CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO CLARKE #2
She shook her head in exasperation. “Well, you just made things worse by sticking around.”
“It was him who suggested racing.”
“And you didn’t hesitate to jump at the chance, did you? The two of you going at each other so hard, there wasn’t room enough for me.”
She turned and began marching away from him. “Take me back to my father’s house so I can get my car.”
They couldn’t leave things like this. He couldn’t.
He took three long strides and grabbed Ceci around the waist from behind.
“What the fuck are you doing?” she cried.
He leaned down, placing his lips up against her ear. “Please, will you just wait? Hear me out.”
“I could call the police and have you arrested for assault.”
He let go, and she swung around.
“How would you like it if I did that to you?”
Don’t smile. Don’t smile.
But his lip twitched and there it was. “I might not mind it.”
She glowered back at him.
“Okay,” he said. “If you’ll just listen to me now, you can do it to me. I give you permission. At some point in the future, if you want you can come up from behind, grab me, and stop me.”
“Why would I want to do that?”
“Maybe you have something you want to say. Something you want me to hear.”
Her head tilted and her eyes slivered. “No matter how bad you want to leave or do whatever it is you want to do, I can do that to you and you’ll stop? And listen?”
This was probably a mistake, but he nodded. “Yes.”
“Okay. Go ahead.”
“Look, I didn’t want Tilney here. Hell, I didn’t even want to race him.”
“Oh really? When he suggested it, you couldn’t jump fast enough. You and Tilney—two roosters strutting into the hen house and pissing all over it.”
“I think you’re mixing metaphors. The rooster struts into the henhouse. The dog pisses to mark his territory.”
Her glare was so intense, he flinched. It felt like she’d shot daggers at him.
“I want to smack you so hard right now,” she hissed.
Trying to lighten the mood, he offered a weak grin and shrugged. “You’ve done it before.”
“Yeah, but this time, I mean to do it. I want to do it. So. Bad.”
She’s right about your behavior with Tilney. Shit. If it makes her feel better …
He sighed. “Go ahead.”
She blinked, clearly surprised. Another moment and she regained her composure. “Well now you’ve gone and ruined it.”
“How?”
“I can’t get any satisfaction from doing it now that you’ve invited me to do it.”
That actually made sense. He’d been around this woman way too much; he was actually starting to get her convoluted logic.
Okay. So provoke her rather than invite her. But how?
And then it hit him. Of course.
“Maybe what’s really bothering you is the fact that Tilney and I racing like we did just confirmed that you made the right decision.”
She frowned. “What decision?”
“To leave driving. Because I hate to break it to you, but when you made that slick move on the third turn, I purposely moved over and slowed down.”
It was a lie, but a lie that might do the trick. He waited. She looked enraged and ready to pounce and yet she just stood there.
Okay, he thought, if this doesn’t do it, nothing will. “So I guess it’s time you face the truth, Miss Rivers. You drive like a girl.”
Slap!
She struck him so hard, he actually staggered back and almost lost his footing.
“Maybe if you’d start driving like a girl, Sir Stick Up His Ass, you’d find your way back up to the podium.
Because this girl might not be behind the wheel of the car that’s been beating you, but she’s behind every move that car makes.
You were beaten by a girl last season! And you’re well on your way to being beaten by one again this season! ”
If she had eyes that could shoot fire, he’d be gone now, with only a black stain on the concrete to indicate he had ever been here.
No, not even a black stain. After she’d blasted him to nothing but ashes, she would blow those ashes away too. She was the kind of girl who could destroy a guy completely—until there was nothing left.
????F1 GOSSIP GIRL … ?? THE ACHY brEAKY DATE: SIR & THE SPITFIRE ??
Sources have confirmed that during their night out, while in an Austin bar, a very intoxicated man started getting a bit too handsy with Ceci Rivers and the Knight swept in to rescue the fair maiden.
When the situation got to be a little too much, Ceci pushed Clarke aside to take matters into her own hands.
That’s when the split lip happened. He wasn’t thrown by a bull.
Didn’t get into a bar brawl. He just got a little push from his biggest rival in the paddock, and his lip took a trip into the bar’s unforgiving corner.
#RivalryWithAFistfulOfRibs #NoCornerTooSharp #SirAndSpitfire
@paddockprincess
Y’all ever kissed someone so intense you walked away looking like you had a run-in with a bull? Sir Clarke has. And her name? Ceci Rivers. ????
#LoveHurts #HonkytonkHazard #SplitLipAndBourbon
@trackside-tragedies
So just to recap
Ceci Rivers earns winning bid for date with Sir Leo Clarke at charity auction (PR stunt?): he walks on and off the stage with a black eye (and we still don’t know how he got it … any guesses???)
