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  It was Saturday afternoon, the last day of tests in Valencia and Isabella had just kicked her shoes off and was enjoying a good ten minutes off from work.

  Time had gone by so quickly, it seemed yesterday she had arrived in Valencia.

  Maybe It was because she had been all over the place with Hillary, taking pictures of the cars and of the drivers with Phil, the official photographer of MB team- while they concentrated in the boxes, drove their cars, ate, spoke to journalists- pictures of the press conferences, the dinners.

  It had been madness. The problem was that you were always on the job, there was never a break. Even when you had some time off you were always on track, in the hotel with your laptop, thinking about work.

  As anticipated, Isabella and Hillary had worked together during the press conference and interviews with journalists.

  Some of them had been very sneaky in trying to ask questions they knew were off limits, sugar coating them with compliments. Some insinuated rivalry between teams and team mates, problems with the cars. Some of the comments echoed in Isabella’s ears all day: ‘we expect a good car this year’ and ‘you were a little unlucky last season, no excuses this time’ and ‘which is the best driver?’ and lastly ‘which car will perform better?’

  Nevertheless, Isabella could tell that Christopher and Noah were very much used to having their privacy invaded and analyzed, not to mention criticized by the whole world. They handled everything quite well, except – Isabella noticed- when a journalist made a comment on Christopher’s father.

  She couldn’t recall the man’s face or his exact words, but it was along the lines of ‘I am sure your father would be proud, but what do you think would be his advice? What would he suggest you do to acquire speed as you were a little slow in the last part of the track today?’

  What sort of question was that anyway? As if Christopher or anyone else in the world could have second guessed James Taylor’s words.

  It had pissed her off, she could only imagine how much it got on Christopher’s nerves.

  And she had seen the bitterness in Christopher’s eyes. Firstly because the reporter had said he had been a little slow, secondly because she knew he hated to talk about his father.

  He hated it so much, he would either answer with a joke or not comment at all. In this case he had joked around, saying he probably would have patted his shoulder and told him to remember that the accelerator is the one on the right.

  Besides that, it had been a great week. The cars had performed beautifully, Noah being a split of a second faster than Christopher, but other than that the MB car was one of the fastest on track. At least during the test sessions.

  As Hillary told her between the sessions, these days before the seasons were used by the teams to analyze certain details, particular performance variations of the cars.

  So, technically nobody really revealed the full potentials of the cars. It was still a big question mark to which car would be the fastest during the races.

  Another team that had performed beautifully was Chiellini, as well as Panther and Jameson teams. In the chaos on track, Isabella had spotted photographer Camilla.

  She had been there too, taking pictures of Chiellini, smiling at everyone like a true diva. And that she was, she was a great and famous sports photographer. At some point she saw her smile and wave to Noah and then to Christopher.

  If she hadn’t known any better, she swore she saw her eyes go a little dark when she eyed Christopher, but maybe she had imagined the whole thing. Hillary had already informed her there had been bad blood last year between Camilla and Christopher, so that was probably what that look of hers had meant.

  During those last few days, Isabella had learned to appreciate another aspect of her job. Hillary and her had to wear this kick ass, awesome uniform like the rest of the team. It made her feel important, part of a something big and she felt proud, proud of herself for getting the job. What if she had said no, so she could stay in Italy with Salvo? Would she go back and change things if she could? Isabella knew she wouldn’t.

  This was her dream job, she had met so many people already and felt like she was really making connections for her future. Working with real professionals, in the sports car field, travelling the world…even though she missed Salvo’s friendship sometimes, she knew she would have resented him and resented herself for the rest of her life.

  “So what’s on tonight?” Maria asked. Before Isabella could answer, she heard a beep and saw that her sister was trying to call her. Maybe it was something important, as she kept calling her even when she saw the line was busy.

  “Maria, I’ll call you back tomorrow ok? I want to know what you have been up to. Sorry I have to go” They said their goodbyes and she picked up her sister’s call.

