Liam towered over Asher. Colby didn’t realize he was so tall.
It was the first time she’d seen him in a pair of jeans and damn. They fit just right. The contrast between Asher and Liam was stark. Liam stood a good three to four inches over him. She thought Asher had a nice frame, but Liam was lean and muscular, not overly so, as she studied his arms. His white button-up was rolled just underneath his elbows.
Wow. Her mouth went dry. Colby immediately closed it and glanced around to see if anyone had seen it drop.
Everyone in the garage turned at the sound of his voice. It was cool, calm, and river deep. “We’ve never met. I’m Liam Lockwood.” Liam looked past Asher over toward Colby. She felt his pointed gaze all the way down to the bottom of her feet.
Asher stood to his full height. “You’re right. We haven’t met. I’m Asher McKay.” He said it as if just the sound of his name meant something.
“Ahh. The Asher McKay?” Liam asked.
Asher’s smile widened as if his point was made. Then he extended his hand.
“Right. Brian’s been waiting for you.” Liam gripped his hand hard to the point that Asher winced. Liam pulled him close. He leaned in so that only Asher could hear his words. “Let me be perfectly clear. I don’t care who you are.” He smiled as if saying something wonderful. “We won’t tolerate your bullshit.”
Pissed, Asher stepped back, but he knew better than to say a word.
Liam released his hand. Again, his smile didn’t give anything away. “Let’s head up to Brian’s office. I know he really wants an opportunity to speak with you.”
Brian had been wondering what was taking Liam so long when he came out of his office. As he stood on the top of the landing, Brian had a bird’s eye view and could see everyone standing around. He could tell by his brother’s stance, and the look on his face, a look most people mistook for nonchalance, that there was a problem.
Something was up. Brian jogged down the stairs and walked over toward the small group. “Is there a problem?”
“Nah. No problem. We were just about to head up to your office,” Liam answered.
“We?” Brian asked.
Liam played it cool. “Have you met your star driver? Asher McKay, this is your new boss, Brian Lockwood.”
Brian took his cues from Liam and went with it. “Ah! Asher.” He extended his hand. “We missed you at the party last night. I hope your emergency was nothing too serious,” Brian said it as if he didn’t believe for one second that there was an actual emergency.
Colby stood back and watched all the man bonding. It made her sick. She rolled her eyes. What could she have possibly been thinking? The good old boys’ club was alive and in full effect. It was embedded in the DNA of white privilege. They couldn’t seem to help themselves.
Asher shook Brian’s hand. “Uh. Yeah. Everything is cool.” Asher didn’t quite know what to make of Brian or Liam.
“Glad to hear it. I had hoped to talk with you before my purchase but happy to still have the opportunity.” Brian then addressed everyone in the room. “We’re going to let you all get back to work.”
The show was officially over. Liam, Brian, and Asher started walking upstairs toward the meeting room. As they walked inside, they passed Markos. “Hey, can you ask the other drivers to come up in about twenty minutes?” Brian asked.
Markos nodded. “Will do.”
Brian kept up the act as he continued to address Asher with a wide-tooth, sugary grin. “Please. Have a seat. I know things are kind of a mess, but I hope to have the new furniture delivered by the end of the week.”
Asher sat down at the long conference table. “While you’re cleaning, you need to get rid of that comedy of a crew out there.”
Brian raised a brow and asked, as if genuinely interested, “Really? I’ve only heard good things about them.”
Asher snorted. “I bet you haven’t heard that they win races.”
“Didn’t Daughtry qualify top five in a couple of races?” Brian didn’t wait for Asher to respond. “It doesn’t matter. I plan to change all of that.” Brian took a seat opposite Asher. He didn’t like Asher one bit, but he didn’t need to like him. He just needed him to win. “Let me cut to the chase. You’re contracted with Daughtry, and now, Lockwood for one more race. What can we do to change that?”
Asher sat up in his chair and stared the brothers down. “Are you serious about winning?”
“I’m investing millions of my fortune to make it happen. So, yeah. I’d say I’m pretty damn serious.”
“Lots of people have money. It’s going to take a lot more than that.”
“Ok. School me. Like what?” Brian asked.
Asher wanted to confirm the new owners were serious. “You really want to win?”
“I just said that I do.”
Asher stared hard into Brian’s eyes. “Then get rid of that nigger who calls himself a crew chief and his employees.”
His words were jarring. It hit Brian right in the chest, and an image of Lila came into view. Brian clenched his fist and was about to hand Asher his ass, but Liam responded first.
“The word on the street is that Cyrus Jones is one of the best.”
“You know damn well that those people are good at running and jumping. But driving? It requires too much thinking. They are not capable of that at a high level. Nobody is going to take you seriously until you get rid of them. Not only will they not take you seriously, they are going to put up roadblocks at every turn.”
Liam leaned back in his chair. “Is that so?”
“The bottom line is I ain’t driving for no more niggers or nigger lovers. You want me to stay with Lockwood racing? Get rid of the tar
