Axel snaps his fingers.“Yes, that’s where I’ve heard the name before. They sponsor a few drivers, right?
“Yep, that’s the one.”
“I don’t recall anyone by the name of Neveah, though,” Axel says as I sit back down, finished with the grill for now.
“If you see her, you’d probably recognize her. In fact, I saw her on the news not too long ago, talking about her father’s business and how she finds the drivers to sponsor.”
“She’s in charge of sponsoring new drivers?”
I nod and grab a handful of chips. “Yep. And I had a meeting with her yesterday.”
“Whoa, what? Back that Luca train up. You had a meeting with her? Why?”
“She reached out to me, saying she had an offer. So I figured, why not? And let me tell you, it’s a fucking fantastic offer.”
Axel’s mouth drops open. “Holy shit, Luca! That’s amazing! You can never have too many sponsors, you know that.”
“Yeah. I told her I’d think about it.”
“What? Are you crazy?”
“Probably. But there’s a lot to think about.”
“Like what?”
“Like how my reputation will justgo andfuck anothergood opportunityup.Soonno one will want to sponsor me.”
“Shut up, Luca. Everyone wants you,bad reputationor not. You are a legend, you hear me, a fucking legend. And people willbe willing topay top dollar. I guarantee it.”
I contemplate his words while pulling the steaks off the grill.
“You need to believe in yourself a bit more, Luca. I know things haven’t been easy, and you have your reasons for shit that went down in the past, but don’t let anyone tear you down. They can judge your past all they want. But they don’t control your future. Only you do.”
I turn the grill off and place the plate of meat down on the table. “I know you’re right, man. It’s just…fuck, I don’t know.” I sigh and run a hand through my short hair.
Just say it…that woman drives you crazy. How could you work there with her?Alwaysthinking she knows what’s best. Fuck that.
But this is my life. My career. I can’t let a woman come between that. I told myself I would never allow that to happen again. And I meant it.
And like I said to Axel, if I take this offer, and something happens, will I lose the sponsorship and start losing all my others? How will I racethenwithout anysponsors?
Axel stands and grabs the bag of chips and empty beer bottles. “Let’s eat first. Decisions are easier to make on a full stomach.”
I chuckle as I take the plate of meat and follow Axel inside. “If you say so.”
Yet I don’t feel any closer to a decision than I did ten minutes ago.
Fuck it all.
5
Neveah
“Morning, honey.”My dad smiles when I walk into his office and hand him the coffee I grabbed on the way in.
Echoes of machinery andguys'voices drift in from the garage behind my father’s office. Besides sponsoring race car drivers, we are a full-service tire business that serves the surrounding local community. Unfortunately, business is a lot slower than it used to be.
“Hey, Dad.” I smile. “TGIF, right?”