Racing For Freedom

by Bec Botefuhr

  “No baby, you don’t.”

  His lips graze over mine and I whimper. His aqua eyes search my face, before he presses another smoldering kiss to my lips.

  “Slade,” I whisper. “We can’t.”

  “Why?” he murmurs, running his hand down my side.

  “You’re hurt.”

  “I’m fine, we’ll go easy.”

  “Slade!”

  “Shhh baby, don’t say no. We need this.”

  I whimper when his warm lips slide down my neck, slowly. I grip his shoulders and wrap my legs around his waist. I don’t push too hard, knowing it’s probably going to be a little awkward for him. His fingers slide up underneath my shirt and he kisses me softly as he finds my aching nipples. He gently rolls and pulls them until I’m crying out and arching up for him. When his fingers slide down under my shorts, my whole body sparks to life. I groan and kiss him so deeply he’s panting by the time we pull apart.

  “I need you now,” he rasps. “I don’t want to wait.”

  He lifts my hips and slides my shorts down, then he jerks his jeans down, not taking them fully off. Then he’s inside me, and oh god, it’s perfect. I groan and arch, the mixture of pleasure and pain such a delicious combination. I grip his shoulders, meeting each of his thrusts with my hips. His ragged breathing spurs me on, and I slide my hands up underneath his shirt and drag my fingernails down his back. He groans deep and low in his throat as his pace becomes harder, faster.

  “Slade, oh god!”

  “Dash, you feel so….good,” he grates out.

  His arm muscles bulge as he holds himself off me and thrusts with determination. Our bodies heat as he moves harder and faster. When I explode around him, I hear his own ragged cry as he finds his release. His body drops onto mine and we lay panting, content and hot. His lips slide across my neck and my fingers slide up and down his back. When he finds my lips, I let him kiss me, let our tongues explore, let his teeth nip at my swollen bottom lip. Before I know it, he’s pulling me up so I’m straddling his lap and he’s sitting, leaning against the couch.

  He’s ready once more, and my body comes alive at the thought of how much he needs me right now. I rock my hips and he groans, cupping my breasts and finding my mouth once more. I move again, loving the sensation of him filling me completely. I move gently, slowly, our bodies in the perfect rhythm. His groans spur me on and I pick up the pace, gently tilting and working my hips until I’m crying out once more. Pleasure shoots through me as I find my release. My head falls back and Slade’s lips find my throat as he rasps my name into my neck, finding his release once more also.

  With a content sigh, I slump against him and inhale the smell of sex, Slade and me combined. He wraps his arms around me tightly, holding me flush against his body until our breathing has gone back to normal. When I slide off him, he’s smiling at me, and god he’s gorgeous. I reach out and stroke his cheek, and he grips my hand and kisses the back of it before pressing it to his heart and looking me right in the eye.

  “I love you Dash, I want you to do this for me.”

  I frown and close my eyes. “Slade…”

  “Please, at least try…”

  “I’m afraid,” I whisper.

  He grips my chin, tilting my face up so I am looking at him.

  “I know you are, but you have to do this Dash. If you don’t…”

  “I know,” I say in a tired voice. “I’ll never get in a race car again.”

  “Take me to the track Dash, now. We both have some fears to conquer.”

  With a sigh, I do exactly that.

  Chapter Thirty Four

  “Come on baby.”

  I hear Slade’s words behind me as I start my car. A sick feeling swells in my stomach and my hands become sweaty. I can’t do this. I can’t. Slade reaches into the car and he takes my hand, pressing it to his lips.

  “You can do this, just go nice and slow.”

  I clench my eyes shut. I can do this. I can. I open my eyes and meet Slade’s encouraging stare. He doesn’t have to be here, I know somewhere deep down in his soul he’s hurting right now but he’s keeping it together for me. He’s cheering me on when he doesn’t have to be. If I don’t at least try this, I know part of him will be let down.

  “Ok,” I whisper.

  “I believe in you, baby.”

