Chapter 19
nineteen
AUSTIN, TX
The cool satin sheets tickled Avery’s bare skin.
What time was it? She rolled over to look at the clock and saw Teddy’s bright red phone case plugged in on the nightstand next to hers.
She turned to her other side to make sure her eyes weren’t deceiving her in the dim early morning night.
Yep, there he was, sleeping peacefully with his shirt off and the sheet draped right over his navel.
He was laying on his back with his hands above his head giving her a perfect view of his well-defined pecs and sculpted abs.
Her body flushed remembering the way it had felt to rub her palms over those abs.
Sex with Teddy had been different than it had been with Josh, or with the two other guys she’d slept with.
Better, sure, but also different, like they’d been in a technicolor dreamland.
Maybe it was the high of the race day, podium finish, the relief that flooded her when she realized he wanted her in that way too. But maybe not.
Teddy’s hair had become mussed during sleep (and the romp that preceded it), chocolate brown pieces sticking up every which way.
The sweet boyishness of it made her nearly weak in the knees.
She wanted to run her hands through it, wake him up, and kiss the soft lips that she could see were slightly open and shaped into a partial smile, run her finger over that little scar again.
But he looked so incredibly peaceful, so she quietly slipped out of bed.
She got her phone and went to the bathroom where she eased into the fluffy hotel robe.
Should she go hang out in the seating area/living space in his suite and wait for him to wake up?
Take the walk of shame down the hallway to her own room and brush her teeth and attempt to freshen up?
She didn’t have much experience to draw from.
One-night stands were certainly not her thing, and the last time she had stayed over somewhere unexpectedly after a hook-up was Josh’s dorm room in college, when a walk of shame was also a badge of honor.
She glanced at her phone and saw she had three texts from Stacey.
11 p.m.
Where are you?? Did you and Teddy ghost??
12 a.m.
You aren’t answering. I’m assuming you and Teddy?!?!
7 a.m.
Let me know you’re alive and well when you can?
Maybe she should go in the other room and call Stacey to let her know she was okay? Before she could make up her mind, there was a light knock on the bathroom door.
“Avery?” Teddy’s voice sounded a little gravely.
“One second,” She quickly typed out a reply to Stacey.
I’m alive. Can’t talk. STILL WITH TEDDY.
“Hi,” Avery opened the door and took in his tall, toned body. He’d put his boxer shorts back on, but his broad shoulders and smooth, bare chest were hers to ogle. And ogle she did.
“Good morning,” he said tenderly. “Checking me out?” He held his arms so that he was holding onto the top of the door frame, his biceps flexing.
Her cheeks heated. “Good morning to you too. Maybe.”
She smoothed down her hair and retied the robe’s belt tighter around her waist. She found his bed head endearing and his naked torso utterly drool-worthy, but doubted that her crazy, frizzy curls, after the night they’d had, would have the same effect.
Would he regret what happened between them in the light of day?
“You weren’t planning an escape were you?” he asked, offering her a bemused smile.
“No, I didn’t want to wake you,” Avery said, giving him a half truth. No need to let him know that she was, in fact, considering fleeing to her own room before he’d woken up.
“Good, because I haven’t gotten my fill of you yet,” he grinned.
“Do you have plans with your family today? I don’t leave until tomorrow, so I have the whole day free.
And I plan to enjoy Austin like a proper tourist. Want to join me?
Breakfast tacos? Paddle boarding? Shopping for the most obnoxious cowboy hats we can find? ”
“Seriously, that sounds amazing. I wish I could, but I have so much work to do. And I should probably go do something about this,” she said, pointing to her hair as she squinted her eyes shut.
“First of all, I like to see your hair like that. It’s sexy.
If a woman didn’t have a hair out of place after a night with me, I’d consider myself a failed lover…
and second of all, I never get a day off like this, and it would be so much more fun with you.
Please? Don’t make me beg, Avery Silver,” he clasped his hands together in front of his chest and gave her puppy dog eyes.
Avery felt her will bending. On one hand, she really did need to put her head down and get the gala back on track. But on the other, she didn’t want last night’s magic to end, just yet. She sighed audibly.
