Throttled (Dirty Air Series Book 1)

Is this what it feels like to be ghosted? I’ve done it to girls in the past, but I’ve never been on the receiving end. And to be honest, it totally sucks. Karma really is a bitch after all.

I haven’t seen Maya since Monaco. She barely answers any of my messages, which makes me second-guess if I kissed her too soon. Me, second-guessing. What a joke. Sometimes she seems in to me, but stuff she does makes me uncertain. A foreign sensation to say the least.

I land in Baku two days earlier to get acclimated to the city. That and I want to be around when Santi and his sister arrive because I want to catch Maya when he leaves.

Wednesday goes by without a sign of her during our sponsor meetings and ass-kissing specials. But Maya doesn’t come to any of them. I worry she wants to back out of coming to another race because of me.

I give in to my curiosity and ask Santi about her while we walk back to the hospitality suites after our press conference.

“Where’s your sister been?”

He turns his head slowly toward me, revealing squinted eyes and a tight jaw. I don’t get intimidated by him. His scary face comes off like a puppy dog, not threatening like his dad’s.

“Busy. She visited our parents back in Spain. Why?” He glares at me.

“Was curious why she didn’t come to the last Prix. Wondered how it would affect your racing.” My cocky grin seems to placate him. Back to our usually scheduled programming with one another—me being the cocky asshole and him taking it.

He scoffs. “I did fine. I raced without my sister by my side for years while she was in college. You’re the one who struggled this time.”

Santi has a fight in him. Good to know.

“Yup. You win some, you lose some.” I shrug. “Is she coming to this race?” I can’t tell if my voice sounds disinterested enough.

“Yeah. She’s already here.”

I follow Santi to the hospitality suite, disappointed when Maya isn’t there.

“Is Maya hanging out in there?”

He stares at me, his head tilting to the side as his lips press together in a tight line. “Nah, she went to hang out with Sophie. Said something about exploring the city for her vlog.”

My eyes nearly bug out of my head. They’re out alone in a random city they’ve never visited before where the people speak a different language. What if someone recognizes them?

“They should be more careful. Why do you let them go out by themselves? That’s irresponsible.”

Santi’s gaze hardens. “I can take care of my sister. It’s a safe city.”

“I think you forget you’re worth over twenty million dollars now. Why do you think people are kidnapped for ransom? Hint, it’s not always for pretty looks.”

His ignorance grates on me.

Santi’s jaw ticks. He takes a couple of deep breaths while I stare him down. I piss him off, but he can be a real idiot sometimes.

“Thanks for the advice.” He enters his suite and slams the door.

I text Maya to check if she still has a pulse.

Maya (06/19 6:58 p.m.): Thanks for asking. We’re all good. Going to dinner and then bed. Good luck at practice tomorrow.

I need to come up with something to do together that doesn’t include me shoving my tongue down her throat. Which I still want to do, but we have to do fun stuff too. A plan comes to mind so I enlist my friends to help me. She needs to see what she can have if she gives us a chance.

“Grab the girls and meet me at the Baku kart area.”

Liam stares at me like I’m talking to him in another language. Yeah, he speaks German, but he understands English fine.

“Why are we doing this again?” His voice matches the incredulous look on his face.

“Because I want us all to have fun before the race. What’s so hard to believe?” I control the urge to roll my eyes.

“Uh yeah. Your usual pre-race fun involves being balls deep inside of a model.”

I punch him in the arm. “Fuck you. Don’t tell Maya I planned this because then she won’t come.” My teeth grind together—my new bad habit lately, kind of like stalking Maya’s social media accounts. I’ve become that guy. The one checking her profile to the point of addiction, sneaking quick glances at what she does to fill the void of her absence.

Jax and Liam can take credit while I pretend to join because I don’t want her to find out I put in this much effort. Her avoiding me for weeks forced me to plan something drastic for her attention.

