Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Julia stood alongside Oliver and gawked at the two Lamborghinis parked side by side on a deserted road flanked by sand dunes.
One ridiculously expensive vehicle was sunset orange and the other lime green.
She bit her thumbnail in nervous anticipation of the race that was about to begin and hoped Finn and Carter knew what the hell they were doing.
She had no clue how Carter had pulled this off or why he’d even challenged Finn to a race, but maybe Finn needed it? He was tense. After what happened to Wyatt, of course. But Julia was fairly certain she was contributing to that tension, too.
She thought back to how Finn had handled the Range Rover as if it were a Ferrari when they’d first arrived in Dubai. What would he do behind the wheel of a Lamborghini?
“Who are these guys?” Oliver asked her, folding his arms over his muscular chest.
“Long story about Finn. But Carter’s still a question mark to me.
” She looked around at Carter’s men surrounding them, curious about their backstories and why they worked with Carter.
What exactly did they do when they weren’t taking down terrorists, and from what she understood, they didn’t have the government’s blessing, so why’d they do it?
And how’d they get paid? She doubted Carter offered stock options to his guys.
“Well, looks like you found a good man.” Oliver nudged her in the side.
She lifted her sunglasses to peer at Oliver for a moment, so damn relieved and thankful she hadn’t lost him.
He had on Tucker’s ID tags she’d given him an hour ago back at Kaira’s mansion before they’d said goodbye to her, Joan, and Jack.
Although, she had a feeling she’d be seeing the Romancing the Stone couple again down the road.
I think it’s time I give these to you, she’d said to Oliver out on that terrace.
Oliver had lifted his brows in surprise. You sure?
She’d peered back into the living room at Finn as he’d talked with Carter and then nodded, knowing she’d never be able to put the past behind her and find a future with Finn if she didn’t give up Tucker’s tags.
“I care about him,” she finally answered. “But what if he gets hurt? What if something happens to him because of his job?” What if I miss the signs again?
Oliver freed his arms from across his chest as she let her sunglasses fall back into place. “Baby girl, that’s a lot of what-ifs.” He circled her wrist with a large hand. “If he makes you happy, I say go for it. Life is too short to be afraid of what-ifs. Look at me, I almost—”
“That was my fault. You took the job because of me.”
“You’re not seriously blaming yourself for what happened, are you?
” He scoffed and released her hand to remove his shades, ones Carter had loaned him for the insane afternoon race.
“Don’t. Even. Think. About. It.” He tipped his head to the side.
“Woman, I’m warning you.” His tone switched to light and teasing, but she knew he was serious.
He didn’t want her carrying any more guilt.
She reached for the pendant around her neck Finn had given her and clutched it.
“I’m about to watch two strangers race some Lambos instead of waiting to get executed, and that’s thanks to you. That’s all I’m focused on.”
“But what happens next for you?”
He put his glasses back on, and they both turned toward where Carter and Finn were talking by the cars. “The great thing about tomorrow is you just never know what’s next. Life is exciting that way.”
“I just don’t want—”
“What happened to Tuck won’t happen to me. Plus, you have my back. I know that. I’ll let you know if I ever need you.”
“You promise?” She needed double confirmation.
He hooked his arm around her back and then quickly let her go as if noticing Finn’s attention on them.
Finn was too far away and his beard was getting thicker, but she’d still swear she’d witnessed his jaw tense at the sight of Oliver’s hand on her back.
“He’s a keeper. I wouldn’t want another man touching my woman either. ”
In her heart, she knew she was Finn’s, but maybe she needed to figure out who the hell she was first, to find the woman she’d lost before she could move forward?
She thought about the flower on the pendant. Rebirth.
“When did you two fall in love?” Oliver asked softly.
Love? She watched Finn climb behind the wheel of the green Lamborghini. The two idiots weren’t wearing helmets. Well, he better have his seat belt on.
But seriously, they were in a city that was tough on crime, and yet, Carter pulled some strings to make this impromptu race happen. Oliver was right. Who was Carter?
“I, um.” Was she ready to drop that four-letter word yet? “My friend faked some death threats, and you know Michael, well, he asked Finn to protect me.”
“Ah, glad your bodyguard story turned out different than mine,” Oliver said with a laugh.
“Hey, now.” Julia poked him in the ribs. “You’re right, though,” she added with a laugh of her own.
“You all ready?” one of Carter’s men asked, approaching them.
His voice sounded familiar. “Were you the fourth sniper that took out the horseman guy?”
The man lifted his sunglasses and winked. She’d take that as a yes. “Engines are about to rev. These bad boys are going to tear out of here. Max speed of 325 kilometers per hour.”
“And why are they doing this again?” she asked him as Oliver moved her off to the side of the road as the two vehicles’ engines turned on and roared.
“She kidding?” The man looked at Oliver with a grin. “What guy doesn’t want to race a Lambo in Dubai? A little Fast and Furious action.”
Ah, another movie. “Okay, okay. But what woman doesn’t want to race, either?” she teased.
He grinned and pointed to Julia. “I like her.”
“Easy, she’s taken,” Oliver said, jerking his chin toward the green Lamborghini.
Sniper Guy allowed his sunglasses to fall back in place and raised his hands in playful surrender. “Go time.”
When Finn tore past her, he was already cutting down the road so fast, and yet . . . she was pretty sure he’d looked straight at her, and her stomach dropped at what she knew needed to happen when he hit the finish line.
She watched his car disappear in the distance and remained on edge every second he was out of sight. “Y’all place bets?”
Sniper Guy smirked. “Delta Force versus the SEAL. Damn straight.”
“I’m assuming you were a Delta guy?” she asked, and Sniper Guy only smiled in answer.
“Well, I’d normally put my money on the Army,” Oliver spoke up, “but any man who can win over her heart has my money.”
Julia faced Oliver. “I can’t figure out if that’s an insult or a compliment.”
“Compliment,” both Oliver and Sniper Guy said at the same time, then smiled.
When Julia heard the roar of the engines again, she looked off in the distance to see a speck of orange and one of green, growing larger and appearing, neck and neck as they came their way full throttle. Top speeds, from the looks of it.
Both cars blew past her a moment later, and she sure as hell couldn’t tell who won. It was too close to call. Maybe that was better. A tie. But would these two be able to handle a tie? Probably not.
When Finn exited the vehicle looking sexier than hell, she wanted to run to him as if he’d won the big race and fling herself into his sexy arms.
In jeans and a black tee with shades on, he was smoking hot. And a man that could handle a wheel like that—well, damn.
“It’s a tie. Going to have to go again,” Sniper Guy hollered out and left her side to go to Finn and Carter.
Finn shoved his sunglasses into his hair and pointed his gaze at Julia. “I’ll take the tie,” he said in a low voice as she slowly approached him.
“Hi,” she said in a soft voice.
“Hi back.”
“That was pretty badass.” She smiled even though her legs were weak, knowing what she needed to say soon.
“Ah, it was fun.” Finn shrugged, but she knew he’d had a blast, even though he didn’t look any less tense. “You ready to go home?”
She looked up at the clear blue sky before resetting her focus on Finn. Her stomach, chest, and well, everything hurt right now. “I, um . . .”
Finn captured her cheek in his large warm palm and steadied his eyes on hers. “Take your time,” he rasped in a low, husky tone. “I’ll wait for you forever.”