  Slade kisses me once more and then closes the door. I stare at the track in front of me, I know it like the back of my hand. I know it and I can do it. I just have to go back to the place I was at before Slade’s accident. I slowly release the clutch and the car surges forward. I putter around the track at sixty, my breathing heavy, sweat slides down my forehead. By the time I’m on the second lap, my breathing is a little easier and I’m up to eighty.

  By the time I hit the twelfth lap, I am up to a hundred and feeling the anxiety leaving my body. What is it they say? If you fall off a horse, you have to get back on again. It’s correct, the whole concept is entirely true. I manage to go up to one twenty and I do a few laps. When I finally come to a stop, my heart is pounding and adrenaline rushes through my body. I get out of the car and Slade comes rushing over, well, as fast as he can rush with crutches. I run towards him and at the last minute he drops his crutches and wraps his arms around me.

  “You did it!” he cries. “Dashy, you fuckin’ did it!”

  “I did it!”

  John claps and comes rushing over, my father is close behind. They both swing me around and we all cheer and laugh. When I look back at Slade, he’s staring at the car with a new determination.

  “Give me the keys.”

  “Slade son, your leg,” John says.

  “It’s healed enough for me to press an accelerator, now give me the keys.”

  Slade’s eyes are on mine, even though he answered John. It’s my father that speaks next, and his words surprise me.

  “Give him the keys, he needs this. I never got back in a race car and I regret every minute I let pass, now it’s too late. Give him the keys Dash, let him do this.”

  I stare at my father, and then turn back to Slade and slowly my hand stretches out to hand him the keys. He takes them from me and then leans in and whispers, “I believed in you, now you have to believe in me.”

  “I do,” I whisper back. “Always.”

  Slade dominates the track, he literally kills it. I thought he’d falter, I thought he’d crumble before he even got in the car but he didn’t. He started it up and put his foot on the accelerator, taking that leap. It was a way to release himself from the past and start again. He did that, he did it and he owned it. I’ve never been so proud of him in my entire life. When he gets out of that car, I run towards him. When we connect, his arms wrap around me and tears tumble down his cheeks.

  “I did it Dashy, I did it.”

  “Baby, you did it. I’m so proud of you.”

  Our lips meet and our tears combine. I know one thing in that moment, and that is that his tears aren’t because he got in that car, or because he accepted that he would have to start again. Those tears, were that of freedom. Slade was free. Finally.

  EPILOGUE

  “You can do this Dash, I know you can.”

  I swallow, staring at my car and the racetrack, then turning back to Slade.

  “I don’t know Slade, I’m so nervous…”

  “We’ve been over this, we’ve been practicing. You can do this, you were born to do this.”

  “And you?”

  He grins and leans against his car. “Oh you know, I’m going to do the before races but that’s fine by me. One day I’ll be where you are, but right now, you deserve this moment and you’re going to kill it.”

  “I couldn’t have done this without you Slade, you know that right?”

  He tilts my chin up and brings his lips down onto mine in a sweet, deep kiss. When he pulls back, I’m panting and staring up at him through hooded lashes.

  “No, baby, you did this all on your own.”

  I grin at him
and stroke his cheek. “This’ll be you soon, you’re free to do what you need.”

  He grins. “Oh I know, this time I’m going for it my way.”

  I frown a moment and then whisper. “Have you seen Michael?”

  He shrugs. “No…and I’m good with that. He’s tried to call, but I don’t think he’d dare come back here Dashy, not after what Colby did to him.”

  I smile and kiss him again. “Well, my dad is pretty scary when he wants to be.”

  Slade laughs and rubs his hand. “I know, I think he just about broke my hand when he shook it earlier.”

  “Oh? Why were you shaking my dad’s hand?”

  Slade grins, “That’s for me to know…”

  I shove his chest and grin, but before I can answer Payton and Lucas come rushing over. I beam when I see them, and I rush over to give them a hug before the race.

  “You’re going to be amazing!” Payton laughs.

  “I hope so!”

  Lucas puts an arm over my shoulder and nods his head at Slade. They have an understanding now, they’re not friends but they’re cool around each other.

