I was damn good at what I did. And I had the experience and resume to back it up. All I needed to do was show that confidence, get them to talk to me, and let them prove myself. I told myself that and gave myself little pep talks the entire drive to the Freeman Racing complex. The guard smiling at me when he waved me through the gates seemed like a good sign, but the positive feeling started fading when I got to the main building where I was meeting the owner. As soon as I saw him, something tickled in the back of my mind. He looked vaguely familiar. Not in that way where you know you’ve met someone or even have had a conversation with them. More in the way I knew I’d seen him but couldn’t specifically place him.
“Good morning,” he said, coming toward me as I approached. “You must be Kelly.”
I took the hand he extended toward me and smiled back.
“Yes. Kelly Hollister.”
“I’m Quentin Freeman,” he said, shaking my hand, then stepping to the side to gesture at an older man nearby. “And this is my father.”
“Gus,” the older man said with a cheerful grin. “Good to meet you.”
“You too,” I said.
“Well, I’ve looked over your resume, and it’s very impressive. If you’d like, I’ll show you around the complex, then we’ll go down to the garage. The rider should be arriving pretty soon, and I’m sure he’d like to talk to you, too,” Quentin said.
I nodded. “I’d like that.”
We started walking around the grounds, and both men showed me around, pointing out different features and amenities. They were kind and friendly without even a hint of condescension. Neither one of them mentioned that I was a woman or made any sort of suggestion about me not being able to do the job. That was incredibly refreshing. Even in situations when I got a position, there was never a time when it didn’t come up a few times how different it was to see a woman in a garage. Many people thought they were being supportive or even edgy when they commented on it. Like they could acknowledge it to prove just how “cool with it” they were. Those were often the most uncomfortable of encounters. But the Freemans weren’t doing any of that. They were just showing me around and telling me about the company and the team, and I quickly liked both of them.
I should have known it was all too good to be true.
“There is other machinery on the complex you would likely be working on as well, but you would mostly work on the racing bikes. That would put you in direct contact with our riders, so you’d have to get to know each of them and the specifics they have for their bikes. Greg is the most recent addition to the racing team, and then there’s Darren.”
And with that, my heart stopped.
“Darren?” I asked.
Maybe it was a coincidence. It wasn’t like Darren was all that unusual of a name. And it could just be one of those things, like you’ve never heard a word in your life but as soon as you learn it, suddenly you hear it everywhere because you’re paying attention to it. Maybe the name Darren was just standing out to me because I had him on my mind.
“Yeah. He’s my younger brother. He’s been having really good success the last couple of seasons. It was actually his birthday yesterday.”
And there it was. The hammer drop. Now I knew exactly why Quentin looked familiar. I’d looked across a crowded bar at him sitting at a table with his brothers. Twice. Once three years ago and once last night.
Holy shit.
And there began the downward spiral of my positive thinking, and my monologue began.
I came into this thinking getting the position might be a challenge because being a female mechanic was a hard sell. Not because I’d be up against the ghost of Darren. Darren fucking Freeman, that is. Why didn’t I get the man’s last name?
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t figured it out. How could I have not put it together when I was searching for jobs and saw the listing for the available spot with the Freeman team? Fuck me and my terrible research skills.
There wasn’t really a reason for me to know who he was. I didn’t follow racing and wasn’t interested in the position because it had to do with racing specifically. I just wanted to work in a garage and happened to have a lot of experience with bikes. But all it would have taken was being a responsible candidate and looking into the team a little bit to see a picture of him or read a mention of his name. But no. I had to find out from his brother and father while they were showing me around the amazing facility I was already dying to work at. Awesome.
They brought me into the garage and showed me around. It was an amazing space with every tool and device I could want for. I tried to keep myself focused on that and not on Darren, but of course, that wasn’t going to be the way that worked out for me.
The door to the garage opened, and immediately both Quentin and Gus let out shouts.
“There he is,” Quentin said.
“How was your birthday celebration?” Gus asked.
He wasn’t rushing to answer. In fact, I didn’t know if he even heard them. Just like me, he was standing
