Chapter Four #2
Reign launches first, with Talon, Thorne, Sayshen, and me right behind him. We roll onto the track and build through the first lap, letting the tires come up before anyone starts pushing.
The front feels solid beneath me. The rear shifts slightly when I open the throttle out of turn three, but it settles fast.
Then I hit the straight.
I tuck behind the screen and open it up, the bike surging forward as the engine climbs. The wind presses against my shoulders, the track narrowing in front of me as the speed builds.
This is the part I fucking live for.
Everything in my head goes quiet. Just the bike beneath me, the next braking marker, and Reign already pulling away ahead.
I hold the throttle until the marker comes fast, brake hard, and drop two gears before tipping into the corner.
Talon’s voice crackles through the comms. “Of course Revel went deep.”
“I made it, didn't I.”
“Barely.”
“Barely still counts.”
Andre cuts in. “You missed the marker by half a bike.”
“I was testing the brakes.”
“You were testing my fucking patience.”
I laugh once, then shut up and focus.
The track doesn’t give us much time to relax. One corner runs straight into the next, and fucking up the first throws off the whole section. I move early, keep the bike settled beneath me, and feed the throttle in clean instead of grabbing too much.
Reign is still ahead, but I’m closing the gap.
Nobody talks for the next few corners. We all want the fastest lap too badly to waste breath.
Echo’s voice finally comes through my earpiece.
“Revel, the rear looks better. Don’t get greedy.”
I pass the pit wall and catch her standing beside Andre with her headset on, watching the timing screen.
“Wasn’t planning on it.”
“That’ll be a first.”
I grin inside my helmet but keep my eyes on Reign as I drop into the next turn.
“Your sector two is slow,” she adds.
“Not for long.”
I drop a gear and push harder into the next corner.
The front tire bites cleanly. I drag my knee close to the ground, hold the line, then get back on the throttle early enough to feel the rear squirm beneath me.
Echo notices immediately.
“Easy.”
“I’ve got it.”
“You always say that right before I have to order new fairings.”
“I’m still upright.”
Andre’s voice comes over hers. “And keep it that way.”
I close the gap to Reign over the next two laps.
He catches me coming and blocks the inside before I’m close enough to try anything.
“Scared?” I ask.
“No.”
“You moved.”
“I took my line.”
“You took mine.”
“Then find another one.”
I sweep around the outside through the next turn and carry enough speed to pull alongside him on the exit.
He looks over.
I give him a quick wave.
“Fucking prick,” he says.
I pull ahead before the braking zone.
Andre’s voice cuts through the comms. “What did I say about stupid passes?”
“That one was clean.”
“It was unnecessary.”
“Unnecessary is probably right, but from back here, it was bloody beautiful,” Thorne chirps in.
“Thank you.”
“It was shit,” Talon says.
“You’re just mad it worked.”
“Still a fucking show-off.”
“That’s because I give the people what they want.”
Sayshen groans over the comms. “Can everyone stop talking? My skull is vibrating.”
“You’re on a race bike,” Draygon says. “That might be part of it.”
“I hate all of you.”
By lap eight, everyone has settled into their own pace.
The jokes slow down, and the track takes over.
I stop thinking about Cece’s unanswered text.
Mostly.
I hit my braking marker clean, turn in, and feel the bike settle exactly where I want it. The next few laps come easy. Nothing forced or fighting me. Just smooth throttle, clean lines, and the engine answering every time I ask for more.
Andre calls the times as we cross.
“Reign, twenty four point three.”
“Not bad,” I say.
“Revel, twenty four point five”
“Bullshit.”
“Timing doesn’t lie,” Andre snaps.
“Told you,” Echo says.
“Talon, twenty five point eight. Thorne, twenty six on the dot. Draygon, twenty six point three. Sayshen, twenty nine point four.”
Sayshen lets out a tired laugh. “Shit, least I'm alive.”
I push harder on the next lap.
Reign is still ahead, but not by much now. I can see him through the final sequence, clean and controlled, never wasting movement.
It’s irritating.
I brake later into the first corner and gain time through the middle, keeping the bike tighter than before. The rear slides slightly on the exit, but I stay on it and carry the speed down the straight.
“Getting close.”
Reign answers before Andre can. “Still behind.”
“Enjoy it while it lasts.”
I catch Reign three laps later.
