Revved Up Hearts (14 page)

“You can’t talk him into it? You’ll be fifteen at the prom in May, but you’ll turn sixteen in
July.”

“I’m working on it, but you know him. It won’t be
easy.”

“Oh, Emily, we’ve talked a lot about NASCAR, but you have never told me what you think of Jeremiah Jones.” Jeremiah had been watching TV but got interested in the phone conversation at the mention of his name. He leaned in close to hear her
answer.

“I like him. He is so
cute.”

Jeremiah looked at Dawn and winked. Then he leaned back into the couch cushions to finish watching his television program. Dawn and Emily talked for about five more minutes before hanging
up.

“She’ll die of embarrassment if she ever finds out about that,” Dawn laughed as she set the phone back on its base. “She doesn’t know it yet, but if she finishes the school year with good grades and stays out of trouble, her mom is going to let her come visit me for the Coke 600 on Memorial Day weekend. It will be an early birthday
present.”

“That will be great,” Jeremiah said. “I can’t wait to meet her and tell her what just
happened.”

“I can’t wait to see that,” Dawn said just before covering her mouth for a yawn. “Sorry about that,” she said. “It’s been a long
day.”

“I know. I’m leaving at five a.m. tomorrow for a test session in Atlanta. I guess I need to get home,” he said as he got off the sofa and headed toward the
door.

“I’ll walk you out,” Dawn said and followed him. “Thanks for the
flowers.”

“Thank you for the great dinner,” he said as they reached the door. He paused for a moment before continuing. “I know we agreed to just be friends but…” he
stopped.

“But
what?”

“But can I give you a small kiss good-night?” Dawn’s head dropped. “Okay. I’ll take that as a no. What about a friendly
hug?”

Dawn raised her head to look at him again. “I’d like that.” She
smiled.

He stepped forward and put his arms around her shoulders as he pulled her close.
Oh, she smells so good
, he thought as he enjoyed the moment. He stepped back and released her. He knew she was vulnerable and that he had hurt her once. He didn’t want to hurt her
again.

“Oh, before you go, let me give you this.” She walked over to the kitchen counter and wrote something on a piece of paper. Then she walked back and handed it to him. “It’s my home and cell
numbers.”

“Thank you,” he said. He wanted more, so much more from her, but he knew that she couldn’t give it now. Since he couldn’t think of anything else to say or do, he went
home.

Dawn waited until his truck pulled out of the drive to turn off the porch light and close the front door. She walked over to the recliner, sat down, and picked up her Bible from the top of the bookshelf beside it. Lately, she had been struggling with what to read. The trouble was continuing tonight. Once settled, she would have to find a church in Charlotte and start going to Bible study again. Maybe that would give her the focus that she needed. She remembered Psalms 75:1 just then. “We give thanks to you, Oh God, we give thanks! For your wondrous works declare that your name is near.” She bowed her head and prayed, “Thank you, Father, for a place to live. It is better than I ever expected. Being in the country like this is almost like being home in Arkansas. Thank you for always watching over me and blessing me. It is just one of the many reasons why I love you so much. Thank you Father. Amen.”

Bryan picked Dawn up at eight-fifteen the next morning, just as promised, to take Dawn to the race shop. It took about forty-five minutes to get where they were going. This was Dawn’s first real look at the city of Charlotte. They had gotten in pretty late on Sunday night, and Dawn had spent most of the day yesterday settling into her new home. The traffic was terrible. It was the thing that Dawn had dreaded most about moving to the big city. This country girl always got so nervous trying to navigate through all the vehicles. Maybe Bryan would do all the driving, since he did that for a
living.

Once at the office, Bryan gave Dawn the grand tour. In the front was the office area, where Dawn would spend most of her time. She didn’t have an office, just a cubicle in the corner. That was fine with her because she had worked in a cubicle at her last job. Then Bryan took Dawn in to meet the race team owner, Edward Schneider. He was an older man, in his late fifties, with not much hair but plenty of personality to make up for it. He was definitely a motivator and a people person. He liked everybody, and everybody liked him. After talking for a while, he took her on a tour of the race shop. He actually owned two teams and cars from both teams were in the shop. Dawn had already met Bryan’s pit crew, but now she met everyone else. Each team employed at least fifty people. There were mechanics, fabricators, and paint and body guys. Some of the cars were finished, but others were in various stages. They really did build their cars from the ground up. The car from Daytona was being repaired. It wasn’t badly damaged, just a few dents and bangs here and there. Dawn watched as the guys tore the metal off the car so that it could be
replaced.

