Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
TESSA
I’m not sure what I’m more perturbed about: the fact that Vinny crossed a line—again, Rome declaring that I was his, or that his proclamation gave me butterflies.
How dare my traitorous body?
Rome pushes his hands into his pockets, a faint chuckle slipping from his mouth. He appears so cool and calm after the altercation, as if his hand wasn’t wrapped around another man’s throat.
“I was referring to you being my engineer…my teammate,” he says, a smirk slowly appearing on his face. “But glad to know that’s where your mind went, Princess.”
I turn around hastily, my cheeks burning with embarrassment. The clicking of my heels echoes between the two buildings, mixing in with Rome’s slow strides behind me. Before I’m able to step foot on the sidewalk, I’m pulled backward by Rome’s hand around my waist.
Mid-gasp, he presses me against the brick wall.
“Not so fast.”
A strand of Rome’s dark hair falls onto his forehead. I stare into his blue eyes–a mirror of the ocean, a mix of dark and light blue, full of life.
Oh my god, knock it off.
“What was that all about?” he asks.
I swallow. “Nothing.”
Rome scoffs, and his hands land on his hips. “That’s not what you silently told me a few minutes ago.”
I cross my arms defensively. “I didn’t silently tell you anything, and it’s none of your business.”
He pins me in place with a stern look, and my heart skips a beat. The air between us is charged, and he pushes right through it to end up inches in front of me. He grabs onto my chin and angles my face toward his.
I’m stuck, my chest refusing to take in a breath.
“Everything about my engineer is my business.”
My stomach flips, like it’s demanding I give in and tell him every last secret I’ve ever kept.
But then I remember that he’s the enemy–new teammate or not.
“I don’t trust you,” I admit.
His dark chuckle gives me goosebumps.
“I don’t trust you either.”
His lip curves into a smirk, and he finally lets go of my chin. He walks toward the road but stops and glances at me over his shoulder. “It’s fine. You don’t have to tell me. I’ll just ask your brothers.”
I panic.
My heart jumps to my throat.
I rush after Rome and grab onto his arm. He willingly lets me drag him back into our hidden spot with a stupid, victorious smile on his face.
I uncurl my fingers to cross my arms angrily. “My brothers don’t know, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
Rome presses himself onto the brick wall and kicks one leg over the other lazily. His hands disappear in his pockets, and he looks like he’s posing for an ad, showcasing the sleek suit he’s wearing.
He’s too talented as a driver to also be this attractive.
It’s unfair to the rest of the male population.
“I’m listening, Princess.”
I sigh loudly with a roll of my eyes. “It was at the prize ceremony. He had a lot to drink and got handsy. That’s it.”
“Got handsy?” he repeats. “How so?”
My face heats.
I’m downplaying the situation, and he knows it.
“You know…” My words fade, but he doesn’t bite.
“I don’t know,” he says. “I’ve never gotten handsy with a woman who didn’t beg for it.”
I shift on uneasy feet, my thighs pressing together briefly.
“Maybe I begged for it at first,” I say, lying.
He surveys me closely. “Did you?”
I look away. Of course I didn’t.
He snickers. “That’s what I thought.”
“It’s not a big deal. I put a stop to it before he got carried away,” I add.
Rome’s expression darkens. He’s in front of me before I have a chance to take a breath, his arm winding around my waist possessively.
“It is a big deal,” he says, tone low and slow. “And I have no problem making him pay during the race.”
“You shouldn’t be thinking about anything other than what I’m telling you while on the track,” I remind him. “Leave Vinny and anything else out of it.”
“I wonder what your brothers would think if I happened to slip up and tell them.”
My nostrils flare. “Don’t.”
The smile that slides onto Rome’s face makes me pause. Oh God.
“I’m really going to like having something to hold over your head…Chief.”
His chuckle mocks me as I follow after him down the alleyway.
“Rome.”
“See you tomorrow,” he says, not bothering to look at me. “I expect those changes to be made to my car before I get there in the morning.”
My jaw drops. The audacity!
“You don’t get to call the shots!” I shout after him.
He gives me one last look, eyes glimmering with mischief. “You sure about that?”
I follow his line of sight and land on my brothers, standing near the curb, waiting for their vehicles. I glance back at Rome, and his smile deepens, which irritates me like no other.
I get into my car and take off from the venue but make a left instead of a right.
As much as I don’t trust Rome, I have a feeling he follows through on his threats, and if my brothers learn about Vinny’s disgusting behavior, it’ll do nothing but bring more drama to our team. And with Rome’s recent presence stirring up a bunch of shit, I’m better off playing it safe.
So off to the office I go.
“Run it again.”
“It’s still tight,” he snaps.
I can’t help but laugh, which pulls on every one of Rome’s tight strings. He jumps up from the simulator, his headset flying across the room. “Did you make the changes?”
Unlike the rest of the engineers in the room, I stand my ground. “You know I did. You just can’t admit that they’re wrong.”
Rome’s broad shoulders tense, his black t-shirt straining against his tight muscles. We stare–I mean, glare—at one another from across the room, and the longer I hold his eye, the faster my pulse races.
I’m thankful my dad is no longer showing up at HQ unannounced, because if he were here, I’d have to play nice to keep up with the charade that everything is just fine when, in reality, it’s the opposite.
I keep my eye on Rome. “Everyone out.”
No one argues.
The only one willing to go head to head with me is the devil across the room.
There’s a faint brush against my hand, and I look up to see Dylan, one of the engineers we pulled from working with Van and Noah.
He peers at me with a worry line etched in between his eyebrows. “You sure you’re okay being alone with him?”
I laugh softly. “I’m not afraid of Rome Pierce. But thank you for asking.”
Dylan nods tightly and leaves the room.
As soon as the door shuts, Rome snorts. “Is there anyone at Vanstone who isn’t related to you that doesn’t want to fuck you?”
Hot anger surges through my body. “Excuse me?”
“Just making an observation,” he states.
I scoff. “Well, maybe you should pay more attention to your driving instead of worrying about my friendships with the employees of Vanstone.”
“Friendships?” He chuckles. “Okay.”
“Are you insinuating that they’re something other than friendships?” I ask, rounding the computers to get closer to him. “Because if you think I would risk my career by fooling around with someone on my team, then you clearly don’t think very highly of me.”
Rome’s edgy jaw levels out, his blue eyes as sharp as a knife. “I don’t know if you would, but they sure would.”
He drives me mad.
Every last nerve ending in my body is fried by the time we’re done for the day.
The bantering is at an all-time high, and the quick-witted insults and fleeting glares are enough to set the entire room on fire. It's no wonder the rest of the engineers jumped at the opportunity to escape when given the chance.
“Get back in the car,” I demand.
Rome shakes his head. “I’m done for today.”
I glare at him. “It’s only been an hour.”
“Feels like an eternity."
My heart pounds.
This isn’t working.
He doesn’t trust me, and he thinks he knows better than I do.
I know it’s because I'm a Halston–a female Halston, at that.
It makes me wonder why he left his father’s side, and why mine was willing to hire him at the drop of a hat.
None of that really matters at the moment.
What matters is that something has to give, and if step one is proving to Rome that I do know what I’m doing as the leader of his team, then that’s what I’ll do. Step two is getting him to trust me.
“Fine.” I stomp over to the computers and start to make the proper adjustments on the car.
“What are you doing?” he asks, clearly annoyed.
Unwilling to make eye contact with him, I continue staring at the bright screen. “If you’re not going to do your job, then I guess I’ll do it for you.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
I smile to myself. “It means it's my turn to drive.”