A mans world, p.13
A Man's World, page 13
“Sometimes I feel like it’s all too much, like it would just be easier if my car crashed, and then I wouldn’t have to face the possibility of completing the race, the possibility of not even making it to the podium.” His last comment shocked me a bit, although part of me understood. I had never seen Luca this vulnerable before, so I took in what he said and thought carefully about my next statement.
“The only person that you can let down is yourself,” I said finally. “You don’t owe anyone anything. You drive for you. You’re many things, Luca, but you aren’t a coward. You’re going to drive this weekend with the same amount of passion you have for your country, and I think it’ll transpire into something you’ll be proud of.”
Luca finally looked up; his gaze felt like it was starting to burn a hole into my mind. For a moment, his eyes drifted to my lips, and I could feel butterflies once again forming in my stomach as Luca licked his lips, his face starting to soften and his eyes just ever so slightly darkening. As the silence continued to sit comfortably over us, I could see Luca begin to slowly lean in, his eyes burning into mine with his teeth slightly biting on his bottom lip.
Is Luca Rossi going to kiss me? I panicked for a bit and then considered why I hadn’t leaned away, why I was still staring at him. Did I want him to kiss me?
Before either of us could process what was about to happen, a loud banging sound came from our doorway. Luca and I both jumped, and Luca pulled back from me, his cheeks a little red now, as if he was slightly embarrassed by the intense moment we had just shared.
“Georgie, any chance you’re up?” I heard Lily on the other end of the door.
I quickly scrambled from my spot on the sofa. Lily and I were close, but it was unusual to hear her knocking on my door at 7:30 in the morning. I opened the door for her, and there stood in front of me was a slightly ruffled Lily.
“You alright, Lil?” I asked, looking her up and down, checking for any visible signs of injury. She nodded shyly, clearly a little embarrassed that she had come to my room so early while I was still in my pajamas. I opened the door and motioned for her to come in.
I had forgotten that Luca was sitting on the sofa – shirtless – wearing some skimpy soft Puma shorts as pajamas, which became evident at the reddening on Lily’s face.
“Oh, sorry if I am interrupting something!” Lily chuckled, a slight smirk forming on her face. I gave her a look that told her not to even think about it, and she took a seat in the armchair across from the couch. I went back to the kitchen and began making a second round of coffee.
“I was, uh… just on a run and thought I would stop by. I listened to the podcast last night; really funny, Luca,” she giggled. I could see Lily’s eyes give him one more once over as she blushed a bit. Luca grinned, clearly pleased that Lily wasn’t quite as good as I was at hiding her ogling. As I watched their interaction, I felt a slight twinge of jealousy form in the pit of my stomach. Luca might be a fake boyfriend, but Lily could at least not silently flirt with him in front of me. I couldn’t blame her, though. Luca was incredibly attractive and a shirtless Luca? Well, he was just hot.
“The podcast was a good time,” Luca agreed, finishing his cup of coffee. Once the first round of coffee was finished, I poured everyone a second cup and sat back down on the couch, this time slightly closer to Luca than before, as if to remind Lily who he was actually fake dating.
The internal battle within me had lost – jealousy had won.
“I mean, I appreciate you dropping by, Lil, but 7:30 is a little early, even for you.” Lily was a notorious early riser. She had a weird thing about watching sunrises before race weekends; she claimed it gave her peace and serenity before she entered the race car.
“I know, I’m sorry. I just feel like the last few weeks haven’t gone well in the car, and I’m just so nervous for today. I mean, the upgrades are going to be great, but I just can’t seem to get ahold of the car. Feel like I’m working against the car.” I nodded, understanding where she was coming from. Lily was a great driver, but getting ahold of a Formula 1 car was difficult, and she was so young.
“I know you know this, but I’ll say it again. It’s your first year, Lil. It takes time to get used to a car of that quality. I have a lot more years than you, and while this isn’t Indy Car, the cars are very similar to Formula 1. There’s a lot of learning that comes with age. Isabelle picked you for a reason. All you need to do this weekend is put your head down and drive like the incredible driver the team believes you are.”
