In the Fast Lane

by Audra North

  She arched against him and hummed her pleasure. He could feel the vibration of it against his lips, and it made him insane.

  Someone tapped Ranger on the shoulder. He growled and then ignored it, nibbling at Kerri’s lower lip. Another tap, and he finally pulled away long enough to glare at Grady. “I’m busy.”

  Grady was flushed from his ears to his nose. “Yeah. Uh, I see that. But so does everyone else.” He pointed up to the large screen at one end of the track, finally realizing that they were being broadcast on the Jumbotron.

  Kerri turned her head, too, and he watched in the giant monitor as her jaw dropped with the realization right before she hid her face in his shoulder. He was left standing there rather helplessly, holding her body against his.

  Aw, hell. There was nothing he could do about it.

  And perhaps more interesting … there was nothing he wanted to do about it.

  So he simply shrugged and gave the monitor a sheepish smile, raising one hand in the air in a victory wave.

  The crowd went wild.

  “Well, looks like you two are the sport’s new favorite couple.” Grady observed with a frown. “But I can’t say I’m all too happy about having to witness it. I mean, shit. That’s my sister.”

  Ranger could feel Kerri laughing, her body vibrating against his as she kept her head tucked into his neck. He grinned. It was working. Turning things around—it was going to happen. With that win, Kerri had set them up to start attracting big sponsors, and the fans seemed to love them.… He’d be out of here in no time, sitting in his corner office as executive vice president of Colt International.

  But the thought didn’t give him the same rush he had felt when he’d kissed Kerri just now.

  He stepped away from her, unsettled by the thought, and ran a hand through his hair, trying to get his emotions under control. He had to get out of here. He had to.

  Time to step up his game.

  Chapter Eight

  After the race, Kerri was wrapping up an interview with a local news reporter when another driver walked up, dressed in a blue racing suit practically plastered over in sponsor logos. Ranger narrowed his eyes at the guy, assessing. Tall for a driver … shoulders as broad as Ranger’s … light brown skin … chiseled jaw. Dark brown eyes that matched the color of his hair, which was just long enough to show the tight curl in it.

  All Ranger could think was That guy is competition.

  And he wasn’t talking about racing.

  The unexpected surge of jealousy only intensified when Kerri broke into a wide grin when she saw him and excused herself to the reporter. She bounded over to the guy, arms flung wide. “Ty! What are you doing here?”

  Ty? As in Ty Riggs, her biggest rival for Rookie of the Year? Who immediately swept her up in a hard hug, so close that her feet left the ground as he held on to her. “I’m coming by to say congratulations.” He set her down and gave her a teasing smile. “Maybe see if you had any tips for making fun of Nolan.”

  Kerri let out a loud laugh. Ranger barely suppressed a territorial growl.

  Seriously, where was this jealousy coming from? It’s not like he was really her fiancé.

  Besides. She promised she wouldn’t see anyone else while they were pretending to be together. He could keep his cool and hang back. No big deal.

  Ty ruffled her hair.

  On the other hand … no one would believe Ranger was her fiancé if he didn’t act like it …

  He stepped forward, sticking his hand between Ty and Kerri. “Ranger Colt.”

  Ty smiled and slid his hand into Ranger’s, giving it a firm but friendly shake. “Hey, Ranger. Great to meet you. I’m Tyler Riggs, but folks call me Ty. I heard the news about Colt buying into Hart Racing. Saw the announcement about you and Kerri planning to get married, too. That sure came as a surprise, but it’s good to have you around.”

  Damn, Ty was a nice guy. Welcoming, easygoing … Ranger feel like an ass. Yet he still couldn’t bring himself to relax.

  “Thanks.”

  It was impossible to manage anything more than that terse reply, and after a couple of seconds, Ty turned back to Kerri, grinning.

  “I’d better be off. Dad’ll probably want us all on the podium with Colby.”

  Ranger assumed that meant that Colby Meadows raced for Riggs, too.

