by Storm, Sloan
Ava lowered the flower away from her face and shifted her jaw. “You’re totally ridiculous. You realize that, don’t you?”
“Hey, if I knew how much you liked it, I would’ve bought you flowers a long time ago.”
With that, Ava placed the flower back on top of the stack. Afterward, she turned her focus on me again. I looked at her. It was nice to see her in a place like this. It’s where a woman like her belonged. Not only was she beautiful, but tough, and brave.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.
I shrugged. “No reason. Just trying to imagine you naked and covered in rose petals.”
Ava’s skin flushed. She looked away from me. “Dyson.”
“Ava.”
After another second or two, she looked at me again. “I think we need to change the subject.”
“Well, for the record, I disagree. I think the subject of you being naked is an awesome one.”
She placed her palms flat on the table and pretended to be upset.
“Can you please be serious? For just one second?”
I shrugged and leaned back in my chair. “I’m dead serious. I can’t wait to get you naked.”
She groaned and waved me off.
After making her suffer for a few seconds longer, I leaned forward and winked at her. “We’ll, um, discuss that later.”
“Thank you,” she deadpanned.
Not long after, the waiter came by and delivered the cocktails we’d ordered. After he walked away, I raised my glass.
“To Gene.”
Ava frowned at me. “Why would you be toasting that asshole?”
“It’s simple really. He’s the one that brought us together. Cheers.”
Before she raised her glass to meet mine, Ava stifled a swallow and tugged a strand of hair behind her ear.
This was going well.
After we drank, I decided to change subjects a bit.
“So, leaving the nonsense with Gene aside for a second,” I began. “Are you feeling better about being on the road with the team now?”
Ava placed her drink down on the table and then looked at me.
“Yes, I’ll admit it was a rough beginning for me. You know, being away from home, my friends, Simon. But I, I think… No, I know I’m going to miss it when it’s all over.”
“Even Anastasia and Svetlana?” I said, smiling at her.
Ava’s lips curled upward. She took another sip of her drink, but didn’t respond. While she did, I drank as well. Afterward, I placed it back on the table and wiped the moisture from the condensation off my hands.
“I wanted to say that, in all seriousness, we think you’re doing a great job for the team. I mean—I won’t lie—you’re way better looking than Dr. Luca.”
Ava giggled at me. “Gee, thanks. I’m glad to know that I’m better looking than a middle-aged, Italian doctor.”
I pointed my finger at her. “Don’t underestimate Dr. Luca. He’s smooth around the ladies.”
“That’s… more information than I needed, Dyson.”
I chuckled a bit. Afterward, I leaned forward, making sure she knew I was serious. Ava looked away from me. While her attention was elsewhere, I reached across the table towards her hand. Before she could react, I wrapped my fingers around hers.
Startled, Ava looked at me.
I stared at her for a moment and then lifted her hand from the table. I brought it towards me, raising it in the direction of my lips. My eyes never left hers, and she followed the line of my hand. I was within an inch of pressing my lips against it when a voice distracted me.
“Dyson!”
I released Ava’s hand from mine and turned in the direction of it. Approaching me was my team manager, Darren.
Talk about killing the mood.
Completely oblivious, he walked right up to the table. I leaned back and exhaled, looking up at him in disgust. Before I could speak, he glanced first at the oversized basket full of roses and then at Ava.
“Ava, nice to see you,” he said, smiling at her.
I had no time for any of this. I looked up at Darren. “What do you want?”
“Well,” he began, reaching around the back of his head and scratching his neck. “I was on my way out after eating and saw you sitting here. We need to talk about the set up first thing in the morning.”
I shook my head. I couldn’t believe he was this dense.
“Yeah, okay, that’s fine.”
The truth was, we’d been butting heads recently over not only the car set up, but how I’d been driving. In a lot of ways, I felt like he was more concerned about the car than winning. The cars are expensive, there’s no question about it, but I was getting fed up with it. He knew full well that I could go a lot faster in qualifying, but for whatever reason, he was preventing it. It wouldn’t be long before he and I had words about it, yet now was not the time.
Just then, Darren turned to walk away. “Good, so I’ll see you first thing, Dyson?”
“Yep.”
After he walked off, I happened to glance up and see Ava looking at me.
“Is everything okay between you two?”
I nodded. “Yeah, no problem at all. Now, where were we?”
AVA
Everything Dyson did for me at dinner the night before caught me completely by surprise. He made his desires clear. And the truth was, it was becoming almost impossible to ignore the growing feelings I had for him.
Even so, a part of me resisted.
Forgetting about his reputation, I hadn’t exactly been with anyone for a while. Whether I was uncertain about him or myself, I couldn’t say for sure. Luckily, with the race coming up at the end of the week, there was enough distraction to go around for both of us. And so, for the time being, I decided to see how things unfolded.
It was midmorning the next day when I made my way to the pits. I had to get signatures from the drivers and Darren for some insurance forms the City of Los Angeles required.