I could see a smile form on Lily’s lips, her eyes perking up a bit. If my job as a driver didn’t succeed, there was potential in a job as a therapist.
“Wisdom comes with age, as my father always says,” Luca added. “I have no doubt you’ll have some championships ahead of you, Lily – probably more than this one will get,” he added, ruffling my hair as he gave me his favorite, Cheshire cat grin.
“And definitely more than Luca will get,” I retorted as Luca showed me his middle finger.
Lily stayed for another twenty minutes, finishing her cup of coffee, before returning back to her room to get ready for the day. As soon as she left, I heard a ding on my phone, a text from Lily lighting up the screen.
Lily: Why have you not had some angry hate sex with this fine man yet? Or was that what I was interrupting this morning?
Georgia: A classy lady never tells.
I couldn’t help but slightly laugh at her text. Lily had interrupted something, but I had no idea what it was, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to find out.
Luca and I spent the rest of the morning in silence, and as soon as nine a.m. rolled around, we left the room – together this time – and headed towards the valet to pick up his Lamborghini.
The drive to the paddock was quiet. Luca and I exchanged a few comments on the weather but nothing further on the morning’s earlier conversation. Once we arrived, we did the same routine as yesterday. Luca handed me my bag, took my hand in his, and we walked through the paddock as a united front.
As soon as I walked into the Valkyrie garage, I was dragged by Lizzie into what felt like the world’s biggest hug.
“Georgie, incredibly good to see you. How was the podcast taping last night?” she asked cheerfully, and I gave her a look that said, ‘As you if you didn’t listen to it and spend all night checking social media?’ Before Lizzie could answer, Isabelle called us both into her office. There was no smile on her face, but I could tell that she was pleased.
“Good morning. Georgia, looks like you had a productive evening last night. I just got off the phone with Maison de Klotho, and they have asked for us to meet them the week of Monaco.” As soon as the words left Isabelle’s mouth, I felt a huge sigh of relief ripple through me.
“Oh! My! God!” Lizzie screamed. “This is amazing!”
“It’s just a meeting, but still, it’s a step in the right direction for us. Keep it up, and we should have a sponsorship deal scored before the summer break.” Isabelle turned directly to me and squinted her eyes a bit. “That means no Sassy Dubois to the cameras, got it, Georgia?” I wanted to give her a piece of my mind about the toddler treatment, but I knew it wouldn’t be fruitful, so I opted for a sweeter approach.
“Yes, yes, I’ll do my best to quell the beast inside of me.”
“Good to hear. Now, remember, we have the Italian Drivers Association event tonight. You will be attending with Luca, and you and Luca will be seated at a table with me and Francesco, Henri, and Lily. A car will pick you up at 7 p.m. Do not be late. I took the liberty of having a dress sent to your room.”
“I’ll be there with bells on,” I whistled back. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have a free practice to top!” And with that, I trotted out of Isabelle’s office, feeling quite undeservedly pleased with myself.
Free Practice 1 and 2 had gone great for the team. I had topped the first Free Practice, but Henri and Eric had beaten me in the second. I knew Luca wouldn’t be happy that he hadn’t managed to top the tables in either of those sessions.
As soon as the day ended, I headed back to Luca's car and plopped down into the passenger seat. I could see the look of disappointment on Luca's face. The calm and teasing nature that he usually had was now replaced by anxiety and discomfort. As we drove back to the hotel, I considered approaching him about the issue again, but the coward within me won.
When I opened the door to our suite, I saw the dress Isabelle had sent me lying across my bed. As I opened the dress bag, I was slightly horrified to see what lay waiting for me. There, inside the bag, was what I could only describe as the sexiest black dress I had ever laid my eyes on. I immediately knew this had Lizzie all over it, and I opened my phone to give her a piece of my mind. It was as if Lizzie knew I would be calling because she answered the phone after just one ringtone.
“Ummm, care to explain the dress Isabelle sent to my room?”