  Kerri frowned but nodded. “Sure. Thanks for stopping by, Ty. Let’s catch up tomorrow.”

  Ty gave a little salute. “Nice to meet you, Ranger.”

  Ranger merely grunted.

  “Right, well. See y’all around.” Ty walked off, heading back down pit road toward the Riggs Racing pit.

  Kerri turned back to Ranger. “What the hell was that?”

  He didn’t pretend he didn’t know what she was talking about. “I didn’t like the way he was touching you.”

  Her look of disbelief was almost comical. “You didn’t like—”

  “No, wait. That’s not what I meant.”

  They both spoke at the same time. Ranger cursed. What had he meant? Where had that come from?

  He pinched the bridge of his nose, looking at her over his knuckles. “Forget it.”

  When she opened her mouth as though to ask him about it again, he dropped his hand and smiled. “During the race you were saying the car was loose in and loose out. What does that mean?”

  For a second, he could see her waver, but finally she rolled her eyes and shrugged, seeming to dismiss the confrontation. “It’s the way the car steers in a turn. Loose means it oversteers—the rear tires slide out.” She sighed. “Look, as much as I’d love to be your personal fact dispenser, I have things to do. Why don’t you go read up on this stuff or something and I’ll see you later?”

  At that, he shook his head. “Before you run off, I ran into an old contact on my way down here before the race. He’s a big shot over at TelTex Systems now. Wants to talk sponsorship. I told him we’d find him in the box afterward. Come on.”

  He started heading out of the stall, but she didn’t budge. He stopped and turned, jerking his head in the direction of the exit. “Well?”

  “What do you think I am, a dog?” She must have realized that she was speaking too loudly, possibly setting them up for drama on camera, because she immediately quieted, casting a glance around before stepping closer to him. “You can’t just snap your fingers and expect me to follow you. You might not think of me as anything more than a commodity, but I’m a person, Ranger. And I can’t join you and your little TelTex buddy because I have a prior engagement.”

  The image of Ty hugging Kerri close flared at the forefront of his mind. “What kind of engagement, exactly?”

  She was standing so close, he could feel her muscles tighten in offense before she hissed, “Fucking fuck, Ranger! You are such an asshole!”

  “Kerri.” Bit ambled up, a grin splitting his wrinkled face.

  “Hey, Bit.” Her tone softened and she grabbed the older man in a fierce hug. “We did it. You did it. There’s nothing more satisfying than being able to bring it home to the best pit crew on the row.”

  His blue eyes twinkled. “Aw, now, Bambi. I bet that’s what you say to all the old men.”

  Kerri laughed, that same wild, joyful sound that she’d used when Ty was joking around with her.

  Ranger felt the jealousy return.

  What was wrong with him?

  Maybe it was nothing. Maybe it was just the excitement or whatever the hell else he’d used as an excuse so far. But a part of him couldn’t help but envy the closeness that Kerri seemed to have with everyone. The relationships, the trust … everyone working together as a team toward something that they simply loved to do.

  There’s more than one way to define success.

  What was he doing, trying to muscle his way in with Kerri? He didn’t belong here. Hadn’t he thought that a million times today already? He might want her more than he’d ever wanted a woman in his life, but she detested him.

  Not that he blamed he
r. Whatever was between them was throwing him off, too. Usually, he wouldn’t give a damn what anyone thought of him. But somehow, with Kerri … things were different.

  Bit’s expression sobered, just a bit. “I came over to tell you that we’re gonna start breaking everything down. You need anything else before?”

  She shook her head. “No, I’m good. Thanks, Bit. You and the guys—it was great. I’ll see y’all in Kansas City.”

  Bit nodded. “Sure thing.” He turned and gave a curt nod to Ranger. “Ranger.” Then he walked off, back to where the rest of the crew was starting to clean and put tools away in their chests.

  “Why does he call you Bambi?” Ranger knew it was changing the subject again, deflecting their argument from earlier, but he truly wanted to know.

