Chapter Twenty-Eight
Luca
The Tuesday before the Monaco Grand Prix, Georgia and I were scheduled to make an appearance at the local children’s hospital. It had been a few days since our night out in Monza, but I found myself missing her more than expected.
The teams had agreed that it would be best for me to stay with Georgia instead of the team hotel, which was fine by me. I’d spent half my life in hotels, and it would be nice to see her thrive in her own home.
Georgia had left a key for me with her door attendant, and after letting myself into her apartment, I was greeted by éliott Simon, casually sipping a cup of coffee on Georgia’s couch, no Georgia in sight.
“éliott, surprised to see you here,” I snapped with more annoyance than necessary.
He lifted his mug in a mock toast. “Nice to see you too, Luca. I’m staying with Henri this week…
or is that not okay with you?” I deserved his sarcastic and condescending tone, even if I didn’t appreciate it.
He motioned for me to take a seat across from him on the sofa.
“So, how have things been going?” He studied me intently over the rim of his Valkyrie coffee mug.
“Fine.”
I leaned back and stared at the clock, willing Georgia to hurry up. Talking to éliott was akin to watching paint dry—though, if I were being fair, that probably had more to do with the fact that I was jealous of their closeness.
“Sounds like you and Georgia have a fun day scheduled today. You know last year I went with her to the charity event, it was a great experience. She’s incredibly generous to give up so much of her time for the hospital, especially during such a busy week.” éliott shot me a pointed look.
Nodding, I kept my expression neutral as I considered why éliott was hawking Georgia at me, as if I didn’t know how special she was.
“Very glad I get to spend some personal time with her,” I responded smoothly, before adding, “just the two of us.”
Truthfully, I was thrilled that I had an entire afternoon of Georgia to myself. So much of our time was spent at the paddock with our teammates or with friends, and now I would finally have a moment to see Georgia in her element—without any distractions.
éliott’s mouth curved slightly as he looked back at his phone, like he knew something I didn’t. “Well, at least you can’t bail on this one.”
My blood ran cold as I stared at éliott.
Fuck. I hated that he knew.
The look on my face must have betrayed my shock, because éliott let out a short laugh.
Before I could respond, the sound of a door opening caught our attention.
“Luca, you made it! Glad the key worked.” Georgia emerged from her bedroom, already dressed for the charity event, her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. She wore a navy-blue polo and black jeans that fitted her curves perfectly.
éliott checked his watch. “Ah, shit, I’m going to be late for my VIP meeting.”
At ten a.m.? I snickered to myself. No chance he had a VIP meeting this early, but I appreciated éliott making himself scarce.
“Georgia, an incredible host as always.” éliott smiled, giving her a kiss on each cheek. “Go easy on Luca today, yeah?” éliott’s eyes lingered on Georgia like there was an unspoken understanding between them.
Georgia chuckled, playfully punching his arm. “We’ll all catch up over dinner?”
“Deal.”
The moment the door closed, Georgia wandered to the kitchen. “We still have fifteen minutes before we need to leave. Want some coffee?”
“Sure, thanks.”
While Georgia started the coffee, I took a moment to take in my surroundings.
To my surprise, the walls were completely covered in paintings—paintings of the tracks, the Valkyrie car, former teammates.
Set in the center above her TV was a painting of Henri and Georgia, the two of them dressed in their respective racing suits, both of them wearing cheesy grins with a thumbs up.
Everywhere you looked there was a panting of something involving racing, and I couldn’t help but smile.
When we started this stunt, it felt like she was pretending to be a carbon copy of my dad just to annoy me, but if this showed me anything, it was that her love of all things motorsports was real.
She handed me a steaming mug and sat beside me on the couch. “That one,” she said, nodding at the Henri painting, “I made for our birthday. Henri has one too.”
“You’re seriously talented.” The word talented didn’t feel like enough.
“Thanks.” She smiled bashfully. “Apparently, someone told the world on a podcast that I painted, so now Valkyrie have been hounding me to send them some artwork for their social media channels.”
“What a jerk.” I winked. “You should send him some artwork as payback.”
Georgia scoffed, taking a sip of her black coffee.
“So, I chatted to Isabelle this morning. Valkyrie met with Maison de Klotho yesterday. The meeting went better than expected, and we’ve secured some more funding.
She mentioned that you reached out to them and offered for us to do a joint photo shoot together? ” Georgia looked surprised.