“All right no need to hit so hard. I’ll meet you there.” He rubs his arm and pouts.

Liam pulls up to the kart track an hour later. Jax, Maya, and Sophie hop out of the rental car. I didn’t invite Santi because I’m not a total dumbass, mainly because he’s been paying extra attention to me recently, sneaking random glances whenever his sister gets close.

Maya’s mouth gapes open when she sees me standing there.

“We’re going karting?” Sophie claps her hands and bounces around, her blonde braids swaying around her while Liam checks her out. He gives me a hard time with Maya when he makes heart eyes at Sophie.

“I haven’t done this since I was a kid.” Maya looks at the helmet in my hand. She blushes when I pass it to her, our hands grazing against each other.

“You only had an opportunity to ride karts when you stole your brother’s. So here’s your chance to drive them for real. Don’t put any unicorn stickers on them.” That totally makes it sound like I planned this. There goes my idea of her not knowing about it. Real subtle, Noah.

“Oh, no. But you guys are professionals. How is that even remotely fair?” Sophie crosses her arms over her chest.

Maya rubs her hands together while she shoots Sophie a grin full of mischief.

“Sophie, they’re used to fast cars. We’ve got this.”

That gleam in her eye? Definitely should be worried; no doubt she wants to kick our asses.

Turns out Maya does precisely that on the first run. I had no clue she was talented with a kart, and fuck it turns me on. I could blame the fact that I haven’t kart-raced in a while, but she’s a natural at it. Absolutely wiped the track with us.

My dick twitches at Maya sitting there, gloating in her kart, arms up in the air in triumph. She looks sexy as fuck with her helmet and borrowed race suit. I didn’t peg myself for having a racing fetish, but looking at her now makes me rethink the idea, especially when she whips off her helmet to reveal messy hair.

An unknown sensation from the top of my head to the tips of my toes surges through me at planning something she likes. She smiles at Sophie from the mini podium they have meant for kids. I wish she would smile at me like she does with others, beautiful with a hint of trouble. Liam and I grab the champagne bottles I kept hidden in a bag and spray them all over the girls.

“Hello, aren’t we the ones who should be spraying champagne?” Maya gets the words out between laughs.

Liam and I pass them new bottles that are the same ones we use on the stage. Went for the full F1 effect today. I pop the cork before letting go, the bottle nearly dropping before Maya grips it with two hands.

Maya proceeds to pour it all over me. The cool liquid runs down my shirt, wet material plastering to my torso. Her eyes heat up at the sight of my abs before they roam over my body. I give her a wicked smile. She hops off the stage, lunging to the side, but my reflexes make me quicker.

I haul her over my shoulder like a fireman’s carry. She squirms about, making it difficult for me to hold on to her. My hand smacks her ass playfully to get her to stop.

“Ay! Watch it. That’s the no-go zone.” She shakes from laughter.

No clue what the no-go zone is, but I’m all for exploring it. She should know by now that I don’t follow the rules, preferring to bend them into submission.

“Precious cargo. Everyone, please move out of the way.”

Kids and parents part at my request. Maya’s giggles turn into a snort, which makes her laugh more, her body vibrating against mine.

“The blood’s rushing to my head. I can’t think straight.”

“Join the club.” I refer to a different head than she is. She gets the joke a second too late and her body shakes from more laughter.

“Oh my God, you can’t say stuff like that. Like ever.” More laughs as I smack her ass again. I love the feel of it beneath my palm, my dick stirring while a smile breaks out on my face.

I carry her to the waiting town car. We all drive back to the hotel, soaking wet from champagne. Maya gives me the biggest grin that reaches her eyes, and damn if my lungs don’t burn at my sudden intake of breath.

“Hi, everyone. Maya here with the amazing Noah Slade. He agreed to do an exclusive interview for my vlog.” She looks gorgeous with her hair down. Today she wears shorts that show off her golden legs, ones I want wrapped around my waist while I pound into her. I’m so curious to hear the different noises she makes during sex. Is she a screamer? A moaner? I’ll volunteer to figure it out.

