Legends and Lies (3 page)

THE MEAL WITH JARED was relaxed and fun. He’d kept the conversation light talking about books and movies that they’d read and seen. He was genial and self-deprecating and he put her immediately at ease.

Annie should have found it comforting, but instead she seemed to be having a delayed reaction to Dave’s accident. The images kept playing back in her head exactly as she’d captured it in her camera. The second-by-second still frame in her mind of the cars bumping and spinning. Except this time she knew Dave was the driver of the car.

She felt the impact and jolt as the seat belt held him in place and then felt the car spinning out of control. She started to hyperventilate again, and pushed herself away from the table, mumbling some excuse to Jared.

What was wrong with her? She made it as far as the hallway leading to the bathroom before she sank down on the floor, burying her head in her hands.

She’d forgotten about this. Forgotten in the years she’d been away photographing other drivers that she hated watching the men in her family race. Annie didn’t like the worry that seized her whenever Dave got behind the wheel and didn’t let go until he was safely out of that car.

It had been the same with her father. For years she’d been able to hide and push those feelings aside, but not anymore.

She felt a hand on the back of her head and glanced up at Jared. “Want to get out of here?”

She nodded as he tugged her to her feet. They left the restaurant, but he didn’t direct them to his car. Instead he twined their fingers together and led her down the historic district of old Cocoa Beach. The buildings stood like silent sentinels of time. They’d weathered hurricanes and population booms, and witnessed the birth of the space program.

She wanted to be like that—a witness to the action going on in her life but not affected by it. But she never had been. Not even with the camera around her neck could she keep the distance she craved. And she had a feeling this racing season was going to be a test for her…one she wasn’t exactly sure she could pass.

“Want to talk about it?” he asked.

She thought for a moment of playing dumb. Of saying something like “about what?” but she liked Jared and didn’t want to play games with him. So she shook her head. “Not really.”

“Was it me?”

She glanced over at him, not sure what he meant.

“Some women find me so attractive they have a little trouble breathing.”

She gave him a wry glance. His silly conversation distracted her as nothing else could have. “Sorry, it wasn’t you.”

“A man can hope,” he said.

But she knew she hadn’t really hurt his ego. The night air was cool, and slowly she felt the panic that had attacked her at the restaurant fade away. “Sorry about that.”

“No problem,” he said. “It’s been a long day.”

“Were you worried about Tucker? Dave said the two of you are tight.”

“You asked your brother about me?”

He was deflecting her question, but she’d avoided a topic she didn’t want to talk about so she let him. But in the back of her thoughts it reminded her that they were both hiding things. “He was warning me about you.”

“Really? What did he say?”

“Just that no one really knows that much about you.”

“No one knows all that much about you, either.”

She took a deep breath. Either this date was going somewhere or it wasn’t. At this point she could keep up the silly chatter and never go out with him again or she could push deeper and see if there was anything worth knowing beneath the facade of the charming man.

He said nothing in response and she knew this was a test for him—her way of gauging him to see if he was the kind of man she wanted to spend more time with or not. She liked him. Liked his smile and his laugh.

“I’m not sure you’re the right man for me. And—” she took a deep breath “—I’m afraid to trust my instincts when it comes to men.”

Jared drew her to a stop, pulling her into the shadow of the storefront and wrapping one of his big hands around her waist. He drew her into his body, putting his other hand on her face and tipping her head back so that their eyes met.

“You’re not like the other women I’ve dated,” he said, so softly she almost couldn’t hear his words.

She started to speak to apologize for not being what he wanted, but he put a finger over her lips, then rubbed his thumb back and forth over her lower lip until her mouth tingled and she wanted more.

Adrenaline pumped through her veins and anticipation tightened her skin. She leaned forward, going up on her tiptoes, and met his mouth as he descended toward her. His lips weren’t light or tentative, but were firm and forceful as he opened his mouth over hers and kissed her.

She braced her hands on his shoulders and threw herself into the maelstrom that was Jared. She forgot all the warnings from Dave and her own internal fears that she was drawn once again to the wrong man for her. She’d never craved a kiss from a man the way she wanted this kiss from Jared.

She wanted this chance to know this man, who was more than she expected him to be. And as his head came down to hers, she realized he wasn’t her proof-she-was-over-Malcolm man. He was a man she wanted just for himself. And that should have scared her more than it did.

JARED HAD NEVER TASTED anything sweeter than Annie. He knew kissing her was a mistake. She brought out things in him that he didn’t want to admit were a part of him. And she wasn’t going to play it light.