First “date” in Montana (PR stunt?): ends with another black eye
Second “date” in Austin (PR stunt? Uh-uh): ends with a split lip
Her team stole his championship
Her driver took him out of the race at Silverstone
She pushed him into a bar
And he keeps showing up. He’s either in love or has a serious kink for chaos.
#SirBleedsALot #KinkForChaos
AUSTIN, TEXAS
?? BLEED FOR ME, DARLING—FANFIC PLAYLIST
Vibe: Enemies. Lovers. Honkytonk heartbreak.
Tagline: He bleeds. She bites. We swoon.
1. “Lights Out” – Royal Blood
That bassline—the moment she pushes him into the bar and he thinks, “I should hate this. Why don’t I?”
2. “Woman” – Kesha (feat. The Dap-Kings Horns)
Ceci’s personal theme. She don’t need no knight, but she might check one.
3. “Love Is a Battlefield” – Pat Benatar
Because, well, it is. And Silverstone proved that.
4. “My Tears Ricochet” – Taylor Swift
Their past haunts them. So does that Silverstone crash. And they never really talk about it, do they?
5. “Kiss With a Fist” – Florence + The Machine
Aggressive flirting, passive-aggressive fighting, and black and blue bruises. A match made in fanfic heaven.
6. “Like Real People Do” – Hozier
The first real kiss. Quiet. Tense. Bloody. Confused. Perfect.
7. “Cowboy Like Me” – Taylor Swift
Because they both knew the deal—but no one told their hearts.
8. “You Should See Me in a Crown” – Billie Eilish
Ceci watching the headlines the next day, knowing damn well she owns the moment—and maybe his soul.
9. “Burn” – Ray LaMontagne
A slow, aching burn. The love that hurts more than it heals—but still, they stay.
BONUS TRACK
10. “No Body, No Crime” – Taylor Swift (feat. HAIM)
For the fans who low-key think Ceci arranged the Silverstone crash on purpose (??conspiracies).
??F1 GOSSIP GIRL … ?? The Ceci and Clarke Dating Saga Continues!
This fake relationship between the Sir and the Spitfire is sparking more real drama than The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills …
Here’s a recap of the dates since that Honkytonk Heartbreak in Austin
Date in Bologna: a cut on Clarke’s cheek
Date in Brussels: another split lip
Date in Hungary: a busted nose
Date in the Netherlands: a cut jaw requiring stitches
This is starting to play like a rom-com directed by Quentin Tarantino. Can someone get these two a reality show already? Be sure to tell Sir Clarke he’s dating a hurricane, not hosting a garden party.
#SirOwClarke #CeciStormWatch #EnemiesToLoversToEmergencyRoom
BOLOGNA, brUSSELS, HUNGARY, THE NETHERLANDS
?? SPLIT LIPS & STOLEN HEARTS—FANFIC PLAYLIST
?? Date Night Elegance (Before Everything Goes Wrong)
1. “Style” – Taylor Swift
Because he’s polished, she’s not, and everyone knows this is doomed in the hottest way.
?? Chaos in the Piazza (The Date Goes Off-Rails)
2. “Run” – Vampire Weekend
Sir Clarke grabbing Ceci’s hand and fleeing from a mob of press and fans like he’s James Bond and she’s the villain’s cool sister.
?? The Injury (Sir Clarke Bleeds Again)
3. “Bruises” – Chairlift
This one is on the nose. So was that flying bar stool.
?? The Aftermath (Feelings? What Feelings?)
4. “Take Me Out” – Franz Ferdinand
Sir Leo, already planning the next date in Barcelona, even with stitches.
?? The Undeniable Chemistry
5. “Talk Too Much” – COIN
Ceci teasing Clarke until he’s flustered and pretending not to care. Classic.
6. “Do I Wanna Know?” – Arctic Monkeys
The moment they both realize this is not fake anymore. It’s slow-burn sexy and tortured.
7. “The Louvre” – Lorde
They’re falling in love. It’s messy, bloody, and bruising.
8. “Accidentally in Love” – Counting Crows
Because they are. And it shows.
?? Bonus Tracks: Sir & Spitfire’s Soft Sides
9. “She’s in Love with the Boy” – Trisha Yearwood
Ceci’s theme. She’ll never say it out loud, but girl, we see you.
10. “First Day of My Life” – Bright Eyes
Clarke looking at Ceci like she invented sunlight. And bar fights.
11. “Your Song” – Elton John
British. Soft. Head over heels. He will deny it to his grave.