“Well, I figured a model shoot with the most beautiful girl in F1 wasn’t a terrible way to spend my summer break,” I teased. Blushing Georgia really was starting to become my favorite Georgia.
“Thank you, Luca. I mean it. For Miami… and offering to do this photo shoot. I’m sure that helped sweeten the deal.
” I loved the way she was looking at me, eyes soft and filled with appreciation.
It filled my chest with so much joy and warmth.
I’d do anything to keep Georgia looking at me like this.
“So, you ready to head to the hospital?” I asked, finishing my cup of coffee as I pulled my sweater over my head.
“Let’s do it.”
The crisp morning air accompanied us as we made our way through the narrow streets and towards the hospital.
Everywhere we turned our faces were plastered on billboards, banners, even on the sides of buildings.
As we approached the towering hospital in the heart of Monaco, its glass facade glinting in the sunlight, a coordinator greeted us with an eager smile.
“Good morning!” Georgia called out, grabbing the woman in for a hug. “So good to see you again.”
Extending out a hand, the coordinator crooned, “And this must be Luca. I’m Nancy, your assistant for the day.”
“Morning.”
After a few more pleasantries, our coordinator led us through a labyrinth of hallways, the sound of children’s laughter echoing in the distance before we finally reached a large, brightly lit conference room.
I trailed behind Georgia and Nancy as they led me through the expansive room, my eyes scanning over the various pieces of artwork hanging from the walls.
Stopping at one of the drawings, I noticed a crayon artwork of what looked like a little stick-figure girl standing next to a dark blue car, with another figure standing next to her.
“Me and Georgia,” I whispered aloud, reading the caption. “Nice picture, looks just like you.” Georgia’s smile was so wide her eyes crinkled at the corners.
“All year the kids from the hospital send me artwork, so I always ask the staff to display them before the events. They love seeing their art on the walls. I can’t always respond to them, but this way they know I got it.”
I nodded, observing Georgia as she slightly fixed the crooked drawing. She was at ease, and it felt like a stark contrast to the Georgia that roamed the paddock with a face full of serious determination.
“So, um, what’s the plan for today?” I asked.
“Our meet-and-greet starts in ten. We’ll let the kids hop into the pretend Valkyrie Formula 1 car, get some photos with them, sign some pictures. They’re very excited you’re here this year!”
“Oh?” Considering we were in Monaco, I’d expected the kids to all be Team Valkyrie.
“Oh, yes! Yesterday I saw a parade of LR52 shirts and hats all over the hospital.” She winked at me.
Walking over to the Valkyrie model car they touted around for events, Georgia motioned towards it.
“Wanna hop in?” she teased as I ogled the dark blue exterior. Valkyrie had one of the better paint jobs, although that perhaps had something to do with the lack of sponsorship logos all over it.
“Think Hermes would fire me,” I chuckled.
“Coward,” Georgia taunted, knowing full well that I would immediately have to prove her wrong. Luca Rossi was many things, but as Georgia had reminded me before Monza, I wasn’t a coward.
“Fine, but don’t be alarmed when Valkyrie gives me your seat because I look better in the car than you do.” A wry smile on my face, I threw a leg over the side and hopped into the tiny cockpit, struggling to get comfortable as my broad shoulders squeezed into the seat.
“Good grief, is this car made for toddlers?”
Georgia snapped a couple photos, and I had no doubt I’d be hearing from Edward about this one later. “You look like Buddy from Elf when he’s trying to fit behind those desks.”
As I stepped out, I heard a soft, small voice from behind me. “Excuse me, Mr. Luca?” A small boy with a bright purple Hermes cap was stood there when I turned around. Smiling, I bent down, taking the pen from his hand.
“Want me to sign your hat, little man?”
“Hand it over, Pierre,” his mom urged. I ruffled his thick brown hair before taking the hat from him, signing my name on the bill. “Would you like Georgia’s signature as well?”
“Ew, gross. No girl cooties!” Pierre giggled as he snatched the cap from my hand, proudly displaying his prize. Georgia was beaming at the mother, who was silently whispering an apology, but she just shrugged it off with a large smile, laughing away as she was passed a hat from a little girl.
“You’re great with kids,” Georgia whispered as she leaned into me, waiting for the next set of children to arrive. We took a seat behind the small table, and I grabbed the water bottle that had been left out for me.
“Do you do this often?”