That was why he had been unable to resist her lips. He wanted to see what kissing an honest woman would taste like and it was sweeter than he’d guessed. Annie wasn’t pushy in her embrace. She savored the kiss and let him set the tone.

He fought against taking it too far too fast, because a part of him wanted to get to that point where he’d stop thinking and just react to her.

But he didn’t want to be on autopilot. He smoothed his hand down her back to her hips, and held her in his arms. He wanted to remember every second of this embrace. Wanted to remember the way the breeze stirred the long strands of her hair, wrapping them around his neck, and the way her body moved against his as she leaned close for support.

She wasn’t aggressive, but at the same time wasn’t shy, either. She just took her time with the kiss as if they had all night. As if time could stop in this one moment.

He pulled back, dropping soft kisses on her lips, afraid to completely break the contact, but knowing he had to before things got totally out of control and he took this embrace where he wanted to.

He tucked her head against his shoulder and rested his cheek on the top of her head. He tried to breathe deeply to regain his control, but every breath he took was filled with Annie, a mixture of the scent of her shampoo and something more elusive, some essence that was just her.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him tightly to her. He heard her say something, but the words were lost in the front of his coat.

“What?”

“I like you, Jared.”

She made him feel good inside and he didn’t want to examine that. There had been few people in his life who’d liked him just for who he was. Was Annie one of them?

He told himself that it was just the kiss and the hormones talking, but for once he was going to accept the words at face value.

“That’s nice,” he said, trying for a light tone.

She glanced up at him, feminine knowledge in her eyes and…something else. Something he couldn’t name but it made him feel…ah, hell. They needed some space. Some distance. He needed to cool things out and get her out of his head.

Except he liked the way she felt in his arms. He liked…he just plain liked the excitement she brought out in him.

“I’m not good at relationships,” he said, wanting to be honest.

“How do you mean?”

“I have a problem with staying power,” he said.

“So don’t expect too much from you?” she asked.

Hearing those words, the very ones he wanted her to understand from him, on her lips, made something tighten in his stomach. “Yeah…yeah, that’s what I was saying…but…”

He couldn’t say anything else. He didn’t want to sound like some kind of wuss. God, this was why his dating track record was full of women who were more into serial dating than commitment. Women like Annie came along once in a lifetime and that freaking scared the crap out of him. He’d built his life by always keeping moving, always going forward, and at this point in time he really wasn’t ready to slow down.

She took a deep breath. “Thanks for the warning.”

“Was that what I was doing? Warning you?”

“I think so. And you should know…”

“What?”

“I’m not good at trusting men,” she said.

“Why not?”

She shook her head. “I can’t get into that tonight.”

“No pressure. This is just our first date.”

“First date? Are you planning to ask me out again?”

He let his hands slide away from her body and took her hand in his. He wanted to ask her to go to Tucker’s after-party, but had the feeling that wasn’t the best idea. He needed a breather.

“Will you be in Fontana next weekend?”

“I will be.”

“How will that work with your job?”

“I’m doing a special project.”

They reached his car and he unlocked the door and seated her.

“Tell me about your special project,” he said, once he had the car in gear and they were headed back to Daytona.

“It’s a book about the Jenner family. Dave’s going to win the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Championship this year.”

“Some of the other drivers might not agree with that,” Jared said, thinking to himself that Tucker had a pretty good shot at winning.

“I think I mentioned that I’m surrounded by arrogant men.”

“That you did. I hope you aren’t too disappointed if your brother doesn’t win.”

“I’m pretty sure he will. He was so close last year. And he’s made some adjustments to his car and team that will make him unstoppable this year.”

“What kind of changes?” Jared asked.

“None that I can share with the competition,” she stated.

“I wasn’t looking for you to share secrets,” he said.

She nodded and changed the subject, but underlying the small talk was the knowledge that they were both a big part of two different teams and they both wanted their driver to win the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Championship.

ANNIE’S CELL PHONE rang as soon as they entered the Daytona city limits, breaking the tension that had sprung between her and Jared. She glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Dave. She was tempted to ignore it, especially since she knew that her last comments to Jared had reminded them both of the reality of their lives at the track—the fact that they were both affiliated with rival drivers. But Dave wouldn’t call unless it was something important.

“I have to take this,” she said to Jared. She wanted to pretend she was just Annie and not a Jenner, but she knew that wasn’t reality. She was a Jenner and that was going to play a part in any relationship she had. Not just with Jared but with any man she dated.

