“Shit.” Liam stopped mid-stride. He was on his way to the parking lot when he remembered he didn’t have a car.
“What’s wrong?”
Liam looked up and came face-to-face with the one person he had hoped to avoid. Colby James. How ironic. He couldn’t have scripted it any better. Liam chuckled to himself as he made his way down the stairs. “I’m uh . . . kind of stranded. I don’t have a car.”
He made Colby nervous. She tried to disguise it with a laugh. “That’s actually kind of funny considering where you are.” She looked around the garage. “There are cars everywhere.”
Liam couldn’t agree more. Feeling silly, he used his thumb to scratch the side of his head. “Brian and I rode in together. I forgot that our driver took him over to Georgia’s.”
“Ah. Got it.”
He could only imagine what she was thinking, more than likely rich people problems. Liam quickly changed the subject as he moved closer to her. “You didn’t go to the restaurant?” Liam asked innocently as if that hadn’t been the burning question on his mind.
Unknowingly, Colby had been doing the same as Liam. She figured he would be at Georgia’s with Brian and had hoped to avoid him at all costs. It was why she had remained at the garage. But no. The spirits were conspiring against her. “I’ll probably head over a little later. I just had a few things I wanted to do around here first.”
Liam glanced at his phone to check the time. “They’ll probably be heading home soon.”
Colby raised a brow. “You don’t know much about small towns, do you?”
There was a slight tilt to his head. “Can’t say that I do.”
“There is literally nothing to do around here. Georgia’s is the spot for all social activity, well, except for that fancy hotel where you’re staying, but people only go there for special occasions and events. That means, if Brian is buying drinks, they’ll be at Georgia’s a few more hours. I’ll get there in just enough time to put in an appearance and leave.”
“Is that what you did last night?”
Colby’s smile faltered. She wasn’t expecting that question. “That was different.”
Liam figured it probably wasn’t but decided not to push. “If you don’t like going to Georgia’s, what do you like to do?”
Colby turned around in a circle and held her arms out wide. “I’m doing it.”
“Here? The garage? It’s where you most want to be?”
“It’s where I feel the most at home. It’s a place where I can be myself. I don’t have to pretend for anyone.”
“Do you do that often?”
“What?”
“Pretend.”
Colby wasn’t sure why she felt compelled to answer truthfully. “I did for a while, but not anymore.”
“Why?” Liam should have left as soon as he realized Colby and he were sharing the same space. But he couldn’t seem to keep his curiosity about her to himself.
Colby placed her hand on her hip. “Is that a real question?”
“Yeah. It is.” Liam genuinely wanted to know.
“Well, let’s see. I just left a career that is predicated on creating the reality you want, where there are alternative facts, and fake news is real. For me, every day was full of pretending. So, I decided to leave it all behind and follow my heart, hoping it would be freeing—even though I knew I’d be running face-first into not just a wall but a concrete box.”
“So, why do it?”
“I tried. But it’s like asking me to stop breathing. I’m passionate about racing even though it has all but shunned people like me. So, I’m here when everyone else is either at home or someplace else. I can’t just be a driver or a mechanic. I have to know everything. Therefore, I practice. I study. I’m always in a continuous state of learning. If I want any shot to really participate in any capacity, I can’t just be mediocre. I have to excel. Sad, actually. But what’s a woman to do if she doesn’t want to give up on her dreams.”
“Is that why you went to MIT?”
Colby rolled her eyes. “Ah, you had me investigated.”
Liam came to recognize that when the space between Colby’s eyes crinkled, it was actually the look of annoyance on her face. He thought it was sexy as hell.
“All you had to do was ask. I would have told you almost anything you wanted to know.”
“It’s the almost part that is the most intriguing.” Liam repeated his question. “So, is that why you went to MIT?”
“I guess that is why you’re a gazillionaire. You seem doggedly determined.”
“Only when I see something I really want.”
The deeply intense way he was looking at her, Colby couldn’t tell if he was referring to their conversation or her. She cleared her throat. “Yes, that’s part of the reason I went to MIT. If I wanted to be the best, I needed to go to the best schools.” She wasn’t about to admit that, at the time, she also just wanted to get as far away from home as possible.
Liam was falling down a rabbit hole but couldn’t help himself. He glanced away. “What is it about cars and driving that you love so much?”
Colby was relieved he’d turned his attention to something else. The energy between them was charged. She attempted to lighten it. “You ask a lot of questions,” she said jokingly.
Liam was battling to keep himself in check too. He played it cool. “I’m a curious sort of guy.”
“Nosy is more like it.” She laughed. “Well, I grew up here, and some of my best memories happened right in this garage. My first kiss was right over there.” She pointed toward the hallway leading to the locker room. “My first breakup happened in the same spot.” Her dark eyes sparkled wistfully. “As far as my love of driving, that’s a family thing. But when I’m behind the wheel, it’s like I’m flying. Nothing
