Substitute Seduction (Sweet Tea And Scandal 2)

London barely resisted a wince, thinking about her poorly conceived notion to get close to Harrison as a way of getting to his brother. She had yet to figure out what she could do to take Tristan down.

“Like what?” she prompted, hoping it was something terrible so she could feel better about her own questionable morality.

“I used my brother’s birthday party as an excuse to see you again.”

“Oh.” Her pulse skipped. “Does that mean you don’t need me as your party planner?” She considered the amount of time she’d spent working on the party and sighed. He wouldn’t be the first client to change his mind.

“Not at all. My mother is thrilled that I’ve taken the project off her hands. My brother can be quite particular when it comes to certain things and it’s better if I take the heat for his disappointment.”

“You’re assuming he’ll be disappointed before you’ve heard any of my plans?” London frowned, but found she wasn’t all that insulted. Neither Harrison nor his brother were the toughest clients she’d ever worked for. “That doesn’t speak to your faith in my ability to do my job.”

Despite the lack of heat or ire in her tone, Harrison’s eyes widened. “That’s not what I meant at all. I’m sure you will outdo yourself. It’s just that Tristan is hard to impress. He’s always been that way.”

London remembered that Zoe had said something similar about her ex-husband and nodded. “Challenge accepted,” she said, digging in where others might throw up their hands and quit.

Harrison nodded. “You thrive under pressure,” he said, admiration in his steady gaze. “So do I. It’s what makes us good for each other.”

Although his words thrilled her, guilt shadowed her delight. Getting revenge on Tristan had prompted her to agree to work on his birthday party and go on that first date with Harrison. She simply had to get her emotions under control.

“You don’t think two competitive people will end up ruining things because they’re forever chasing the win?” she asked.

“Not if we do it together. I think if we became a team, there’s nothing we couldn’t accomplish.”

Before she started nodding in agreement, London reminded herself of why she’d begun dating him. Getting close to Harrison was a means to an end. And if that made her a terrible person then that was something she’d just have to live with.

* * *

Harrison watched his car, number twenty-five, roll into the truck for the return to South Carolina. He was pleased with his second-place finish. With only one race left until the end of the season, he sat in third place for the year and, based on his points, he’d likely hang on to the spot unless he completely screwed up next weekend.

As the car disappeared, a familiar wave of exhaustion swept over him. Once the race was over and the media interviews finished, his body reacted to the long day by shutting down.

“Nice race,” his uncle said. The two men were standing side by side while the team rolled Harrison’s race car from one set of inspectors to the next. “I was a little worried about you in the beginning.”

Today’s race had been unusually challenging since at the beginning he’d had to work twice as hard to stay focused on the track and the cars around him while thoughts of London and their dinner last night dominated his mind. Things had gotten better once he’d passed his hundredth lap and settled into the race, needing to win so he could impress London.

“Just wanted to make it interesting,” Harrison replied with a sly grin.

“You did that,” Jack grumbled. “Let me know when you’re ready to head back tonight. I’d like to get out of here by midnight.”

“Actually, I’ve arranged a lift back to Charleston already.”

His uncle raised an eyebrow. “Your new girlfriend?”

“She’s not my girlfriend...yet.” That last word slipped out, revealing something Harrison hadn’t yet admitted to himself. He had more than a casual interest in London McCaffrey.

What was going on with him? They’d only been out twice and he was already thinking in terms of a relationship? The only time he was quick to commit was on the track. But when he was with London, their connection felt right and his instincts had never failed him before.

“You sure she’s the right woman for you?” his uncle asked, the question a jarring pothole Harrison didn’t see coming.

Acid began churning in Harrison’s gut. “You have some thoughts on why she isn’t?”

While Jack had never commented on any of his drivers’ personal lives, he was operating a business where each driver brought in hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in sponsor revenue each year. That meant he couldn’t afford for his team to operate at anything less than 100 percent. And anything that interfered with that would come under fire.

“I asked Dixie about her.”

“And?” Harrison challenged.

“She’s a social climber.” Jack’s expression grew hard. “Apparently she and her mother have been trying to access Charleston inner circles without much success.”