Curves to Distraction

“What are you doing next month?”

Lily Jackson smiled at Candi’s tone. She couldn’t decide if it was excited or conspiratorial. Either way, she was up to something, which for Candi was a little out of character. “I have a few things the first week, but after that, nothing really. Why?”

“Want to come up for a few weeks?” Up was in North Carolina. Charlotte to be specific. “We haven’t seen you in forever and you can stay at my house. I know you like your space, but…”

Candi was right. Lily hadn’t been up to see her friends in some time. It would be nice to hang out with them, to laugh so hard they cried, to commiserate about life. She often got caught up in her own little world that her mind didn’t travel too far outside her neighborhood. She was a private music instructor with a major university and a decent high school population of students that she was kept busy all year long. She was pretty well known and had a reputation for being able to teach most any student. She even took on the occasional hobbyist if she had the free time in her schedule.

She wasn’t rich by any means, but she was comfortable enough that she could take the time to get out of Tallahassee for a little while. May into early June was typically slow for her. It wasn’t until mid-June that students started filling up her calendar again as they worked on skills and pieces for the following school year.

June was also when she joined the local university’s summer music program that was open to students from everywhere. She taught high school clinics for woodwinds in general, and flute specifically. It was one of her favorite things to do.

“If you’re undecided,” Candi hurried to say, “how about I sweeten the deal?”

“I’m listening.” Lily planned to say yes no matter what Candi threw in, but she was curious.

“I’ve got race tickets,” her sing-song voice teased. Candi really was pulling out all the stops and she knew Lily wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation of race tickets.

“There’s a catch, isn’t there?” Not that she cared. She was already mentally packing her suitcase and deciding out which Cam Carter tee shirts she would be taking with her.

Her love of stock car racing was something most of her peers would be surprised to learn about her. She didn’t share much with people in general, kept her private life private, and knew that her delight in loud engines and the smell of rubber and oil wasn’t the only thing the people that knew her in music circles would be shocked to learn.

Her choice of driver would definitely be another one. Cam Carter was everything Lily was not. He was young, tall and lean and had the most gorgeous eyes. He was also brash, as easy with a smile as he was a cheap shot at someone who pissed him off. Sometimes the shots weren’t cheap and well deserved. He was a hot-headed driver and the more other race fans hated him, the more Lily loved him. 

And if she’d had a few inappropriate fantasies about him, well, no one else ever needed to know that.

“Well, yes and no,” Candi said, pulling Lily back to the conversation and out of her daydream.”

“Yes and no?” Lily looked out the kitchen window into her small backyard. Her herb garden was beautiful this time of year, bright and green. Spring flowers were in full bloom, and the small water featured she’d had installed last summer sparkled in the sunshine. She loved her little house. It was a small haven she’d created for herself. Quiet, just like her. Well, except when it came to races. Then she got loud and rowdy. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“I, um… I’m not going to be here.”

“What? Why not? Where are you going to be?”

“Italy.”

Lily’s shock was reflected back to her in the window. “Italy? You’re finally going to do it?”

Candi had been talking for several years about going on a cooking tour in Italy. Cooking was her passion. She’d worked in enough kitchens, put herself through culinary school, and dreamt of opening her own restaurant. She’d just never taken the chance on herself like that. Lily couldn’t be more thrilled for her.

“I’m doing it,” Candi confirmed. “I quit two days ago. Just walked out, pulled some money from my savings account and booked a tour.”

Candi might be timid, but once she decided on something, even if it was impulsive, she went with it and rarely ever regretted it. Lily had wished more than once in their long friendship that she had a little more of that impulsive trait in her.

Instead, Lily was the one who didn’t take chances with any part of her life. Her profession was a somewhat unconventional one. It was the only thing in her life like that, but she knew she could take a job at the university in the music department if she wanted it. They offered her every single term, sometimes more than once.

“That’s awesome, Can. I’m thrilled for you.”

“Please say you’ll come stay at the house. You and Alli can go to the races together, spend some time wallowing in misery because you miss me so much…” She dragged out the last word making Lily laugh.

“You’ve planned it all out, haven’t you?”

“I have.”

“Two days? Why didn’t you say anything? You didn’t hint about anything in our texts.” Not that Lily was surprised. Candi usually kept things to herself until the last minute, just as her next words confirmed.

“I know. I didn’t tell Alli, either. I just… I wanted to wait until everything was arranged first so that I couldn’t back out. I’m tired of playing it safe. I’ve never traveled like this on my own and you know me, sometimes I’m scared of my own shadow.”

Lily did know. Candi was beautiful, giving, and creative. She was also self-conscious sometimes. Taking a trip like this would be huge for anyone, but for Candi, especially. It would be the same for Lily and she couldn’t deny that little bit of envy that seized her heart at Candi’s courage. “I’m proud of you.” And she was. This was a big step for Candi. “When do you leave?”

Candi sighed and Lily heard the relief in the exhalation. “In ten days. Say you’ll come. Please.”

“I’ll be there in time to see you off.”

* * *

“Oh my God, Lily. Will you hurry up? He’s signing autographs today and we’re going to miss him.”

