6

Although he’d stepped all over his own dick the night before with Mira, Will was determined to shake it off when he arrived at the Lennox factory the next morning. He was scheduled in the simulator to work through the data from yesterday’s drives, and anything he could do to improve the car’s performance had to be his sole focus.

That resolve was sorely tested when he entered the simulator room to find Mira waiting there for him. To be fair, Paul was the one waiting for him, and Mira was there because … well, it was her job. And he was her father . She was busy, diligently taking note of everything Paul and David said, so he took advantage of her distraction to check her out. He was only human, after all.

Her black trousers and blue jumper were just as conservative as the gray dress she’d been wearing last night, but frustratingly, that didn’t stop him from finding her attractive. Nor did her ruthlessly slicked back blond hair. It just made him imagine what it would look like falling across her shoulders. Like the sensible black shoes made him wonder if she painted her toenails, and the clingy blue jumper made him wonder about the bra underneath and—

“Will?” He startled to attention to find Paul and David staring at him and got the feeling they’d said his name more than once. Which was why he needed to stop obsessing over a girl who’d turned him down not once, but twice, and was his boss’s daughter.

“Ready for me, Paul?” Yes, please, put him in the simulator where he could focus on driving and block out everything else.

“We want to look at one more thing. Give us a minute?”

“Sure thing.”

David pulled Paul over to a bank of computer monitors. Mira was about to follow, but he nudged her elbow. Time to clear the air.

“Listen, Mira, if I made you feel uncomfortable, I apologize.”

“I’m fine,” she replied briskly, focusing on her notepad again to avoid looking at him. It was filled with her writing, tiny and precise, with bullet points and proper headings. Her notes looked like someone’s PhD paper. Like he wasn’t already terrified of her.

“I didn’t realize who you were or I’d never have—”

Now she looked at him, her head snapping up, those clear green eyes zeroing in on his. “Oh, so you’re only sorry because my dad runs the team?”

“No, I—”

“If I was just the clueless intern you thought I was, then I’d be fair game?”

“I didn’t say—”

“Because you can’t just—”

“I said I was sorry, okay?” His voice was loud enough that Paul and David glanced back over their shoulders at them. Mira’s mouth snapped shut as she cast a nervous glance around the room. “You’re right,” he said. “I should have backed off, no matter who your father is. Consider it my own special kind of punishment that your father happens to be Paul Wentworth.”

She fought to control her smile. “When you figured it out, your face was priceless.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure I sounded like a total wanker, offering to explain racing to you.” He rubbed the back of his neck.

She held up her forefinger and thumb, a hair apart. “Maybe just this much of a wanker.”

“Okay, so yeah, I made an ass of myself and then I asked you out, and I’m now living in fear of your father. Does that make us even?”

Now she smiled in earnest, the first real smile he’d seen directed at him. Her dimples even made an appearance. Ah, fuck, this was going to be hard.

“Fine, we’re even,” Mira said.

“Let’s start over entirely.” He held out his hand to her. “Hi, I’m Will Hawley. Welcome to Lennox Motorsport.”

Tentatively she took his hand. Warm. Delicate fingers. Pleasant little tingle as their palms made contact.

Nope. Off-limits.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Hawley. Miranda Wentworth. Pleasure working with you.”

She began to slide her hand away, but he held on to it for another beat. “It’s Will.”

Their eyes met.

“Okay,” she whispered. “Will.”

There was definitely a spark there. He wasn’t imagining it. But he also wasn’t going to indulge in it.

He released her hand. “I’d better finish getting ready.” He untied the sleeves of his race suit from around his waist and started shrugging into the top half. He didn’t miss it, the lightning-fast once-over she gave his upper body in his skintight undershirt. And okay, maybe he slowed down and flexed a little bit.

She cleared her throat. “You’re suiting up for the simulator?”

He grinned. “We’re still dialing in my specs on the suit. I’m trying a different size today. Tighter.”

“Tighter?” Mira replied.

“Ready, Will?” Paul called from across the room, cutting off his chance for further teasing.

“Yep. Let’s get to it.”

He was glad they were past the disaster of last night. And he could do this—simply be colleagues with someone as gorgeous as Mira. This was the new Will Hawley, professional through and through.

Off-limits . Off-limits. He repeated it like a mantra as he walked up the short flight of metal stairs to the platform where the partial car sat, elevated on its hydraulic legs. There were a couple of techs there, still fiddling with the wraparound monitors that would display the track, like the most expensive, immersive video game ever played.

He tugged his gloves on while Paul prepped him. “Pay attention to the downforce in there today.”

“Bit of a mess yesterday.”

“We saw that. David thinks he’s sorted out how to reconnect the air structures at the back, so we can optimize the diffuser. We’ve added a monkey seat under the rear wing to help connect airflow from the diffuser. You ought to notice a big difference from yesterday, even accounting for those bricks for tires you were on.”

“Got it. Where am I racing?”

“We’re putting you in Melbourne,” Paul called up the stairs. “Since that’s when you’ll have the new front brake duct installed.”

He ignored the flare of irritation at that reminder. He would be driving the first race in Matteo’s car. Fuck it. He’d drive the hell out it. He’d drive Matteo’s car better than Matteo.

Omar handed him his helmet and he glanced down at the room below. Mira was still there, watching him get ready. He cast one more quick glance at Paul, David, and all the other techs milling around the room. Everyone was occupied elsewhere. So he looked back at Mira, grinned, and lifted two fingers to his forehead in a little salute. She bit her lip and dropped her eyes to her notebook. But she was smiling.

So was he as he pulled his helmet on and climbed into the simulator.