  “Because of my last name. Hart.” She gestured to her head, miming horns. “You know, like a stag? For some reason, I got stuck with the nickname.” She rolled her eyes. “Well, I know the reason. Because I’m a girl. Even though the real—or real cartoon, anyway—Bambi was a boy.”

  “Huh. Interesting.” He paused for a beat before adding, “Bambi.”

  “Call me that and I’ll bite you the next time you kiss me.”

  The thought of her nibbling on his lip, scraping her teeth over his chin made his body react. He sucked in a sharp breath. “Next time? Was that supposed to be a threat?”

  The thing about passionate people was that they usually weren’t good at concealing their thoughts. And from the wide-eyed Bambi-in-the-headlights look that Kerri gave him, he could guess that she had suddenly realized the direction she had led him in, even if not on purpose.

  “I … it … I mean, yeah. Yes! Hell yes.” But her words lacked the usual fire behind them. In fact, she sort of trailed off, continuing to stare at him with that doe-eyed expression.

  He took a step closer, watching her eyes change from greenish gray to a dark, deep brown.

  Yes. Hell yes.

  Another step forward, and the color deepened, her gaze—

  Shuttered.

  She turned away, blinking, and fiddled with a wrench on the table nearby. “Look, I’ve taken all the time I can right now. I’ve got to go to the booth for a while and sign photos and stuff.”

  Her shoulders were turned in. Avoiding him.

  “Which booth?”

  “Cran-Tasty.”

  He scoffed at that. “Why? I saw the numbers. Cran-Tasty is paying you peanuts. Why are you sitting out there after a race like this for nothing when we could be working a deal with TelTex?”

  That got her attention focused back on him, but there was no longer any softness in her gaze. Instead, she leveled an assessing look on him.

  “You know, I might not be as big as the Intercomm Cup drivers, but some people do follow me. Some people know me from the Indy circuit and now they come out to these races specifically to watch me. Some people come out because they knew my dad. We’re a small team and we don’t have flashy stuff yet, but I’m not going to forget that there are people out there who have always believed in me.”

  “This isn’t about people believing in you. This is about you using your time wisely,” he countered. “The time that you spend pushing Cran-Crappy to the public could be better spent trying to meet with bigger potential sponsors.”

  He glared at her. How could she not understand how important this was? Didn’t she want this as badly as he did?

  “Money really is all you care about, isn’t it?” Her voice was soft, but her eyes were hard, and she didn’t wait for him to answer. “Maybe that’s why it’s so difficult for you to wrap your head around why I would do this. So I’ll tell you a story that might help you understand, although I doubt it.” Her upper lip curled in a way that made it clear she found him distasteful.

  “A few weeks back, I was in Vegas, out in the booth after the practice session. There was a family that walked past, maybe about fifty yards from where I was sitting. A mom and a dad, a little girl and a little boy. They were being sort of being led by the son and the dad, heading toward Ty’s booth. You probably saw it. Riggs Racing has a much bigger setup and a lot cooler giveaways because they’re a huge outfit with a multimillion dollar sponsor. And I get that. I understand that’s more appealing and it happens all the time. But this time, as they passed by, that little girl turned and looked at me, and her eyes went so wide I thought they might burst out of her head. Her whole face lit up. I could see something come alive in her, right there in front of me. She stopped and tugged on her mom’s arm, and the mom stopped, and the next thing I knew, that little girl was doing the leading. She just walked away from her family as bold as can be and they had no choice but to follow her right up to me.”

  He blinked. Damn.

  She rolled her eyes. “In case you didn’t get the message of that story through your thick skull, it’s that sometimes, all it takes for a girl to realize that she can be a leader, that she already is one, is seeing a woman who is already doing something great. That’s why I do it.”

  “Okay. Yeah. I got it, Confucius.”

  Shit. It had come out as snappish, but that’s not how he’d meant it. He sighed. “Sorry. I do get it. And you’re right, it’s important stuff. I’ll go meet with Alan by myself.”

  She gave a curt nod. “See you later, then.” She turned to walk away.

