25. FORMULA 1 #3
I laughed, never missing a chance to remind him I was the firstborn twin… even if only by a few minutes.
“Anyway, congrats on smashing the comps.”
“Thanks.” Jai grinned.
Kobi headed toward us with a drink in her hand.
“Kobes,” Jai drawled, jumping up and giving her a brotherly hug. “I haven’t seen you for ages. Not since you learned how to stand on a board on the last day I visited this annoying big sister in Byron.”
I thumped him on the arm, and he rubbed it theatrically.
Across the room, Sass and Olivia broke into the latest viral dance moves.
“Those girls are gnarly. You did well to find them,” Jai said as a few others joined in.
“So true.” I smiled. “Just don’t let them hear you call them that.”
Kobi chuckled.
“Honestly though,” I said, looking over at them, “I don’t know what I would have done without Sass. She’s an angel—”
“SHUT UP, everyone!” Sass screeched. “They’re starting the formation lap!”
Silence fell over the room.
“Well, mostly she’s an angel,” I whispered, arching an eyebrow as Kobi grinned and Jai snorted beside me.
“Last chance for bets,” Sass announced. “Write your winning pick on this paper, screw it up, chuck it in the jar with ten bucks. If you pick the winner, you take the lot. If there’s more than one winner, it’ll be an even split.”
Everyone scrambled to scribble down their choices and toss their money into the jar.
“Whoo-hoo!” Sass squeezed herself into the gap between Olivia and Lila on the couch—attention glued to the enormous screen. “Here we go!”
A wave of cheers filled the room as the cars launched into the warmup lap before lining up for the start of the race.
The lights went out. The race exploded into action. As the drivers battled for position around the circuit, the room settled into a rhythm of cheers, groans, and animated debate over whose prediction would come true.
Sass spent most of the race perched on the edge of her seat, loudly willing Archie toward the front of the pack.
The engines screamed as cars went wheel-to-wheel through corners with no room to spare. Sparks showered beneath the chassis as they skimmed the track at incredible speeds, driving down the inside and threading through impossible gaps.
Every overtake coincided with another round of cheering in the crowded living room. Groans followed, and arguments broke out as drivers, refusing to give an inch, battled for every position.
The house exploded with whistles and screams as Spanish Ferrari driver Diego Tierra crossed the finish line in first place, only moments ahead of British McLaren racer Archie Jenson.
Sass slapped both hands over her mouth. “Archie’s got a podium finish. I knew he could do it!” She grinned happily. “He’s so hot, and an absolute beast behind the wheel.”
She broke into a celebratory dance while the girls and I laughed at her obvious crush.
“What?” she said. “He’s a total god, just look at him. I knew he’d get a place, that’s why I bet on him.”
Sass, Jai, and a few others split the prize money between them as the winning drivers stepped onto the podium and everyone’s attention shifted back to the TV.
The Sheikh presented Diego with the championship trophy as the living room erupted again. We watched the runners-up applauding behind him while the crowd at Yas Marina celebrated wildly.
Archie accepted his trophy next, followed by Lars Visser. Grinning broadly, the drivers sprayed champagne over each other and the crowd while everyone around them cheered.
Then Archie spotted someone in the audience.
The cameras followed his gaze as he pointed into the crowd, flashing a broad grin and throwing a double thumbs-up, before the broadcast cut to whoever he was looking at.
My breath caught. No!
I leaned closer to the screen, my pulse hammering, as Kobi gasped before her hand settled on my arm.
It was him. Unmistakable.
Messy blond hair clung to his forehead as that heart-stopping smile lit up the screen.
The man haunting my thoughts. The one I was trying to forget.
Standing beside him was Dyson, grinning straight into the cameras as Archie beamed at them from the podium.
“Kobi,” I whispered, gaze locked on the screen, “what’s he doing there? Archie’s waving right at him.”
Karson saw the cameras aimed at him, his smile fading as he turned away.
“I don’t know.” Kobi’s arm shifted behind my back. “Just breathe, I know this is a shock,” she said calmly as she glared at the screen.
“Is that Karson?” Sass cried. “And Dyson? Why is Archie Jenson looking at them? Oh my god, are they friends with Archie?”
“I guess, but Karson never mentioned it. I just can’t believe he’s there,” I said, reeling at the sight of him halfway across the world, having the time of his life.
“Yeah, I gotta say I didn’t see that coming.” Sass dragged her eyes away from the screen. “Babe, are you alright?”
I gave a small nod, but it was a lie.
Moving on had become my mission. Yet somehow seeing him there, smiling, living his life, looking completely fine, knotted something inside of me.
What he did shouldn’t matter to me anymore.
So why is my stomach dropping to the floor?