  “How are you feeling?” Lucas asks.

  “Nervous as hell.”

  “You’ll do well Dash, we all believe in you.”

  I grin and roll my eyes. “You’re all too nice, someone give me a wakeup call because this can’t seriously be happening.”

  Slade pulls me from Lucas’ arms and kisses me. “Oh baby, it’s happening.”

  ~*~*~*~

  Five laps in and I’m coming third. I’m keeping my distance, just like my dad taught me. I’m keeping a steady place, but at the end, I’ll fight with everything I have to make sure I get at least second place. Ten laps, five down. I can do this. I suck in a breath as I pick up speed, sliding around the corners with ease. I am made for this. I can do this. As I take a massive bend, and soar out the other side, I know I’m coming in close.

  By the second last lap, my heart is beating so fast I can hardly breathe. All I can hear in my head is a loud ba boom, ba boom. I’m here. I’m doing it. No matter what, I’ve done well, I’ve made it this far. I’ve lived my dream and I’ve succeeded even when everything around me was drowning. I made it. I did it. I am it. The lines become a blur as I take the final bend, I can’t hear anything. I can’t feel anything. My eyes are focused solely on the road in front of me.

  When I cross that finish line in second place, I’m not at all disheartened. In fact, when I get out of my car I’m screaming with happiness. Second place in the championships, second freaking place! That’s not first, but it’s damn close. When I set eyes on my father, he has tears stumbling down his face. He knows exactly what second place is. No, it’s not first and it’s not a win but I made it. I did it. I got in that car and I pushed on. That, in my heart and his, means more than first place ever could.

  When I reach my little group of fans, I leap on Slade. He’s mumbling incoherent words about how amazing I was. My father pulls me into his arms next, telling me how proud he is of me. How my mother would be so proud. Those are the words I most wanted to hear, above all else, I want her to know her death will never be forgotten and we’ll always fight for her, for us, for this.

  “Dasha Jewel?”

  I spin around to see a man in a suit standing beside Slade.

  “That’s me?” I say, my voice high pitched and excited.

  “My name is Martin Jepode, I was wondering if we could have a word?”

  I nod. “Now’s fine.”

  He smiles at my father, obviously knowing who he is.

  “Great race out there,” he says to me.

  “Thank you.”

  “I’ll get right to the point, I saw your race and have been watching your racing now for years. You did really well out there and I was wondering if you would consider letting us sponsor you?”

  My squeals of joy were his answer. He laughs and steps forward, shaking my father’s hand.

  “I guess I’ll be seeing more of you and your daughter, Mr. Jewel.”

  “Thank you Martin, this is truly a gift.”

  Slade is grinning and his eyes are glassy with pride. I beam and shake Martin’s hand as he tells me he will contact me next week.

  “Thank you,” I say to him. “Thank you so much.”

  He nods. “I can’t let good talent go to waste, see you next week Miss Jewel.”

  When he’s gone, I turn and hug everyone once more. Slade suddenly looks a little nervous as he meets my father’s gaze.

  “What?” I ask.

  Slade swallows and turns to me. Then before I can say anything, he’s on his knee in front of me. One knee. One…knee. I gasp and my hand covers my mouth as I hear the crowd in the stand behind us go silent. Soon, more people catch on and everyone becomes silent as they watch Slade take my hand. Tears thunder down my cheeks as I stare down into the aqua eyes I love so dearly.

  “Dasha Anne Jewel, I know what we’ve been through. I know what we’ve endured to find our happiness. I’ve hurt you, I’ve been an ass and I’ve not been there when I should have been, but Dashy, I’m here now and I want to be here for the rest of your life. You’ve been my best friend for a long time now, but more than that, you’re my heart. Some people find one or the other in a person. They might find a friendship that lasts forever, or a love that lasts forever. I’ve found both and I’ve found it in the one place I want to call home for the rest of my life. Dashy, do me the honor of being my wife. Will you marry me?”

