Smokin' & Spinnin'

by Miller, Andrea

  “Brooke, stop!” I interject. “First of all, how do you know all this information about him?”

  I can hear Brooke gasp. “Whitney, he is a major celebrity. He is all over People magazine. In fact, he was just featured in the ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ issue. I mean…have you been living under a rock?”

  “Why yes, I have!” I snap and then groan. “Well, secondly, I know why he doesn’t keep a girlfriend long.”

  “Oh?” Brooke responds. “Why is that?”

  “Because he is a straight-up jackass!” I exclaim.

  “Ugh! Good God Almighty! I don’t even care. He is just that hot!” Brooke cries, breathless.

  “Brooke, seriously, calm down!” I say flat out.

  She guffaws at me. “A million girls would kill for that job!” she shrieks.

  “Oh…OK! You don’t have to go all The Devil Wears Prada on me,” I quip. “Because I assure you this is not a dream job. After our episode in the elevator today, I can tell you that he has an insanely huge chip on his shoulder. I mean, he is one arrogant son of a bitch!”

  “Elevator!” Brooke screeches again. My eardrum has got to be busted. “What happened in the elevator?” she asks impatiently.

  I shake my head and whine into the phone as I give her all the gory details of my first encounter with the one and only Ryan Carter.

  Chapter 4

  In the blink of an eye, two hectic weeks have gone by. I am settling into my new home and finding a good stride at work. In those few weeks, I have learned a tremendous amount about the GCR Racing team. I actually know what those initials stand for now. Plus, I am building my knowledge base on NASCAR itself. Thanks to my NASCAR for Dummies book that I downloaded into my iPad the day I was hired, I may actually survive this job.

  GCR employs three drivers for the Sprint Cup Series. The drivers are Colton Johnson, Garrett Ryan Carter Sr.—who only races in certain events due to semiretirement—and Mr. Pompous Ass himself, Ryan Carter. I have yet to meet Garrett, but I have seen several pictures of him around the office.

  I arrive early at the office on Monday. I take a seat at my desk and begin to get organized for the day. It should be a good one. According to the race results, which I now follow, Colton finished in the top ten, while Ryan crashed his car. Loser! I actually managed to watch the race broadcast for a few minutes, but didn’t get to see Ryan’s accident. It was incredibly boring, so I switched it off. The cars go around and around and around, not much action whatsoever. Complete waste of my time! I laugh out loud to myself!

  “What’s so damn funny?” I hear a familiar voice question me.

  I look up and into the glowing eyes of Ryan Carter. Oops! I wasn’t aware that I had an audience.

  I gawk and roll my eyes dead at him. What do I owe this honor? With my best mocking voice, I say, “Are you speaking to me?” I point to him, then back to myself for added flourish. My sweet southern sarcasm takes him by surprise. He smugly rolls his eyes in return and is gone.

  After our initial encounter, I have seen Ryan only a handful of times aside from today. During those times, I have mostly been ignored, which is fine with me because he isn’t worth the time of day either. His arrogance is a tough pill to swallow. Plus, he usually has Annalise nipping at his heels while he is in the office. Annalise is Ryan’s public relations manager, although I assume her job description goes further than the office. I can tell by the way she looks at him, not to mention the fact that she is tall, buxom, and blonde. According to Brooke’s information and the gossip magazines, this is how he likes his women. Not that I care.

  I am sifting through the weekend mail when Jerri approaches my desk with a handful of tasks. Over the past few weeks, she has been liberally adding duties to my job description, which hopefully means she is happy with my work thus far. I love it. It keeps me busy.

  There is an early meeting this morning with Ryan’s management team, but I have no idea what it is about. Since I am the lowly receptionist, I am not privy to certain details. The phones are quiet for the moment, so I fetch myself a cup of coffee from the break room. On my way back, I stop to chat with my new office friends, Natalie and Josh. Both recent college graduates, Natalie is an intern in the marketing department, while Josh is working his way up through logistics.

  We are catching up on the weekend, the race results, and general gossip, when I hear a commotion coming from the boardroom. I quickly retreat back to my desk, taking in some cautious looks from the other employees as I go. I hurriedly take a seat at my desk and watch my computer monitor as if I am working.