She smiles at the camera she situated on a rolling cart in the pit garage. We position ourselves next to my race car, the vibrant red calling my name as Maya’s ass leans against it. Low beeps from the pit computers sound off in the background.

“You think I’m amazing?” I forget the camera for a second. Like the sad sap I am lately around her, I love hearing anything she has to share, any revelation about her feelings. A fucking breadcrumb would be nice. She taunts me daily despite the way she guards herself, keeping her lips sealed, both literally and figuratively. There are few opportunities for us to be alone. Sophie magically finds us every time we get a moment by ourselves, which makes me want to take drastic measures to spend time with her, including this exclusive interview.

And everyone knows I hate interviews.

She rolls her eyes with minimal effort. “Hush, I wonder if you consume extra calories to feed your ego. Anyway, fans want a backstage exclusive. They’re curious to learn more about you. So I copied a famous game called Web’s Most Searched Answers.”

She passes me a cardboard poster with my name in a Google search bar, along with a bunch of tape-covered questions. I recognize it so I guess I’m famous enough to play it.

“Our first question is…” She expectantly looks at me, making me smile. Her parted lips tempt me to take a risk and kiss her.

I cough to cover up a groan, and then I tear off the tape for the first piece of paper.

“What is Noah Slade’s height? Well, I’m six foot. Which is considered on the taller end for F1. They make the cars to fit around our bodies specifically. My feet are near the tip of the front wing up against the pedals.”

Her hands motion for me to continue. All right, I get it.

“Who is Noah Slade and Santiago Alatorre.” I pause. “I’m Noah. No surprise there. And Santiago is my partner and Maya’s brother.” I point at her like an idiot because obviously they know that. “He’s a Spanish dude who’s loud and rarely beats me at racing. Still needs to work on his overtaking skills and not crashing into me from behind.”

Maya sticks her tongue out at me, making me think about her tongue on other places of my body. Not a convenient time for a boner with cameras rolling. I shift against the hood of the car, discreetly adjusting my pants.

“Ha. Ha. Everyone can tune in for your comedy career once you’re done with racing.”

Fat chance that happens. I chuckle as I rip off the tape to reveal another question.

“What is Noah Slade’s net worth? I’m not one to brag because that’s not polite and I was raised better. But I think last time I checked, about three hundred million. Give or take. Received good advice from my financial advisor about always investing your money. Don’t let it sit in the bank gathering dust. So that’s what I do to multiply the amount I do have. Not to mention real estate investments.”

Maya lets out a low whistle. “I’m impressed. We’re talking to a World Champion here who gives free monetary advice.”

“You know what they say…the bigger the bank account…” I waggle my brows.

Maya ignores the camera and throws her head back. I love the sound of her laugh; pride surges through me at amusing her. Her exposed neck entices my inconvenient one-track mind.

“Who is Noah Slade’s wife?”

Wow, she picked hard-hitting questions here.

I continue. “I’m currently on the market. I’ve never married someone so that’s a negative. Is the statement no wife, happy life?” I wink at the camera.

“I think you mean happy wife, happy life.” Maya blushes and shakes her head.

I chuckle before I keep going. “Where does Noah Slade live? I’m not going to give away my addresses here because I can’t have paparazzi and fans at my doors all the time. My limited privacy is the best part of the off-season. But I own an apartment in Monaco, a house in Italy, and a loft in London. Favorite place to live is off the Amalfi coast during F1’s winter breaks. Hands down the best food and views.”

“Who can resist gelato? I’ve never been to Italy, but the food is my favorite. I can’t wait until the Prix stop in Milan. All right, two more left.” She clasps her hands together and looks at me. She crosses her legs again, drawing my attention toward them once more. I lick my bottom lip before continuing.

