by A. K. Evans
I shook my head. “No. We’re going out. Even if for no other reason than I want to show you off,” I told her.
Avery rolled her eyes. “You’re making me feel like I’m a car that just got a fancy new paint job or something.”
“That’s not it at all,” I assured her. “Because with a car, if that paint comes off, it’s usually not pretty underneath. I know that when I take this dress off you tonight, I’m going to have a hard time dealing with just how beautiful what I find under it is.”
Avery stepped forward and threw her arms over my shoulders. “You’re so damn sweet,” she started. “Do you know how lucky I feel to have you?”
I smiled at her, pressed a soft kiss to her lips, and shared, “If it’s anything like I feel about having you, then I think I’ve got a pretty good idea.”
Another kiss, this one much longer and deeper, followed my sentiments.
When I finally tore my mouth from hers, I asked, “Are you ready to go?”
Avery dipped her chin.
With that, we locked up the house and left.
Fifteen minutes later, we pulled into the lot at Sierra Grillhouse. It was one of the more upscale restaurants in town, and I could practically feel the excitement oozing off Avery when I parked.
“This is fancy,” she declared.
“I know. It’s your birthday. You deserve fancy,” I responded.
Without waiting for her to respond, I got out of my truck and rounded the hood to meet her on her side. Then I held her hand as we walked toward the front door of the restaurant. Once inside, the hostess greeted us, and I said, “Reservation for Knox Lee.”
The hostess glanced down, grinned, and replied, “Right this way.”
Still holding Avery’s hand, I led her through the restaurant as we followed the hostess. A moment later, we stepped through an open doorway that led into a smaller room off the main dining area. The smaller room had an incredible view of the mountains, but even better than that, it had hidden our friends.
“Holy shit,” Nash declared, being the first to notice us. “Is that Avery standing beside Knox? Damn, girl.”
I felt Avery tense beside me.
She looked up at me and rasped, “You planned this?”
I slipped my arm around her waist and pulled her close. “Yes.”
Curling her body into mine, Avery buried her face in my chest and wrapped her arms around me. I tightened my arms around her and gently stroked up and down her back.
“Baby,” I said softly when I felt her body buck lightly with a sob. “Don’t cry.”
Her fingers dug in at my waist. I felt the expansion across her back as she took in a deep breath to settle herself.
A moment later, she tipped her head back and looked up at me again. After searching my face, she whispered, “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“I feel the same way about you,” I told her.
There was movement behind her, so I lifted my gaze. That caused Avery to loosen her hold on me and turn around.
Kendall was standing there as the rest of the guys were getting up out of their seats.
Pulling Avery into a hug, Kendall bubbled, “You look amazing. Happy Birthday!”
“Thank you so much,” Avery replied.
When Kendall stepped back, Logan stepped forward. He gave Avery a kiss on the cheek and said, “Happy Birthday, Avery.”
“Thanks, Logan,” she rasped, her eyes filling with tears.
Logan moved back to Kendall, and Avery was given a round of hugs and birthday wishes from Ryker and Kieran. Nash moved toward her last, hugged her, and said, “Happy Birthday, holeshot.”
Avery giggled. “Thanks, Nash.”
Before he let go of her, he pointed at me and shared, “If this guy doesn’t treat you right, you give me a call, okay?”
Shock and horror washed over her face while I growled, “Okay. Hands off now.”
Nash gave Avery a one-armed squeezed and let out a laugh after he let her go and walked back to the table.
Once we were all seated and had ordered a round of appetizers, everyone had fallen into their own conversations while perusing the menus for their entrée selections. I used that opportunity to watch Avery. She had her head pointed at the menu, but her gaze was on everyone at the table. It was clear to me how much it meant to her to see everyone here celebrating with her.
I loved being able to give that to her.
And I was grateful to the rest of the gang for giving it to her, too.
After our waitress returned with our drinks, we all gave our entrée choices to her. No sooner had she taken off when Logan held out a small box and declared, “Okay, so we’ve got a gift for you, Avery.”
“Oh, you guys. I didn’t need anything,” she insisted, taking the box from Kendall who had gotten it from Logan. “Just having all of you here with me is enough.”
“It’s just something small,” Logan insisted. “Honestly, it’s not a big deal.”
With the wrapped box grasped firmly in her hand, Avery looked at me and asked, “Did you know about this?”
I shook my head. “I had no idea.”
And I didn’t. I never invited them with the expectation that anyone had to buy her gifts. I just wanted them here with us because I knew it would mean the world to Avery.
“Open it,” Kendall encouraged her.
Looking down at the gift like it was the most precious thing she’d ever received, Avery carefully and slowly tore open the paper. With the paper gone, she removed the lid from the box, pushed the tissue paper aside, and her hand instantly flew up to cover her mouth.
I hadn’t been able to see what was inside the box, but I was certainly curious about it now. With my brows pulled together, I looked around the table for some indication of what was inside.
That’s when Logan spoke.
“You’re part of the family now, Avery,” he started. “It’s time you had your own.”