Lily turned at the high-pitched exclamation and was nearly run over by Alli, who was on her way to the gift shop exit. “Who?”

She’d been in Charlotte for three days and so far, the relaxing part of the trip hadn’t kicked in yet. She and Alli had taken Candi to the airport at the crack of dawn and all Lily wanted was a nap. She wasn’t used to being up that early. 

She was a little slow on the uptake at the moment.

“What do you mean who? Cam Carter that’s who.” Alli gushed and grabbed Lily by the hand. “C’mon. We need to hurry.”

Lily froze. Her knees locked which in turn jerked Alli to a stop.

Cam Carter was on site? Her Cam Carter? Signing autographs and greeting fans? Her heart thumped hard and she was torn between running away and going forward to meet him.

He was her first celebrity crush. No one else had ever affected her the way he did when he arrived on the national stock car scene. She’d literally whimpered. Out loud. She’d been grateful no one had been around to hear it.

Now, with the prospect of seeing him up close and personal…? Could she do it without melting into a puddle? Could she do it and be the put together adult she was? 

She looked down at herself and tried not to roll her eyes. Faded, frayed jeans, an oversized tee that Alli had tied into side knot, and black canvas sneakers. Her hair was in a messy ponytail, and she’d foregone any make-up save for a bit of powder and lip gloss. She wasn’t dressed to meet the only man she’d fantasized about in recent years. Something she shouldn’t have been doing in the first place given the reality that he was twenty-six and she hadn’t seen her twenties in years.

That was not like her. At. All.

Between the three of them, Lily was the least romantic.

She couldn’t go near him. Not if there was a chance that she’d make a complete fool of herself. It was bad enough robbing the cradle in the privacy of her own mind, but to look into his intense gray eyes and see the smile that made her bite her lip every time he was on TV? Nope.

“You go on,” she urged Alli, trying to pull her hand away, trying to go backwards in the opposite direction of Cam Carter. “I’ll wait in the car.”

It was a lame attempt to get out of the surprising situation and knew Alli would call her on it.

“The hell you will. You’re coming with me. Candi dragged us out of bed and the only thing keeping you and I from going back to her place to crash is this grand tour of the race shops. Believe me, this is better than anything I could’ve imagined for today.”

Lily smiled. “We’ve been to these shops more than a few times over the years.”

“Yeah, but you haven’t been up here in a long time, so it’s like the first time. Drivers and teams have changed. And we’ve never met any of the drivers. I mean, here in Charlotte where they’re all based, and we haven’t seen one in person. It’s ridiculous. So… If not for yourself, then do it for me? Please? You need to make sure I don’t end up jumping across the table at him or something.”

Alli talked a mile a minute and Lily gave in, letting Alli drag her toward the line on the far side of the lobby near the glass trophy cases. They had to do some fancy maneuvering around the two race cars and three race trucks on display but finally found their way. “Besides, you know want to meet him, too. And just imagine how jealous Candi will be when she finds out.”

Lily nodded. Alli had a point. Candi was as big a fan as the two of them.

At the same time, Candi was on a plane headed to Italy for loads of pasta and wine.

The closer they inched to the front of the line, the more Lily wanted to turn tail and run. She didn’t need to add fuel to her overflowing lust for the younger man.

“Why are you so interested in meeting him?” she asked Alli, trying to keep her voice casual. “You don’t really like him. You heckle him every chance you get.”

“That’s just a front. You heard me say I might jump across the table at him, right? I just… I like to play Devil’s Advocate when it comes to him. He’s an in-your-face and up-your-ass get the hell out of my way driver. And you know I don’t have a favorite. I like them all. Especially the single ones.” Her eyebrow waggle was on point and Lily couldn’t argue.

“You’ve never  met a single man you haven’t liked. But you know he’s just a guy, right? He drives race cars and wins a lot, but he is just a guy.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Lily turned away, suddenly fascinated by the nearest gray wall. She was such a liar. She knew what the big deal was. Cam was currently the hottest race car driver on the circuit. He was aggressive and the fans loved to hate him. From the crowd gathered in the race shop lobby, they loved to love him, too. He had it all. Fame, fortune, boy-next-door good looks, racing smarts that rivaled men twice his age, and the kind of cocky confidence that most women loved.

Damn.

“Just a guy? Just a driver?” Alli hissed in Lily’s ear. “You’re telling me that if he offered himself to you on a silver platter, you’d think of him as just a guy?” She backed off when Lily looked at her, knowing she’d called Lily’s bluff. “The heckling is all in good fun, and I don’t mean anything by it. You know you want to meet him as much as anyone else here. Probably more.”

She did. In the worst way. “Sure. He’s yummy in a robbing-the-cradle kinda way.” But even she knew she was digging the hole deeper with her denials.

“He’s not that young,” Allie said, slanting Lily a sideways glance.

“He’s twenty-six. You’re thirty-four.”

“So are you.”

“Almost thirty-five.”

“So? It’s not a big difference. Just because you only date men our age, when you decide to date, that is, doesn’t mean the rest of us have to limit ourselves.”

“Oh, shut up and pay attention before you miss your chance.”

Alli grinned. “See? I’m right and you know it.”

