It’s time to do my job and put my focus into the race.
My team and my career depend on it.
Oliver hollers from the living room. I push off the counter and head to my son, welcoming the distraction. The dirty dishes can wait. The restless night impending. Right now, my boy needs me.
And I need him.
***
My qualifying was shitty, but at least I’m not in the very back of the pack. I’m starting mid-field, which is a blessing, considering how inconsistent my runs were.
The guys have fired up the grill and are throwing burgers and dogs on. I’m freshly showered, anxious to go out and have a beer and hopefully relax with my team. To be honest, I thought about just heading home. Long Beach is only a stone’s throw from Burbank, so it would be nothing to run home and be back here bright and early in the morning. Hell, I could have probably left Oliver at home and had Alison watch him there, but I just like having him here with me.
When I exit the motorhome, I find my team sitting around a picnic table. Fish is holding Oliver, who’s taking in his surroundings. Alison is chatting with Cookie and Pete. I shoot them a look, letting them know not to fuck around with my nanny, before heading over to where Coop sits at the table.
“Hey,” I greet, as I take an empty seat across from him.
“Hi,” he replies, setting his phone down on the table, a smile on his face. “Beth and the kids are coming to the race tomorrow.”
“Yeah? I can’t wait to introduce them to Oliver.” I take the Budweiser handed to me and pop the top.
“They’ve been talking about meeting him,” he says, showing me his phone and the photo of his family they must have just sent.
I smile at the device, my heart lurching in my chest. The photo shows a happy Beth, her arms wrapped around two young kids with big toothless grins. His family. His wife. I think of the woman I’m trying to forget and am having no luck in doing so. I think of the photo that could have potentially been sent to my phone. Lena, with Oliver on her lap, a blinding white smile on her plump lips.
I hand back the phone, my smile genuine. “You have a great family, Coop.”
He returns the grin and slides his phone back into his pocket. “That I do, Cruz.” He takes a drink and a deep breath. “You know, I need you to be one-hundred-percent ready for tomorrow night’s race because it’s your safety I worry about. I know this week hasn’t been easy for you, and I understand why, but as your boss, I need to know you’re in the right frame of mind to drive.”
“I’ll be fine, Coop. I promise.”
He gives me a pointed look but doesn’t say anything else. He reaches his beer bottle out, and I tap mine to his in a toast.
The rest of the dinner goes quickly, and I barely give my woman troubles a second thought. That is, until I’m putting Oliver down to bed and crawling under my own covers. I almost put him in with me, but that’s not a habit I want to start.
The moment my head hits the pillow, she’s there. When I close my eyes, I see the teenage girl with dirt on her face and a smile that made me instantly fall in love with her. I see the young woman and the tears streaming down her face as she tells me goodbye so I can chase my dreams. And I see the woman who’s holding my son in her arms and my heart in her hands. I’ve loved her for so long, I don’t even remember what it’s like to not love her.
I ignore my hard cock and listen to the noises that surround me. Someone laughs outside. The water groans through the shower on the opposite side of the wall, indicating Alison is still up. And Oliver softly snoozes mere feet away in his playpen. But all those sounds don’t distract me long enough. My mind returns to her.
My Lena.
As I drift off to sleep, it’s her smiling face that accompanies me.
***
Her hands wrap around my hard dick as she gazes up at me with lust-filled eyes. Her legs hitch up over my hips as her soft hands slide along my shaft. The friction makes my eyes cross. “Shit,” I mumble, my cock so ready to slide home.
Her green eyes are dilated, but even in the dark of my room, I can see them change. The color. It changes from green to a softer brown.
What the hell?
Suddenly, I realize it’s not Lena’s face I look down at, but…Alison’s.
“Fuck me,” she whispers, the lips all wrong.
I startle awake. It takes a few seconds to register the hand on my cock, slowly stroking me to release. I jump, my eyes meeting those soft brown ones. Hers are lustful, she bites her lips seductively. It takes all of half a second to find my voice. “What the fuck, Alison!”
Oliver startles awake by my outburst, his cries echoing through the room.
She seems shocked by my language. “What? But I thought…”
“Why are you in here, Alison?” I growl, my voice harsh and low.
She stutters, “You…invited me.” Her wide eyes tear up, a few sliding down her cheek.
“No, I didn’t,” I state, righting my shorts to make sure I’m covered. My cock is already softening, even though it was so fucking close to release. The moment I realized it wasn’t Lena’s hand around me, my body started to shut down.
“You did,” she insists. “Outside. The guys said you gave them the look, not to touch me. Cookie said it was because you already claimed me.”
I run my hand through my hair and down my face before
