Chapter 2

The next week, Damian took me to the racing club his family frequented.

A row of modified cars lined the underground garage, and the walls were covered with race photos.

I counted under my breath. Sienna's name appeared 16 times.

She sat at the bar in a black leather jacket. When she saw me, she let out a whistle.

"Well, look who showed up. I thought the smell of engine oil in here would drive you off."

Several people around us laughed.

Damian put an arm around my shoulders.

"Don't tease her."

There was no reproach in his voice—only indulgent affection.

Sienna hopped down from the bar and shoved a stopwatch into my hand.

"Since you're here, you can time us."

As if I belonged on the sidelines, watching the two of them tear around the track.

Damian already had his gloves on.

"Wait for me, baby. Two laps."

I looked down at the stopwatch.

In my previous life, they would talk about racing while I fetched water, took pictures, and waited for Damian.

Sometimes people asked if I knew anything about racing.

Sienna always answered for me, saying, "Avery doesn't even like driving on the highway. She belongs in the passenger seat."

This time, she smiled as she asked again, "Isn't that right, Avery?"

I looked up, a faint smile tugging at my lips.

"That's right."

That caught her off guard.

The first lap began.

Sienna took the lead, with Damian right behind her.

The others gathered around the screen to place bets.

"Sienna is insane."

"She won't brake at the third corner. I'm sure of it."

The third corner.

My breath caught.

Her car skimmed past the inside barrier.

I watched her line.

Before turning into a corner, she always moved half a car-width to the right.

When someone tried to pass her on the outside, she deliberately braked late and squeezed them toward the edge of the track.

She didn't care whether they crashed or got hurt.

What a selfish, vicious woman.

After two laps, Sienna finished first.

She pulled off her helmet, letting her hair tumble loose, and everyone cheered.

Damian went over and bumped fists with her.

"Nobody understands me like you."

I stood at the edge of the crowd and stopped the watch, my expression blank.

Sienna suddenly walked over.

"Avery, don't take it personally. Damian only trusts me on the track."

Her gaze swept over me from head to toe.

"After you're married... just focus on taking care of the house."

Someone beside us tried to smooth things over with a laugh. "One runs the house, the other runs the track. Sounds like the perfect arrangement."

Damian heard it and only smiled.

"If the two of them can always get along like this, I'll be happy."

I looked at him.

"So you think I can't learn to race?"

Sienna laughed as if she'd just heard a joke.

"Of course you can learn, but the party is only a month away. Surely you aren't going to start now?"

She took the stopwatch from my hand.

"Don't worry. I'll go easy on you when the time comes."

I smiled too.

"I'll be counting on you, then."

On the way home, Damian wouldn't stop praising her.

She had won a championship at 17, forced a professional racer off the track at 20, and won three straight races last year.

I made a note on my phone after each thing he said.

He spent so long going on about another woman's achievements that it took him a while to notice what I was doing. Then he asked, "What are you writing down?"

I locked the screen.

"My wedding checklist."

He suspected nothing.

Late that night, I sent Dad all the race videos I'd taken at the club.

Five minutes later, he replied, "Did you see how she drives? Don't wear a skirt tomorrow. You're going to learn how to race against a lunatic."