Chapter 14 #2
If ever there was a loaded question, that was it. She adored Gus. She adored Emilio, but in a decidedly different way. And
she loved the adventure of traveling from place to place, but she was also starting to feel a bit homesick. This was a lot
of nonstop excitement for a person like Piper, who loved her quiet. Loved her downtime. “Gus is the best. I couldn’t ask for
a better dog to care for. But it’s only for another ten days or so. Then I head back home to Florida. My sister’s getting
married. The company I work for wants me back.”
“Do you know what Emilio is going to do? About having care for Gus?”
“I guess he’ll try to find another dog nanny.” The thought made her queasy, but she’d known this job wouldn’t last forever.
“I just don’t think he’s done anything about it. Driving keeps him so busy.”
“I think I can help with that,” Harmony said.
Piper glanced up at the TV screen. The cars had started the formation lap. “Hold on. I want to hear more about that. After
the race starts.”
Emilio pulled into his starting spot on the grid and reminded himself of two things.
First, focus.
And second, everything you need is already inside you. It was Piper’s tried and true, and when he thought about it, it was almost like she was there.
He took a deep breath and waited for the five lights to go out.
“It’s lights out and away we go!” the announcer said. “Preston Hubbard and Brett Lockford are battling for position heading
into the first turn, and oh, my word! That’s a mega move from Emilio Baquero—”
Piper shot up out of her seat. “Oh, my God! Emilio!” What was happening? It was only the start of the race.
“—around the outside and look who’s right behind him, his teammate, Xander Bishop! The two Mega Racing cars have gone from
seventh and eighth to third and fourth in the blink of an eye!”
Harmony was right there with Piper. “Holy crap!”
“What just happened?” Piper could hardly believe her own eyes, but Emilio had made a brilliant but aggressive move, and Xander
had the foresight to follow. It was the most exciting thing Piper had ever seen on track. And she was so proud of Emilio she
could hardly contain her feelings. In fact, a tiny tear leaked from the corner of her eye. It’s a long race, she reminded herself. Keep it together.
Gumdrop and Gus were anxious and confused, now milling about their table. Piper scrambled for the treats to distract them.
“It’s okay, guys.” She held Gus’s face in her hands and looked into his sweet eyes. “Daddy’s doing great, buddy. Keep your
paws crossed.”
There was a long way to go, but twenty laps in, Emilio and Xander were both holding their positions.
“Emilio, for now, we’re on Plan B, but we’re recalculating a few things,” his race engineer said. “We hadn’t quite expected
to be this far up in the order. Especially not at this juncture of the race.”
Emilio prayed that something out of his control, like strategy, didn’t end up hurting his race. “Keep me posted.”
“It’s all about managing your tires for now.”
That much he could do. “Yeah. Got it.”
Focus. Everything you need is already inside you.
Piper hadn’t been able to sit. So she paced. This was not a relaxing way to watch a race. She’d been having heart palpitations
and sweaty palms from the opening lap, and they were now only on lap thirty-eight. There were twenty-eight more to go. No
wonder Ximena didn’t enjoy coming to the races. It could be incredibly stressful. Then again, this was exciting.
“Tell me about your dog treat recipe,” Harmony said.
“Now?” Piper asked. As soon as the word was out of her mouth, she remembered that Nom Nom was a sponsor, and she should probably
play nice. “I’m sorry. I just get a little wrapped up in the race.”
“Oh, me, too.” Harmony turned to her dog. “I’ve just never seen Gumdrop like something so much. Gus loves them, too. And we’ve
been working on a treat recipe for eighteen months and haven’t gotten where we need to be.”
Piper couldn’t even begin to think about this. She returned her attention to the TV screen before her, consumed with worry about Emilio. God, she hoped
he could hold on. “We’ll chat about it when this is over.”
Emilio came into the pits for what would hopefully be his only tire change of the race.
Xander would stay out for another two laps, so he’d moved into third place. Hopefully, Emilio would slot back into fourth,
then regain his podium position when Xander came in for fresh tires.
He zipped up to the waiting mechanics. They jacked the car. The instant Emilio heard the right rear wheel gun, he knew there
was a problem.
