Speed Dating (21 page)

H
E TRIED
to think, but he felt unfamiliar panic swamp his brain. He could remain cool under some pretty hairy stuff, but he’d never faced losing everything before. And that, he realized with a zing, was what he was facing.

Kendall was the person who made sense of it all. She was right, of course. She hadn’t brought him luck. She’d brought him the missing part of himself, the part that had been frozen out, ignored and punished by his family, so he’d ceased to believe his love was worth anything to anyone.

There’d been no conditions to Kendall’s love. She didn’t care if he was perfect, didn’t expect it of him. She’d given him the most amazing gift and he’d tried to give it back. Pretended it meant nothing. He now realized that it did. The gift of her love meant everything to him. All that she asked of him was that he look into his own heart and see what she saw so clearly, that they were a matched pair. Salt and pepper, love and laughter, his car and a racetrack.

Now, he had to convince her of that.

He didn’t bother to change. No time. He was hot, tired and sweat-stained, but there was no time. No time. No time. It beat like a chant in his head.

He jogged back to his crew chief, who was looking at him with concern. “Everything okay, there, Dylan?”

“No. Everything’s terrible. Kendall’s gone.”

“Don’t panic. She’s probably gone back to the trailer.”

“No. I screwed up. No time to explain. I need to get to the airport.”

Mike shook his head. “The traffic will be insane getting out of here.”

“I know,” he said. “I need the company’s chopper right now to get me to the airport.”

“Okay. Take it easy. I’ll set it up. Why don’t you go shower and clean up?”

“No time.” He couldn’t explain the sense of urgency that hung over him, but he didn’t even try. Kendall was leaving and he had to stop her.

“I need to find out when the next plane to Portland leaves.”

K
ENDALL COULDN’T
explain the sense of urgency that hung over her. She needed to get away. Impossible to understand. She urged the cab driver to go faster, not that it was going to make the plane leave any sooner, but being at the airport was going to help her a great deal.

She was being ridiculous, she knew. She had at least an hour’s start on Dylan. Then there’d be all that media stuff to deal with, and the fans. He wouldn’t even get her letter until he left the security entrance. Then, if he tried to follow her, the traffic would be a killer. She’d be gone before he had a chance to stop her.
If
he wanted to stop her, and why would he?

She breathed a sigh of relief when the cab dropped her off at the airport.

Of course he wasn’t following her. How egotistical of her to even consider the possibility. So she hadn’t reminded him that his two weeks were up. He knew the score.

Her heart—no, make that her gut, that intuitive center that she’d only started listening to—was throwing a great, huge hissy. Don’t go back to your old life, it said. But what else could she do?

A nanosecond’s thought answered that question. What should she do? She should say no to their oh-so-flattering sideways promotion. What had she been thinking?

There were other companies, other jobs, and perhaps it was time for her to move on.

She was relatively young, definitely single, unattached; she could work anywhere. If life with NASCAR had taught her anything, it was that victory goes to the bold.

Maybe it was time for the most cautious woman in the United States to take a chance, to embrace risk.

She was smiling, seeing herself in a new life that had nothing to do with her old company, when she heard her name being called. Not only her ears perked up when she heard her name, but every cell in her body jumped to vital, living attention.

It was him.

Impossibly, ridiculously, against the odds of traffic, timing, her careful planning, Dylan was here.

“Kendall!”

Dylan bounded toward her as though he’d this second jumped out of his car.

“You didn’t change,” she said stupidly.

“No time,” he panted, and she realized he’d run a long way.

“Where did you come from?”

“Helicopter.”

She groaned. How had she thought she could beat him at any kind of a racing thing?

He walked to her and her heart jumped. Something about him was different. It took her a minute to realize it was the expression on his face and in his eyes when he looked at her.

“Don’t go,” he said.

“I have to.”

“No. You don’t.”

He sat beside her in the departure lounge—and how on earth had he got through security, anyway? she thought with annoyance.

He took her hand. It was warm. A little gritty.

“There’s something I need to ask you before you go.”

“Is it about the luck thing?”

“No.”

“Oh.”

“Are you done guessing? Can I ask my question now?”

She shrugged. “I guess.”

“Kendall.” He took the other hand, as well, so he clasped both her hands against his chest.

“Yes?”

“Would you marry me?”

She looked at him for a moment. “That’s it?”

“Don’t you want to?”

“I feel like you’re trying to race the last lap without putting in all the laps that come before it.”

He nodded. “Sorry. I’m a little nervous.”

She wouldn’t smile, she mustn’t smile, otherwise he’d think she was weak and easy. But she wanted to smile so badly. Dylan Hargreave nervous? In front of her?

Life was sweet.

Her heart was hammering as though it would break through the wall of her chest, but she wouldn’t make this easy for him. She’d been too easy before. Now it was time for both of them to see how special she was.

He took a deep breath. “I don’t believe in luck, either.”

“You don’t?”

“No. I think you’re right. When I started kissing you and making you a big part of my life, and then I started winning, I figured it was a totally random thing. Luck.”

She nodded.

“But it wasn’t luck. You make me feel better about myself, you make me race better—”

“That’s not a good enough—”

“Of course it’s not a good enough reason to marry a person and I’m disappointed you would even think that of me. The point is that everything about you makes me feel better. I’m better in every area of my life when you’re around. I work better, sleep better, feel better. I’m happier. I’m not the brightest guy in the world sometimes and I can’t believe how long it took me to figure this out, but I love you.”

He looked at her so hopefully. “I want to believe you,” she said.

“Then do. Believe that you are a fantastic woman and I’m an idiot for not seeing sooner that you are the other part of myself. The missing piece.”

“How can you have suddenly changed your mind?”
she asked him. “When I told you I loved you, you looked sort of embarrassed.”

“It was the craziest thing that’s ever happened to me. I got out of my car at the end of the race and I had this sort of—I don’t know. It sounds stupid, but it was a vision. Gray and blurry at first, but then absolutely clear. You were running toward me, and I was running for you.” His voice grew husky as he relived those moments. She felt the intensity of his experience in the tension in his body.

“As I got closer you know what I saw?”

She didn’t say a word, only shook her head.

“Our kids.”

She blinked, looking startled. “Our kids?”

He nodded. A smile blooming. “Know how many there were?”

She didn’t say a word. Only shook her head again.

“Three. Three of ’em. And they were running toward me from behind you. And you know what?”

She shook her head again.

“I wasn’t scared or freaking. It felt right. So right.” He blinked, and only then did she see the wetness on his cheek. “Kendall, I love you. I love our three kids who aren’t even born yet. And I love that we can have a great life together. Please, please marry me.”

She looked at him, at the man she loved to the depth of her being, and wondered about luck and chance and fate, all the forces that had brought them together. “I thought it wasn’t going to work out. That you would never figure out that we are so right together. I thought I’d be brave and go start a new life.” She sniffed, trying to hold her emotions together. “But all I wanted was to be back at the track with you.”

“We’re going to start our new life together,” he promised, “if you say yes.”

She nodded, a smile of pure joy flooding her face. “Oh, yes. I’ll marry you.”

He pulled her against him and they stayed there, while passengers came and went and more than a few curious stares were lobbed their way. “Three, huh?”

“A boy, a girl and a little one that I didn’t get a good look at.”

Her smile grew misty. “It’s nice to know there are some surprises still ahead of us.”

* * * * *

Look for Nancy Warren’s next book featuring NASCAR!

A VERY NASCAR HOLIDAY
Anthology with Debra Webb and Gina Wilkins
November 2009
HQN Books

And from Harlequin Blaze!

UNDER THE INFLUENCE
Forbidden Fantasies
February 2009