Chapter Twenty-Four – Coop
Coop arrived at the airport in Michigan to see a young man holding a sign with his name on it. That felt special. “I’m Lucas Cooper.”
“Hi. I’m Johnny Killebrew from the BikeMax team.” He stuck his hand out for Coop to shake.
“Nice to meet you, please call me Coop.”
“Excellent. Coop. I’m just Johnny.” Yeah, but he’d heard a lot about Johnny, and he wasn’t just anything. Nope. He was Gavin Peri’s partner in every sense of the word.
“I’m not so sure about that,” Coop mumbled as he followed Johnny.
“Do you have a checked bag?” He stopped and pointed in the direction of the luggage carousels.
Coop shook his head and patted his carry-on. “Nope. Travel light. I’m used to it.”
“Right.” Johnny was a little geeky with thick glasses, but when he smiled, it was easy to see how cute he was behind them. Lucky Gavin. And that made him miss Rick terribly. He’d texted Rick from the airplane to let him know he’d gotten there safely.
They headed to the car and then left the airport behind. Johnny drove with his GPS on. “This is going to be a great weekend. Are you ready?”
“Uh…I’m honestly not sure.”
“Well, Gavin speaks highly of you and so did Davey.” Davey McAllister was like a Supercross legend, so his word meant a lot, which made Coop even more nervous.
“I’ve never coached anyone before. Doesn’t that bother you?”
“Well, I mean. I thought about that…” Johnny waved his hand in the air.
“But everyone has to start somewhere, and you know about a lot of different kinds of racing and styles. Gavin says you can help Nate with a lot. He’s never raced professionally for moto.
It’s different than Supercross. He came up through Next.
” That was the elite Supercross program that helped develop new racing talent.
“That’s what Davey said.”
“Well, you know, if Davey said it.” Johnny snorted a laugh. But Cooper only looked at him like he was crazy.
“Sorry. I go way back with Davey.”
“Oh, no. I’m just…my head is kind of occupied elsewhere. My partner is dealing with his mother's health issues while I’m on this trip.”
“Oh. Well. That’s tough. Be sure to keep your phone on you. I know you racer guys like to leave them stashed somewhere, but your partner is important. And you’ll feel better knowing you can respond quickly if he needs you.”
“Wow. Yeah. That’s good advice. I won’t let it get in the way—”
“First and foremost, Coop, we are family. You need to know that. And we get it. So don’t worry. And if anyone says anything to you about it, point them in my direction.” His smile turned shark-like. “I’ll set them straight. Trust me.”
“And I believe you.”
He laughed, but then soon enough, they turned into the hotel lot.
Johnny parked in front of one of the rooms and dug in the console of the Jeep.
“We went ahead and booked you in. Here.” He handed the key card over.
“Drop your stuff, then we’ll head out to the track.
” He looked at his watch. “We have time. Hungry? We can grab food if you want.”
“I’m good.” Coop took the card and his bag. He opened the door, took a quick peek and dropped the bag. He made sure he had his phone, then climbed back in the Jeep.
Johnny got them into the special reserved parking at the North VIP area of the track.
Being earlier in the week, it wasn’t extremely busy.
Most of the racers were coming out the following day.
But unlike Arena or even Supercross, this was a permanent track that stretched out across the countryside. Redbud was legendary in moto.
“We’re over here, so we don’t have to walk around the whole damn track to get to the pits. I’m still not used to the dirt. Ick.”
“Used to? What?” Dirt was in Coop’s blood and Johnny was ingrained in this sport; how could he not be used to it?
“Don’t ask for shit-sakes. Ugh. Come on.”
He scrambled out of the vehicle, leaving Coop to hurry after as Johnny led him to a pit area where three bikes were set up.
It was easy to see that two of the 450s were for Craige Lee and Cole Lindt.
They’d been riding 450s, but there was a third.
“Hey, is that Ryker’s?” Coop blurted out before any introductions could even be done.
Everyone standing there looked at him. And there were a lot of folks in the pit.
One man stretched his hand out to me. “Yeah. Ryker is moving up to 450s this year. I’m Zeke Hill. I’ll be coaching these three knuckleheads.”
Coop shook his hand. “Coop.”
“Yeah. I know. I sure need your help. I do not have the capacity to take Nate on. He’s all yours.”
“I hope I can help.”
