friendship.”
“What!” The other woman bolted upright. “How can that be? We love him. Bastian is closer to him than a brother. There’s no way we would ever disrespect him like that.”
“Shush, I don’t think it has anything to do with you two. It’s more that Sebastian captures all the glory in the league.” Sloan shrugged. “I think years of playing second fiddle have started to make him doubt his worth. It would mean a lot to him if Sebastian shared himself. You know, let Mark drive for once.”
“He’s been hurting yet he hasn’t said anything.” Lynn bit her lip and Sloan caught the sheen of tears in the other woman’s eyes. “He never would have either. Damn him and his noble streak. We would have made things right. Did you know Sebastian is the only driver in the league who splits his winnings evenly with his navigator?”
“I didn’t, but that’s very generous.”
“In the months I’ve known Bastian, he’s woken up in a sweaty mess about half a dozen times in the middle of the night. He has a recurring nightmare about crashing. So do I, but this is different. He’s terrified that he’ll do something while driving, cause an accident.” Lynn’s eyes shone with the fear all race wives endured. “He doesn’t care about himself. He obsesses about injuring Mark, or worse. I think he’d love to let go of the burden of control for a night or two every once in a while. It weighs heavy on him.”
“Damn, they’re so close and still so secretive. I’m glad we talked.” Sloan covered Lynn’s shaking hand. “And that you invited me to be a part of all this.”
“Mark chose you. Smartest thing he’s done. I’ve been around him every day for months but I didn’t notice what you did in an instant. You get him. You’re looking straight into his heart and you like what you see.”
“ Like might be an understatement.”
“I hope so.” Lynn hugged her. “For both your sakes.”
“I think we can make this work for everyone.”
“I do too, Sloan.” After a minute or two of reflective silence, Lynn laughed.
Sloan raised an eyebrow in her direction.
“The Cougar Challenge ladies are going to be so jealous.”
“Damn straight. Go us!”
“Rawr!”
Chapter Nine
During the taxi ride from the ferry back to the train station in Hong Kong, Sloan’s cell phone started buzzing, flashing and ringing like mad. It could only mean one thing.
“Shit, someone stirred up a hornet’s nest.” She dug in her purse until she snagged the offensive device, aligning her mind to business and away from her holiday.
“You need to get here. Now.” Her assistant sounded frazzled, an uncommon occurrence.
“On my way, how bad is it?”
“Really bad.”
“Shit. Hold things together until I get in. About two hours.”
“Will do. But it’s not the usual—”
Crap, her cell must have been searching for a signal the entire time they were on Cheung Chau. She’d drained the battery. It died before she’d finished receiving her assistant’s message.
“Damn it!”
“An emergency?” Mark took her hand in his. “If one of the guys did something stupid, I’m going to kick his ass. I was looking forward to spending a quiet night in with you.”
Lynn exchanged a meaningful look with her.
“Same here.” Sloan grimaced. “Probably not going to happen now. Sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, Cougar.” He patted her hand. “I’ll be waiting whenever you’re ready.”
Closer to three hours later, because of the unflagging traffic in the city—she’d never figure out how they managed to jam five cars wide in two lanes—they jogged into the international housing complex.
Mark and Sebastian strode side by side, each with his woman on his arm. Sloan expected them to part ways and head upstairs, but her friends stayed close on her heels when she angled toward the office space she’d been using for official business.
Their support touched her.
But it made it that much worse
“What!” The other woman bolted upright. “How can that be? We love him. Bastian is closer to him than a brother. There’s no way we would ever disrespect him like that.”
“Shush, I don’t think it has anything to do with you two. It’s more that Sebastian captures all the glory in the league.” Sloan shrugged. “I think years of playing second fiddle have started to make him doubt his worth. It would mean a lot to him if Sebastian shared himself. You know, let Mark drive for once.”
“He’s been hurting yet he hasn’t said anything.” Lynn bit her lip and Sloan caught the sheen of tears in the other woman’s eyes. “He never would have either. Damn him and his noble streak. We would have made things right. Did you know Sebastian is the only driver in the league who splits his winnings evenly with his navigator?”
“I didn’t, but that’s very generous.”
“In the months I’ve known Bastian, he’s woken up in a sweaty mess about half a dozen times in the middle of the night. He has a recurring nightmare about crashing. So do I, but this is different. He’s terrified that he’ll do something while driving, cause an accident.” Lynn’s eyes shone with the fear all race wives endured. “He doesn’t care about himself. He obsesses about injuring Mark, or worse. I think he’d love to let go of the burden of control for a night or two every once in a while. It weighs heavy on him.”
“Damn, they’re so close and still so secretive. I’m glad we talked.” Sloan covered Lynn’s shaking hand. “And that you invited me to be a part of all this.”
“Mark chose you. Smartest thing he’s done. I’ve been around him every day for months but I didn’t notice what you did in an instant. You get him. You’re looking straight into his heart and you like what you see.”
“ Like might be an understatement.”
“I hope so.” Lynn hugged her. “For both your sakes.”
“I think we can make this work for everyone.”
“I do too, Sloan.” After a minute or two of reflective silence, Lynn laughed.
Sloan raised an eyebrow in her direction.
“The Cougar Challenge ladies are going to be so jealous.”
“Damn straight. Go us!”
“Rawr!”
Chapter Nine
During the taxi ride from the ferry back to the train station in Hong Kong, Sloan’s cell phone started buzzing, flashing and ringing like mad. It could only mean one thing.
“Shit, someone stirred up a hornet’s nest.” She dug in her purse until she snagged the offensive device, aligning her mind to business and away from her holiday.
“You need to get here. Now.” Her assistant sounded frazzled, an uncommon occurrence.
“On my way, how bad is it?”
“Really bad.”
“Shit. Hold things together until I get in. About two hours.”
“Will do. But it’s not the usual—”
Crap, her cell must have been searching for a signal the entire time they were on Cheung Chau. She’d drained the battery. It died before she’d finished receiving her assistant’s message.
“Damn it!”
“An emergency?” Mark took her hand in his. “If one of the guys did something stupid, I’m going to kick his ass. I was looking forward to spending a quiet night in with you.”
Lynn exchanged a meaningful look with her.
“Same here.” Sloan grimaced. “Probably not going to happen now. Sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, Cougar.” He patted her hand. “I’ll be waiting whenever you’re ready.”
Closer to three hours later, because of the unflagging traffic in the city—she’d never figure out how they managed to jam five cars wide in two lanes—they jogged into the international housing complex.
Mark and Sebastian strode side by side, each with his woman on his arm. Sloan expected them to part ways and head upstairs, but her friends stayed close on her heels when she angled toward the office space she’d been using for official business.
Their support touched her.
But it made it that much worse
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