“Again, what is that supposed to mean?”
“You didn’t notice that Lila is black? And not the Beyoncé kind of black. She’s the Lupita kind of black.”
“So?”
“So? You know damn well that Dad held racist . . . sexist . . . classist views. Hell, he was all the ists. He would never have approved of Lila as my girlfriend. As my wife, he wouldn’t have had a choice. I wasn’t quite sure how everybody else would feel.”
“What do you mean? Dad’s views were his alone. You’ve never heard me practice or say any of that shit! I admired Dad when it came to business, but I would never say he was a good man, father, or husband. For the record, he and I always had blowup arguments when I’d point out his isms.”
“I would have loved to have seen it.” He never saw Liam and his father disagree on anything.
“I’m almost eight years older than you. You weren’t around for most of it, and then you just stopped coming around altogether.” Liam was pissed. He had always been honest and fair. To think Brian didn’t feel as if he could bring a black woman home to meet the family made Liam sick to his stomach.
“You wall off your emotions, so it’s hard to know what you’re really thinking.”
“Then ask!” Liam roared. “After all of your fuckery over the years, I’ve always had your back. How could you question my loyalty? I’m in this godforsaken town right now, trying to help you navigate the mess you created when I could be back at home running my businesses.” Liam was angry. He took a second to calm down before speaking again. “Let me clarify something for you. I would have supported anyone that you chose. My only concern has been and will always be that that person loves you for you and not for everything that comes with being a Lockwood.”
Brian was slightly embarrassed and rightfully checked for imprinting his own fears onto Liam. There had been a small part of him that had his own reservations about interracial dating. “In the end, it didn’t really matter. I was much more in love with Lila than she was with me. It was never more obvious than when she cheated on me with Anthony Luccesse.”
The frown lines on Liam’s face deepened. “The Anthony Luccesse?”
“The one and only.”
Liam gave his head a gentle shake. The coincidence that the Luccesses knew about Brian trying to buy this team and Lila showing up in East Moline was too great to ignore. The cynic in Liam had been activated. “Is she still involved with him?”
Brian shrugged. “I have no idea. As I said, I haven’t talked to Lila in years. I’ve done my level best to bury the stupid years.”
What years would that be? Up to and including this one? Liam decided to keep his thoughts to himself. No need to kick his brother while he was down. Still, he had questions. “How does she know Colby?”
Brian had no idea. “They share the same last name, so it’s safe to assume they are probably related. Lila didn’t really talk too much about her family.”
“The dossier did say that Cyrus had two children. It didn’t go into detail about them.”
Liam and Brian let the quiet settle between them. Both were lost to their own thoughts as the driver pulled up in front of the hotel.
As if on autopilot, they got out of the car and silently walked inside of the building.
“I’m tired as shit,” Brian announced. He really just wanted some time to be by himself to process seeing Lila again. His emotions were all over the place. “What time is your flight tomorrow?” Brian asked.
Liam was lost in his own thoughts, too, as he ran all the possible scenarios about the purchase of Daughtry Racing inside his head.
“Liam?”
“Hmm. . . what? Oh . . . 9:00 a.m.”
“If I don’t see you before you take off, have a safe flight, and I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
The brother’s hugged. Liam could feel the weight of seeing Lila again all over Brian. He felt for him. “Look, I’ve never been good at all the emotional stuff, but,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “call me if you need anything.”
“I’m good. Nothing a good night’s sleep won’t fix.” With his head down and slouching shoulders, Brian walked off in the opposite direction to his room.
*****
Liam’s mind was buzzing with activity. The second he was alone, he called up Markos. “Hey. Any update regarding Colby James’ background check?”
“Yeah. I sent the preliminary report over to your e-mail. I’m still waiting for some information to come back.”
“Good . . . good. Look, I need you to do a few things, and they need to be top priority. First, we don’t have the proper security in place. I didn’t think we’d need it here. But that might be a mistake. I want eyes on Brian at all times, and I want a full security detail set up around that garage. Second, I need whatever information you can find about a woman named Lila James. When I say everything, that means down to the brand of diapers her parents used when she was an infant. Finally, find a suitable place for semi-permanent lodging and staff it. Staff it with people who you know are loyal.”
“Got it,” Markos said as he took notes.
“If you have to fly some of my people out here, then do it. Security needs to be extra tight. The guys I have at the hotel are not enough, not when we are dealing with the Luccesses. We need to take every precaution, and staying at this hotel leaves us vulnerable to anything.”
“True.” Markos agreed. “Sounds like we’re going to be here for a while.”
“As long as we need to be.”
“Is that it? Should I be doing anything else?” Markos asked.
“Actually, yes. One last thing. Cancel my flight for in the morning.”
“When should I reschedule it?”
Liam wasn’t exactly sure. “I’ll let you know.” After his conversation with Markos, he disconnected the call.
Liam felt a little less anxious but would feel much safer once his requests were in place. He should have planned better for this trip. Liam thought they would be in and out before anyone was the wiser. Now that the Luccesses knew their location and with Lila miraculously showing up, he had to be more strategic with his moves.