“Me too.” A bearded man wearing a BikeMax polo shirt extended his hand. “With Bryce Nickel moving up to 450s there’s going to be a lot of competition there, but the 250s are still no joke.”
Coop hadn’t seen anything about the two racers moving up, but he wasn’t as connected to this series as he was to Arenacross, which was why he still wasn’t sure he was a good fit.
Johnny smacked the bearded man’s shoulder. “This is Gavin Peri, by the way. Nice to introduce yourself, for shits-sakes.”
“Shush, you.” He kissed Johnny on the top of the head. “But he’s right. Gavin Peri. I’m glad you’re here.”
“I’m not so sure I’m the right person for this. I’m not—”
“I think you are.” Gavin jumped in. “I know you’re racing Arena now, but I’ve seen you on the street.
” He winked at Coop, referring to the illegal street racing he’d done around the country from time to time.
He hadn’t even thought about hitting the street circuit since meeting Rick and doing so well in Arenacross. “And Rico has too.”
“Rico? Rico Dominichi?” He had been another street racer and landed on the Apex team for Supercross. He had been tearing the dirt up the last few years, and Coop knew him pretty well before he’d managed that new ride.
“Yep. BikeMax is connected to Apex in a few ways. So when we started talking about you, we asked Rico. But I’ve seen you ride moto too.
That’s what I like. You know how to ride.
Anywhere. Any track. And that’s what you can help Nate with.
Adjusting as the track changes. From moto to Supercross or just throughout the day.
” That was true, and Coop couldn’t argue.
As the day of racing progressed, the track would break down, and if you wanted to finish well, you had to adjust, pick the best lines. And stay on the bike.
Coop slapped the seat of the one 250 bike. “This is Nate’s?”
“Yes. And you can talk setup with Joe.” Gavin nodded to another man. This one was obviously in charge of the mechanics. Three younger guys were fiddling with the bikes, but Joe was directing them.
He stopped and stuck his hand out to shake. “Joe Fischer.”
“Nice to meet you.” Cooper had heard of Joe. He’d been around the industry for a bit, and he was making a difference with BikeMax. “Glad to be working with you.”
They chatted about bikes for a few minutes before a racer, dressed in his pink and yellow gear, walked up. “Well, you seem to know your bikes.” He stuck his hand out. “Nate Keller.”
“Well, I guess you’re the man of the hour,” Coop said, trying to keep things light.
But Nate scowled. “I don’t know about that. I feel like I’m…never mind. I’m glad you’re here.”
And he would need to work on the kid’s confidence, too. Well, that was something he knew about. “Okay. Want to give this a shot then?”
Nate gave a nod. “We’re up on the track in ten.”
“If the bike’s ready, let’s go.”
They waited at the starting line for their turn to practice on the track.
Johnny had handed Coop a set of binoculars and an iPad before they headed out.
The iPad was connected to the sensors on the bike, allowing him to see how Nate was performing at different parts of the track.
Coop wasn’t unfamiliar with the technology, though he normally let his coach and mechanic deal with that.
Now he was the coach, so he better get on board.
“At least Ryker and Nichols aren’t racing.” Nate fidgeted with his helmet.
“Hey. So what? You’re here to race. Doesn’t matter who else’s on the track. Hell, Sarah Bolster will still be there.”
“Is that supposed to give me encouragement?”
Sarah was very good. The only female racer to make a name for herself and stick with it in the pro series. “What I mean is, it doesn’t matter. Your job is to do your best. Race the track, not the other bikes. Right?”
He got another scowl. “But I want to win.”
Cooper gave a sigh of relief. He had wondered if that kid actually cared about winning.
“Of course you do. Or you wouldn’t be here.
But for today, we want the best performance we can get, regardless of how you finish.
But if you ride your own race, stay on the bike, make the changes you need to as the day goes on, you’re going to finish well. ”
“Changes?”
“The track is going to break down. Probably not as much as Supercross, but enough. Conditions change, ruts get deep. You have to be able to decide in the moment what line you’re on.”
Nate nodded. “Okay. I can do that.”
“I’m here to help with that. So get that helmet on. We’re up.”
Coop watched the guy, and he was good. He had talent and instinct. Maybe he only needed pointers on adjusting to the track throughout the day and handling that, as suspected. Dealing with change was something Coop knew about. Not only on the track but off. Some were better than others.
