makes his move. I’m holding my breath as he dives down deep to pass Mack just as they head into turn three. They make contact with their tires, the result causing Mack to shoot up the track and Daniels to fly down into the apron as he struggles to keep it under control. Mack is able to right himself quickly and doesn’t lose the place as he finishes in second place, Daniels coming in right behind him.
I exhale a loud breath as Coop talks to Mack about the incident. I can hear the tension in his reply, or lack thereof. The tension is practically palpitating through the headset as he makes his way around the track and pulls into pit road. The guys are there, the moment the car is stopped, helping remove Mack’s security devices and exit the vehicle. I climb down the ladder, but don’t approach. I can already tell it’s about to go down.
The moment Mack is free, he turns and heads away from his pit stall. Toward Daniels. The guys try to grab him, but he shakes them off. I can see his mouth moving, like he’s reassuring them he’s just going to talk to him, but a knot forms in the pit of my stomach. I can already tell this isn’t going to end well.
Coop is right behind me. The second he catches Mack’s movement away from our group, he sighs and heads off after him. I’ve never known Mack to be a hothead, but when you’re in the heat of the moment, all bets are off.
Oliver and I hang back, Daniels’ stall too far down the road for me to see them anymore. After a few tense moments, Fish approaches from behind me. “Hey, where’d everyone go?” he asks in that familiar Southern drawl.
“Umm, I’m afraid they may have gone to see Daniels.” The moment the words are out of my mouth, Fish takes off.
After what feels like the world’s longest few minutes, the guys finally reappear, all headed our way. They’re laughing and carrying on, Mack in the middle of the crowd looking all tense and broody. This is the side of racing I rarely saw. My dad always had me in the booth with him, and if anything ever happened after a race, I stayed put.
They all stop beside their car and then scatter when a reporter approaches. Mack slips his ball cap on his head and gives her a dazzling smile. Even though I can’t hear what they’re saying, I know she’s asking about that last lap and possibly what words were exchanged with Daniels.
When she leaves, he finally looks my way. Mack seems to relax a bit as he takes in my presence off to the side. He holds up a finger for me to hold on a second before turning to Coop to have words. The crew chief leans forward, speaking directly into Mack’s ear. Whatever he says, Mack just nods curtly before receiving a pat on the back from his friend then turning and heading my way.
“Everything okay?” I whisper when he’s within earshot.
He nods, but keeps his eyes cast downward on Oliver. Mack bends down and kisses his forehead, squeezing my side the way he seems to do after these last few races. Carefully, he removes the headphones from the baby’s ears. When he finally has nothing else to distract him, he gazes my way and exhales loudly.
“That fucker tried to put me into the wall,” he whispers, only loud enough for me to hear.
“Are you sure? It didn’t look intentional, Mack. It looked like your tires just slightly rubbed when he was trying to pass you,” I reply gently, trying not to poke the bear.
He huffs. “Yeah, I’m sure. Daniels is too good of a driver to accidentally rub my tires as he passed. We had plenty of room on that corner, and I was holding my line. He intentionally moved up.”
“So what happened over there?” I ask, nodding in the direction of where they went to have a discussion with the series points leader.
“Fucker denied it. Said I came down at him because he was passing me.”
I place my hand on his chest, the rapid beat of his heart thumping angrily beneath my palm. “And we both know you’d never do that.”
His gaze locks with mine. “No, I wouldn’t. As angry as I get on the track, I’d never intentionally try to wreck someone. Even Aric Daniels.” As he says the driver’s name, he pulls