Still a bit antsy, Liam changed out of his clothes, dropped down onto the floor, and did about a hundred push-ups before taking a quick shower. When he came out of the bathroom, he got into bed and opened up his laptop.
He went straight to his e-mail and found the one from Markos.
Markos Bankston Subject: C. James_Preliminary
Liam clicked on it. From the very first line, he devoured every bit of information gathered and over the course of the next hour. His eyes remained glued to the screen.
Colby James was an enigma. She was also impressive as fuck. He couldn’t get the image of her at the restaurant out of his mind. He wondered how those lips tasted. Her breasts? They were just sitting there like two ripe melons, begging him to sample one of those erect nipples that poked through her dress. It was a miracle he had managed to keep his almost immediate physical attraction to her hidden.
There were no secrets in his hotel room. His body was free to react exactly the way it was supposed to when aroused. Still thinking of her, Liam wrapped his hand around the base of his hardening cock and began to stroke. Initially, his movements were slow, but when he tightened his hold, he quickly began to grow thicker and harder.
The tip of his penis began to leak. Liam used the pre-cum as a lubricant.
He slid his hand up and down his shaft, imagining it was the tight pussy lips of the woman he’d only recently met. The mere thought of having her naked body under his brought Liam to a full-on erection. There would be no sleep until he could relieve that tension.
Liam’s breath quickened as he increased his grip and speed. He turned his hand, so it slid down his cock forefinger first, twisting it until he reached the base, only to reverse the motion as his hand glided its way back up, then kneading the tip with his thumb.
His movements made him feel as if he were in the
virginal grip of a woman, and the pressure to release was building. He could feel himself start to tighten.
Liam squeezed his penis a little harder and placed it against his stomach with one hand while rapidly moving it up and down the underside of his cock.
The tingling began in his groin and started to spread up through his spine. Liam was about to cum. He increased the intensity of his movements and, seconds later, erupted thick, rope-like semen, oozing all over his hands.
He gave himself a moment to catch his breath then grabbed the towel he’d dried off with earlier to clean up.
Liam yawned.
His last thoughts before drifting off to sleep were of her and the fact that her ex had to the dumbest man on the planet.
Chapter 11
The drive home was made in almost complete silence. Lila’s body was stiff as a board as she stared out of the window.
Colby glanced away from the road long enough to check on her. Her tone was gentle. “Are you alright?”
Lila didn’t respond right away.
Colby was starting to get worried. “Do we need to file a police report? Or do we need to call crazy cousin Larry and go kick some ass?”
Lila’s head snapped around. “No! Oh, God, no.” She released a long and exaggerated sigh. “Brian’s a good guy. I just—” Her voice broke off.
Colby was skeptical. “If he is such a good guy, why did you look like you were going to faint when you saw him?”
Lila threw her head back onto the headrest and squeezed her eyes shut. She whispered, “Because Brian’s my biggest mistake.”
Colby wasn’t following. “I don’t understand.”
Lila opened her eyes but stared straight ahead. “We dated in college.” She laughed sarcastically. “But you know me. I figured out a way to mess it up. Even after all these years, it still haunts me. It’s been nothing but a weight around my neck.”
Colby definitely knew that feeling. “Oh” was all she could manage to say. Colby had never seen her cousin like this. Lila seemed slightly broken, not the confident woman ready to take on the world.
They pulled up into the front of Colby’s parents’ garage and parked.
Colby reached out and placed a hand on top of Lila’s. “By the looks on both your faces, there is clearly some unfinished business.” Colby’s next words were measured. “Maybe now is a good time to finish it. Or, at the very least, gain some measure of closure.”
Lila vehemently shook her head. “There is no fixing anything that happened between us.”
Colby turned off the car’s engine. “Are you sure?”
“That door is forever closed. It’s best we forget I ever saw him.” Lila, fearing more questions from Colby, quickly opened her door and got out of the car.
Colby watched her walk away. Whatever happened between Lila and Brian left a lasting impact. Colby wondered if she would ever be moved by a man that much. At one time, Colby thought that man might have been Derrick, but after the breakup, she only felt—relief.
Liam Lockwood’s face crossed her mind. It sent a shiver throughout her entire body.
She took a calming breath. That came out of nowhere. Or did it? Colby wouldn’t lie to herself. She could admit that she was mildly attracted to him. Thank God, Brian was the owner and not him. Colby hoped she wouldn’t have to run into Liam too often because she was on a mission, not that he would even be remotely interested in her.
Colby didn’t need the distraction.
Chapter 12
It was early when Colby and Cyrus drove into the garage. Both were lost in thought. She spoke into the silence. “What do you really think about Brian Lockwood buying Daughtry?”
Cyrus mulled over her words. “It’s better than the alternative.”
“True, but that’s not saying much. A buyer or insolvency.” Colby lifted her hands as if they were scales, weighing both options. “Hmm . . . which one?
“The Lockwood’s weren’t the only outfit that was interested in buying Daughtry.”
Colby was surprised. “They weren’t?”
“Nope. A young fella by the name of Anthony Luccesse expressed interest. He was offering more money too.”
