by Nalini Singh
“I’ll tell you what—I’ve learned that being a vice president in a multimillion-dollar company means a hell of a lot of work. Jules does more in one day than most people do in a week. I’m amazed by her.”
Wet heat burned her eyes.
Putting away her phone, she bent down to kiss Jake’s cheek.
He grumbled at her. “Coffee.”
“Talk first. Did you tell some reporter you were amazed by me?”
“Yes. Now give me coffee.” He pretended to bite the curve of her breast.
Laughing at her morning grump of a lover, she peppered his beard-stubbled face with kisses before pulling on a robe and walking out to put on the coffee. She didn’t remember the tickets she’d been carrying around in her purse until she and Jake were in bed later that night.
Not sure how he’d react but encouraged by his willingness to let down his hair the previous night, she got out of bed to rummage in her purse.
He wolf whistled.
Naked, she bent even deeper, giving him quite the view.
Saying a naughty, naughty word, he threatened to come over there, but she was already turning around with the tickets in hand. “I got you a present.”
Curiosity lit up his face. “Yeah?”
Getting into bed again, she gave him the tickets. He was silent for a long time after looking at them.
“It’s safe,” she said, well able to read his thought patterns. “You just drive the supercar around the track at whatever speed you want.”
The look he gave her was unreadable. “I’m not that boy anymore.”
“I know. You’re an amazing man.” She squeezed his biceps. “But you still like flash cars, and this looked fun.” Let me be your wings, Jake.
Putting the tickets on his bedside table, he turned and slid his hand across her stomach. His kiss was intense, dark, the thigh he threw over hers possessive. She didn’t push the issue, just took him in her arms and loved him, her Jake who’d shut a piece of himself away a long time ago.
It wasn’t obvious, not these days. He laughed often, played with her and Esme both, but despite his love of fast cars, he only drove a “responsible dad” car, had no hobbies that he did purely for fun, and their time at the club the previous night had been a deviation on his part. For the most, his world remained a small and controlled one.
Stable. Structured. Safe.
Juliet had no argument with any of those things, not when Jake never put any strictures or rules on her. She loved their little family and the bigger one of which it was a part. She loved each and every minute she spent with Jake and with Esme. Added to that, she was no party girl and would rather hang out at home than go out.
This wasn’t about that.
It was about the fact that Jake had always had a second passion aside from rugby. Had he left it behind out of choice, that would be something else. But she’d seen how he admired Leo’s Porsche, watched his eyes light up when he worked on the family’s cars, heard the interest in his voice when he caught a snippet of Formula One racing news.
It was as if he’d decided his love of cars was a childish thing, a waste of time for a man who was a father.
Juliet hurt for the boy he’d once been, the boy who’d made that call.
As it was, he said nothing about the tickets the next day. Neither did he mention them in the days that followed. She decided to let it go. She’d try again later, maybe with something less intense. A car show possibly. Juliet wasn’t a woman who gave up easily when it came to the happiness of those she loved.
Taking the tickets from his bedside table one night after dinner, she put them back in her handbag, figuring to pass them on to a couple of girls who worked in Administration.
Jake popped into the bedroom an hour later to grab his phone. When he came out, he said, “Jules, what happened to the supercar tickets?”
Startled, she looked up from her laptop. She was working at the kitchen table while Esme did her homework beside her. “I thought I’d pass them on to people at work.”
Slipping into the chair across from her, he gave her an intent look. “You’re not mad?”
Esme’s head lifted, but reassured by the smiles both of them shot her way, she continued on with her painstaking lettering practice.
“Of course not.” Juliet closed her hand over his. “I don’t want to change you, Jake.” Not when he was so damn wonderful. “I’m just trying to lure you outside the castle walls and out into the wild.”
Turning his hand so the back of it lay against the table, he wove his fingers through hers. “Don’t give the tickets away.”