After arriving, I saw Darren hunched over his laptop computer, presumably working on the cars, since both Dyson and Marco were already on the track. Normally I would have waited until there was a break in the action, but I had to deliver the forms downtown before the office closed that day. I’d never been to downtown Los Angeles, and I wasn’t crazy about the idea of sitting in crazy traffic all day.
I approached him. “Excuse me, Darren? Do you have a second?”
His focus never wavered from the laptop screen. Instead, he lifted his index finger in my direction. “One sec, Ava.”
“Right. Sorry about that.”
I folded my arms across my chest, holding the paperwork in the middle of it. Just then, Dyson came down the straightaway. I winced, cursing myself for not having any ear protection on. On race day, it was a must, but when there were only a handful of cars on the track, no one else ever wore them. I assumed I’d get used to it with time, but I hadn’t just yet.
After Dyson went by, I glanced at Darren again. His posture changed. He’d placed both palms flat on the table in front of him. He dropped his head, shaking it and muttering to himself.
I had no idea what the problem could be, I just assumed they were having issues with the car. If things weren’t running exactly like he wanted, Darren had a tendency to get a little angry. I worried if he got too distracted I’d never get the signatures I needed. Soon, the sound of Dyson’s engine faded, and once again I tried to get Darren’s attention.
“Darren?” I began, inching towards him just a little bit.
But, just as before, his focus remained on the laptop. He continued to work in silence for another minute, maybe two. I hesitated, and just as I was about to try again, Darren slammed his fist on the table, startling me.
“Fuck!” he yelled.
I backed away and glanced all around me. A couple of the mechanics were nearby and lifted their heads, looking in our direction. At the rate things were going, I was going to be here for a while.
Shortly after, Dar
ren stood upright and stared straight ahead. I stood there in silence, not sure if another explosion was on the way. Just then, he turned, looking at me like he hadn’t seen me before.
“Ava. Did you need something?”
But even as he spoke those words to me, Darren kept his focus fixed towards the far end of the track.
“Um,” I began, uncrossing my arms and leafing through the folder for the correct document. “Real quick, I just need to get your signature on a couple of things so that I can…”
Without a word, Darren hitched up his pants and marched right past me. I swiveled my head, following him with my eyes. In the distance, Dyson’s car came down pit lane. Right around that time, Darren raised both of his arms in the air.
I grimaced, lowering the folder and focusing my attention on Darren as he continued to walk in Dyson’s direction.
Just then, I noticed I wasn’t the only one paying attention. A number of the mechanics and pit crew also stopped what they were doing and looked on as well.
Soon after, Dyson pulled up and turned off the engine.
“What the fuck!” Darren screamed.
He’d yelled so loud and so suddenly, I flinched. Within seconds, Dyson emerged from the car and walked in Darren’s direction, yanking his helmet off of his head in the process. He didn’t even bother looking at Darren. Instead, he walked in the opposite direction.
“Dyson!” Darren called out, walking after his driver. “Dyson! Don’t take another step or you’ll regret it.”
Dyson stopped dead, spinning in place before walking towards Darren. Within seconds, the two men were face-to-face.
“Hey!” Dyson began, pointing his finger. “If you want to win, you need to lay off right now, because I know exactly what I’m doing, and I know exactly what that car is capable of.”
Darren leaned back, a long sustained laugh rumbled from him. Facing Dyson once again, he clapped his hands together just as his face turned dark with anger.
“I’m the manager of this team. You. You, Dyson, are a driver. If you don’t do what I tell you to, I’ll suspend your ass.”
Dyson shook his head, gesturing with his helmet in the direction of the team garage. “Oh yeah? Why don’t you go ask Dieter what he thinks of that idea? I can guarantee you he wants to win.”
Darren also pointed in the same direction. “Yeah, no shit Dyson, but he doesn’t want to do it at the expense of car after car. You’re pushing too hard, and it’s hurting all of us. I’m only going to say it one more time. Do what I tell you to or you’re suspended.”
Dyson scoffed and shook his head but didn’t respond. For several seconds afterward, the two men remained silent, staring each other down. I happened to glance around once again, noticing all eyes focused on the two of them. At last, Dyson spit on the ground and turned, storming away from Darren.
“Don’t push me, Dyson,” Darren warned. “You won’t like the outcome.”
Like everyone else, I stood there riveted by the turn of events. A moment or so later, Dyson marched right past me without acknowledging my presence, like I didn’t even exist.
DYSON
“Mother fucker,” I muttered, walking away from the pits and heading towards my motor coach.
I ripped the door opened, walked inside and slammed it behind me. I stood there for a second before throwing my helmet across the room, where it banged against the far wall.
“God damn it!”
For the next minute or so, I paced back and forth. At some point, I heard a knock on the door. The last thing I wanted to do right now was talk to anyone, especially that asshole, Darren.
“Who is it!” I yelled.
There was a moment of silence before the response came. “It’s me, Ava.”
I looked up towards the ceiling and exhaled. “I don’t want to talk to anyone right now. Go away.”
As before, she didn’t speak immediately, but remained quiet for a few seconds. “Are you sure? We don’t have to talk about it.”
I shook my head and rubbed my face with my hands. I stared at the door in silence. A few seconds later I walked over to it, opened it, and turned my back on her. She came inside and closed the door, while I walked in the other direction.