Seeing her on the verge of a breakdown, I put my arm around my girl and asked, “What is it?”
Avery took the box out of her lap, set it on the table, and peeled back the paper. That’s when I saw what had her so emotional.
Logan had given her a key.
She was getting her own key to the shop.
Now I understood why Avery was so emotional. She knew that she was right where she was supposed to be. She now knew that Logan and the rest of the team trusted her the same as we trusted each other.
“This is the best birthday I’ve had since my father died,” she croaked. Her eyes moved around the table. “Thank you so much for this. Not only for being here with me today but also for welcoming me into the fold the way you have. It feels really good. And for the first time in a long time, I’m so happy.”
Avery got a bunch of warm smiles and chin lifts of acknowledgment in return.
“Gosh, I’m such a mess right now,” she mumbled.
Kendall pushed back her chair and urged, “Come on. We’ll go get you cleaned up. But no more crying after this.”
Avery gave me a quick look and said, “I’ll be right back.”
“Take your time, baby.”
Once the girls had walked away, I looked at Logan and said, “That was really cool of you to do for her today.”
He shrugged. “She probably should have had it a long time ago,” he replied. “But there was still one guy who was on the fence about her. I needed to wait until he warmed up to her.”
I let out a laugh. Shaking my head, I muttered, “I don’t know what I was thinking. That girl doesn’t have a manipulative bone in her body.”
“We’re all really happy for you, Knox,” Kieran chimed in.
“Yeah, man,” Nash agreed. “You know I was just yanking your chain before.”
“Wouldn’t matter if you weren’t,” Ryker interjected. “She’s so far gone for Knox, you’re not even a blip on her radar.”
The waitress returned just then with our appetizers. After
she set them down and walked away, I said, “In all seriousness, guys, I really appreciate you all being here for her tonight. She doesn’t have anyone else, and I know this means everything to her.”
“It’s no problem, Knox. Don’t worry about it,” Logan insisted.
“Besides, it’s not like she wouldn’t bend over backward for any one of us if we needed it,” Nash said.
“I know,” I agreed. “It’s just… it means a lot to me to know you guys were willing to do this for her.”
“You’d do the same for us,” Kieran noted.
He was right. I would.
With a downward jerk of my chin, I confirmed he was right.
A moment later, the girls returned. Avery seemed to have gotten herself pulled together. She no longer looked like she was ready to burst into tears at any second, which I was incredibly grateful for. The whole point of having everyone out with us tonight was to make her happy, not have her crying her eyes out.
Kendall quickly fell into conversation with Logan, while Kieran, Ryker, and Nash were having one of their own. Avery took the opportunity to lean in toward me.
“Thank you so much for doing this for me, Knox,” she said softly. “I wasn’t lying before when I said this was the best birthday I’ve had since my father died. It’s all thanks to you.”
“I’m happy I could give this to you,” I told her.
Placing her hand on my thigh, she tipped her head up and touched her mouth to mine. And from that point forward, Avery made the effort to thoroughly enjoy her birthday dinner with her racing family.
If I wasn’t so happy, I might have felt bad.
Not for myself. Or, maybe a little bit for my former self.
That wasn’t to say that I wasn’t the same person I’d always been. Who I was, the things I held near and dear to my heart, my passions, and my frustrations were all the same as they had always been.
But there was one thing my former self didn’t have that I had now.
Up until I got my job at LT Motorsports, I hadn’t ever dreamed so much about anything outside of what I wanted outside of the racing industry. Becoming the best drag racer the sport has ever seen was only ever my goal. There was nothing wrong with that.
Now, things were different. The woman I was now still wanted everything I always wanted. But it wasn’t enough.
Why had I limited myself for so long? Why hadn’t I demanded more for myself so much sooner?
Yes, my father had died. But for a very long time, much longer than it should have been, I gave up. I gave up on my only dream.
And in doing that, I gave up things I didn’t know I needed or wanted.
Things I had now.
A great job working at a place where I was proud to work. New friends who looked out for me and cared for me like nobody else had since my father. And a man who made me happier than I ever thought possible.
With all of that, the greatest thing I had was the sudden realization that I didn’t have to be so tough all the time. It was okay to open my heart to others and trust them to be there for me. Maybe, in a way, it hadn’t happened before now because it wasn’t meant to. Because I wasn’t with the people who deserved to have that from me.
Now I was.
And now that I had all that I had, I couldn’t imagine my life without it.
Knox and I had gotten home a couple hours ago from Sierra Grillhouse. I was still reeling from all the emotions I felt when I realized all of the people I’d grown to love over the last couple months were there to celebrate with me.
Once again, it was all because I had Knox. I was convinced he’d do anything to make me happy.
When we got back to my place, he didn’t stop trying to make it my best birthday ever. I’d been treated to a plethora of orgasms since we’d returned. In fact, he’d done such an amazing job, it was a wonder I hadn’t fallen asleep yet.
Somehow, I was still hanging on, curled up tight to his warm body.