  I hear the boardroom door open and slam into the opposing wall. Oh damn!

  Annalise exclaims, “You son of a bitch!”

  Oh no! This can’t be good. I turn back from my desk to peer down the hall in time to witness Annalise stride purposefully from the boardroom toward me. Quickly, I turn back around and face my computer to avoid making eye contact with her, because frankly, this is just embarrassing for everyone.

  As she makes her way down the hallway toward me, I hear her shout back at the boardroom, “I quit!”

  Oh Lord! I know now what Gail meant when she said, “three-ring circus.” One mystery is solved.

  Annalise stops when she approaches my desk. I know she is standing behind me because she is breathing like a dragon on my back. I warily turn to face her. She is glaring at me like she is about to foam at the mouth. Damn! Where is a shotgun when you need one? Our eyes meet, which is shocking because she has always been too busy looking down her nose at me to even act like I exist. Bitch!

  Briefly, I wonder why she’s so mad. It must be a lover’s snit! I cock my head to the side as my thoughts ramble. Come to think of it, I am not sure why she and Ryan are having issues. They should be a perfect fit for one another. They have an excellent combination of “bitch” and “bastard,” which should make an award-winning team. Accidentally, I laugh out loud at my thoughts. Then I automatically put my hand up to my mouth to stifle my giggle. Too late!

  “What’s so damn funny?” Annalise snaps, radiating anger.

  Oops! That’s twice today. I shake my head and stutter, “I…I’m sorry.”

  She holds up a thick leather-bound agenda, which I believe she is about to throw at my head. Instead, she takes the book and slams it down hard on my desk. It hits the counter with a loud bang that causes me to jump instinctively.

  She eyes me with complete and utter contempt. What the hell have I done to her! But then she changes tact with a blink of her long, heavily mascaraed eyelashes and smiles at me with this smug “go to hell” look.

  “Good luck, sweetie!” she says before she turns sharply on her heel toward the elevator.

  What the hell did she mean by that?

  She hits the down arrow, like, a million times. Finally, the elevator door miraculously opens to whisk her away. I continue to stare at the elevator, dazed as I try to process what just happened.

  Finally, I let out a huge breath. Wow, that was intense! Thank God she is gone, but what in the world was that all about? I have never seen her, or anyone, for that matter, that mad. Jeezus! I quickly attribute it to Ryan. Who else?

  Suddenly, I hear Jerri shout from the boardroom, “Whitney!”

  I jump up again, still rigid from the encounter with Annalise. I awkwardly make my way into the boardroom. Those present watch me closely as I shift nervously from one heeled foot to the other. In the corner of the room, I spy Ryan, looking gorgeous and smug as usual, talking to two guys in the back corner. He looks up when he realizes I have entered the room.

  Ryan laughs as he speaks to Jerri. “Come on, I was only kidding, Jerri!”

  Jerri angrily fires back at him. “Were you kidding? Well, I’m not! It actually wasn’t a bad idea on your part. She does have a degree in public relations and marketing. And she has been getting this office into shape in the two weeks that she has been here,” she cries out in a tantrum.

  Oh wow!

  “But she doesn’t know j
ack shit about me or NASCAR!” Ryan shouts back.

  Oh my God! They are talking about me as if I’m not in the room.

  Jerri turns to me, finally acknowledging my presence in the boardroom. “I’m sorry, Whitney. Annalise, as I guess you heard, has just quit. I need you to temporarily fill in this weekend in Michigan for her. Actually, you are going to be Ryan’s temporary public relations manager until we secure a replacement,” she says carefully, making sure that I am agreeable.

  Um…what? “Michigan?” I ask warily, but not really as a question. I am trying to process all these events in my head.

  Before Jerri can respond, Ryan interjects and throws his hands up in the air. “Seriously! Michigan, the next race, that Michigan.”

  Jerri intervenes. “Yes, Whitney, can you handle that?”

  This is all happening way too fast. I steal a nervous glance at Ryan. He is livid. I look back to Jerri.

  “Wait just a damn minute, Jerri!” Ryan snaps.