Not enough to pass him, but enough to stay on him through the technical section. He doesn’t make a mistake. Doesn’t rush. Just holds the line and makes me work for every inch.
“Move,” I tell him.
“No.”
“Thought I’d ask.”
“Try passing.”
Andre cuts in. “Do not turn this into a race St. Clair.”
“It is literally timed, and there is a reward for the fastest time, Coach. You made it a race,” I say.
“That doesn’t mean take each other out.”
Reign stays smooth through the next corner, but I get a better exit and pull beside him down the straight.
For half a second, we’re even.
Then he brakes later.
The asshole holds it, tips in, and takes the corner clean.
I have to fall back behind him.
His laugh comes through the comms.
“Not enough.”
“Next lap.”
“Sure.”
I try again.
And again.
By lap seventeen, my arms are starting to feel it. Not enough to slow me down, but enough that every mistake costs more. Sweat collects at the base of my neck, and my breathing is louder inside the helmet.
“Three laps left,” Echo says through the comms. “Stop riding Reign’s ass and focus on your fucking line.”
“I am focused.”
“You’re staring at the back of him harder than you were staring at Cece’s ass last night.”
Reign laughs. “Can’t blame him. It’s a good view.”
“Don’t flatter yourself,” I say. “You’re just in my fucking way.”
I push harder through the next lap and finally nail the sequence. Late apex through the first turn, tight through the middle, then back on the throttle early without letting the rear break loose.
It feels fast.
Andre confirms it when I cross the line.
I grin. “That put me ahead?”
“No. Session’s over. Final times—Reign takes it with a Twenty one point two. Revel, Twenty one point three.”
Reign beat me by a literal second.
“Fuck right off,” I mutter.
His laugh comes through the comms. “Thursday conditioning’s looking real good from here.”
“Lucky bastard.”
“Yeah,” he says. “Lucky I’m faster.”
****
We roll back into the garage a few minutes later, engines cutting out one after another as everyone pulls into their bays.
Reign is still grinning when he takes off his helmet.
I swing off my bike and point at him. “Enjoy it while it lasts.”
“I plan to.” He hooks his helmet on the bar. “Might sleep in Thursday. Have a killer morning sex session with my girl followed by some breakfast in bed.”
Talon pulls in beside us and kills his engine. “Nobody likes a sore winner.”
Reign looks at him. “You’d have to win something to know.”
“That was harsh,” Sayshen mutters as he parks farther down, moving a little slower than the rest of us.
Thorne climbs off his bike and pulls his gloves free with his teeth. “He’s earned it, mate. Let him have his little moment.”
“Little?” Reign asks.
“Half a second isn’t exactly domination.”
“Still beat all of you.”
I unzip my leathers and peel the top half down, sweat cooling against my skin as I head toward the lockers. My phone is sitting where I left it, screen dark.
The second I pick it up, it lights with a message from Cece.
She ignored everything I said about the hoodie.
Of course she did.
Cece: Tow truck just dropped off my car.
I grin and type back.
Me: Alright. I’ll be there in a few to change the battery.
Three dots appear, then disappear and a little thumbs up emoji appears on my message.
I grab my shirt from the locker and pull it on.
Grinning, I pocket the phone and grab my keys.
Thorne catches me heading for the door. “Where you off to?”
“Cece’s car needs a battery.”
He looks toward the beach bags piled near Echo’s cart, then back at me. “Thought we were going to the beach.”
“We are.”
“After you play mechanic?”
I grin and keep walking. “Exactly.”
Behind me, Reign laughs. “One kiss and he’s already a fucking lapdog.”
“He was a lapdog long before that. Let’s be so fucking for real,” Draygon adds, heading over to Echo’s workstation and pulling her against him long enough to press a kiss to the top of her head.
I lift a hand without turning around. “First of all, it was two kisses. Second, you can all fuck off.”
The heat hits me the second I step outside.
I slide my sunglasses on and head for my bike, their laughter following me out of the garage.
Fuck what they say. If being Cece’s lapdog means showing up when she needs me, fixing her car, and letting her mouth off while I do it, then fine. I’ll wear the fucking collar.
Doesn’t mean she’s getting away with pretending last night didn’t happen though.
I swing onto the bike and start the engine, already grinning at the thought of seeing her again and watching her act like she doesn’t still feel my hands on her.