Ignite

“How old are you, Johnny?” I asked as I watched him put the leash on Lola and step out of the bus.

Johnny shut the door behind him as he smiled. “I’m eight years old. I’m adopted. My parents adopted me when I was six.”

“Really?” I asked as we walked back over toward my father’s truck. “Do you like traveling with your parents from race to race?”

The smile that spread across Johnny’s face said it all. “Oh, yes ma’am.”

As Johnny and I got to know each other better, I found out he went to a private school that was four days a week. He and his mom flew in each weekend for the races. During the summer, they all traveled together. Johnny went on and on about his grandpa and how amazing he was. Then he turned to Emmit.

“I love Uncle Emmit a lot. He’s super cool.”

“Uncle Emmit?” I asked with a smile.

“Yeah, he lets me hang out in his bus and plays video games with me. I always tell him he’s gonna make a great dad someday ’cause he’s lots of fun.”

My heart melted on the spot. “Yeah, he will make a great dad.”

Johnny carried a bag full of food and held onto Lola as he said, “You gonna be Emmit’s wife and have his baby, Adaline?”

I shook my head and laughed. “Oh, I don’t know about that. Emmit and I are just friends.”

As we got into the bus and Johnny gave Lola some water and helped me take the food out of the bags, he turned and looked at me. “Is it okay if I ask you something, Adaline?”

“Of course it is, Johnny,” I said as I heated up water for the pasta dish I was making.

“If you and Uncle Emmit are just friends, how come he stares at a picture of you all the time and told my daddy you were the only woman he’d ever love?”

Tears built up in my eyes as I gazed into the eyes of this sweet, innocent little boy. Pressing my trembling lips together, I tried to let Johnny’s words sink in. “When, um, when did Emmit say that?”

Shrugging, Johnny set the last of the contents of his bag out on the counter. “This past Christmas after we all ate. Uncle Emmit drank too much punch and got drunk. Mamma said some people get drunk when their heart’s hurt cause they think it will numb the pain. But she said it doesn’t. She said Uncle Emmit would always love you.”

A knock at the door startled me as Lola barked and Johnny ran over and answered it. Throwing the door open, he said, “Hey there, Mom!”

Kate stepped up into the bus and ran her hand over the top of Johnny’s head. “Hey, Adaline! Great seeing you again. I’ve got to run, but I hope we can catch up sometime if you happen to come to another race.”

With a wave, I somehow managed to smile and act like her son hadn’t just rattled my whole entire world. I nodded and said, “Yeah. I’d love that.”

“See ya!” Kate called out as she shut the door, leaving me standing in the middle of Emmit’s bus with his dog looking at me like she was judging my every move.

I picked up the heavy cream and pointed to her. “Don’t look at me like that, Lola. I loved him first.”

Barking, she laid down and watched me as I moved about the tiny kitchen, making Emmit what I hoped was still his favorite dish.

WALDO GAVE ME A SLAP on the back as he said, “Job well done, Emmit. I’m proud of you, son.”

Waldo was the closest thing I had to a father. My own father had left when I was twelve and he never looked back. Of course, last year when I was named second-highest paid NASCAR driver, the old man took it upon himself to look me up. It didn’t take me long to tell him to fuck off.

I’d bought my mother a house in North Carolina not far from my place. For my sister, Ashley, I was paying for her to go to college and I also bought her a new Toyota 4-Runner. My brother Chris refused to take anything from me at first. He finally agreed to let me pay off his house and buy his wife Nancy a new car.

I nodded my head as I smiled. “Appreciate that, Waldo. I’m exhausted and that lasted longer than I thought.”

Waldo tossed his head back and laughed as he walked off but not before he said, “Texas loves you.”

Letting out a chuckle, I mumbled, “Yeah.”

As I made my way back to my bus, I got stopped a couple of times by fans asking for me to sign stuff. I always agreed to. After all, if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be doing this. “Emmit! Will you please sign my shirt?”

Looking down at the young boy in front of me, I gave him a wink and said, “Sure. What’s your name?”