  No, damn it! He didn’t want her leaving like this, annoyed with him. He stopped her before she could take a step. “Kerri.”

  She pivoted. “What is it?”

  “It takes one to know one.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Being a leader. I want you to know that I understand what you were saying. You lit it up inside of that girl, you saw her potential first.” He brought one shoulder up, trying to do a casual shrug. “Takes one to know one.”

  One step. Two steps. Slowly, Kerri walked back toward him, not stopping until her breasts nearly brushed his chest. One slender hand came to rest on his shoulder, and the placket of her racing jacket slid against his shirt as she rose on her tiptoes. “Thanks, Ranger,” she whispered, and landed a soft kiss on his cheek before sliding away, turning back around and walking out of the stall.

  Chapter Nine

  Ranger had just left the stall to go meet the TelTex rep when his phone rang.

  He looked at the screen and scowled.

  How did Al always call at the worst possible time?

  He’d been feeling pretty good after that kiss from Kerri—even though it wasn’t nearly as hot as the others they’d shared—and now his pleasurable buzz was ruined.

  Of course, there was never really a good time to talk to Al. No doubt this was a business call, and he had to take it. He swiped the screen and put the phone to his ear.

  “Ranger here.”

  “Hello, son.”

  “I’m on my way to a meeting with a potential sponsor. What is it?”

  Al was oddly silent for a minute, and Ranger was about to pull the phone away to see if the call had been disconnected when his father finally spoke again.

  “I thought you’d be spending more time with the team, not racing off to meetings all the time.”

  What the hell? What did Al care about how much time Ranger spent with the team? And this was the second time Al had called to check up on what Ranger was doing with the project.

  What was going on?

  Ranger frowned as he walked. “I don’t have time to socialize. I’ve got a few months to turn this small-time deal into a raging success, remember?”

  A heavy sigh came through the phone, and for a second Ranger felt like it was a sound of disappointment. But what would Al have to be disappointed about? Ranger was going after sponsors. He wasn’t going to waste time hanging around the Hart Racing crew when there was money to be made. He was doing things exactly the way Al would have done them.

  “All right. I’ll let you get to that, then. But just remember, don’t settle for less than everything.”

 
It was something Al liked to say whenever he talked about making an acquisition or closing any kind of business deal. But the way he said it this time sounded off, somehow. Maybe it was just the lingering happiness that Ranger had felt after Kerri had initiated that chaste kiss just a few moments ago or maybe having Al so involved was throwing him off, but it felt like Al was talking about more than just the TelTex deal.

  It felt personal.

  No. This is Al Colt, remember? You might be Ruthless Ranger, but he’s Asshole Al. He’s the last person to give a shit about anyone’s personal life after fucking his up so badly.

  Right. Ranger barely managed to get out an “I’ll remember” before he disconnected the call, more annoyed than he’d been in a long time.

  But he was also more resolved. He was going to succeed at this. He wasn’t going to let Kerri rile him up and make him forget his priorities. He was going to be fair to the team but also make sure that they were a raging success. He was going to get his promotion, and in another few years he was going to take over Colt International.

  He wasn’t going to settle for less than everything.

  Chapter Ten

  Ranger was growing on her.

  Oh, not the physical attraction. That was already fully grown, so big that it was practically exploding out of her. After the race on Saturday, she hadn’t been able to stop touching her lips while she sat at the Cran-Tasty booth, remembering the feel of the stubble on his cheek when she kissed him. His body had felt so strong and he’d smelled so good … she’d accidentally ended up signing “Ranger” on one of her photos for a fan like a besotted middle schooler.

  It was the attraction to his personality that was throwing her off.

  Yesterday they’d stayed in Talladega to watch the more-seasoned drivers in the Intercomm Cup version of the race she’d driven the day before—and he’d come back to the track with her, chatting up the other team owners, talking to some people she’d never seen before, and even spending time with Lee, who actually seemed to enjoy talking to Ranger. Which didn’t help Kerri any when it came to trying not to like Ranger. Lee didn’t enjoy talking to anyone.