“Why didn’t we go with them?”
“I’m glad we didn’t. That dude is linked to organized crime. We don’t need those headaches. I’m just glad we closed the deal with Brian before Anthony connected with Tom. Tom wouldn’t have cared.”
“The Lockwoods are just so inexperienced.”
“True. “I also don’t think they have any idea about what they’ve just stepped into.”
“That’s what worries me. I hope it’s not like trading in Tom for a newer version. He had no idea how to handle the politics, the racism, the sexism, and everything else that comes along with owning this team.”
“I get the feeling it’s not going to be like it was with Tom. I do believe that ignorance might be an opportunity for us.”
Colby turned. “Why do you say that?”
“For one, the Lockwoods aren’t good old boys.”
“In the regular world, that’s great, but in NASCAR, how is that good? It means they don’t understand this world and the rules that come with it. How are they going to advance in a game when they don’t know how to play?”
“Something tells me they’ll be just fine. They might even be open to breaking a few rules.”
Colby was skeptical. “I don’t know, Dad. Brian’s a little young.”
“He’s about your age.”
Colby smirked. “We all know women are more mature than men.”
“Ha!” Cyrus laughed. “We let y’all think that.”
“Riiight. Okay.” Colby laughed too. “I did my own little internet sleuthing. Brian’s kind of a playboy who likes to party.” Colby decided to leave out the fact she’d done a bit of research on Liam too.
“That’s not surprising at his age.” Cyrus nodded.
“You just defended his age. Now, you’re using it as an excuse?”
“No. I’m not defending him one way or the other. I said he is about your age.”
“That doesn’t bother you?”
“Nope.”
“C’mon, Dad. Not even a little? This is probably all just a game to him. What happens when he gets bored?”
“Like I said, I’ve got a gut feeling about a few things.”
She sighed. “I’m glad you do because Brian has no idea what is about to hit him.”
“True. But Liam is smart. He seems to be able to read the room and adjust.”
Just the mention of his name made Colby squirm. “He’s not the owner. He’s just his brother.”
Finally, Cyrus took his eyes off the road and stared at Colby. “That’s what you think, huh?”
“Well . . . yeah. Is that not the case?”
“I’m going to need you to do a little less talking and a lot more paying attention, Ms.,” his eyes danced with laughter, “women are more mature than men.”
They pulled up to the garage, and Colby’s eyes widened. “What in the world?” The Daughtry Racing signs were gone. There were men high in the air installing what she figured was the new one, along with construction workers in hard hats all over the place, and other people she didn’t recognize surveying the property.
Cyrus drove into his parking spot. “It appears the younger Lockwood wasn’t kidding when he said he was ready to put his stamp on the place.”
Colby spoke softly. “All these changes feel like they are taking a bit of my childhood away, and, with it, some of my best memories. I want a fresh start, but it's all happening so fast.”
Cyrus rested his hand on Colby’s shoulder. “Nothing can take away our memories.” He glanced around at all the activity surrounding them. “No one can take anything away that we are not willing to give.” He allowed Colby to have another moment before patting that same shoulder. “Now, let’s go inside and create some new memories.”
*****
When Cyrus and Colby arri
ved, they were greeted at the door by Gonzo. As they looked past him, there were even more workers inside.
“What are they doing in here?” Colby asked.
“Brian is giving Lockwood Racing a facelift. It’s great, right?” Gonzo asked excitedly.
Cyrus was a bit melancholy about all the changes happening so quickly, too, but needed to put on a brave face for Colby’s sake. Instead of answering honestly, he dodged the question. “You’re here early.”
“Not early enough. I wanted to make a good first impression, but Brian and Liam were already making coffee when I walked through the door.”
“Liam?” Colby was surprised. “I thought he was flying out this morning?”
“Don’t know when he was supposed to leave, but he and Brian are in Tom’s old office. I mean, Brian’s new office.” Gonzo chuckled. “Some big dude named Markos and a few others tore the place apart, basically tossing out all of Tom’s stuff.” Gonzo leaned his head over in the direction of their work area.
“Don’t worry, Mr. James, Brian said he wouldn’t touch our work area until he’d spoken with you.”
“That’s probably best.” Cyrus sighed.
“What about those other guys in suits just standing around? What are they doing here?” Colby turned around in a semi-circle.
Gonzo hunched his shoulders. “Don’t know, but they look a little too serious for my taste if you ask me.”
Cyrus wasn’t too keen on all the action taking place, but Brian had a right to make changes as he saw fit. “If the Lockwoods are here, I’d better go find out what’s going on.”
*****
Colby was irritated by all the noise. It was hard to talk over it. Still, Colby held the engineering team captive as she explained in minute detail exactly how she built Asher’s engine, and why she made specific modifications. It was made a lot easier since she was able to remove the engine from the car and show them.
There was a lot of head nodding and agreeing going on within the group until Asher, and the other drivers showed up.
“Well . . . looky here. Ms. James has taken over the garage.” Asher sneered her name. “No wonder Daughtry racing is such a disaster.”
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