evening. Anita chattered non-stop with her parents. I’d never seen her so talkative before, but I guess they had a lot of catching up to do. It was some months since she last visited. Dinner was excellent, and we played cards afterward.

  My head ached, and I tried to stifle my yawns. When Anita noticed she looked immediately guilt-stricken and insisted I go up to bed. I’d been given a pleasant double bedroom and Anita came upstairs with me.

  Her father was just behind her, walking past the open doorway, and Anita spoke loudly. “My room is just along the corridor. Can I get you a drink of anything before you turn in?”

  She slipped her arms around my neck and kissed me tenderly. “Don’t worry,” she whispered in my ear, “it’s only for tonight. Give you time to get your strength up.”

  ****

  I awoke feeling surprisingly refreshed, and stretched cautiously. The headache had subsided to a dull throb, and my ribs were definitely on the mend. My hand movements were still restricted, and I had to tug the elastic wrist bandages off with my teeth, but that was improving daily. I examined the beard growth across my face. Not so good, but shaving could wait another couple of days until my fingers were more steady. Better to have a face of long stubble than razor cuts.

  Fastenin
g my shirt buttons took a few minutes, but I was soon dressed and headed downstairs in search of Anita. I heard a rumble of voices, smelled bacon cooking, and found them in the kitchen.

  I paused in the doorway, absorbing the tranquil family scene in front of me. In stark contrast to the pitched battles at my parents’ home, Anita and Geoff sat at the table, heads close together as they examined a huge silver trophy and what looked like a red rosette. Kathy stood next to a long work surface, writing some notes, while talking to a large black cat sitting beside her. The dog raised her head at my presence and whined softly, alerting them to me.

  Anita greeted me with a brilliant smile. “Morning, sleepy, I wondered if you were getting up today.”

  I raised my eyebrows in mock surprise. “And you’ve been up how long?”

  “Hours.”

  Kathy came over and pulled out the seat nearest to me. “Ignore her. She’s been up half an hour tops. I’ve kept you some breakfast in case you were hungry. Would you like bacon and eggs? There’s fresh coffee on its way.”

  I tucked in, listening to the lazy chat between Anita and her parents. They had an easy, gentle affection that made me envious.

  “You’ll be relieved to know I’ve left the freezer well-stocked for you. Unless Anita’s been taking cookery lessons recently, you’d starve if you were relying on her to provide food for you.” Kathy laughed at Anita pulling a face at her. “Does that little Irish girl still do all the cooking for you? What was her name, Colleen?”

  “Colette. And yes she has been, but not for much longer.” Anita hesitated. “She’s leaving us soon, got a job in Manchester and is moving out to live closer. It’s a bummer. I’ll have to ask you to teach me how to cook a few basics.”

  I was interested, despite myself. “I thought she and Danny were an item?”

  A shadow crossed her face. “They are, or rather, they were.”

  “What happened?” Anything that might upset my greatest enemy was good news to me.