“Isn’t it just so gorgeous? You are going to look stunning.” Lizzie had her sickly sweet voice on, the one that told me she was loving this far too much.
“No way I can wear this.”
“What better way to secure a Maison de Klotho sponsorship than you making headlines with that sexy black dress designed by them?” I grumbled in response, but before I could give her a piece of my mind, the line went dead, and I knew that was the end of the conversation. The dress was a statement piece and was sure to turn heads – and photographers’ cameras.
After completing my hair and makeup, I went back into my room and changed into the dress. Lizzie was right – I did look stunning, which was confirmed as soon as I walked into the living room. As I walked into the room, I heard a loud whistle from Luca, who was seated on the couch. His eyes looked tired – and slightly red – but his features were relaxed, and he had a smirk on his lips.
“What did I do to deserve this honor?” Part of me wanted to punch the cheeky smile off his face. I could see his eyes rake over me, going slowly from the top of my frame to the bottom, paying careful attention to my leg that stuck out of the dress’ slit.
“Don’t kid yourself, Luca, this is for a woman called Klotho. You might have heard of her, you know, the goddess of fashion.” Luca raised his eyebrow a bit, not entirely sure if I was telling the truth – his face told me a part of him thought I had possibly worn this for him, which irked me to no end.
“Ready to go?” I asked, grabbing my purse.
“Almost, I have a small gift for you first.” Luca pulled out a small box from his bag, and my interest was definitely piqued. He set the box down on the coffee table and motioned for me to take it.
I cautiously took the box in my hands, opening it slowly as if it were a bomb about to explode. There, inside the Aphrodite’s Jewelry box, was a small necklace with a lightning bolt insignia dangling from a silver chain. As I stared at the necklace, I could feel the internal battle start to range inside of me. Aphrodite’s Jewelry was one of the most famous jewelry stores in the world, with some of the most beautiful designs I had ever seen.
To my surprise, the necklace was very tasteful, as tasteful as you could have with a lightning bolt hanging from it, but the idea of wearing my competitor’s symbol around my neck definitely annoyed me. I looked up at Luca, letting my eyes meet his beautiful brown ones.
“Really? A lightning bolt?” Luca ignored the sarcasm dripping from my voice as he continued to smile at me.
“Designed it myself, Tesoro. Don’t want the other drivers getting any ideas when they see you in this black dress. I’ve seen how Éliott looks at you.” Luca’s voice was cocky, but I could hear a hint of jealousy in it when he mentioned Éliott.
“Well, be quick and put it on then,” I mumbled, conceding to Luca's silent request to have me wear this ridiculous necklace. His day had been tough, and the least I could do was throw him a bone. Luca took the necklace from my hands, motioning for me to turn around. As Luca's hands slid over my bare shoulders, adjusting the necklace into place, I could feel goosebumps form on my arms and chest. I silently prayed that Luca hadn’t noticed how much his touch had affected me, but I knew he had noticed because his hands went even slower, buckling the necklace with such a gentle touch.
“Bellissima,” he whispered in my ear as he pulled away from my back. A blush immediately crept onto my face, one that I knew I couldn’t hide.
Luca grabbed my bag and handed it to me, and as we exited our room, he placed his hand on the small of my back as he guided us toward the elevator. Luca and I stepped inside once the elevator door opened, and I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw it was empty. The elevator started to descend, but unfortunately for me, it stopped just a few floors down, opening up to reveal none other than Éliott Simon.
“Wow, Georgie, you look incredible,” Éliott gasped, giving me a hug and a kiss on the cheek as he entered the elevator. He nodded in Luca's direction, and the two shook hands, a begrudging look on Luca's face as he pulled me slightly closer to him. His fingers started to trace circles on my waist, ever so casually, as he side-eyed Éliott, like he was trying to provoke an angry bear that didn’t need disturbing.
Éliott, to his credit, just continued to ignore Luca, chatting away as the elevator continued its descent, although I could see a twinkle in Éliott’s eye, some silent laughter dancing in his blue eyes, as if he was continuing to blab at me just to annoy Luca even further.