  “Hey, is everything ok?”

  “Ciao bella. What’s new?” Emilia asked nonchalantly.

  “What do you mean what’s up? You’ve been calling me for five minutes straight. I thought something was up and hung up with a friend” Isabella sounded irritated.

  “It is an emergency. We all want to talk to you” Isabella could hear her brother protest in the background. “Hold on a second, I’m almost done talking to her” Emilia told their brother, who was getting a little impatient to speak to Isabella.

  “So what are you doing tonight?”

  “I’m not sure. The drivers are still on track debriefing and Hillary and I have just finished putting some pictures and articles about the tests on the blog. We have a spa appointment and then nothing else planned for the evening”

  “Do you think he’ll show up at your door again?” Emilia asked as soon as Isabella had said the word evening. So THAT is why she called up.

  “Who will show up?” she heard her mother and her brother ask on the other side.

  Isabella panicked. She didn’t want everyone to know her business, it had been nothing.

  In fact she hadn’t seen Christopher alone since they had arrived in Valencia. He had been so busy concentrating and talking to tons of people on track and during dinners.

  Also, he had spent his days training and going to bed early to rest. She hadn’t had the heart nor the guts to go up to him and speak about anything that wasn’t related to work.

  The only thing he had said to her was:

  “Hey, signorina. Have you thought about the ‘thing’ on Saturday?” reminding her that she still hadn’t given him a straight answer about it.

  Someone had interrupted them just then and Isabella hadn’t even had a chance to answer his question.

  “No and it was nothing. And keep your mouth shut!” Isabella said through gritted teeth. She walked around her hotel room, worried her sister would blurt something out. There was nothing to blurt out, nothing had happened really.

  “Roger. You know, Salvo’s been asking about you?”

  “Oh, really?” Isabella wondered. It felt strange that her sister would know more about Salvo than her. Why hadn’t he contact her? Why hadn’t he been there at the party before she had left?

  “He said he’s sorry he wasn’t at the party and he asked me how you were doing. Oh here’s Marco, we’ll talk late…”

  Her sister’s voice disappeared and was replaced by a deeper male voice.

  “Ciao bella!” her brother greeted her.

  Isabella was so happy to hear from him that she forgot they had even mentioned Salvo at all.

  For the next ten minutes, they spoke about school, work – he was a part time waiter in the local pub- her work and then he popped the question.

  “Did you get me an autograph yet?”

  Isabella closed her eyes and regrettably admitted she hadn’t.

  “What? Why?” he sounded genuinely confused and upset.

  Isabella paced the room. Why? Because I was too busy working and immaturely fantasizing about the man I am working with. Instead she said:

  “I thought it would be better if you ask them yourself, when you’ll come visit me.”<
br />
  “Oh, okay then. I guess I’ll get a chance to speak to the drivers, too.”

  Nice save.

  “Marco I have to go in a few minutes, can I speak to mom please?” Isabella asked. They said their goodbyes and then she heard her voice, her sweet, soothing voice and she felt homesick all of a sudden.

  “Ciao Piccolina”

  “Ciao Mamma” Isabella smiled to herself and held her phone closer to her ear. Before she could ask anything, anything at all there it was:

  “Are you eating properly? And who’s this guy who shows up at your door?”

  Chapter 7

  “I so needed that!” Hillary said and sipped her Mimosa. They were sitting on big white armchairs, a woman at their feet giving them a pedicure and a woman at their side giving them a manicure.

  Hillary tilted her head back and set her dark brown eyes on the ceiling.

  “How are you doing, darling?” she asked her colleague.

  Isabella looked around: she was wearing robes, she had just had a sauna, a body massage, a wax appointment and now pedicure and manicure.

  “I’d say I’m in paradise. I’m great” she turned to look at her new friend and smiled.

  “Good, good. So far the blog has had thousands of hits. I’d say it’s a success. Congratulations”

  She raised her glass and then sipped her drink again. Hillary closed her eyes, enjoying every second of her beauty appointment.