Breath tight in her chest, Juliet nodded, but she didn’t really believe he’d do it until they were at the track three days later. They’d brought Esme and Danny with them. Jake wanted Juliet to make use of the second ticket and ride with him, so Danny had been roped in to babysit.
“Zoom!” Esme pressed her face to the fence around the track, eyes bright as she watched the supercars racing by.
Only one car was on the track at a time, which reduced the chances of a collision, and each person had a half-hour slot—after accounting for prep time, that meant about ten minutes on the track. Jake had chosen his car online, but Juliet didn’t know what it was until they arrived.
A gleaming red McLaren P1 waited for them, a sexy curve of fire just waiting to take off.
The terms of the ticket meant they had to wear safety gear, including helmets, and they both geared up without argument while Esme and Danny watched, Danny taking photographs on his phone.
Esme was so excited that she bounced. “Go fast, Daddy!”
Jake’s grin was sharp and it hurt Juliet’s heart; it reminded her so much of the teenage boy who’d done illegal burnouts on the lonely back roads where they’d gone to hang out.
“Make sure you cheer me on,” he said to his daughter.
Danny took Esme’s hand as a light flashed behind Jake. “Time to take our seats, Boo.”
Slipping into the car after the two were clear, Jake and Juliet strapped themselves in. The McLaren started with a purr that turned into a growl as Jake moved it out to the start line.
The checkered flag went down.
Jake hit the accelerator.
Juliet screamed in pure, wild exhilaration as the world turned into a blur around them, the car powering forward like the beautiful beast of a machine that it was. Beside her, Jake handled the steering with an ease that seemed natural. Though they were going faster than she ever had in a car, she felt zero fear.
At one point he slowed down right as they passed Danny and Esme, and Juliet waved at them. Danny and Esme waved back, big grins on their faces, before Jake hit the accelerator again.
Juliet was laughing, her heart pumping when they came to a final stop, Jake doing a precision turn to park the car in its assigned spot.
Pulling off his helmet as she took off hers, he gave her a wicked look before leaning over to haul her down into a hard, hot kiss. “Let’s go again.”
She laughed, but he was serious.
He leaned out the car window and asked the people on duty at the track if he could buy more tickets.
Clearly starstruck, the man in charge said, “Next slot’s open” in an awed tone of voice.
Jake put his helmet back on.
35
The Resurrection of the Gearhead
Danny took another shot of Jake and Juliet after they exited the car, helmets held by their sides and their bodies clad in the protective jumpsuits. Juliet’s hair was a mess, Jake’s as tumbled, but their faces glowed.
Jake had his arm around her, his face turned to look at her.
“I love this photo,” she said when Danny showed it to her. “Can you send it to me?”
“Shoot it to me too, bro,” Jake said while Esme wandered around the car, touching it with reverent little hands.
Apparently the car love was hereditary.
Juliet grinned and walked over to drop a kiss on Esme’s head.
Taking out his phone in the interim, Jake did something on it. She didn’t know what until early that evening when Aroha sent her a message exclaiming over how cute she and Jake looked and asking about the experience.
Jake had posted the photo on his social media.
The text read: Supercars with Jules. ♥
That was it. No hashtag, nothing else. But Jake never posted emojis. N.E.V.E.R. NEVER. Now he was using a heart one?
Suddenly it didn’t feel so scary to take the final step, throw her heart wide open.
Taking a deep breath after getting into her yoga leggings and slouchy sweater because they were just going to be hanging out at home now, she made sure Esme was happily ensconced in her favorite armchair with a book.
“I wanna car that goes zoom, Jules,” the little girl said decisively. “A red one!”
“How about you get your license first?” Lips twitching, Juliet bopped Esme on the nose with a gentle touch, making her giggle. “You good here?”
“Yup.” Esme snuggled down into the armchair, under the fluffy throw Juliet had tucked around her.
