Chapter Sixteen
Georgia
“Okay, spill, how perfect was the karting date?” Even over the phone, I could feel Nora’s eagerness for all the juicy details. As much as I wanted to hang up and slink into my bed after a day of travel, I needed the lowdown on the podcast recording event with Luca tonight.
“Honestly—” and I knew I was going to regret saying this “—it was fun, better than expected.”
“Oh?” I could hear her crooning on the other end of the line.
“Luca noticeably spent the morning sulking, but after his vicious win, he definitely loosened up.” When Luca’s dad first mentioned the idea to me, I was excited, until Luca showed up with a miserable frown and bad attitude.
“Vicious win?” Nora giggled. “Georgia, it was karting.”
I scoffed. “I watched the video of the race, and I’m pretty sure the bastard was toying with me! For almost ten laps Luca could have passed me but didn’t, and then in the last lap he casually sailed by like he owned the place. Cheeky bastard.”
I wanted to kick him for how dangerous that overtake was at the karting track, but when I saw his Cheshire cat grin and gleaming brown eyes, I couldn’t help but smile back.
The joy on his face was contagious, and after another three races, including a second win for Luca, he was all smiles and laughter.
Inviting the other drivers had helped smooth over the tension.
We were just kids again, doing a sport that we loved.
No requirements. No demands. Just fun.
“Well, let’s hope he got that win out of his system, eh?” Nora laughed. “Don’t need the enemy getting too confident.”
“Yeah, it was nice to watch him and Henri race again. Luca has always been known for his late braking and strategic overtakes, but somewhere along the way, he’s sort of lost that drive, that hunger to win…
” Nora’s silence made me realize I was rambling, and I quickly inhaled a breath to slow myself down.
“Sounds like you all had a phenomenal time. Love to hear it!”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I still wanted to kill him half of the time,” I mumbled back dryly.
“Well, that’s an improvement on the usual 80 per cent, so I’ll take it,” Nora teased.
“Plus, it made for an amazing announcement post on your profiles. The picture of the two of you racing each other in those karts was just perfection.” I could hear Nora kissing the tips of her fingers on the other side of the line.
“Your post alone got almost half a million likes!”
“So Lily told me,” I moaned. “Guess there’s no turning back now.” Not that I could exactly backtrack after the Miami fiasco.
“Keep your head up, Georgia. It’ll be worth it in the end.” Nora’s voice softened, a gentle reassurance that seeped through the phone’s static. “So where are you now?”
“I just reached the hotel room. One moment, I’m about to walk in.”
Grabbing the key from my purse, I opened the door to my room, letting out a gasp of surprise.
Sunlight poured in through the expansive bay windows, illuminating the elegant suite, which was filled with beautiful paintings and ornate furniture.
Within the room were two bedrooms and a vast living room.
“Now this I could get used to!” I exclaimed, my voice echoing off the high ceilings. “I mean two bedrooms? Maybe we’d have enough money for next year if we cut down on the hotel budget.” I threw my bag onto the plush sofa before I immediately investigated the large kitchen.
“You drivers always get the nicest rooms,” Nora sighed. “Right, well, I’ll leave you to it. Glad the karting wasn’t a disaster. And remember, tonight is Luca’s podcast taping, so we need to be on our best behavior.”
As part of F1’s initiative to pull in younger fans, they’d started interviewing the drivers before each of their home races as part of a new podcast series called Home Stretch. Each episode was recorded in front of a live studio audience full of superfans.
“Yes, yes,” I grumbled, running a hand through my hair as I reluctantly agreed.
“Good, and who knows, you might even learn a thing or two?”
“Oh look… I’m going through… a tunnel…” Not my proudest moment, but I’d heard this lecture no less than three times now and it all boiled down to one thing: avoid becoming Sassy Dubois at all costs.
Glancing down at my phone, I noticed a new text message from Henri lighting up the screen.
Henri:
I’ll drive us to the podcast recording. Meet downstairs at 7
p.m.?
Georgia:
See you then.
Stepping into the shower, I turned the knob until the water was just shy of scalding, letting steam envelop me. Eucalyptus wafted through the shower from the incense the hotel had left. For the first time in what felt like days, my muscles stopped buzzing.
“You can do this, Georgia. You can survive being Luca Rossi’s girlfriend this week,” I reassured myself, breathing in the warm, soothing steam.
The hotel room door made a loud bang, catching my attention.
Fuck, has someone broken in?
Panic surged as I stood naked in the shower, contemplating my next move. As a female athlete, I’d received countless harassing fan mail and social media messages, some with death threats, over the course of my career. Not everyone was thrilled that the sport was “letting women in.”
Probably just Nora here to fill me in on some extras for the weekend.