Lily sighed and focused on the man with the permanent marker in his hand and a seemingly permanent smile on his face. Today, at least. Get him in a bad spot on the race track and the post-race interview was likely to find him scowling and being called to the official’s trailer. But even she liked watching Cam interact with his fans. He was incredibly good with those who loved him and incredibly forthright with those who didn’t. He had charisma and charm, and in this place, surrounded by the tangible reward of success in his young career, he was almost too hard to resist.

She could admit to being a big fan, but honestly, how did it look for a woman her age to be openly lusting after a man so much younger, so much hotter, so much in demand? It wasn’t Alli she needed to be worried about. It was herself. Looking at him did funny things to her, and she wouldn’t even think about the fantasies he’d inspired in the dark of night when was alone in bed. But damn if her insides weren’t having a freakin’ parade at the moment. She’d never met a celebrity before, local or national, sports or entertainment, and though most people outside the racing community didn’t know his name, race fans — hundreds of thousands of race fans — knew exactly who he was.

Before she knew it, she and Allie were up next, and Lily’s heart thumped harder in her chest. Damn. The man had great eyes, and his smile… His mouth… Her belly flipped, then flopped to be so close to him.

She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t meet him. She couldn’t stand that close to him. She was so nervous her hands were sweating, and she couldn’t wipe them on her jeans enough.

“Hi Cam! I can’t believe I’m meeting you. Can you sign this?” Alli held up a new shirt she just bought in the gift shop and beamed at him, while Lily stood slightly behind her trying not to stare. Cam winked and grinned at Alli. And why wouldn’t he? While she was the same age as Lily, Alli didn’t look a day over Cam’s twenty-six and had the bubbly personality he seemed to go for, if his on-camera rotation of girlfriends was any indication.

He reached for the shirt, but Alli shook her head and held it up against her body. Shameless hussy, Lily though with wry twist of her lips. No one would ever guess Alli was a lawyer.

“Sure,” he replied good naturedly. He stood in one smooth motion, and leaned toward Alli. He gave the gathered crowd a shrug accompanied by a flirtatious smirk which Alli echoed over her shoulder.

Lily was mesmerized, watching Cam’s long, slender fingers press the tee shirt against Alli’s chest as he signed his name with a flourish. Lily had never wanted to take Alli’s place more. She had a vision of being naked on the hood of his race car, those fingers insider, that hand holding her down, that mouth…

“Lil? Lily!”

Lily shook herself out of the erotic thoughts with a guilty smile and focused on Alli who was now bouncing up and down on, holding the shirt with Cam’s signature against her jiggling boobs. Lovely. “Sorry,” she mumbled.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah, fine. Ready?” She said a little more brightly than she’d meant to and tried to nudge her friend, but Alli wouldn’t budge. She was staring at Lily with an odd expression, making her uncomfortable. Had they been able to tell what she was thinking? Had they seen it written all over face?

Her cheeks heated, but she drew herself up as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

Alli gave her a hard look, but eventually shrugged and looked back at Cam, blowing him a kiss. “Thanks. Good luck this week.”

He nodded. “Thank you.”

Lily barely kept herself from staring at him again, only giving him a quick smile. She started to follow Alli past the table, but was startled when Cam reached out.

“What about you?” he asked. There was a light in his eyes she hadn’t seen before, not with Alli or anyone else that had gone ahead of them in the line. Then again, given the direction of her thoughts only moment ago, she was probably imagining things.

“Oh, uh… I didn’t bring anything for you to sign,” she said, her voice soft, her gaze darting away from his face, and more heat creeping into her cheeks.

“Why not? Don’t like me?”

There was humor in his tone, and she made the mistake of quickly returning her gaze to his. The crowd laughed at his always present sarcasm, but Lily was beginning to tune them out. His dark gray eyes danced with merriment. “I like you just fine.”

“Embarrassed, then? I get it. I am the favorite of fans everywhere.”

More sarcasm and more laughter accompanied his open arms gesture, but the look between Lily and Cam began to change. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Alli glancing back and forth between them, and Lily scolded herself for making a spectacle.

She needed to get out of there.

“I’m not embarrassed. I just… I didn’t know you were signing today, or I’d have brought a car.”

“You collect diecasts?”

“Some.” For a split second, there was appreciation in his gaze, but it changed. Again. He gave her a soft, more personal smile and took a picture from a nearby stack of promotional materials. He signed his name, then flipped it over and quickly scribbled something else.

“Your name?”

“Lily.” Heat morphed through her, sliding through her body to pool between her legs. He had such young features, like those of a guy just graduating college, and his antics were less than those of an adult when dealing with the press, but his eyes – his eyes belied a maturity that tugged at her. He found balance for both sides of himself, a balance that had seemed to escape her. She’d seen what his combined focus on fun and maturity had done for him on the track, and she wondered about that same focus being trained on a woman.

“Lily,” he repeated. “Pretty name. Here you go. Lily.”

The way he said her name… She took a shaky breath. “Thank you.” She took the picture and was careful not to touch him. She didn’t trust herself.

His cocky smile returned for the benefit of the crowd, but the look in his eyes was all for her.