An ache inside her that was a kind of love she’d never experienced before Esme—maternal, fiercely protective—Juliet went out to the patio with a beer for Jake and a glass of wine for herself. He was still wearing his jeans and the T-shirt he’d worn to the track, his gaze pensive as he took in the sunset.
“Thanks, babe,” he said absently, taking the beer.
Leaning against the house next to him, their hips touching, Juliet sipped at her wine. She didn’t know how to go about declaring her love, was starting to lose her nerve when he put his arm around her, his hand hanging loosely over her shoulder and the scent of him seducing her all over again.
“Thank you.”
“For what?” She looked up.
A glance down out of those intense dark eyes that melted her. “For beating your head against my stubborn one.” No smile, but his tone was warm. “I fucking loved being on that track. Really loved it.”
“After the exposure you just gave them, they’ll probably roll out the red carpet if you want to go back.” Jake was followed by millions of people on social media, not just in New Zealand but worldwide.
Danny might be the rising star of the team, but Jake was the rock. All his teammates—his brother included—looked to him on the field, and that calm steadiness made him a favorite with fans. The fact he had only a few well-chosen and vetted endorsement deals and rarely promoted anything he didn’t love just made his power all the stronger. When Jake backed a product or service, it grew wings and flew.
“Funny you should say that,” he murmured and passed over his phone.
The email he’d pulled up was from his agent. The president of a supercar manufacturer was a rugby fan who followed Jake; he’d seen not only the shot Jake had shared but the video and photos someone else in the track audience had posted. They were offering him a deal to—
Her jaw dropped open. “They want to lend you a freaking four million-dollar car?”
“Keep reading.”
She did and felt her eyes widen. “Wow, Jake.” It was a serious endorsement offer. The car manufacturer wanted him to sign on to not only endorse the supercar in the Asia/Pacific region but worldwide.
“This type of thing is usually reserved for winning race-car drivers,” Jake said.
Juliet nodded. At the same time… “I can see why they want you.” The sheer exhilaration on Jake’s face was dazzling—you could tell he loved speed, loved cars. It was real in a way that’d speak to the public. That he was at the top of his sport and supremely hot didn’t hurt.
“It feels over the top.” He drank some of his beer. “I went to a normal public high school for a reason. My family’s not into living the crazy high life. I mean, even Gabe with all his gazillions still throws a ball around with us in the park.”
“This doesn’t have to change that,” Juliet said, able to feel his desire to take the offer. “I mean, most of these ads will run in places where the superrich shop. Meanwhile, you’ll have a kick-ass car, and they’re saying they want you to come do things at other car events, so you’d get to hang out with fellow gearheads.”
“You’re going to put Gearhead Jock on my tombstone aren’t you?”
Grinning at his tone, she rose on tiptoe to kiss his jaw. “Do it, sweetheart. Just for fun. For you.”
Another glance, his lips curving into that heartbreaker smile he kept giving her. “I’d like to do you. For fun. For me.”
It was a sexy and playful comment, but the intensity in his eyes made everything inside her soften. “I love you, Jacob Esera,” she said, pressing her fingers to his lips when his eyes flared. “Just take it. I’m gonna be stubborn about that.”
“Jules.” Turning, he crushed her to the wall, her wine splashing everywhere as he kissed her stupid while the sun set in a glorious blaze at his back.
* * *
Three weeks later, when Coach Graves announced the team for the next major international series, Jake wasn’t too concerned. He was in peak condition, and he was playing the best he’d ever done. The selectors would be idiots to drop him.
Still, his stomach was tense on the day. Juliet woke to tell him she’d taken the day off. After they walked Esme to school, Juliet took him home, cooked him a great breakfast, then sexed his brains out.
Grinning in the aftermath as he lay there, spent, his body slick with sweat, he said, “I like your remedy for nerves.”
“No talking. I can’t breathe yet.”
He laughed, and that was when his phone rang. Sitting up, he saw it was from Coach. The news the other man had for him had his smile fading.
