8. Mabel
Mabel
“Okay, so if we move around the energy drink promo shoot with the helmet advert, it’ll all fit in for a singular day of work in a week and a half when we get to the next track.” I marvel at my beautifully laid out schedule for the next few weeks.
“Excellent job. If we can optimise Javi’s time and condense his commitments, I’m happy he can focus on racing and working with the team, and not working the camera.” Rayna nods.
“Is it still okay for me to work in the hotel? You don’t need me on track in the office?”
“Not at all. I trust you and we get more undisturbed work done in our rooms. You know I love a chat.” She smiles and winks at me.
Smiling back and laughing, I say, “Alright, well let me know if you need me at all.”
“Heeeyyyyy, Rayynnaaaa!”
Rayna looks at me with a mock annoyed look on her face before standing up and peeking out her open window that overlooks pit lane .
“Hello, everyone. Have you misplaced some engines?” she teases, looking down at Riley, Javi, Fleur, and Cole, all on BMX bikes. Otto sits patiently by Cole’s side.
“You are a riot, Rayna! Is Mabel up there? Can she come out to play?” Riley jests.
“How about it? Do you want to go hang with the cool kids?” Rayna smirks at me.
“Tell them I’ll be down in a moment.” I laugh and collect my things.
“Leave your stuff here. I’ll be around for a while.”
“Bring her back by curfew!” Rayna shouts out as I exit her office and go down the stairs.
As I make my way into pit lane, Riley is on his BMX and the others are further behind, chatting amongst themselves.
“Hey,” Riley greets with a nod. His wrists rests on the handlebar grips as he balances on the bike with one leg down, his black hoodie engulfing his frame. Has he always looked this…cuddly?
“Hey,” I reply, tucking some escaped hair behind my ear.
“We're just heading for a few laps around the track. Thought you might like to join us.”
Looking between the bikes, I note there are four bikes and five riders. “Where’s the fifth bike or am I riding on your lap?” Shit!
Riley side-steps my faux-pas and throws a thumb backwards. “Cole is running with Otto.”
“Got that all worked out neatly. ”
“Absolutely. Now come on, we’re burning daylight.”
I swap with Cole and he takes off with Otto chasing behind him; Javi and Fleur pedal behind them. Riley and I are a little slower at the back of the pack.
“What have you been up to today?” I ask.
“You know, the regular. Training, meetings, promos. How’s your day been?”
“Great! Firmed up the next month of Javi’s commitments. Now that I have a handle on everything, Rayna’s said I can work in the hotel most of the time.”
“That’s great! Been getting lonely on my own.” He smiles, looking down to the track.
My face heats. Two months of sharing a space and hanging out has definitely put him in another light.
He’s sweet and caring. Funny and kind. I’m really enjoying his company.
Watching him compete has done things for me.
Not to mention the sex dreams I’ve been having lately involving him have not helped me stop thinking about him in that light.
Feeling the blood drain from my face thinking about last night’s dream, I try to distract myself.
Reality check—I can’t let myself get swept up in his kindness and caring ways. I can’t hurt him.
“Are you looking forward to this weekend’s race? Prepared to go from third to first?”
“Yes. I know where I can improve on from last race’s fourth.” His voice is determined, focused .
“That’s great,” I reply, trying to keep my eyes ahead of me, but his face draws me in and I keep veering my bike towards him.
“You never mentioned you were bad at riding a pushy,” he teases after the eighth time I almost run into his front tyre.
“Sorry, little distracted.” And I vow to myself to keep my eyes forward as a shiver shutters down my spine.
“Cold?” he asks, noticing everything.
“A little. Wasn’t expecting to be out of the office and on track this morning when I left.”
Riley stops and places his legs on the track as he crosses his arms over his torso and lifts off his hoodie. His tee catches in his hoodie, exposing the ripples of his abs before the tee falls back in place, hiding his stomach from my thirsty eyes.
He hands the hoodie to me while I am in my own head. I take it with a weak, “Thanks.”
Placing it over my head, I feel his warmth and smell still woven in the material. It’s soft and oversized on me, and I imagine for a moment what it would be like to be surrounded by him. Surrendered to him. And another shiver shudders down my core. “Let’s keep moving so you stay warm.”
We spend forty minutes doing a few track laps.
Riley and I catch up to the rest of the crew, stopping when Cole needs to tend to Otto with water or picking up after him.
“Ok, I am going to take this doggo back to the motorhome. Catch you lot at training tomorrow.” Cole waves off with a chorus of goodbyes from us .
“Where do the bikes go?” I ask.
“My pit,” Fleur replies as she leads the way back. She and Javi break away in front again, doing wheelies and seeing who can pedal the furthest with their front wheel up. Riley stays back with me. Going at my pace, staying by my side.
Stacking the bikes up in the back of the pit, we head back to Javi’s pit so I can pop over and grab my laptop from Rayna’s office. Then we all make our way to the track exit and into a cab. Fleur sits in the front and Javi, Riley, and I squish into the back.
