Pace Laps (Racing on the Edge Book 10) (31 page)

“Am I?” I saw red. “Fuck this. I’m leaving. I can’t be here with you right now.”

“What do you mean you’re leaving?”

Pacing the kitchen with my hands behind my neck, I needed to leave.
Now
. “I’m… I think we need some time apart.” My words shook with thirty years of love for this woman, but annoyed she couldn’t see past our son and what this was doing to the two of us. Our eyes met: apprehension in hers, confusion in mine. I didn’t know what leaving meant. It couldn’t mean divorce, could it? At that point, I didn’t know but I wouldn’t go on like this.

Upstairs, I grabbed a bag and some clothes knowing it was the off-season and I wouldn’t be traveling to Charlotte much.

“Where are you going to go? We need to talk about this, Spencer. I was trying to do the right thing.”

“Alley, you didn’t do the right thing, and what’s worse is you don’t even realize it.”

When I was out the door, the reality of the situation and what I was doing hit me, but it still didn’t stop me from leaving.

This book was for the Racing on the Edge fans. You wanted more of Jameson and Sway, and I honestly thought it was necessary to get inside their head in these moments with Sway’s cancer and Jack’s death. I also wanted to give you some closure with Cole, and where his story might go in the future. As you can see, I’ve left some things open, and there may be more stories in the future or a spin-off series. I’m not sure at this point; I just know that for me, this family is my go-to family. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve read this series, and I wrote it.

I have plans for more Racing on the Edge. I can’t let go of them! Check out my Facebook page for more info but I’m planning another book this winter from Arie and Rager.

Thank you to my husband and daughter for allowing me to live my dream of writing and my crazy idea to cut out sugar while writing a book. It was hell, but you stuck by me. I love you both so much.

Thank you to Becky with Hot Tree Editing. In the year that we’ve been working together, you’ve honestly transformed my writing into something I can be proud of and taught me so much about editing. Thank you for taking time with me and helping me blossom as a writer. Love you! Thank you so much for helping me understand past and present tense better!

Tracy Steeg, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate what you’ve done for me with the covers and graphics. I love what you did with the re-design of the series.

Lauren, this book wouldn’t have been possible without you getting inside their heads and pushing me to explore Cole more. Thanks for everything love!

Janet, Barb, Marisa, Shanna, Ashley’s, Jill, Keisha and Rachel, thanks so much, girls.

To my reader group, thanks for being so excited about this release and wanting more of the Riley family. I love this family so much. Here’s to years more exploring them!

Shey Stahl is a
USA Today
best-selling author, a wife, mother, daughter, and friend to many. When she’s not writing, she’s spending time with her family in the Pacific Northwest where she was born, and raised around a dirt track. Visit her website for additional information and keep up to date on new releases:
www.sheystahl.com
.

You can also find her on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/SheyStahlAuthor

Racing on the Edge

Happy Hour

Black Flag

Trading Paint

The Champion

The Legend

Hot Laps

The Rookie

Fast Time

Open Wheel

Pace Laps

Dirt Driven ~ (Release date: TBA)

Behind the Wheel ~ Series outtakes (Release date: TBA)

The Redemption Series

The Trainer

The Fighter

Stand Alones

Waiting for You

Everything Changes

Deal

Awakened

Everlasting Light

Bad Blood

Heavy Soul

Crossing the Line

Delayed Penalty

Delayed Offsides

Delayed Roughing (Release date: TBA)

Unforgettable Series

All I Have Left

All We Need (Release date: TBA)

The Torqued Trilogy

Unsteady

Unbearable (September 2016)

Unbound (January 2017)