Heart Racer: A Billionaire Love Story Read online

  I giggled. “That’s funny,” I said. “God, I think I’m tipsy.”

  “Me, too,” Katie groaned. “I should really go.”

  “No!” I said quickly. “Katie, it’s so early!” I glanced down at my phone. My heart skipped a beat when I saw that I had a new message—from that same international number. I licked my lips, then shoved my phone down to the bottom of my purse.

  “Oh my God,” Lauren said. She grinned. “Is he texting you?”

  I swallowed. “I don’t know what he wants,” I said. “What I do I know is that I definitely need another shot. Who’s with me?”

  Katie looked ill. “Not me,” she said. “You go ahead.”

  I ordered two more double shots of tequila for Lauren and myself. After we choked them down, I sighed and rested my chin on my fist.

  “I don’t know what he wants,” I repeated. “I never knew.”

  “Well, he probably wants lots of things like lots of money,” Lauren smirked. “What was he like, anyway?”

  I blinked at her. “How do you mean?”

  Lauren burst out laughing. “Relax!” She squeezed my shoulder. “I mean, like,” she lowered her voice conspiratorially. “I mean like, in bed!”

  “Oh! He was so good,” I said. I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. “It was like, he knew exactly how to read my body. He always knew what I wanted.” Talking about Jake was transporting me back to memories of being in his bed. I remembered his rough hands and hot, urgent mouth. I felt a tingle between my legs and I shifted in my seat, crossing my thighs and squeezing them tightly together.

  “I bet,” Lauren said with a smirk. “God, you’re so lucky! I’d kill for just a night with a guy like that. Why’d you leave anyway?”

  I sighed. “I had to. It just wasn’t working. It was the right decision,” I said with a little more force than necessary. “I couldn’t have stayed. I mean, it wasn’t sustainable. We never even talked about what we were doing.”

  Lauren shrugged. “Does it matter?”

  All of a sudden I was feeling sad again. I bit my lip. I was sure that the Old Liv, the Pre-Jake Liv, would have said it didn’t matter at all. But I wasn’t that young anymore—I was twenty-five-years-old, with hardly any relationship experience. Sure, I’d had a lot of fun with Jake and the sex was good. But that couldn’t last forever.

  “I guess not,” I said quietly.

  “Hey, are you okay?” Lauren sensed the change in my mood.

  “Yeah, I need to pee.” My head was spinning as I walked toward the bathroom. I tried to place one foot in front of the other as calmly as possible. Whenever I was alone and I thought of Jake, I was sure that I’d made the right choice by leaving. But talking to Lauren had brought all my feelings swimming to the surface. What was I supposed to do now, just move on and completely forget about Jake Teller?

  The bathroom was crowded. I waited with a line of unsmiling women, all jostling each other in line and for space in front of the mirror. The smell of perfume was thick in the air. I looked around and it struck me as sad as some of the women were obviously fifteen-twenty years older than me and they were still acting like college girls.

  Back when I was in college, I decided that I never wanted to grow up like that. But then, I never had to make any difficult decisions either.

  When there was finally a free stall, I ducked inside, balancing my purse on my lap as I squatted over the seat. Suddenly, my phone began to vibrate at the bottom of my bag. My heart sank. Why won’t he leave me alone? I wondered as I dug through my bag with irritation. Can’t he take a fucking hint?

  But when I pulled my phone free, I saw that it wasn’t Jake. Rather, it was a local number calling, but not one that I had saved. Oh my God, I bet it’s the vet clinic, I thought. A wave of excitement broke over my head and I quickly hit ‘ignore’ and let it go to voicemail. Once I finished up in the stall, I washed my hands and darted back to Lauren and Katie.

  “The vet called!” I said excitedly. “I think they’re probably calling about the job!”

  “That’s awesome news, Liv,” Katie said. She’d regained some of her color, but she was still sipping from a tall glass of ice water. “Want me to come outside with you?”

  I shook my head and pulled a face. “That’s too much pressure. I’m way too nervous. I’ve got a lot riding on this,” I said. “I’ll be right back!”