And I had a feeling it was for two very different reasons. First, I’d had such an incredible day that the thought of it ending broke my heart a smidge. But the bigger reason I hadn’t drifted just yet was because my heart was feeling something it never had before.
Though I couldn’t be absolutely certain, I had a pretty good idea that what I was feeling was love.
I was in love with Knox.
That had to be what it was.
Truth be told, it was the first time I’d ever felt something so strongly for a man. And I knew it was something I’d never forget.
But even though I knew I’d never forget just how wonderful and special the day had been, I wished I would have done more to commit every part of it to memory. Because one week later, everything started to change.
I couldn’t stop myself from pacing.
It was a wonder I had so much energy considering I barely got any sleep last night. That’s what happened, though, when I was this excited about something.
Today was the day. It was finally here. It felt like it had been a lifetime in the making, even though I knew it had only been a few months.
Testing day had arrived.
It hardly seemed possible that in such a short time I had made it to this point, but here I was. And I couldn’t have been more excited about it.
It felt like this had become the new norm for me. Unable to control the excitement and anticipation of everything in front of me. I didn’t necessarily mind it when I had Knox around to comfort me or distract me. But he wasn’t here yet.
So all I could do was pace back and forth in my house until he arrived.
If I hadn’t been waiting for Knox to come here and meet me at my place, I would have already left in hopes that I would arrive at the track within minutes of it opening.
Even though we typically spent nearly every night together, Knox and I didn’t last night.
Yesterday afternoon, he had received a call from his sister. She reached out and asked if he’d be free to FaceTime with her that night since she had something she wanted to talk about. When I found out, I suggested to him that he just go home, talk with his sister, and pick me up this morning.
At the time, it seemed like the wisest idea. Knox would have privacy to talk with her, and I could get some sleep without any distractions.
Truthfully, I should have known better. Knowing how much anticipation affected me, having Knox there with me would have at least allowed me to get a better night’s sleep, even if he woke me up sometime in the middle of the night.
But there was nothing I could do about it now. I knew once I was at the track, behind the wheel, thoughts of sleep would be far away.
I’d just looked out the window at the front of the house hoping to see Knox driving down my road or pulling into my driveway when I heard my phone ring.
Dashing across the room, I located my phone, picked it up, and saw Knox’s name on the display. I rushed to answer it and greeted him, “Good morning, baby. Are you almost here?”
“Morning, babe. Listen, Avery, I’m running behind this morning. I know you still have to pick up the car at the shop, and I don’t want to delay you any longer. Why don’t you go ahead without me, and I’ll meet you at the track?”
He wasn’t coming?
“Is… is everything okay?” I wondered.
“Yeah, yeah. Everything is fine,” he insisted. “I don’t really have time to explain it now, and I know you need to get going, so we’ll talk later. I’m sorry for not calling you sooner.”
I swallowed hard, a feeling of uneasiness settling in my stomach. “Are you sure? I don’t mind waiting if you only need a little bit more time. I’d rather arrive a half hour later than go ahead without you.”
“No, it’s okay. I have a few things I need to take care of this morning. Besides the rest of the guys are going to be expecting us,” he reminded me. “Just head over now, and I’ll meet you there soon.”
“Okay,” I replied, but there was no denying the trepidation in my tone. Something wasn’
t right. And I hated I didn’t know what it was. More than that, I didn’t like the feeling of dread that was starting to take over.
“Avery?” he called.
“Yeah?”
There was a moment of hesitation before he insisted, “I’ll be there before you make your first pass.”
That made me feel infinitely better. Something came up that he needed to deal with, but he didn’t have time to explain it now. He also said we’d talk later. Getting his promise that he’d be there before I made a pass was all the reassurance I needed.
Feeling myself relax a bit, I replied, “Alright, Knox. I’ll see you soon.”
“You will,” he promised.
Knox and I disconnected. Then I stood there for easily a full two minutes while I let the feeling of disappointment wash over me. Even though Knox had given me his promise that he’d meet me at the track before my first pass, something still didn’t feel right to me.
But I needed to ignore it and beat it back. Because not only did I not like the way it felt, but I was also going to be driving again today for the first time in weeks. My head needed to be in the game.
Wanting to make sure I had enough time to get to the track, unload, and breathe for a few minutes before racing, I managed to unstick myself from the spot I was standing in the middle of the family room. I grabbed my keys and everything else I needed and left.
When I pulled up outside the shop, I couldn’t have felt more relieved than I did when I realized I had a key to get in. Last night, before we left the shop, Knox and I had loaded my car up into my trailer and kept it inside the shop for security reasons. The idea was that we’d make things easy for ourselves this morning so we could get on the road immediately. Though Knox wasn’t with me now, at least now I only had to open up the garage door, hitch up my truck, and head over to the track. Loading the car by myself would have been possible but a major time suck.
After a few minutes of battling with getting the truck lined up with the trailer hitch, I was finally pulling away from the shop and heading to the track.
As I turned onto the road that led into the track forty-five minutes later, I felt strange. The last time I had driven my truck and trailer to the track to race, I’d been alone. And then I ended up leaving with a mangled car.