Page 97 of Jackrabbit

Then Beau squeezed both of his arms and stepped back toward the towel warmer. He popped the lid open and pulled out the clothes. “Better get dressed before you catch cold.”

“Okay.” He accepted the clothes, and Beau picked Toast up off the counter before heading back into the bedroom and shutting the door with a soft click.

Chapter 43

The ground in the pits vibrated under Beau's boots as they filled with more cars. He'd spotted Henry when they'd shown up, and that new car with the light purple stripes. Other than that, it was a sea of unfamiliar cars and unfamiliar faces.

“Holy shit.” Colt bounced on his toes next to Beau, his curls lifting in the breeze. “This is crazy. Like a meet.” His gaze followed a pit crew who were running past them in a panic. “Except Chicken Hat Larry isn't over there in his sleeping bag telling Rosario to change the station on his radio.”

Beau raised his eyebrows at Colt, who was fiddling with his wasp necklace now. “Do I even want to know who Chicken Hat Larry is?”

“Just the homeless dude who showed up to watch when we raced near his bridge.” Colt grinned that dimpled grin that always made Beau's chest feel tight. “Cool dude. He had a sixth sense for when the cops were two blocks out. Better than any scanner you’ve got in that truck.”

“And the chicken hat?” Beau crossed his arms. Sometimes, he forgot what kind of life Colt had led just two months ago.

“Chicken Hat Larry has a beanie with a taxidermy chicken head on top.” Colt held one of his fingers up like a horn sticking out of his forehead. “Like this. Black silkie chicken.”

“Well.” Shaking his head, Beau pulled out his tablet. “I asked.”

“Hey, you're that guy from TikTok!”

They both turned to see a group of girls wearing Daisy Dukes and almost nothing else wandering over. One of them, a short girl with thick thighs covered in tattoos and corn-silk blonde hair, was giving Colt a look like she wanted a lot more than a selfie. Beau was reminded of the girl that Colt had been grinding against in the bar a month ago.

“Yeah, that's me.” Colt grinned and dropped his hand from his wasp.

Beau hooked a finger in his own belt loop, leaned against the car, and told himself he was watching the pit chaos instead of settling in to listen.

“Oh my God, you're hotter in person.” The girl's friends giggled, and she came closer with a smile.

Colt wiggled his eyebrows. “Flattery will get you everywhere.” He put his hands in his pockets and rocked on his toes. Beau snapped his jaw shut. “What can I do for you ladies?”

“We're actually here to see you.” The girl batted her eyes and tucked some hair behind her ear. “We've been following you on TikTok since your arrest.”

“Jamie more than anyone.” One of the other girls, tall and thin with dark skin and her hair twisted into a tight bun, pushed ‘Jamie’ gently forward.

Jamie giggled and pushed her chest out, her top holding on by sheer will. “Yeah. It's true.” She smiled at Colt, all straight white teeth with some kind of piercing on her upper gums. “Listen, there's this party tonight up in the Hills. It'll start after the race. We were wondering if you might come with us. If you're not…busy?”

“The Hills, huh?” Colt dropped his voice to something sweet and rough, stepping forward until Jamie had to look up to meet his eye. He reached out and tapped the brim of her baseball cap, and her cheeks lit bright red. “Pretty girl like you's gonna cause a riot in that bougie-ass neighborhood.”

Beau’s boots shifted gravel as he dug in his heel. He wanted to grab Colt by the back of his neck and drag him off.

And then what? You're not even allowed to touchhim.

“Thing is,” Colt continued as he leaned closer and lowered his voice to a stage whisper. “I'm all out of room for trouble. Arrested recently, you know. Plus—” He hooked his thumb behind him toward Beau, and the girls all peered around Colt’s shoulder to look. “I'm under strict adult supervision tonight after the race. Coach might murder me dead if I go out and drink after an all-day event.”

“He's welcome to come, too,” one of the other girls said, her eyes tracking from Beau’s boots to his chin.

Colt laughed, and Beau huffed, the noise drowned out by the crowd.

“Naw, girls, we're just old athletes. Very boring.” Colt slung his arm around Jamie and another around the girl who'd given Beau the once-over and turned them until they were all facing the rest of the crew. “But you see that tall, hot guy over there? With the hat? Name's Xavier, and he's had a shit day. Girlfriend left him. Shame. Anyway, he's my best pit crew member, and happens to berealgood with his hands.”

He slipped his arms off the girls and nudged them forward. “How about you do me a solid and go ask him to come? It would mean a lot to me, truly.”

The girls sauntered off, looking like they'd won something instead of being thoroughly rejected. Impressive, actually, and as Colt came to stand next to Beau, their arms touching, Beau's shoulders relaxed enough for him to feel that they'd been tight.

He dropped his hand from his belt loop, and his knuckles nearly brushed Colt’s leg. “Didn't know Xavier had a girl.”

“He didn't.” Colt shuffled a bit closer. “But he'll show them a good time.”