  I left my bag with Katie and Lauren as I darted outside and leaned against the brick wall. The hot, humid summer air was enough to shock the oxygen right out of my lungs and I felt an instant sheen of perspiration appear on my forehead. As I hit ‘redial,’ my heart was thudding.

  Someone picked up on the first ring.

  “Hi,” I said quickly. “This is Liv–sorry, I mean Olivia Redwood. I just missed a call from this number.”

  “Oh, god, Liv, I’m so glad you called back.” I didn’t recognize the woman’s voice over the phone. Who was this? She sounded distressed. I frowned. Maybe this wasn’t good news after all—maybe they were only calling to tell me that they’d selected someone else.

  “Um, yeah,” I said. The alcohol was swimming in my brain, making it hard for me to concentrate. I felt like my mouth was moving on a completely different track than my brain.

  “Can you come right now?”

  “Um,” I trailed off, biting my lip. “You mean down to Daytona Veterinary Clinic?”

  “No, to the hospital,” the woman said impatiently. “It’s really bad, Liv.”

  I frowned. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said slowly. “I didn’t interview there—only at the vet clinic.”

  “Oh god, Liv, you mean you don’t know?”

  “Know what?” My heart was racing and my palms were so sweaty that I almost dropped the phone. “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m sorry, Liv. This is Jake’s sister, Abby,” the woman said. “Jake was in a bad crash about fifty miles outside of Daytona. They just airlifted him to the Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center. He’s in surgery right now. I left a voicemail when I called before, sorry, I thought you knew!”

  I gasped. “You can’t be serious,” I said quickly, suddenly feeling weak. “Jake’s not even here! He’s in Europe!”

  Abby sighed shakily. “Look, I have to go,” she said. “Please, Liv, just come whenever you can. He’s not conscious right now, but I know it would help him a lot.”

  She hung up before I had a chance to respond.

  ***

  Twenty minutes later, I was in the back of a cab cruising frantically toward the hospital. The shock of hearing about Jake’s crash had dulled some of the alcoholic buzz, but my heart was thudding so fast that I thought it would pound right out of my chest. The driver seemed to be taking every turn at a sharp angle and I was clinging to the door to keep from being thrown all over the back seat. When he finally pulled up in front of the emergency wing, I leapt out of the cab and ran inside without paying.

  Jake was on the seventh floor—head wounds and trauma. I didn’t even have to ask which room he was in: there was a huge cluster of blonde people all standing outside a large suite at the end of the hall.

  An attractive woman who looked to be in her early thirties with blonde hair and Jake’s dark blue eyes ran towards me. She threw her arms around me, pulling me close.

  “Liv, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said. “I’m Abby.” She pulled away. The distress in her eyes was obvious, but her face looked so much like a feminine version of Jake’s that I was having trouble concentrating.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I said hollowly. “Where is he? Is he awake?”

  Abby shook her head. “I hate that we had to meet under these circumstances,” she said. She sighed impatiently, then knotted her blonde hair at the back of her head with a gesture of familiar annoyance. I stared at her. It wasn’t just that Abby was almost a carbon copy of Jake—they even had the same mannerisms and gestures.

  “Can I see him?”

  Abby
nodded. “Oh god, of course,” she said. “Come on.” She took my hand and led me into the room, through a throng of people I could only assume were Jake’s family.

  When I walked into the hospital room, I couldn’t keep from crying out. Jake was lying in a gigantic plastic hospital bed. His eyes were closed, and there was a huge blue-purple bruise that started at his temple and kissed his left eye before spreading all over his cheek and jaw. My eyes filled with tears. He looked so small and vulnerable in that hospital bed that I could hardly stand it.

  “He looks worse than he is,” Abby whispered in my ear. “The doctors think he should wake up any time now.”

  “What happened?”

  Abby’s blue eyes filled with tears and she wiped them away. “Another driver smacked into his car when he was getting a tire change,” she said softly. “Jake flew right through the windshield. He cracked his collarbone and broke his pelvis.”

  I covered my hand with my mouth. It was all too real—the man I loved, lying in bed, broken like a doll.

  “Anyway, I’m just so glad you’re here,” Abby said quickly. “The doctor said that hearing your voice would likely help Jake a lot.”

