CHAPTER 12
Isaac
Holding Anna while she cried, Isaac made a resolution.
He wouldn’t spend another night under Vince’s roof.
He would stay with Anna tonight, if she’d let him, and he’d find a place of his own to either buy or rent as soon as possible.
Despite his anger with Vince, he’d stay in Cervera, though he was free to choose where to live.
He smoothed the hair from Anna’s face when her crying subsided and handed her a packet of tissues from the car’s center console.
“I’m sorry,” she repeated several times as she took deep breaths, clearly fighting to regain control. She couldn’t look at him, though she hadn’t pulled from the circle of his arms. It was only now that their awkward positioning in separate seats became uncomfortable.
“Let’s go for a short walk.” He stepped out of the low-slung car. On her side, he helped her out. Taking her hand, he led her to the scenic viewpoint where she could catch her breath in the fresh evening air. He wrapped himself around her from behind, holding her close. “Is this okay?”
She nodded but didn’t speak. Several minutes of close contact elapsed before her stiffness faded, and she relaxed in his arms. He kissed her temple.
“I’m sorry Vince was an asshole. Is there anything I can do?”
Her head shake was so minute he wouldn’t have felt it if she wasn’t leaning into him. “I’ll understand if you aren’t interested in being with me anymore.” Her quiet words broke his heart.
It was like she thought being different made her defective or unworthy. There was nothing wrong with her. Who’d made her feel this way? Her mystery parents? That Adam?
“I love all of you. Even this. When you’re hurting, let it out. I can handle it.” He squeezed, hoping his words sunk in. She might need to hear them more than once to make her believe. “Can I stay at the Inn with you tonight? We’ll pack up a few of my things from Vince’s.”
“Of course.” Her body tightened again at his brother’s name.
“He won’t be there. Mom won’t let him drive, not after drinking.” Isaac clenched his fist so hard it hurt. “I’ll move out after we return from Jerez on the weekend. We leave tomorrow.” He’d do better with more space from Vince for a while, but that wasn’t an option.
Anna would see Vince this weekend after all, at the track. That might be difficult.
“I’m sorry I got so upset.” Her words weren’t much louder than a whisper, and her cheeks remained warm and flushed.
He moved to face her so she would understand his sincerity. “You have nothing to apologize for. Anyone would be upset by what Vince said. I’m embarrassed for him.”
“But my meltdown,… I hate when I get like that.” Her eyes shone with new tears as she looked up, at last meeting his gaze.
“Mi corazon, you never have to apologize for how you feel. We have to be able to tell each other the truth and express our feelings.” He took a breath and said, “It was more than this, though. You’ve been tense for days and bottling things up.
” His voice became rougher, and his eyes narrowed.
“Has Vince spoken to you like that before?”
She shook her head. But her tight body language made him think her answer was only a partial truth.
“Who?” he said, a red haze clouding his vision.
“I can’t tell you.” Her scrutiny returned to the ground.
He took a breath. “Yes, you can. If it was Vince, I’ll go back and bloody his nose. Anyone who speaks to you like that is out of line.”
“It wasn’t Vince. It was someone on the road. A misunderstanding about umbrella girls versus groupies and whether I was available for sex.” Her cheeks flamed.
“Groupie? I don’t know that word.” He understood enough to know it was derogatory.
“Helmet chaser.” Her mouth twisted. Vince had called her that too.
It was so far from the truth that it was ridiculous.
She’d never looked twice at the other racers.
From the first moment, she and Isaac had been drawn to one another, and it had nothing to do with racing. They just suited one another.
“I’m sorry that happened to you.” He swallowed, trying not to show his hurt that she hadn’t confided in him yet again.
Other than her late grandmother, she hadn’t mentioned kindness in her past and he’d inferred she hadn’t had many people to trust in her life.
It might take time. “You could have come to me.” He kept his voice soft, non-threatening.
She needed to learn that his love wasn’t conditional.
“You were minutes from the starting grid. I couldn’t. Then, I didn’t want to cause trouble.” She bit her lip. “It wasn’t worth making a fuss over me.”