Riley takes the middle seat and puts his arm across the back of my seat.
“Might give the wrong impression if I did this to Javi.” He smirks and winks at me.
Javi pushes Riley’s shoulder, causing his face to come close to mine. His other arm whips around and braces himself on the door to my side. Caging me. So close to him the tips of his overgrown hair brush against my cheek.
“Sorry, Jav’s a dick.” He sends his elbow backwards, and the omph from Javi confirms it was a direct hit.
“You're both dicks. Like annoying brothers.” I can hear Fleur roll her eyes in the front.
Riley rights himself, but he's still impossibly close to me. His body presses mine into the door. Feeling pinned between his body and the hard frame. His vanilla scent engulfing me.
I’m no longer cold. I feel like I am sweating through his hoodie, pressed up against him, his hot breath down my neck .
Looking up, I expect him to be staring at me from this close proximity, but he is peering out the window. Does he not realise he is a middle seat passenger?
“Oh, we should hit that kebab place up on this street. You’ll love it, Mabs.”
“Why don’t you give her some breathing room, Rye,” Javi offers.
“Shit. Sorry. Didn’t realise.” Riley looks down meekly at me.
“No worries,” I reply. But he doesn’t move. He's still looking at me. Eyes locked.
I breathe in deeply, pushing my chest against him, making him realise he hasn’t moved, to which he moves back. Giving me space. The stark removal of his presence is now abundantly clear in front of me. I can breathe freely. Not under tension.
Getting to the hotel, I'm quick to open the cab door and almost fall out on the steps of the hotel.
“Easy there.” Fleur steps by my side and steadies me.
“Thanks. Must have mis-stepped,” I fob off.
She smiles and squeezes my arm.
In a daze, as we all head up to our rooms. Riley is also unusually quiet while Javi and Fleur continue to talk non-stop the trip up the elevator.
Goodbyes are thrown around as we part ways. Riley opens the door for me and I head in.
“I’m jumping in the shower if you need to get in there before me?” he asks.
I shake my head. “Head on in. ”
He nods and organises himself while I go into my room.
Sitting on the bed, I catch sight of myself in the wardrobe mirror, wearing his hoodie.
His name running down the side of the arm and his number, 26, on the chest. I lift my arm, bringing the sleeve material to my nose, and inhale.
It has the slight smell of petrol and burnt rubber from being on track with him today, but the undertone of him still lingers; vanilla.
I hear the shower turn on and my mind starts to race, thinking of Riley standing on the other side of the wall.
Thinking of the water beading down his hard body.
I’ve seen him at the gym. His body is magnificent.
Shaking my head, I don’t allow myself to continue down that thought process. I’ll look forward to another sex dream featuring him tonight, I’m sure.
“Alright, what is our final decision here? Chilli chicken and rice or chilli beef burritos?” I ask, holding up a packet of rice and burritos wraps in each hand. I alternate lifting them up and down, weighing the options in front of Riley.
“Hmmm, let’s go chilli chicken and rice,” Riley agrees, and I replace the wraps on the shelf.
Heading to the checkout, we both empty our items out onto the conveyor belt. Riley reaches for a particular chocolate at the impulse purchase area, but then returns it. I 've noticed he does this every time we use a checkout with this chocolate there, but he never buys it.
“You do that every time.”
“Sorry? Do what?” he asks.
“Pick up that same type of chocolate bar, but put it back. Do you like it or not like it? Worried about your waistline?”
“Nah, I used to buy them for Kiara. Force of habit until I remind myself not to buy them when it gets into my hand.”
Don’t I feel like a right asshole. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s okay. How would you know?” He smiles, but there's pain behind his eyes.
We check out and head back to the hotel in silence; me mortified and Riley looking deep in thought.
“Sorry again about asking about the chocolate.”
“It’s fine. It’s just…weird. Thinking about her is never a bad thing. Just the realisation that she isn’t back at the hotel room is the weird part.”
I thread my arm through his so our elbows are linked and rest my head on his shoulder, because what could I possibly say to make this any easier?
“Tell me about her. What did you both used to do in the off-season?”
“She loved heading to the motocross track with the crew. She and Cole used to play pranks on us all.”
“Pranks?! Like what?”
“Dumb stuff, like swap out helmet and gloves to the smaller sizes for the guys, and kids sizes for Fleur. ”
“Sounds like Cole had a close relationship with her?”
“Yeah, she was the little sister to everyone. Fleur especially. She used to love when Kiara would tag along with us. But even Fleur couldn’t get past Kiara’s walls when she was having a shit day and wanted to hole up in the hotel room or head back home to our folks' joint.”
“Fleur would have taken that personally,” I acknowledge.
“Oh, she absolutely did.” He pauses. “They all loved her.”
“Sounds like she was as loved as possible.” I snake my hand up around his arm and squeeze his bicep.
“Thanks.” He smiles down at me, squeezing his arm close to his side in reciprocation of my gesture.