The biggest was Rick, not to mention the best. Not only hot as sin, but gushy inside.
They both craved love and sweetness, and that’s what it was when they were together.
When it wasn’t smoking hot sex, it was the cuddling afterward.
They both had hard, adrenaline-filled jobs, so it had been like a balm doing nothing but playing house with Rick while he was injured. Most of the time anyway.
Coop wondered when he could manage a call to see how things were going for Rick.
Drew said he was sending Julia, so that was going to be fun for Rick.
From what he knew of her, she would totally distract him and his whole family from the heartbreaking stuff.
She was a whirlwind. But even with that, Rick needed him.
He was enjoying his time with Nate already, but he couldn’t wait to fly out to see Rick.
To comfort him and give him that love and sweetness he needed.
They called it a day soon enough, and Coop took the tablet back to the hotel room to study the performance so they could figure out where to improve the next day. That was the only time they would have, and he had to make it count.
After grabbing some quick food, Johnny dropped Coop at the hotel with an early-as-fuck pick up time the next day. He walked in and grabbed his bag, fished for comfy clothes, then jumped in the shower. He hadn’t had any calls from Rick, so he wasn’t sure if he should be worried or not.
He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the phone. “Fuck it.” He tapped the screen for Rick’s number.
“Hot Wheels! I’ve missed you. How did it go?”
“I missed you, too. I think it went well. I met some cool people.”
“And this Nate?”
“He has a lot of potential. Lacks confidence, which is weird.”
“Right? I thought all you racers were cocky as hell.”
“Well…I’ve got some cock for you, right here, Soldier Boy.”
“I bet you do. But, uh…give me a minute.” Coop heard voices in the background and Rick breathing. A door shut. “That’s better. If you’re talking about your cock, I want to be alone. And maybe we switch this to a video call? I miss your face.”
“My face? I think you miss my cock.”
Rick made a noise that sounded a little growly and went straight to the cock in question. “Show me then.”
Coop chuckled as they switched to a video call. Rick’s face popped up on his screen. “There you are.”
“Yeah, now cock.”
“Pushy-pushy.” Then he pulled his shorts down, letting his dick spring up. He held it with one hand at the base and aimed his camera at the head with the other.
“Damn, you’re already leaking for me.”
“Fuck yeah. You always get me so hard, so fast. But what about you? What do you got, Soldier Boy?”
“This…” Then Rick’s beautiful cock appeared on the screen, just as hard as Coop was. Rick stroked it. “All for you.”
“Fuck yeah.” The truth was, as much as he missed sex with Rick, he simply missed the man, but this was one of the reasons why. He was fun and nearly always on the same page. “I miss you. I do.” He stroked his dick while watching Rick stroke his. “Now talk dirty to me, and let’s get off.”
“Always so blunt.”
“Eh…you love it.”
“I do. And I love watching you stroke that monster for me. Mmm…squeeze it harder, Coop.”
Coop did as he was told and moaned loudly while he did it. “This is going to be fast, babe.”
“Yeah…me too…” Rick sounded breathless.
Coop kept his eyes on Rick’s hand as it flew up and down over his member. “Uh. Want that inside me…” He could picture it. Rick filling him up, making him scream. “Damn…”
“Talk to me, Coop. What are you thinking?”
“When I get to you, we need a hotel room so you can fuck me into oblivion.”
Rick grunted. “Fuck. I’m coming…”
Coop watched as Rick shot off, cum dripping down his dick and over his fingers. “Want a taste…” And with a few more strokes, Coop exploded, nearly as hard as Rick had. His body shook, and his vision went white for a second. “Fuck. That was good, but being with you in person will be so much better.”
“Agreed. Damn. I love you, Coop. Be safe and get here soon, okay?”
“I will. Tell me what’s going on before we hang up. Is Julia there?”
“Yeah, yeah. Drew is…”
“I know. He’s Drew. I’m glad you have him.”
“Me too. Mama isn’t doing well. We don’t know anything yet. It’s a waiting game.”
“I’m here for you. I have my phone on me at all times, so call me anytime. Okay? I’d rather you call and interrupt.”
“Okay. I will.”
“Good. I gotta crash now. My wake-up call is too fucking early. I’ll see you Sunday, babe.”
“Okay. I love you. Night.”