She’d hardly been inside for five seconds before she spoke. “Are you okay?”
I stopped. Standing in place I reached up with my hand and rubbed the back of my neck. “Fine. Yeah.”
“Well,” she began, walking towards me. “You don’t seem like it to me.”
Before she took another step, I spun in place and faced her. “I thought you said we didn’t have to talk about it. I’ve got nothing to say. Anyway, why are you so interested all of a sudden?”
Holding a folder, Ava crossed her arms in front of her body, interlocking them together just below her waist.
“I know,” she began, looking away from me for an instant. “It’s probably none of my business, but…”
I nodded, cutting her off before she could say another word. “You’re right, it isn’t.”
My response caught her by surprise. She snapped her gaze in my direction. I could see a mix of hurt and confusion in her eyes, but at that point, I didn’t care.
“Dyson, you don’t have to be rude about it. I’m here to support you.”
I exhaled and walked by her, sitting down on a couch that ran the length of the interior. “Yeah, well, I don’t need your support, and I didn’t ask for it.”
She’d traced my steps with her eyes, watching me until I sat down.
The hurt and confusion I’d seen in them moments earlier changed once again, this time into a look of shock. She stared at me for a second before turning her back and looking out a window opposite from my position.
I dropped my head a bit, shaking it and exhaling at the same time.
“Look… I, um, I didn’t mean it. It’s just that this isn’t anything you need to be concerned about.”
She didn’t turn around to look at me.
“Is it true? What Darren said out there?”
I leaned back in the couch, crossing a foot on top of my knee and flopping my arm over the back of it.
“What part? Darren’s got a big mouth. He says a lot of things.”
Ava turned and faced me. “I mean the part about you being reckless. Was he telling the truth?”
“Ava, listen, I don’t come into an exam room and tell you how to do your job, do I?”
She shook her head. “Don’t try to change the subject. I just asked you a simple question, that’s all.”
“But that’s the thing you don’t understand. It’s not a simple answer.”
“Well then, can you explain it to me?”
“No,” I grunted, slapping my hand down on top of my knee. “I’ll just say that I’m not being reckless, and that’s all there is to it.”
Ava frowned at my answer, but before she could reply, I continued.
“I’ve been racing cars almost since I was old enough to stand. I’ve never felt more in control of what I’m doing or more on top of my game than I do right now.”
She nodded but the frown remained. “I just… Well, I’m worried.”
I bit my lip, shaking my head in disbelief. “You’re not listening to me. There’s nothing to worry about. Frankly, I find the whole conversation a little bit insulting.”
“Insulting? How is the fact that I’m concerned about you insulting?”
I looked away from her, waving her off as I did. “You know what? Just forget about it. I don’t want to have this conversation. I appreciate the concern, but trust me, it’s unnecessary. I’m fine.”
Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed Ava reach up towards her face. I turned and looked at her, just in time to see her swipe at the bottom of her eyelids.
“Now what?” I asked.
“It’s nothing,” she replied, shaking her head. “That all just came out the wrong way. I’m sorry.”
Confused, I looked up at her. “What are you talking about,
Ava? What came out the wrong way?”
She sniffled. “You’ve done so much for me, Dyson. I’m not very good at these kinds of situations. I just really appreciate what you did for me with Gene. I know that your driving is none of my business, but I would say the same thing to any friend of mine. That’s all.”
I had no idea what Ava was talking about. Somehow, there was more to it. Why she was pretending otherwise all of a sudden I didn’t understand. I pulled my foot off my knee, placed it flat on the floor and stood up. Afterward, I took a few steps in Ava’s direction.
“What’s going on with you? Why are you acting so strange?”
AVA
Dyson drew close to me. I’d only come in here to see if he was all right, but since we’d begun to talk, I realized I’d taken it too far. The idea of him being reckless at speeds like this—I couldn’t help but think of how my sister died.
Intellectually, I understood how he drove was nothing like the chaotic, not to mention illegal, world of street racing. But somewhere inside of me, the notion of speed equaled death. Still, there was no way to explain it to him, and it wasn’t fair of me to try.
“I’m sorry,” I began, glancing towards the exit of the motor coach. “I shouldn’t have been sticking my nose where it didn’t belong.”
Before Dyson said a word, I turned and tried to leave. I’d only taken a step or two when he circled around in front of me, blocking my way.
“Oh no,” he began, raising his finger and wagging it in my face. “Something has changed since you walked through that door a few minutes ago. What is it?”
“It’s nothing, really. You’re reading too much into this. I didn’t mean to accuse you of being reckless, out of control or anything like that.”
Dyson exhaled a long breath through his nose, sliding his hands into the pockets of his fire suit. He stood there, clearly expecting an answer from me. But I never talked about what happened, not with anyone, really. The pain of that night, even all of these years later, still felt raw.
Dyson continued to stare at me for a few more seconds.
“I’m not letting you out of here until we hash this out, Ava. Now tell me what’s really going on.”
I lowered my head, turning my back towards him and walking a few feet away.
