We drive for about ten minutes until we pull down a familiar road.
“Were going to the cemetery on my birthday?” I frown.
Grayson winks and squeezes my leg. “A weird birthday for my little weirdo.” He often teases me about being weird because I love anything supernatural.
We climb out and today we don’t need to climb the wrought-iron gates to get in, as we are actually here when the place is open. Grayson takes my hand, and he guides me gently along the lines of graves until we are almost at the back of the cemetery.
“So, here is your second present.” I look at him puzzled as the confidence in his voice waivers. “Look.” He gestures with his head and I follow his gaze.
“Grayson,” I reply, my voice shaky with emotion as I take it in. In front of me is a marble plaque with my mum’s name and the date she died, with the inscription ‘Mother, friend, inspiration.’ It is finished with the Celtic symbol for Mother and Daughter. The very same one tattooed on my chest, in memory of my mother.
Silently, I step towards it and drop to my knees. I lightly follow the inscription with my fingers.
“Your dad gave me some ashes from your mum’s urn, so now you have somewhere to come and be with her. We can come here together and visit our mum’s.”
I jump to my feet and throw myself at him as a lone tear rolls down my face.
“Shit Ev, I didn’t mean to make you cry on your birthday.”
I smile as I wipe away my tears. “They’re happy tears. This is.., this is so perfect, Gray. Fuck, I love you.” I say with a sigh before I pepper his face with kisses.
“No swearing in front of your mum,” Grayson chastises me with a grin.
“She would have liked you,” I tell him. “She would have said you were arrogant and too confident, but the two of you would have got on well, I think.”
“I think the same. I think my mum would have loved you. She’d have said you’re just what I need to bring me down a peg a two.”
“Oh, I’m always here to do that. Wouldn’t want that head of yours getting any bigger now.”
Grayson rolls his eyes, but he does it with a smile. We tease each other a lot and he loves it.
“Ready for your next present?”
I blink. “There’s more?”
“Manchester. You should know by now that I don’t do things by half. Come on.”
I quickly let go of his hand and press my fingers to my lips and place it on the marble plaque. “I’ll be back soon, Mum.”
We set off again and I can’t keep still in my seat as I’m too excited to see what he has planned next. We turn off down a dingy country lane and I scrunch my brows. Where on earth is he taking me?
“The meet.” I realise as we turn a corner and I recognise the place where I come with him, Dom and Izzy and watch him race. As pathetic as it sounds, there is something thrilling about watching him drive around that track and win a race. He will not, however, ever let me sit in the passenger seat and be his co-pilot. He always argues it is too dangerous.
“What are we doing here?”
“Racing,” he replies with a lazy grin.
He pulls to a stop and I look around us, puzzled. “But who are we racing?”
“Me.”
I jump as Rogers leans in through Grayson’s window, grinning at us both.
“Hey, birthday girl.”
“You’re racing?” The surprise must be clear on my face because Rogers laughs.
“Just this once, seeing as it’s your birthday and all.” He winks. “Doesn’t mean I’m going to let your man win, though.”
Grayson smirks. “We both know who is going to win this race.”
Rogers shakes his head, laughing as he leans up off the car and walks backwards away from us. “Oh, we’ll see about that St. Clair.” He hurries round to the driver’s side of his car and climbs in. It’s then that I notice Talia sitting in the passenger seat. She opens her window and waves.
“Hey Everly, happy birthday!”
“Thanks.”
Rogers honks his car horn and makes me jump. “Lets line up.”
Talia climbs out of the car. It might be freezing out, but she still wears her signature denim shorts that show off her impeccably long and bronzed legs. Both cars take their spots at the starting line and she lifts the red flag above her head.
“May the best man win. 3,2,1, Go!”
The force of acceleration pushes me back in my seat, and I yelp in both fear and excitement. We are going fast and the adrenaline in my body kicks in and makes me feel exhilarated. I look over a Grayson with a big smile on my face and he takes his eyes briefly off the road and grins.
“Having fun, Manchester?”
I lean back into my seat and lift my hands in the air above me and let out a whoop. We tear around the track and I force myself not to look at the speedometer. I look behind us and see Rogers gaining on us.
“Faster, Gray!” I demand. “Fucking beast him, baby,” I shout and I turn in my seat so I can see Rogers and smiling I give him the finger.
Grayson laughs loudly beside me as his foot presses harder on the accelerator and we push ahead and pass the finish line.
“Wahoo!” I shout in delight as the car slows and we come to a stop. I unbuckle my belt and slide across the central console and straddle my man. “That was so fucking good. Please tell me you’ll let me come in the car with you at your next race?”
Grayson wraps his arms around my waist. His eyes dance with humour. “We’ll see.”
I lean into him and kiss him deeply, and he moans into my mouth. “Did I mention that was incredibly hot? Watching you own that track.”
Grayson arches a brow. “Does racing make you horny, Manchester?”
Biting my