He took her icy hands in his. “Yes, it was. You are important. If someone is inappropriate, say so. A race is never more important. It’s just a race.
You are always worth it. Always.” It was the truth.
“I love you. I’d do anything to keep you safe.
” He wanted her to look up and see that he was serious.
When she looked up, trust in her eyes, he bent his head and claimed her lips; he could have drowned in her kiss.
She pulled him so far under that he lost his bearings.
All he wanted was to bring her closer. He’d never felt this way about someone before.
Her happiness meant as much as his own, if not more.
When at last he broke off the kiss, her eyes were no longer filled with tears and all trace of her meltdown was gone.
. . .
That night, they cleaned out Isaac’s room, taking his clothing, bedding, towels, and books.
There was nothing left to take after the race weekend.
Looking around his empty room made his heart ache.
He’d lived here all of his adult life and it felt wrong to leave under these conditions, sneaking out in the night after a fight.
He and Vince had spent so many years as training partners and best friends that it was a shame this was how things had ended.
He’d miss the comradeship of being brothers, but he didn’t regret standing up to Vince.
With a last glance, Isaac closed the door and strode out with the final boxes.
He left his dirt bike and home riding gear in the track shed.
He would still practice on the dirt track at least twice a week.
After all, he’d helped make it. He would just be sure to come when Vince was out on his road bike or occupied in the home gym.
The thing about having trained together for so long was that Vince’s schedule was predictable.
Isaac was too angry to consider training together, and he wouldn’t forget Vince’s cutting remarks.
His brother had crossed a line, and there was no going back.
Before the flight to Jerez, Isaac contacted the airline and requested that his business-class ticket and Anna’s economy-class one be exchanged for two premium seats with extra leg room so they could sit together.
Avoiding his brother was a bonus. He sent a quick message to Angel, mentioning an argument with Vince, without going into specifics.
As his team boss, he needed to be in the loop.
In the future, Isaac and Anna would have business-class tickets together.
The next two race weekends flew by in a flash, with Isaac renting a condo on a month-by-month basis near Cervera.
Anna left the Inn and moved into his rental with him.
At two months, it was early in their relationship for such an important step, but they were always together.
It made no sense for Anna to pay for somewhere she never slept.
Since they no longer needed to worry about Vince’s feelings, they could spend as much time together as they wanted.
Anna insisted on chipping in for a share of the rent and food, and Isaac let her, even if he had more than enough money. All his years of living with Vince and living a moderate lifestyle meant he’d saved millions, but being a partner meant sharing responsibilities.
Vince was stone silent whenever they were in the same place, and neither of them was willing to make the first move to reconcile.
Without an apology to Anna, it didn’t matter.
Their argument didn’t affect them on the track as Vince finished first in both races while Isaac had been third in Jerez and second in Le Mans.
Le Mans had been another wet race, but one with mixed conditions from the start—Vince’s specialty was judging tires and when to switch bikes.
The entire field of riders had followed his lead, changing bikes during the fourth lap.
The steady rain had been solid enough to leave puddles and wet patches on the track, but hadn’t become the torrential downpour of Indonesia.
With such a physically demanding race and challenging conditions, only sixteen of the twenty-eight riders had finished.
The eighth race, in Italy, too flew by with Fabiano winning his home race in Mugello for Ducati. Vince finished second and Isaac third. Luka Catala remained in third overall behind the brothers in the championship.
The most troublesome part of the weekends for Isaac came at the press conferences. With the brothers dominating the championship as they neared the summer break, their rivalry was the media focus, and it was obvious that their relationship was strained.
The extra camera crew following everyone in the racing paddock didn’t help.
They were making a MotoGP series for Prime, and the rivalry between the brothers made for an interesting angle for their story.
In fact, it had become one of their overarching themes.
Or, so the director said when he requested additional access to the Vasquez family in Cervera.
While uncomfortable, the league wanted it, citing good publicity, and Isaac couldn’t refuse.