“Come on, matching cowboy hats make for great couple-y photos. I’ll sign one and announce that I’m going to donate custom leather boots along with the signed hat for auction at the gala,” Teddy offered.
Avery’s heart sank. We’re back to hang outs manufactured for publicity already?
After the night we’ve had? She tried to hide her disappointment, hoping that her face hadn’t fallen as quickly as her heart had.
Maybe for Teddy the spell had already been broken, and they were back to their regularly scheduled photo-ops.
Maybe for him, it had all been tangled together - the rush of the podium, the banner day, and now the day was behind them.
On the other hand, the way he gently bit his lip as he awaited her answer suggested he might genuinely want to spend time with her.
Regardless, she knew he was right, photos of them gallivanting around town in hats and boots, plus announcing their first auction item was probably exactly what she needed to get the event some much needed buzz.
“I’ll go get ready.”
* * *
Two hours later, Avery and Teddy were window shopping hand-in-hand on South Congress in the center of Austin, passing the eclectic mix of funky local stores and chic big-name brands.
It was another bright sunny day without a cloud in the sky.
Even though it was September, there was no fall feeling in the air, the high temp was going to be ninety.
After a quick shower and swipe of lipstick, Avery had thrown on jean shorts and a white ribbed tank in an effort to dress for the weather.
“That has to be our first stop,” Teddy pointed to a store with a giant cowboy boot in front.
The smell of leather overpowered Avery once they walked inside.
She took a sniff and sneezed as dust was blown around by a large overhead fan.
How long had some of these boots been sitting on the shelves?
Rows and rows of them in every color imaginable, some with fringe, others with patterns stitched, seemed to stretch on forever.
“Yes!” said Teddy, pulling down a completely turquoise pair of women’s boots. “What size are you?”
“Ha! There’s no way I’m getting those. I could never pull them off.”
“Suit yourself,” Teddy shrugged and put them back on the shelf.
He slid out of his own sneakers and tried on a pair with fringe. “How do I look?”
He stuck his foot out, and shimmied so the fringe moved a bit.
“Ridiculous,” Avery teased. Ridiculously hot, even when you’re being silly. She wanted to admit it out loud to him, to tell him how much she liked spending time with him, how great last night had been for her, but her stomach quivered at the thought.
It is way too soon to have that conversation. It had been twelve hours since their hook-up and any normal guy would run for the hills if a girl tried to define things that quickly. And, he already flat-out told me he didn’t have time for a girlfriend.
“Well, if the lady doesn’t like them on me,” Teddy said, making a sad puppy face as he took the goofy boots off and put them back on the shelf.
It took a minute for him to retie his own sneakers.
They looked stiff, fresh out of the box.
Avery recognized the logo from another driver’s collab with a shoe brand.
Super nice of him to wear them and show support for his fellow driver’s projects off the circuit.
Le sigh, he is too nice. And making it too easy for me to fall for him.
“Maybe we will have more luck with hats?” Teddy suggested. “Let’s go find one for me to sign for the auction.”
They walked to the hat section of the store and settled on a classic light-colored Stetson so that Teddy’s signature would really pop. Avery watched appreciatively as Teddy paid.
They ambled back out onto the busy street and Avery squinted, the bright sunlight was disorienting after the dim lighting inside the western store. It took a second for both their eyes to adjust.
“Where to next?” Teddy asked eagerly, putting his sunglasses on.
“How about I get some pics of you in that hat in front of the ‘I love you so much’ mural?” Avery asked, feeling inspired.
Teddy froze, looking like a deer caught in the headlights,“I love you so much mural? What on earth is that?”
Her breath caught as she felt a painful stab in her chest. If merely hearing the word love sent him running for the hills, it was definitely too soon to tell him she was falling for him.
Uncertainty wasn’t easy for her. Avery always liked to know where things were headed.
From the lost expression on his face, his hazel eyes avoiding her gaze, she needed to do some damage control and fast, before he spiraled any further.