  I sob loudly as I drop to my knees in front of Slade. He finally let’s go and a tear tumbles down his cheek.

  “I’ve always loved you Slade, the minute I laid eyes on you I knew you’d change my life. Good and bad, back and forth, we’ve been through it all but we’re still here. You’ve been by my side even when you didn’t have to be. So my answer to you, Slade Devaroe is yes, always yes.”

  The crowd roars but I can’t hear anything, I can’t see anything but him. My happiness. My lifeline. My reason for breathing. I cup his face in my hands and I kiss him with everything I have inside, I give him my soul, I give him my heart and he gives me his. When I pull apart from him, my next words are whispered but they mean everything, they are everything.

  “We’re free, Slade. We’re finally free.”

  It was a freedom race for both of us, but finally we found our finish line and we crossed it together - both of us winners.

  THE END

  If you liked Slade and Dash’s story, please leave a review. This is my first time in the romance category, you can find all my other novels in the Erotic romance department.

  Now, here is a snippet from some very close friends of mine. Their new book Chase is a real mind blower. Check it out, it’s release date is June 1st 2013.

  CHASE

  Prologue

  I watch her from across the backyard, where I’m leaning against a wall.

  She is so beautiful; she is dressed in white and looks so ethereal.

  Like an angel.

  I keep staring at her, hoping for her to glance up.

  To notice me.

  To see if she feels this attraction I’m feeling for her.

  I’ve never felt anything like it.

  She is chatting with another girl, and laughing loudly. I find my own lips twitching.

  I don’t know what it is about her that draws me in, but I’ve never felt this towards a woman before.

  More than lust.

  Something.. else.

  Something that makes me want to protect her, cherish her.

  “Don’t even go there,” I hear in a dangerous rumble from behind me. It’s my friend, whose house I’m currently visiting. I ignore him, my eyes still on the angel, but he continues, “I wouldn’t let you near any of my sisters or cousins, but not her, definitely not her.” I bite the inside of my cheek. “She’s a good girl, and only seventeen. Come on let’s get out of here.” He slaps my back in a friendly gesture, as if to soften the blow of his words.
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  I glance longingly at her one last time, before I turn around and follow him.

  I know I don’t deserve her.

  But that doesn’t mean I’ll stop wanting her.

  Chapter 1

  I was screwed.

  And not in a good way.

  I glanced back at the newspaper in my hand, the page full of red circles. After seeing five different places that were close to my university, I was down to the last one. The others had been terrible. I don’t even want to go into what the guy at the last house offered me; I hope he was still lying on the floor in the fetal position after I kneed him in his junk. I started classes in one week and I still had no place to stay. I repeat- I was screwed.

  I grew up in a small town with my family, and I’d driven up from there to look for a place. I’ve been staying in a motel for the last two nights, trying my luck for a decent place to stay that’s in this area. I stare at the ad for the last place. Room available for rent. 100 per week. Perfect for student. It’s only five minutes away from my uni which is perfect. I lay the newspaper down in the front seat of my black Subaru Forrester Sti GT and drive towards the house.

  I park my car behind a black expensive looking jeep and make my way to the front door. There is a sexy looking Harley in the drive way too. The house is gorgeous, two story and modern, all cream and black. I knock on the door, and no one answers. I wait a few minutes and knock again. This time the door opens. A guy sticks his head out, blonde hair mussed. He looks two or so years older than my twenty, and I must say he is pretty cute. Pale blue eyes, a straight nose, and full lips, the bottom one pierced with a small hoop through it. Hot!

  He looks me up and down and grins, his blue eyes crinkling, ‘Hello’. His grin is contagious and I find myself grinning too.

  “Hi I’m Layla. I’m here about the room for rent?” He looks confused for a moment, but then nods in realization. “Of course, come on in Layla.” I glance down and only then, realize he is shirtless, only wearing a pair of boxer shorts. I blush and look at the floor, and then I hear him chuckle. I slowly raise my eyes to his amused ones.

  “Come on, I’ll give you a tour. I’m James by the way.”