His heart seized in his chest. Fractions of a second ticked by like entire hours. And all he could hear was the halting grind
of a jammed-up wheel gun. “Fuck!”
“No! No no no no no!” Piper screamed at the TV. “That did not just happen. What a nightmare!”
“Oh, God,” Harmony said. “That’s terrible.”
Piper’s heart dropped to her feet as her eyes scanned the screen, back and forth, back and forth. Emilio came back on track.
Into sixth place. She couldn’t even begin to express how horrible this felt. The way her stomach wanted to reject its contents.
The way she couldn’t make her mouth close. The way she couldn’t stop sweating. And that was her reaction.
What was Emilio feeling? He’d worked so hard, and she knew he had hoped this weekend would see a big leap forward.
“What happened?” Emilio asked over the radio, struggling to keep his composure. Mishaps did happen, especially in the pits.
They were frustrating as hell, but equipment made mistakes. Humans made mistakes. He made them all the time.
“Sorry about that, Emilio,” his engineer said. “Wheel gun issue. But I think we can make up at least one more spot. Maybe
two. Just keep going.”
He had every reason to be discouraged. Beat down. But if the team thought he could make up a spot or two, he would try like
hell.
And now he had a third thing to remember today: Focus. Everything you need is already inside you. Just keep going.
Piper had so many feelings as she watched Emilio come across the finish line in sixth place. Disappointment, for sure. Not in him, but in the circumstances.
He’d tried in earnest to pass several cars, but there just hadn’t been the right opportunity. Xander finished in fourth.
“Quite a race, huh?” Harmony said. “So exciting.”
“It’s the highest the Mega cars have finished this year. You must be a good-luck charm,” Piper said. She wanted to put a positive
spin on it, even when she felt unsteady. These races were so nerve-racking when you had a personal connection to the driver,
and she couldn’t deny she and Emilio were about as intertwined as could be right now.
“I guess we’ll find out next week in Monaco.” Harmony glanced at her phone. “I have to run, but I’d like to get your cell
number so we can talk about the dog treats.”
“We can just talk about it at the next race.”
Harmony stood and looped Gumdrop’s leash on to her wrist. “I’m interested in your recipe, Piper, if that wasn’t clear. And
I didn’t grow my company fast by waiting for anything, so I’d like to chat as soon as possible.”
Oh. Wow. Despite the talk back at Ximena’s about expanding her dog treat business, this was a lot for Piper to process, especially
when all she could think about was getting to Emilio and talking to him. Hugging him. Telling him she was proud. “Sure. Ready
for my number?”
To Emilio’s great surprise, the media pen wasn’t terrible. The only things Emilio got asked about had to do with that day’s
race, and although he’d lost his position after the wheel gun issue, and slipped down into sixth, the reporters all wanted
to talk about his big move coming out of the first turn. He took a deep breath. Today wasn’t everything he’d wanted, but it
was still positive.
Now all he wanted was to get to Piper.
With his helmet tucked under his arm, Emilio wound his way into the paddock. The instant he saw Piper and Gus, his heart swelled.
“Hey . . .” he said. He really wanted to pull her into his arms, but that would have to wait.
“Oh, my God, Emilio.” She planted her hand on his biceps. “I’m so sorry about the wheel gun. What a nightmare.”
He nodded. She wasn’t wrong, but he still couldn’t be bothered to be annoyed about it. She’d put a lot into perspective for
him. “You know what? It happens. I still finished one position higher than I started and it was the team’s best finish of
the season. Lots of good to take away from the weekend.”
“Plus, that move at the start? That was the most amazing thing I have ever seen!”
Emilio smiled the biggest smile he could remember. “Honestly, if I had crashed right after that, I would’ve been okay with
it. The car felt so damn good. Made it all worthwhile.” Emilio saw out of the corner of his eye that Isabel was running toward
them.
“I’m so glad I caught you,” she said, a bit breathless.
“What’s going on?”
“First off, great race today. Everyone’s really excited, and I spoke to Harmony. She’s thrilled. But that’s not what I needed
to tell you. I wanted you to know that Victoria did an interview.”
“Okay . . .”