“Wow,” Dawn said, “I can’t wait to see these guys actually build a
car.”

“We’re starting another car for my other team today. It has to be ready for our first road course race,” Edward told her. “Come back here anytime to watch the guys at
work.”

“Thank
you.”

“You’re welcome,” he said. “Any other
questions?”

“Nothing comes to mind right
now.”

“Well, my door is always open. If you think of any questions, drop by. Any of the staff will be able to help you as
well.”

“Thank you
again.”

“You’re welcome again.” He was going to say something else, but his cell phone rang. “I’ve got to take this. It was nice to meet you. And remember, my door is always
open.”

“So, what do you think?” Bryan
asked.

“Very impressive,” she answered. “I’ve been in garages before but nothing like this. It’s so clean you could eat off the
floor.”

“Ed insists on a clean shop. A clean shop is a safe shop. Not to mention the fact that fans come here year round to see how their favorite teams operate. They spend a lot of money to come here, and he wants them to be impressed with everything when they
leave.”

“I don’t see how anyone wouldn’t be impressed with this place.” Just then, a group of people walked into the shop. They saw Bryan standing there and immediately began to point and get their cameras. “Speaking of fans, I think some of yours just
arrived.”

Bryan turned to look over his shoulder. “Great. I love meeting my fans. Come with me.” Dawn spent most of the next hour talking to the fans, getting photos for Bryan to sign, and taking pictures. She loved it. These fans knew so much about NASCAR. Some had followed Bryan’s career since he was a rookie in the Nationwide
Series.

After lunch at a nearby deli, Dawn spent the afternoon settling into her new space and getting to know her coworkers. After a few days in the office, it was time to go to a place where Dawn had always wanted to go: Las
Vegas!

Dawn, Bryan, and the rest of the crew arrived in Las Vegas on Thursday afternoon. From the airport, they took a helicopter over the famous Las Vegas strip. It didn’t look like much during the day, but she had seen photos and videos, so she couldn’t wait to see it at night. Once at the track, the guys started to set up the garage stall, and Dawn used her laptop to check out Vegas on the Internet. Later, she went over to Bryan’s motor coach to cook supper for the crew. She wasn’t going to let them eat pizza all the time. An hour later, there was enough spaghetti with meat sauce, garlic bread, tossed salad, and iced tea for twenty people. There were only about a dozen guys, but she knew how grown men could eat, especially hungry ones who had worked hard all day. She hoped it was enough. She called Bryan on his cell phone to tell him to bring everyone over for
supper.

“This is so good,” Ted said between bites. It’s been so long since I’ve had a real home-cooked meal.” All the guys nodded in agreement. They probably would’ve added their own comments, but their mouths were
full.

“Did everybody get enough?” Dawn
asked.

“I can’t speak for everyone, but I’m stuffed,” Bryan answered. “That was
excellent.”

“Thank you,” Dawn replied as she refilled drink
glasses.

“You haven’t eaten yet,” Bryan said. “Stop waiting on everyone. Sit down and
eat.”

“I ate before you guys got
here.”

“Any dessert?” Ted
asked.

“No. I didn’t have
time.”

“It’s probably a good thing. If I ate anymore, I’d be
miserable.”

“You should be full. You went back for seconds, twice,” Bryan
joked.

“I had plenty to eat. Who knows when I’ll get another meal like this one. Thank you,” Ted told her, and everyone added their
thanks.

“You’re
welcome.”

With that, everyone got up to leave. “Wait just a second, guys. Dawn is my personal assistant, not your maid. Let’s help her clean up,” Bryan said as he pointed into the kitchen. “Scrape your plates into the trash. Then put them in the dishwasher with your
glasses.”

“Oh man!” Ted groaned. “Do we have
to?”

“If you don’t help her clean up, she may not cook for you
again.”

That was the inspiration the crew needed. After the guys cleaned up after themselves, all Dawn had to do was put the leftovers in the fridge, start the dishwasher, and wipe everything down. She had just sat down to watch TV when her cell phone rang. “Hello.”

“Hello. This is Jeremiah. What ‘cha
doin’?”

“Watching
TV.”

“You’re in Sin City and you’re sitting around watching
TV?”