I scanned the bathroom like it was a weapons locker and reached for the only viable object: one of my high-heeled shoes, the best I could do in the relatively empty bathroom. With only a towel wrapped around me, I stepped out of the shower with my shoe gripped tightly.
But as I walked into the living room, I saw something almost worse than a rogue fan: Luca Rossi in my hotel room, grinning like he’d just won the lottery.
“Well, hello to you too.” Luca’s eyes roamed unapologetically over my body. “I guess after Miami, it’s only fair I also get to see you shirtless.”
So, he had seen the photo. Fabulous.
“What the fuck are you doing here? I thought you were a stalker!” I screamed, retreating back into the bathroom. Poking my head out from behind the door, I motioned for him to explain himself, but Luca just leaned against the wall, arms crossed with an amused look.
“And what, you were going to bludgeon them to death with a shoe?” he snickered.
“Answer the question, Rossi!”
“Well, according to the front desk, this room is mine.” Dropping his duffle on the couch, Luca added, “So, I think the question is, why are you here, in my shower?”
“This is my room, you idiot.” Seething didn’t begin to explain the emotion I was feeling.
“Well, looks like we’re roommates, ‘cause clearly my key card works.” He motioned towards the door with his key like a buffoon.
“Absolutely not. No way. Not happening. Now, turn around so I can call Nora! And don’t get comfortable. I’m sure she’ll get this sorted.”
He just chuckled and headed to his room, whistling away.
Frantic, I grabbed my phone and dialed Nora with the desperation of someone trying to win concert tickets off the radio.
“Nora, there’s been a mistake,” I said, my voice laced with panic. “Luca is in my suite! I thought you said these rooms were next to each other.”
“Wha-what do you mean he’s there?” From her tone, I could tell she was equally as confused. “Let me call the hotel and get this sorted out.”
The five minutes Nora had me on hold felt like a lifetime.
“Georgia, you there?” I picked up the phone so quickly it went flying out of my hands.
“Please tell me you have some good news,” I begged.
“Unfortunately, Georgia, when the Hermes coordinator phoned to get the rooms next to each other, the hotel heard two rooms side by side, so they booked you a suite with two bedrooms in it, and with the Grand Prix this weekend, the hotel is completely booked…” She trailed off at the end, but truth was, I’d stopped listening after the word unfortunately.
Hanging up the phone, I threw it down on my bed in frustration.
After taking five minutes to gather my thoughts, I threw on my pink dress that Nora had purchased for tonight and then marched into the living room.
“Alright, Luca, we need to set some boundar—” I opened the door to Luca standing before me, towel slung dangerously low around his hips, droplets of water trailing down his chest like the universe was mocking me.
His dark hair was damp, clinging to his forehead, and the faint scent of soap and shampoo lingered in the air.
His white towel was loosely draped around his waist, seemingly defying gravity as if a gentle breeze could send it cascading to the floor at any moment.
God, I almost wish it would, I thought as horror filled me at my own revelation. Luca popped his head up, a grin crawling on his face.
“Enjoying the view?” he asked, smug as sin.
I snapped my head away. “Put your clothes back on! This is a shared area in case you forgot.” Asshole.
“And deny you the opportunity to get a second peek at your favorite racer? What kind of man do you think I am?”
“A man that’s probably never been told to put his shirt back on by a woman, but there’s a first time for everything,” I hissed.
Luca made a show of grabbing his chest dramatically. “Oh, how you wound me!”
“No, but I could,” I muttered, stalking across the room.
“Ah, yes, with your scary high heels.” Luca grinned at my defiance, waltzing into his bedroom, where he disappeared for a minute before rejoining me, now wearing a pair of slacks and a purple polo, his dark brown wavy hair still damp from the shower.
I leaned casually against the wall, attempting to look as unbothered as possible while I picked at my fingernails. As he strolled past, he stopped, then pivoted, stepping closer. Without a word, he braced both hands against the wall on either side of me, boxing me in.
“If you play your cards right, amore, you might be able to see more of me.”
His breath grazed my neck, and goosebumps chased up my spine.
Gorgeous brown eyes stared deeply into mine.
Warmth started to build, my legs trembling more than I cared to admit.
Having Luca this close to me, his breath tickling my neck as he softly whispered, it felt like my nerves were being set on fire.
Despite wanting to come up with something witty, all I could think about was how close his lips were to mine, how good that kiss was from a few weeks ago.
Get it together, Georgia.
I tilted my chin, forced a saccharine smile, and met his gaze. “Well, let’s hope I have a losing hand then, because what I really want is to see less of you!”
He laughed, so deep and genuine that it startled me. Pushing off the wall, he gave me a wink as he headed for the door. Silence engulfed the room as he exited, his chuckling fading as he made his way down the hallway.