“I told some fella the other day. Little girl is gonna be a heck of a driver. Wait and see. She’s gonna show those fellas from North Carolina. Those fellas are gonna cry like women when she sends them home for a new set of tires.” He stopped talking long enough to dump another shovelful and added, “Yes sir, that’s what I tell just about everyone these days.”
Duke winked. Julie wondered if he saw how Frank manipulated her, or if he cared. Frank had been pulling this number since she was a small child.
When Julie was a teenager, Frank used to put her on “too much horse” and tell her to ride like hell. Sometimes, Julie could close her eyes and still see Frank standing there ringside with his hands together, clapping like a wild man. He conned her into riding one horse after another, each time finding a more spirited mount, a bigger challenge than the last.
“What do you think about the new driver Carl Carlton sent over?” Duke asked, arching a brow.
“Carl sent one of his drivers?” she asked.
Frank’s cheeks swelled with his next breath. When he finally decided to breathe like a normal person again, he said, “I checked his stats. Carlton lied to ya. Kid never raced on the dirt track.”
“Are you sure?” Duke asked, frowning.
“Of course I am,” Frank replied, tossing aside the shovel and retrieving the pitchfork.
“Frank knows everything about racing, Duke,” Julie reminded him, peering over the top of the barred stall. “By the way, why are you cleaning stalls when you’d rather be at the track?”
“I can hear them cars right here, little girl. I don’t have to be watchin’ ’em to know what’s goin’ on.” He looked at Duke and then back at her. “Yes sirree, there’s a lot I don’t have to see for myself. When you have a good hearing aid like I do, nothin’ gets by ya.”
She shot Duke a quick glance and he shrugged. “I hope that’s not true.”
“It is,” he said, his lips twitching. “Come on, little girl. Let’s get you in this car.”
Frank walked ahead of them, and Julie followed. “I’m not driving today, Frank.”
“That’s all right,” he said. “We’ve got a couple of tomorrows before we give up on ya.” He yanked open the metal door and placed his palm to his chest. “Mercy me, I forgot how sexy this thing is first thing in the afternoon.”
Duke pinched Julie’s bottom and whispered at her ear, “He ain’t the only one. I forgot how much you tempt me. I’d like to do something about that right this very minute.”
Chapter Nine
Duke would fuck her sometime within the next hour. Julie couldn’t keep her eyes off him, and he couldn’t wait to spank her for making him hard.
Duke grunted then. He longed to give Julie the kind of whipping she deserved, a tender loving hand raised for the purpose of arousing her.
Julie and Frank’s voices faded in and out. They were talking cars. He was thinking sex.
She shot him a sideways glance. Moistening her lips, she stared right at his cock.
Without a doubt, Julie understood Duke’s head was in the trash can. He was considering all sorts of nasty little pleasures, erotic moves guaranteed to keep them up late tonight.
“So where’s Hank?” Frank asked, nodding toward the large clock at the far end of the barn.
“He went into town,” Duke replied, frowning when he noticed the hour.
“Reckon I oughta ride around and see what’s keepin’ him?” Frank asked.
“No. He’ll be back after while.”
Frank shook his head quickly and looked away. “Little girl, why don’t you do me a favor and run in the tack room and buy me a soda?”
Frank dug in his front pocket for change. Even though the machine was always unlocked and the employees were told they had an unlimited supply of beverages on the house, Frank always paid his way.
Julie snickered as she took the change and headed toward the vending area, calling out over her shoulder, “I know when you’re trying to get rid of me, Frank.”
He smiled until she disappeared out of sight. Then, he said, “Before he left, Hank told me to call him at two o’clock. I tried and didn’t get an answer. I sent Sam out there and his truck is there, but he’s nowhere to be found.”
“And you’re just now telling me about this?”