“A journalist grabbed her after the race, since Brett was on the podium. I just wanted to tell you. Both.” She looked back
and forth between Emilio and Piper as if gauging what to say.
Emilio ran out of patience. “Isabel. Please. Just tell me.”
“She told everyone that you’re a couple. I realize there have been rumblings, but now it’s very much not a secret. I thought
you should know.” Isabel cleared her throat. “I mean, I don’t know if it’s true or not. And it was good to know which way
the wind was blowing when Xander had this same issue with Mia last season. But it’s none of my business.”
Emilio only had to think about it for a moment before he made his decision. He had a great amount of respect for Isabel—she
had a very difficult job. He didn’t want to make things unnecessarily hard on her. He also trusted her. But he needed to consult
with Piper before making any sort of declaration. “Between us, it’s true. It never occurred to me that Victoria would talk
to the press, but I suppose I should have anticipated it. For now, I think it’s best if the team simply doesn’t comment. Piper’s
only here for one more race. No need to rock the boat, right?”
Isabel nodded. “Got it.” She fished her phone out of her pocket. “I need to run, but I’ll see you both in Monaco.”
In a flash, Isabel was gone, and Emilio and Piper rushed through the paddock to meet the driver who would take them and Gus
back to the motorhome so they could pack up their things. Emilio’s mind was a chaotic place, filled with too many competing
thoughts. “I wanted to ask your opinion about the situation with the press. That’s why I asked Isabel not to make any comments.
It should be our decision. Not the team’s.”
“You’re the expert. This isn’t my world.”
That was true. There were times when he wished he could be a normal guy who didn’t have to think about things like this. Even
so, he wouldn’t give up his place in Formula One for anything. Unfortunately, being under the media spotlight was part of
the job. “I just want to make sure you’re protected.”
“Victoria already outed us. There’s nothing we can do about that.”
“I know, but she’s just one person.” One person who can’t help but be vindictive. “The story coming from her could mean it’s seen as nothing more than gossip.”
Piper nodded as she stroked Gus’s head. Gus had his eyes closed, soaking up the attention. “Okay. Maybe that’s a good thing.”
“I’d like to think this shouldn’t be an issue.” It was like he was trying to convince himself, but deep down, he only wanted
to respect her wishes.
“This is really bothering you, isn’t it?” Piper smiled sweetly and reached over, placing her hand on his arm. “You had an
amazing race weekend. Let’s focus on the good.”
That right there was why he was falling for her. She had an uncanny knack for pulling him back to where he was happiest—centered
and grateful. “You’re right. Let’s focus on the good.”
“Speaking of good, I enjoyed hanging out with Harmony.”
“She seemed nice.”
“She’s awesome. Loves animals, so we had a lot to talk about. She asked me about the dog treat recipe. She said she’s interested
in buying it for Nom Nom. Gumdrop really liked them. But that seems sort of far-fetched, doesn’t it?”
Emilio could hardly believe the timing. What an amazing development. He loved this for Piper. “No. It’s incredible. What did
you say?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t really know what to say. I’m not sure I’d just want to sell the recipe. Maybe I want to start my own
company. Like you suggested.”
“You should still talk to her. See what she offers. Maybe you could do some sort of licensing deal. Have revenue sharing.”
Deep furrows formed between Piper’s brows. “I don’t even know what you just said. I’m not a businessperson. The thought of
it makes me nervous.” She looked down at her lap. “She’s supposed to call me about it this week.”
Emilio could feel her trepidation. “Look, there’s no pressure. You should always do what you think is right. And I’m happy to weigh in if you
want another opinion. Or I can help find someone to advise you.”
Piper looked out the car window. “She asked me about being a dog nanny. She asked how long I’d be taking care of Gus.” She
turned back to Emilio. Her sweet and vibrant eyes were so full of uncertainty, it made him ill. “When I told her it was only
through Monaco, she mentioned she has a service she uses for Gumdrop. Very reliable. Great people. She said she’d share their
info.”
It felt like his heart was being torn in two. Not all at once. Oh, no. This was slow and painful. She really was leaving after
Monaco. And he didn’t know what he was supposed to do about it.