  And Jerri explodes holding her hand up for him to keep quiet.. “No, you wait just a damn minute! This is nobody’s fault but your own. I am done letting you call the shots around here, not to mention screw with my staff! Literally!” she says through gritted teeth as she blazes back at him.

  I can tell her blood pressure is through the roof. Good for her!

  “Whitney, please come to my office in an hour. We will go over specifics and what needs to be accomplished this weekend. I need to find Annalise’s agenda,” Jerri says more calmly.

  I am keenly aware that all eyes are on me in the boardroom. I stand up straight and roll my shoulders back. I can do this, by God. I am not about to let anyone, especially Ryan Carter, intimidate me.

  “I already have it. She gave it to me on her way out,” I say confidently with my newfound resolve, which doesn’t give away the fact that she basically threw it at me.

  “Great!” Jerri sounds relieved. “Please bring it with you, and I will help you make your travel arrangements for the weekend as soon as we determine a plan of action. That is all for now.” She speaks calmly now, but I can tell she is severely stressed. It shows around her eyes. Poor woman! Ryan is getting the best of her. I make a vow to make sure I handle him from here on out.

  As she dismisses me, Jerri turns back to Ryan, who jumps up so fast that his chair slams over backward. “Jerri, I’m going to speak to my father about this.”

  Jerri unravels instantly, which causes me to be paralyzed from leaving the boardroom. “Please do! When you do, be sure to tell him why Annalise is no longer here!” He looks like he is about to explode with rage knowing full well that he won’t be able to say one word to his father. “This discussion is over, Ryan!” Jerri finishes.

  He moves to exit the boardroom and pauses in front of me to exclaim in my face, “I cannot fucking believe this!”

  Without using my brain-to-mouth filter, I respond hastily, “Then I guess you need to learn to keep your damn mouth shut!”

  Ryan eyes me with the most chilling look, which sends goose bumps down my spine. But I square my shoulders and return his heated stare. He has no idea what he is in for with me because I am not going to take his shit! I don’t care who he is! I am not backing down. Then, suddenly, he is gone.

  The remainder of the day flies by. Natalie and Josh confirm my suspicions about Annalise at lunch. Apparently, Annalise and Ryan were trying to keep their extracurricular relationship under wraps, but the word around the water cooler is Ryan stalked off with another girl after the race on Sunday, and the shit hit the fan this morning in the management meeting. Typical!

  According to another source that Josh would not name, Ryan said in front of everyone in the boardroom that I would make a better public relations manager than her. Sweet Jesus! No wonder she looked like she was about to murder me, then chop my body into pieces when she left. I laugh to myself because that comment certainly blew up in his face.

  Jerri and I finally meet late in the afternoon. She inundates me with information like a rapid-fire gun. I fiercely scribble as many notes as I can, being careful not to forget any major details. She goes over travel details like what hotel I am supposed to stay in and what flight to book.

  Jerri also gives me a series of thick documents. “I had these printed for you. Use your downtime to start reviewing them.”

  I raise an eyebrow in question.

  “These are Ryan’s sponsorship agreements and his employment contract. There is a wealth of information there that you should know.”

  I nod my head.

  “I have decided that you can just take a late flight into Michigan on Saturday night. Since it is your first weekend at the track, I don’t want to overwhelm you.”

  Then Jerri goes into track events that I need to attend, like the sponsor breakfast, mandatory drivers’ meeting, and driver introductions. I am very overwhelmed, to say the least. But I try to keep up with her as best as I can. She also gives me a list of the other management team members who will be at the track, and their contact numbers. This is going to be a very interesting weekend. I don’t have a freaking clue about what am I doing, but I am sure as hell not going to let anyone know that, least of all Ryan. I will show him.

  Jerri looks defeated as we conclude our meeting. “Three,” she says simply. I give her a confused look, and she continues, “Annalise is our third public relations manager this year. Just for Ryan.”

  I raise my eyebrows, considering her confession as a warning.