As soon as the elevator opened to the lobby floor, Luca grabbed my hand and dragged me away from the elevator – or, more likely, Éliott. As promised, Isabelle and Francesco were waiting outside in the car. As soon as Isabelle saw us, she waved, her eyes dropping to the necklace around my neck. She raised her left eyebrow, silently asking me a question that I didn’t particularly have an answer for myself. I just shrugged and hopped into the car, taking the open seat next to Luca. Henri and Lily were already inside the car, chatting away about the silly video the Wilmington F1 Team had released early today of Oliver and Edward. Both of their eyes also flicked to my chest, the necklace getting Henri's attention. I gave them both a dead stare, daring him or Lily to comment on it.
We arrived at the Divers Association dinner and took our seats at one of the front tables. Luca's parents were at the table next to ours, and his mother gave me a huge hug as we passed.
“Oh, Georgia, that necklace is so beautiful. Luca did a great job designing that,” she purred. I put on my biggest smile and nodded, thanking her for the compliment.
As Luca and I took our seats at the table, I looked down at Luca's hand, noticing the small tremors rippling through his fingers. Every so often, he would rub his hands against his napkin, and I could tell that he was wiping away the sweat from his hands.
I reached out and took his hand in mine, smiling at him as I leaned over and whispered, “Your speech is going to be great, Luca.”
Luca nodded at me, but he released my hand from his grip, instead wiping his sweaty hands on his pants. It was odd seeing Luca like this. A very different demeanor from Luca's usual happy-go-lucky, cocky self, and it almost pained me to see him full of worry and anxiety. While I was starting to dislike Luca a little less since we had started this arrangement, I knew for sure that I didn’t like this Luca in front of me.
I made an effort to turn back to Henri, attempting to rejoin the earlier conversation we were having with Isabelle, but as I watched the two of them converse, I couldn’t find the mental capacity to care about the new specs the FIA was going to release on next year’s car – my only concern at that moment was Luca.
I gently reached back out to Luca, letting my hand rest on Luca's thigh. As if instinctual, I felt my hand rubbing little circles on his leg, squeezing gently. I let my fingertips gently caress him, and I saw Luca shift slightly in his seat, unsure of what I was doing. Luca turned and looked at me, raising his eyebrow ever so slightly, a silent question on his face. I just smiled at him and turned back to Henri and Isabelle, answering a question that was thrown my way while I kept up my ministrations, continuing to gently caress him under the table.
I could feel Luca start to relax a bit, with his form starting to droop a bit as he started to regain his composure.
I’m not sure why I thought it was my responsibility to help Luca get over his anxiety about the speech. My head knew it was in part because if Luca fucked up the speech, it would be a setback in how the media viewed him, and right now, I couldn’t see this Luca getting a single word out.
But there was something more to that, more than just selfishness of wanting everything to look outwardly perfect. I knew what intense media pressure felt like. I knew the anxiety he was feeling, and not even I could watch Luca experience this.
As I internally battled on what to do, a mortifying idea hit me.
Fuck it, I can’t believe I’m going to do this.
I quickly stood up and excused myself, walking towards the restroom, purse in hand. When I entered the stall, I quickly slid my purple lacy thong off, putting it in my purse. I took a moment to stare at it, wondering what on earth had gotten into me. Luca was going through an incredibly valid, emotional moment, and here I was, sliding my panties off like they were going to be his saving grace.
I sauntered back to the table, waving at a few of the other drivers on the way back. As soon as I sat down, I put my lacy thong in my hand and discretely slid it into Luca's jacket pocket, shaking him a bit to get his attention. Luca felt the movement of his jacket and looked at me, his brows furrowed with annoyance.
I gave him a quick wink before whispering, “At least now you can picture one person in the audience naked – I hear that’s good for pre-speech nerves.” Luca gave me an incredibly confused look, but I just smirked at him and turned back to my conversation with Lily about qualifying tomorrow.