“No problem,” he said, lowering the volume on the radio.

“Hey, Dave, what’s up?” she asked, thinking he’d probably had a last-minute media event for the next day that he wanted her to photograph.

“Daddy’s having some chest pains. We don’t know what’s going on, but Dr. Rivers thinks it might be a heart attack. We’re en route to Florida Hospital Oceanside.”

She wasn’t sure she heard her brother right. She’d seen her father a few hours earlier. He’d been fine. There was nothing the matter with him.

“Annie, did you hear me?”

Her hand was shaking. “Yes. Where did you say you’re taking him?”

“Give the phone to Jared. I’ll tell him where to meet us.”

She did as Dave suggested, and Jared just looked at her, but she couldn’t say anything. Didn’t want the words
my father’s having a heart attack
to come out of her mouth. She didn’t want to believe them or think that they might be true. She was vaguely aware of Jared talking to her brother. Vaguely aware of his deep voice saying things, and then there was silence. And all she heard in her mind were Dave’s words. They echoed over and over until she wanted to scream.

She tightened her hands into fists, her nails digging into her palms, and the pain was a careful reminder that this wasn’t some kind of bizarre dream that she’d drifted into.

She couldn’t cry and felt numb from the inside out. But she was breathing heavily again. Too fast. She needed to calm down. She held her breath, hoping that would help, but instead stars danced in front of her eyes and she was very afraid she was going to pass out.

And she didn’t want to do that.

Jared put his hand on the back of her neck, urging her head forward as he maneuvered the car off the highway and onto the shoulder. “Breathe.”

She forced herself to calm down and breathe. “I’m not normally hysterical.”

“You aren’t hysterical now. Here’s your phone,” he said, handing the unit back to her.

She tossed it into her purse without looking at it. She just stared at her lap, kept her head down and breathed. With each inhalation she took in the reassuring scent of Jared.

His hand was on the back of her neck, stroking over her skin. His touch was a soothing rhythm that helped her calm down and allowed her to come back to herself and shake off the panic. There was nothing she could do about what had happened to Daddy, until she got to the hospital and heard what a doctor had to say.

“We’ll be with your family in a minute.”

Her family, she thought. They were going to be very emotional. Dave’s wreck would still be in the forefront of everyone’s mind. The way it was in hers. And she was sure the media would get wind of her daddy’s heart attack.

And she’d be back in the center of the storm like she’d been at the infield care center.

She wasn’t ready for that. But this was life. It didn’t follow any carefully ordered plan, no matter how hard she tried to make it. Her life had never been contained inside the nice neat box that she longed for. Her life was never about any quiet moments of normalcy.

Dave always asked her what normal was. But she knew there was a real world where people didn’t deal with… She stopped herself.

People dealt with heart attacks every day. This was normal. But she didn’t want this normal. She wanted the normal that had always been just outside her grasp. She shook her head, sitting up.

Anger came quickly on the heels of her panic. And she hated that about herself. She hadn’t been angry at the track when Dave had crashed, but now she was angry at her father. Daddy’s last two physical exams had revealed hardened arteries and the doctors had advised him to change his diet and lifestyle, but the old man hadn’t. He refused to let someone else tell him how to live.

He’d survived too many crashes and had some kind of belief that he was invincible. She glanced at Jared, who was watching her in the interior of the car. Only the lights of the dashboard illuminated the both of them.

He raised one eyebrow at her and she realized some of that irrational anger must be visible in her expression. She buried her face in her hands and shook her head. She felt tears stinging the back of her eyes.

“Annie, what can I do?” he asked.

She didn’t know. Honestly, she had no idea what anyone could do. She’d never had a day like this before. Of course, there’d been close calls before. Over the course of her life she’d spent many hours in ICU waiting rooms, hoping and praying that her father or brother would recover. But this was different. This wasn’t a crazy crash. This was his body telling him to change.

And her father had never listened to anyone. He was stubborn and bullheaded just like Dave. She lowered her hands and looked at this man she barely knew. This man she wanted to get to know better, but not this way. Not when she was feeling so raw and exposed. She shook her head and he didn’t say anything else, he just maneuvered the car back out on the road, driving her to the hospital.

When they arrived she noticed a news van parked in front of the E.R. entrance and could see already that some reporters were inside with their camera crews.

“Can’t they leave us alone?” she asked.

“Annie, the Jenner family is big news in Daytona, especially on race day.”

She knew that. “Please come in with me?”

“I’ll be right beside you, I promise.”