  I blinked. “Why?”

  Abby cocked her head to the side and frowned. “Because He’s in love with you,” she said quietly. “Jake talks about you non-stop.”

  My heart ached in my chest. I wondered if Abby knew about the breakup. Based on the worshipful way the rest of the family was staring at me, I somehow guessed that Jake hadn’t bothered to mention it.

  “Thank you for calling me,” I said softly. I walked over to the edge of the bed and rested my hand on Jake’s. Despite the IV taped in the back of his hand, his skin felt hot and rough.

  “I’m here honey,” I whispered. “Jake, please wake up. We can’t lose you yet. Look at all these people who care about you.”

  I couldn’t be sure, but I thought I saw Jake’s eyelids flutter at that moment.

  Abby swooped in. “It’s crazy,” she said, running a hand through her hair. “The whole family flew out here to see Jake race. I can’t believe something like this happened.” she said, shaking her head. “It was like watching something from a horror movie.” She laughed humorlessly and shook her head. “I know it was wrong to go through Jake’s phone,” she added. “But I saw all those pictures of you and knew I had to call you. How else would you know?”

  I nodded as a numb feeling spread through my limbs. “Well, thank you,” I said again. “I mean, I’m a little surprised, but…” I trailed off, biting my lip.

  “Don’t be,” Abby said firmly. “You’re his girlfriend. He loves you so much.—I’d be a terrible person if I didn’t call.” She sighed wearily. “I’m just glad you weren’t there to see the crash.”

  Chills were running down my spine as I imagined how awful it would have been to watch Jake’s fateful accident. Despite my complicated feelings toward him at the moment, I was glad I was there. I knew it would be awkward as soon as the rest of the family found out that Jake and I had broken up, but I was determined not to say anything for as long as possible.

  “You look exhausted,” I whispered softly. I turned to the rest of Jake’s family and bowed my head. “How about if you all go and get something to eat and maybe even some rest?”

  An older woman with blonde and silver hair smiled sadly. “We’ve been here for hours,” she said. “They just wheeled Jake into a room.” She sniffled and lifted a tissue to her mouth. “I can’t believe that’s my baby,” she said in a hoarse whisper. “This can’t be happening.”

  An older man—Jake’s father, I presumed—wrapped his arm around the woman’s shoulders. He looked bone tired, too.

  “The doctors said Jake wouldn’t wake up for a few hours,” he said in a Midwestern drawl. “Honey, why don’t we go on down to the cafeteria and get something to eat?”

  The woman nodded. She looked dazed, like a zombie.

  “You go. I’ll stay here, with Jake,” I said quickly. “If anything happens, I’ll call Abby right away.”

  “Thank you, Liv,” the woman whispered. “We appreciate it so much.”

  I stared as the group of Jake’s family slowly filtered out of the room, talking amongst themselves in hushed voices. As soon as I was alone with Jake, I pulled a chair close to his bed and sat down.

  “I know you probably can’t hear me right now,” I said softly. “But I’m right here and I won’t leave until you’re back to normal and everything is okay. I promise.”

  Jake stirred in his sleep. For a horrible moment, I was afraid he’d wake up and see me and be upset. But then when he didn’t wake, disappointment swelled inside of me.

  I sat with Jake for hours. His family was only gone for a little more than twenty minutes, but when they came back, Abby and I encouraged them to go get some sleep. The heavy alcohol buzz had completely worn off–if anything, I felt energized. But I had no intention of leaving Jake until he woke up. I couldn’t handle disappointing him one more time.

  ***

  Almost a whole week passed before Jake woke up. I was spending most of my time at the hospital. In the meantime, the Daytona Veterinary Clinic offered me the job, but I wouldn’t be starting for two more weeks, which worked out perfectly. Even though I was desperate for cash, I was happy to be able to stay at the hospital round the clock. I wanted to be there when he woke up.

  When Jake finally did open his eyes, I was sitting next to his bed, holding his hand. His sister, Abby, and I were playing a half-hearted game of Monopoly on her tablet, and I’d just built my very first hotels on Boardwalk and Park Place.

