Laughter spills out of me when Maddox, still bent at the knee behind the kart, turns his head—just in time for Jaxon to make the same manoeuvre, hitting them both again. This time, Dad slips, falling on his arse.
The last thing I see is Jaxon spinning off, following the track instead of coming back on himself like Clayton has.
We come to a stop off track, into a secluded area hidden by bushes. He slides up his visor, grinning like a mad fool, his cheeks flushed.
“Did you see his face?” he yells, squeezing my hand.
I lift my visor up, my smile causing my jaw to ache. “I caught it all on camera,” I explain, waving my phone at him. “Let’s do it again and then make this track our bitch.”
“I didn’t get all of that, but I think we should do it again. To be certain we hit him.”
I give him a thumbs up, tilting my head back and laughing uproariously.
Clayton pulls out of our hiding spot before lining the car up and revving the engine.
His foot slams down on the accelerator, causing us to jerk back. When the guys come into view, I struggle to breathe at the sight before us. They remind me of the time we took them ice-skating and they struggled to hold each other up.
Dad glances up at the sound of the engine, his jaw dropping. He pushes Maddox in front, as a shield. However, Clayton guns past them, causing mud to spray like a wave all over them.
Looking around the back of my seat, I get to witness Maddox lose his footing, landing flat on his face, Dad toppling over him.
We lose sight of them as we take the corner, and as I face forward, the wheels spin at the same time the steering wheel locks.
Clayton’s head jerks briefly towards me, panic flashing in his eyes. His fingers grip the wheel, fighting to turn it as he pushes down on the brake.
He notices the bank the second after I do. It’s steeper than the one we just left, and instead of a shrub, we are heading right for a tree.
I can hear him yelling over the noise, yet can’t understand his words as I lean over to help, grabbing the wheel and yanking as hard as I can. It’s no use, we’re going to roll down that bank and hit the tree. There’s nothing we can do to stop it.
We’re seconds from the bank when Clayton gives up on the wheel and startles me by swinging himself around, his body partially covering mine.
I press myself into his shoulder as he grips me, shielding my head. A scream escapes as we begin to pick up speed, my stomach rolling as the kart spins in its descent down the hill.
I grip the metal cage with one hand, the other clutching Clayton, holding on for dear life. My knuckles ache, along with body.
My heart thumps against my rib cage, as well as rings in my ears, when we shoot forward before being yanked bank in our seats as the kart comes to a sudden stop.
Clayton slowly pries himself off me as I dazedly blink, scanning my surroundings.
We had hit the tree from the rear end. The bank looks a lot steeper from this angle than it did approaching it.
I recoil when Clayton reaches for my helmet, unclipping it and sliding it off my head.
“Are you okay?” he rushes out, guilt ridden as he tilts my head side to side, checking for injuries.
I swat him away gently. “I’m fine, but what the hell happened?” I ask, unclipping my harness.
Reading my mind, he gets out, coming around to my side and helping me out.
“It was my fault. I was driving like a dickhead. The steering wheel locked and the engine cut out. I’m so fucking sorry, Hayden.”
“Don’t be. I don’t think that’s because of your driving,” I tell him honestly, watching the engine steam as the rain hits it.
From the corner of my eye, I watch Clayton stumble forward. I brace myself as he grabs me, pulling me into his arms and squeezing. Relief pours out of his hold, yet his body remains tense, on edge. “I’m so fucking glad you’re okay.”
He pulls back, yet keeps close, anguish shining back at me.
I reach up, wiping back a strand of hair sticking out next to his temple, before meeting his gaze. My mouth dries as I suck in a breath.
“You protected me.”
He runs a hand over his forehead. “Why do you seem surprised?”
My lips twitch. “Because you’ve been planning my death since day one.”
He steps forward, his expression void of anything as he cups my cheek. I briefly close my eyes, not wanting this moment to end.
“Your death isn’t what I’ve been planning to do to you since day one, Hayden,” he admits, his voice hoarse as he leans in further.
“Don’t kiss me unless you mean it. This place looks great for hiding your body.”
He tilts his chin down, frowning. “I meant it the first time.”
“I sense a but…”
“But, I’m your boss.”
I step back, giving a sharp nod as I swallow the lump in my throat, even though a part of me wants to knee him in the balls. “I get it. You don’t want to be seen with the ‘help’, so to speak.”
He rears back, his body locking. “Not at all. I’m worried others will make it difficult for you at work if they think I’m favouring you because we’re together.” His lips twist. “Do you really think so little of me?”
He swings around, heading back up the hill before I have a chance to answer. I blink back my confusion as his words finally settle in, my heart racing.
“Wait!”
“No. I am done with today, with it all, Hayden.”
Running up behind him, I grab onto his overalls, pulling him back. I gasp when he loses his footing, taking me with him as we fall to the ground.
We roll apart and he leans up on his hands, glaring down at me as I lie on my back, in the mud, on the hill. “What was that for?”
I lean up on my elbows. “If you had stopped, I wouldn’t have had to take drastic measures.”
“God, you’re infuriating.”
“It’s not nice to talk about God like that,” I reflect, the comeback flowing easily.
“You aren’t even religious,” he reminds me.
“We’re going off track,” I snap. “Do I look like someone who cares what people think of her?”
His eyebrows draw together. “No.”
“No,” I confirm with a nod. “So why would you think that I’d care what they thought at work? They don’t even have to know.”
His pupils dilate as he looms over me, shaking his head. “I’m still your boss, and if you hadn’t noticed, we argue now. I don’t want a relationship argument ruining our work atmosphere or vice versa.”
A chuckle slips free as disappointment sets in. “And I didn’t think you were scared to go after what you wanted. I don’t play these games.”
He grabs the back of my neck, lifting my head towards him, stopping when my lips are a breath away. Hot air mingles between us as my pulse races. “I’m not, and I’ll show you just how much I’m not.”
The touch of his lips has mine parting and my eyes closing, already anticipating how good it will be.
His tongue flicks my upper lip as the sound of an engine skidding to a stop above us breaks us apart.
I groan, falling onto my back and looking up the hill. “Fucking hell.”
The guy called Stevens, who gave us the keys to our kart, rips himself out of the harness, coming to stand at the top of the hill.