“This is Jade,” I tell Roman. “She’s the girl I told you about.”
A worried expression furrows his brows. He takes another drag, and then flicks the ash from the end of his cigarette, before dropping it to the ground. “We need to talk later,” he says, his voice deep and serious, his gaze fixed on me.
I nod. “At Knox Motors.”
“Bring the girl,” he growls and then walks away from my car.
“What was that about?” Jade asks, her voice trembling.
“That’s Rome. Don’t worry about him. He’s all bark and no bite.”
“He looks more like all bite.”
I laugh. “Nah, I’ve been friends with Rome since I was in diapers. He’s like a brother. All of my friends are like family. They want to talk to you about what happened.”
Leaning back with her arms folded, she chuckles. “Oh, so now I have to explain myself to your friends when you’re the one who stole from me?”
Instinctively, I reach over and slide my hand beneath her chin, and her head snaps in my direction. “Are we gonna have a problem, Jade?”
“No,” she sighs. “No problem.”
“Why didn’t you call the cops?”
She stares at me as if I asked her how to solve world hunger or some complex question and doesn’t know where to begin. Shrugging, she says, “I knew you did it for a reason, and I wanted to know why before I assumed the wrong thing about you.”
“But my intentions were bad.”
“My dad will get the money back from the insurance company. He couldn’t have cared less about the car, and I knew that. I could tell by the look on your face when I caught you that you needed it.”
“I don’t want your pity,” I spit back, dropping my hand from her chin.
“I don’t pity you. Never did. I thought maybe you needed a break, and I saw this as an opportunity to get to know you.”
“Why?” I shake my head, confused. “Why do you want to know me?”
“Because I like you. I’ve always liked you. Do you remember freshman orientation?”
I think over her question, unsure of where she’s going with this. “I guess. Yeah.”
“You sat next to me. I forgot to bring a pen with me, and you gave me yours.”
My first semester of college I was so worried about not fitting in that I didn’t bother to pay attention to anyone other than my teammates. I was convinced all the rich kids would find out I was on a scholarship and dismiss me for being poor. Instead, I managed to blend in and adapt like a chameleon. I keep my head down and my personal life off-campus for a reason. The two worlds could never collide, or at least that’s what I told myself before I met Jade.
“Why did you even need a pen at orientation?”
She rolls her eyes at me. “To take notes. Duh. What else would I do with it?”
I laugh so hard it shakes through me. “No one takes notes at orientation. You really are a goody-two-shoes.”
Jade swats at my arm, laughing. “Shut up, Killian. You can be so mean sometimes.”
“It keeps people away,” I counter.
“But is that what you really want?”
I consider her question for a split second. “Yeah. It’s better that way.”
“Because you’re so afraid of being yourself around anyone that you’d rather hide.”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Yes, it is. You don’t want anyone to know you’re poor or that you race and steal cars for a living. Who cares what anyone at school thinks?”
“You grew up with money and privilege,” I shoot back, anger shaking through me. “I don’t expect you to understand what it’s like to be me.”
She slides her hand up my thigh, getting on her knees to lean in to kiss me. But she hesitates, her eyes fixed on mine for a few seconds before I make the decision for her and shove my tongue into her mouth. Our kiss is angry and forceful as I palm the back of her head and grip her hips with the other to guide her onto my lap. There’s not enough room for her with the steering wheel digging into her back, and when she backs her ass into the horn, sounding it for everyone to hear, I peel my lips from hers.
I glance out the window to find Rome, Nate, and Chase standing there shaking their heads. Jade hops off my lap and settles back into her seat, fixing her top and skirt. My cock is so damn hard, painfully erect, and digging into my jeans. Just what I need before an important race—blue balls. I can hardly focus with Jade around. She drives me fucking crazy in every way imaginable.
Rome gives me the signal that it’s time to get our cars ready to race. The crew from New York might be a bunch of trust fund douchebags who can spend a shitload of cash on premium cars, but none of them can outrace a bunch of Philly kids who have nothing to lose.