Juliet was sitting up, sheet clutched to her chest and her eyes worried when he turned to her. “Jake, what’s happened?”
He stared at her. “Our vice-captain is out for the first game of the series as a precaution after suffering a possible concussion in an accident at home, and now Coach is having Oliver sit out the game too. He’ll be coming back for the rest, but he’s got a niggling injury that needs more downtime. No point losing our captain because of what will effectively be a warm-up match.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” Juliet frowned. “Why are you so shocked?”
“Coach wants me to be acting captain for that game.”
Shrieking, she jumped on him. It was her excitement that finally had the news sinking in.
“Holy shit.” Squeezing her close, he tried to calm himself down. “As long as we don’t fuck up royally, it should be an easy game—the other team’s at the far end of global rugby rankings. It’s no risk on anyone’s part.”
“But Jake”—she took his face in her hands—“it’s obvious they’re taking the chance to try you out in the position, see how you do.” A triumphant kiss. “I know you’ll be amazing!”
She twisted to get his phone. “Call your parents! And your brothers!”
“No, I have to wait until the team is announced.”
“Why?”
“Because Danny’s waiting too. Coach only gave me a heads-up because he knows the media barrage will start the instant the appointment is announced.”
Juliet’s face softened. “Oh, of course.” Brushing his hair back from his forehead, she said, “Is it hard? Being part of a sports family with three of you in the same game?”
“Gabe was way ahead of us, so it’s just been me and Danny waiting at the same time.” He ran his hand down her back. “It’s not hard, but we hurt for each other. When Gabe got injured… He was devastated. I’ve never seen my big brother that broken.” Jake shook his head. “But then I saw him build himself back up, and now he owns half the city.”
His phone buzzed. “It’s Danny. Team news must be out.”
“ACTING CAPTAIN! FUCKING LEGEND!” Danny’s yell blew out his eardrums.
And Juliet’s kiss was everything. But he still couldn’t look full on at the realization in the back of his mind, a stab of t
error closing his mouth when he tried to speak. If he didn’t look at it, if he didn’t acknowledge his love for Juliet, maybe he could keep her safe.
It was an irrational thought, but he couldn’t stop it.
At least Juliet didn’t seem to hold his lack of a response to her declaration against him. She just loved him, his Juliet who had never been told that she was loved.
Fuck. He had to get over this. He was not going to be another person in her life who shortchanged her.
* * *
Juliet had to work after hours two days later. She’d called Jake to let him know, and he decided to take Esme with him to training. It wasn’t one of the hard-core closed sessions but a warm-up where no one was going to worry too much about a rugby-mad little girl in the audience.
“She knows all the team people,” Jake told her over the phone. “She’ll sit with the nutritionist and the physio and discuss plays like she’s sixty, not six. They love her.”
Later, after reaching the field, he messaged to say that the assistant coach had brought along his son, who was of a similar age, so Esme had a friend to play with. I think they’re plotting Esme’s rise to rugby domination.
Juliet laughed. Messaging back that she’d be home by eight thirty, she began to clear her backlog. It was dark outside by the time she shut off her computer. Iris’d had to leave at three to catch a flight to an important work meeting, but Everett was just finishing up too, and she poked her head into his office. “Want to walk down together?”
“No, you go ahead. I’ll be ten more minutes.” A warm smile. “Thanks, Jules.”
“Hey, I own part of the company remember?” Everett and Iris had given her company shares two weeks earlier, following her annual pay review. They’d also given her a significant pay raise after the three of them went over her duties and realized exactly how much more she’d taken on over the past year.
Jake had whooped and spun her around in his arms at the news, then insisted on taking her out to a champagne dinner to celebrate. At which point he’d put his strategic mind to creating a ten-year plan that’d leave her CEO of her own major corporation. He’d only been half joking. Because this time around, Juliet had found herself a lover who was jubilant at her success and ready to back her all the way to the top.