Chapter 9
NINE
REGAN
“What do you mean you punched him?” Dad asks loudly, using his disappointed voice. I would rather him just yell at me. His disappointed voice is so much worse.
“He wrecked me. What was I supposed to do?” I retort, trying to make it sound like a better excuse than it is. I know I shouldn’t have punched him. I also didn’t see the racing official who saw the whole thing go down and reported it to the SCORS board.
I was originally going to go over and talk to him, but as soon as I got close to his smug face, I saw red, and my inner cavewoman took over.
“You talk to him like a human being, Reg. You don’t punch him in the nose.”
I run a hand over my swollen knuckles and wince. He’s right, but it felt so good at the time. I only slightly regret it. Slightly.
“Now, I’m suspended for the next race, and we got a fine.”
Okay, now I’m starting to regret it. My eyes widen at the news. “Wait, what? Why would they suspend you?”
“Something about a first time violation or something like that. But this is what happens when we don’t think before we act,” he scolds.
I let out a groan. This isn’t how I expected this to go down. How could I have been so damn stupid?
“Who’s gonna be crew chief for next week, then?”
“Danny Shoulderman,” he says with a concerning sigh. “You’re also required to do a charity event for our sponsor.”
Damn it. Next week isn’t going to be fun. I’m not too concerned about an extra charity event. We do them all throughout the season, and I really enjoy them.
Dad folds his arms across his broad chest and sighs. “You’re going to be doing that event with Dixon to ‘prove’ that you’re on good terms with him.”
My head snaps toward him. “Wait, what?” I exclaim. How am I supposed to act like I like him when we clearly detest each other? This isn’t fair.
“Actions have consequences, Regan. Remember that next time you decide to punch someone in the face.”
I rub my temples. I’m in for it now.