“When is Noah Slade retiring?” I blink at the board. I never think about retiring, choosing instead to focus on the next year. I’m still young enough to not worry about it. But the question makes me think about what I’ll do once I hit my late thirties.

“I bet you anything that Liam and Jax google this yearly. They’re probably waiting for my announcement since they’re younger. I don’t doubt it.” Blood rushes to my dick at the sound of her giggle. I need to get out of here before I do something stupid on camera. “Uh. I haven’t considered retiring anytime soon. But I imagine if I meet someone special and have kids, I may consider what’s best for my family. But for now, I plan on kicking everyone’s asses.”

Maya looks surprised at my answer. Hell, I am too. When the fuck have I thought about having kids or a wife? But the answer falls from my lips with ease, like I think about the notion occasionally.

“You never know what could happen in the future. But I’m sure you have plenty of time to figure it out. F1 racers don’t retire until like forty years old. Basically, you’ll be ancient once you leave here. Okay, last one.”

Is that even what I want? To keep racing at the risk of not having a life to go back to once it’s all done? I don’t want to be like my dad, who parties with twenty-somethings on private yachts, cruising around by myself. The thought creeps me out.

“Best Noah Slade team radio?” My team radio videos on YouTube are hilarious. “If you look me up on the internet, you can find lots of videos of me cursing at the team and myself. A team radio is how Bandini and I communicate about race stats, car info, and problems. My personal favorite video is the British Grand Prix from 2014. Watch it if you haven’t seen it. You’ll be entertained. The pit crew forgot to connect my water pump and I was basically a cranky baby without a bottle for an hour.”

I glance at Maya. Her eyes look up at me and fill my chest with a warm feeling.

“Thank you so much for joining us, Noah. Those were the most googled questions people wanted answered about Noah so I decided to go straight to the source. This week I’ll have exclusive footage from the McCoy team, including interviews with Liam and Jax. Stay tuned. Subscribe if you haven’t already. See you next time!” She waves to her camera before shutting it off.

She looks like a natural, both gorgeous and confident. It’s cool she’s found something she can be passionate about. Especially if it keeps her entertained and coming back to all the races because I don’t mind these one-on-one interviews at all.

“You forgot one more question.” I don’t think as the words leave my mouth. It seems like the perfect chance to have her alone without any interruptions of the blonde-haired, green-eyed variety.

Maya stares up at me, confusion lining her face.

“Will Noah Slade ask Maya Alatorre on a date?” I flinch at my pathetic pick-up line.

Not exactly my best work. I blame it on being out of practice, not the way my heart races in my chest at the fear of her rejecting me.

“A date? You don’t date.” She messes around with her camera tripod.

My hand engulfs hers to stop her fidgeting. Her body tenses as I rub my thumb across her knuckles, something I noticed she liked during the few times I’ve done it.

“I want to try. What’s one date?”

“Uh, for someone who doesn’t ever date…everything.” She tugs on her hand, trying to free it, but I don’t let it go. Not until I get what I want.

“It’s one date, don’t be dramatic. I’m not asking for a forever… Are you scared?” I goad her. “We don’t need to put labels on anything. Let’s have fun.”

“Of course I’m not scared. You just want to have fun?” Her brows raise and her lips form a tight line.

Maybe she won’t be happy with no labels, even though most chicks I get with don’t mind. Or maybe fun was the wrong word to say because now she looks at me in a way I can’t read.

“Then go on a date with me. Tomorrow?” I can’t tell if she wants to shut me down.

“My brother can’t know. He would lock me up before killing you,” she sputters.

All right, she didn’t say no. I can work with it.

“What he doesn’t know won’t kill him. We’re only having a good time together.” I want to tell her to stop making a big deal of this. Hasn’t she tried no strings attached? But she agrees, making it a win for me. If there is something I live by, it’s how there’s no time like the present.

I stride away, throwing a victorious grin over my shoulder.