  “Liv?” Jake’s voice made me jump and cry out in surprise. He sounded weak and tired, but it was still the same cocky growl that sent shivers down my spine.

  “Oh my God, Jake!” Tears came to my eyes and I grinned, squeezing his hand. “I can’t believe you’re awake!”

  Jake chuckled. He nodded, then coughed wetly. He’d lost his deep tan and he looked pale and bloodless, almost grey in the fluorescent lighting of the hospital room.

  “How long was I out?”

  “About a week,” I said quickly.

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah, I’ve been here with Abby and your mom and dad almost the whole time.”

  “Damn,” Jake said. He licked his dry, cracked lips. “Can I have some water?”

  I rushed over to the sink and filled a paper cup with tepid tap water. Jake drank greedily, then coughed and closed his eyes.

  “I think I’m gonna be sick,” he said slowly. “I feel so tired.”

  “It’s because you haven’t eaten anything,” Abby said. She stood up. “Let me get the nurse.” she said.

  When she was gone, Jake looked at me nervously. “What happened?”

  “I don’t know,” I said softly. “I wasn’t there—but I was told you were in an accident when you pulled over for a pit crew change.”

  Jake nodded. A distressed look came over his face. “I can’t feel my legs,” he whispered.

  “What?” I leaned closer. “Don’t panic. Let’s wait for the doctor.”

  Just then, Abby burst into the room followed by two doctors and a nurse. The doctors looked rushed and harried, but the nurse was smiling brightly.

  “I can’t feel my legs,” Jake repeated in a strangled voice. Panic was setting in. “I can’t feel my legs!”

  The two doctors exchanged nervous glances. “I’m Dr. Weiss, and this is Dr. Dillard,” the first man said. “You’ve suffered quite serious injuries, Jacob.”

  “Jake,” I said automatically. “He’s Jake.”

  The doctors both ignored me.

  “What happened to me?” Jake asked softly. “Why can’t I move?”

  Dr. Weiss pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down. “You broke your pelvis,” he said slowly, “and your collarbone. You also have a minor concussion. At first, we had you in a medical coma in order to observe the effect of your injuries. But then you lost conscious
ness on your own for almost a week.”

  Jake stared. “Will I walk again?”

  “It’s not good to ask such big questions right now,” Dr. Dillard said. He smiled kindly, but I got the impression that he was almost as exhausted as Jake was. “Right now, we just want to focus on getting you better.”

  “But I want to walk,” Jake said. His voice was rising hysterically. “I can’t live if I can’t walk! I can’t race!”

  Dr. Dillard looked at me. “Jake, is this your girlfriend?”

  Jake and I looked at each other. After a second, he nodded.

  “Yes,” Jake said. “Liv. Why?”

  Dr. Dillard turned towards me. “Liv, why don’t you come with me,” he said. “Let’s give Jake and Dr. Weiss a few moments alone.”

  “No,” I said quickly. “I want to be here with Jake. I don’t care what you say, I’m not leaving his side.”

  Jake gave me a small smile and I squeezed his hand reassuringly.

  “Okay,” Dr. Weiss said. “I’m not going to lie, Jake. In order for you to have a chance at making a full recovery, you’re going to have to work very, very hard.”

  “I can do that,” Jake said quickly. “I can do that—as long as I’ll walk again. I promise, I’ll do anything.”

  “Well, it’s not just about a promise,” Dr. Weiss said cautiously. “You’re looking at a lot of physical therapy, Jake. We have a great facility here–in fact, one of the best in the country. But we can’t work miracles. You’re going to have to work very hard if you want to walk again. And even with all of the work, there are no guarantees.”

  Jake slumped against the pillows of the bed. He looked crestfallen, and a hot burst of anger tore through my body as I tried to process what the doctors were telling us. I couldn’t believe that Jake might never walk again. He was so full of life, so charming and vivacious and funny. He was the kind of guy who immediately attracted attention. My heart sank as I thought about how much his charming personality was tied to his success…what kind of person would Jake become now that his career could effectively be over?

  I wondered how he would cope with having severely limited physical mobility.