  Jerri continues to explain, “For some reason, this race season, we have had the most problems from Ryan. Back during the off-season, he had a small cameo role in a movie that shot out in Los Angeles, and he came back from that experience with a double dose of attitude, trés movie star, if you know what I mean.” She laughs. “I don’t know if he is burned out or if he is losing his focus or what. It is disheartening because he has so much potential.” She sighs and shakes her head. “And no one knows how to handle Ryan. Well, they don’t know how to handle him outside of the bedroom, which is where they all wind up!” Suddenly she looks remorseful. “Did I say that out loud?”

  And we both laugh. My head is swirling with information, but I vow to myself that I can handle Ryan. I’m going to show Mr. Pompous Ass that I can do this job.

  My job as public relations manager is basically to arrange scheduled events for sponsors, meet and greets with fans, and televised race interviews throughout the weekend. Since Annalise has already made these arrangements, I will only have to go on Sunday to assist Ryan with these events. The main goal, Jerri says, is to make sure Ryan attends every event that he is scheduled for—oh, and make sure he stays in line, which is a job in itself. So, basically, I am a babysitter, well, a glorified babysitter, for Ryan Carter. Great! I think I should request an assistant already!

  I have never been to a NASCAR event, so I have no idea of what to expect. I make my travel arrangements for Brooklyn, Michigan, according to Jerri’s instructions. I am a ball of nerves as I make my flight and hotel reservations for Saturday and Sunday. I am trying to be as meticulous as I can because I don’t need to screw this up before I get there.

  I have to cancel Annalise’s arrangements and make new ones for myself. I have never been to Michigan, or anywhere else, for that matter, but something tells me I won’t be able to do much sightseeing. I have to be at the track with Ryan early Sunday morning for pre-race activities, then stay through the main event, until the checkered flag falls and Ryan returns to Charlotte. Then, a red-eye flight from Detroit will bring me home late Sunday night. This is all too much information to process without alcohol. I look down at my watch. It’s after five o’clock. Praise God! I have got to get out of here!

  Chapter 5

  L uckily, today is Margarita Monday! And I am having dinner with Brooke, so hopefully she can help me to hash all this out. I seriously need her advice. I arrive at Rock Bottom Brewery in downtown Charlotte around six o’clock.

  Brooke is perfectly dressed and coiffed
even this late in the day. It makes me ill. I am frazzled as usual, no doubt thanks to the insane day that I have had.

  Brooke signals for the waiter to come over as she says to me, “You look like you need a drink!”

  “Thanks!” I snap. “That is a polite way of saying, you look like shit!” The waiter walks up on cue as I say, “I’ll have what she is having, but make mine a double!”

  The waiter retreats, and Brooke eyes me intently. “What the what?”

  “Well…” I say cautiously, “I got a new job today.”

  “Oh?” Brooke looks at me intently, waiting on me to continue.

  I sigh, “You are looking at the new “acting” public relations manager for Ryan Carter.”

  Brooke’s mouth drops wide open, and I raise my eyebrows at her. I have never seen this look of pure shock on her face. This is one for the record books.

  “Well…actually,” I say straight, “it’s basically a glorified babysitting job with a fancy title.” I continue to bore myself with the details of my new job description. Brooke looks dazed as she continues to stare at me with an openmouthed gape. “Brooke!” I wave my hands at her to break her gaze. “Say something!”

  She guffaws. “I would babysit his fine ass any day, no matter what the title!”

  I groan loudly, “Oh my God! He’s such an ass! Honestly, I don’t know how he walks around carrying that incredibly huge chip on his shoulder, like, ‘Oh! I’m Ryan Carter. Stop the traffic, please!’ What a bastard!” I say in a huff.

  The waiter arrives with my margarita, so I discontinue my conversation momentarily. I take a long, glorious sip. The tequila burns down my throat. Ahh! Just exactly what I needed, and to hell with the two-drink minimum tonight! The waiter retreats again, and Brooke doesn’t miss a beat.

  She eyes me. “Oh, come on! You have to admit that he is sexy as hell!”

  I take a sip from my glass and answer warily, “OK! OK! Yes, he is hot, but his personality is a cat of a different color!”

  Brooke nods her head and quickly says, “That’s just what makes him Ryan Carter.”