“You’ve never seen a picture of someone posed in front of Austin’s famous ‘I love you so much mural’?
” Avery asked, trying to return to their easy banter.
“My friends all seem to think if you don’t post a picture in front of that mural, it’s like your trip didn’t even happen. It’s a tourist right-of-passage here.”
Teddy looked at her, still confused. “Nope.”
“I’ll show you. Come on, it’s right down the street next to Jo’s Coffee.” She grabbed his hand and practically dragged him down the block.
“See that line of people waiting for their turn?” She pointed to the line forming down the block.
“They are all waiting for their turn to take a photo with it.” See, I’m not a psycho trying to say I love you after we’ve had sex one time—it’s actually a thing.
“I’ll post it on the foundation’s page announcing the auction item. It’ll be perfect.”
He nodded, reluctantly. “If it’s for the kids.”
Ouch. The words stung even if he’d said them with the best intentions.
He followed her down the street where they joined the line for their turn for a photo-op. When they got to the front, Teddy awkwardly stood in front of the green and red mural, trying to get the large cowboy hat, that was slipping down on his forehead, to stay high up.
“What should I do with my arms?” he asked Avery, once he stopped fidgeting with the hat.
Avery was surprised to see this small amount of discomfort while he posed for her. For once, his effortless cool didn’t look quite so effortless.
“Put your hands in your pockets with your elbows out a bit. Classic American cowboy pose,” she directed.
Teddy did as he was told and then looked at her expectantly, a slight wrinkle forming between his eyebrows.
“Loving it, loving it.” She tilted her head and smiled, trying to put him at ease.
“Okay now try pulling it down over your eyes a bit and leaving it there. Perfect, Jesse James vibes,” she said, having fun with her director role-play.
She saw him suppress a smile as he brooded for the camera.
She felt relieved as the awkwardness dissipated.
She wasn’t sure how much longer she could have stomached any discomfort between them.
“Got what I need. You’re free,” Avery said, releasing him from his modeling duties.
He winked at her, or maybe it was for the camera, and stopped trying to hide his smile, his eyes crinkling.
They moved away from the mural to let the next group in line get their turn. They stood on the street corner facing Amy’s Ice Creams. Teddy looked at her expectantly, head tilted, as if waiting for her to decide what was next.
“So, um, thanks again for the auction item,” she said, not wanting to make room for any love mural awkwardness to slip back in.
“Of course,” he answered.
He paused again and rubbed the back of his neck. This was her opening if she was going to tell him how she felt, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. He was blinking a bit more than seemed natural.
She bit the side of her cheek, the discomfort forcing her to let the moment pass. She definitely didn’t want to say something she’d regret later.
“So, I was wondering,” Teddy broke the silence, as he rocked back on his heels. “If you’d want to come on a semi-vacation with me this week? To Mayakoba? Near Cancun?”
Whoa. She had to make an effort to keep her jaw from dropping to the floor, or her eyes from bugging out of her head. The invitation was completely out of left field.
“Really?” she couldn’t quite believe it. A vacation. With Teddy.
“Really,” he confirmed. “It doesn’t make sense for me to fly back and forth to Europe before the Mexico Grand Prix.
Stacey and James will be there too, so we can get some work in, but there will also be plenty of R&R baked into the schedule.
What do you say?” Teddy raised his eyebrows and looked at her expectantly.
I should say no.
She opened her mouth. Closed it.
I have a ton of work to do, and I don’t have a bathing suit with me.
The list of reasons that this was a bad idea was exponentially long - her obligations, the logistics, the uncertainty of their relationship status.
But, damn, the thought of Teddy shirtless in a hot tub beckoning her to join him, the sun setting over the ocean behind him was clouding her judgment.
She’d always done the responsible thing.
She’d never once failed to show-up for a family event, or turned in an assignment late in college.
Maybe just this once she could do the irresponsible, exhilarating thing.
Make the choice a socialite could make. Jet off into the sunset with my race-car driving love interest, consequences be damned.
“Yes, I’m in. I’d love to join you,” she said the words quickly, before she could talk herself out of it.