  Isabella smiled happily: fans loved the blog and the social network entries, not to mention the pictures.

  The first days of tests in Valencia had registered thousands of hits and comments on the internet. Isabella thought she truly deserved a little relax.

  “What are you doing after this?” Hillary asked catching Isabella a little by surprise. She sat up a little.

  “I think I’ll go for a swim before dinner” Isabella thought about Christopher suggestion in the gym, days ago. Sports came in useful when you needed to decompress.

  “Good for you. Sounds very healthy. I would too but I have dinner plans with Mr. Jenkins. He wants to discuss a few things”

  Isabella swore she saw Hillary’s dark cheeks go red a little, as she said the words. Hillary finished her drink and turned to put it down on a table.

  “Should I come to or…” Isabella wondered out loud. She wasn’t exactly hoping for it, spending extra time with Mr. Jenkins – he wouldn’t even speak to her directly, only through Hillary. Nevertheless, work was work and she would have gone if necessary.

  “Oh no. No, no don’t worry. I’ll deal with it and report to you. Go out and enjoy the city. We leave tomorrow evening” Isabella nodded happily, relieved. She grinned at Hillary, who had said one too many ‘No’ in her sentence. Is it that obvious I hate him already?

  Isabella went quiet, while her mind went back to Christopher’s invite.

  Should she accept to go out to dinner with him? What a mess. What was she doing? To this point, she could do only two things: go to the dinner and make things clear with him or refuse and automatically set things straight, without having to say a word. That way, he would understand that she wasn’t interested – wasn’t she, though?- that it wasn’t the right thing to do, hanging out together after working hours.

  But would he be upset? Isabella didn’t want to offend him or be rude. Maybe she should go to dinner with him and tell him how she felt about the situation. If only SHE knew herself how she felt about it.

  “I’ll see you maybe after dinner, if we all decide to go out clubbing”

  She nodded. Clubbing. Apparently it was a tradition. Some of the team members went out clubbing after the test session, as a way to celebrate the beginning of the race season.

  Isabella hadn’t been out much since she had broken up with Salvo. She winced at the thought.

  Isabella tried to get him out of her mind, his absence at the party and her friend Angela’s absence, too. That had hurt the most, because it clearly stated that their friendship, the way it used to be -being there for each other and sharing their lives- had officially ended. Angela had texted her the day before yesterday, saying that she was sorry she couldn’t make it but had to work and that she wished her well.

  Isabella frowned a little. She didn’t know what to say to that, so she didn’t reply. Actually she knew what to say, she just didn’t think it was okay to say it in a text message.

  Isabella was sick and tired of how fake it had all become between them. She sure needed to speak to her soon. As soon as she got the chance to go home. The situation needed to be cleared.

  Isabella looked at herself in the mirror and then back at the pile of clothes lying on her bed. It would take her hours to pack everything up before her flight tomorrow.

  She rolled her eyes, annoyed at herself. She was behaving like a typical woman on a first date. It’s not a date. It’s just dinner with a friend. A friend who needs you to tell him that there can be just friendship, admiration, cooperation. No love, no sex. Just friendship.

  She flinched, finding it hard to believe her own lies.

  How do you tell a man you find incredibly attractive to hit the road? Isabella had no idea, but still despite the hard task ahead of her – she didn’t know if she could go through with it- it didn’t mean she mustn’t look her best.

  Isabella walked over to her drawers, where her black purse was, and took her phone. In the time of need, she knew exactly who she was going to call.

  She was losing her focus, she needed a little perspective. Perspective being her friend Cristina. She scrolled down to her number and pressed call.

  “Hello??” she picked up the call after a few rings. Her voice sounded a little confused and surprised.

  “Hi, it’s me” she smiled at her reflection in the mirror and then lowered her stare, as if she was a little embarrassed. “I know It’s dinner time there…” she began.

  “Who cares?? How are you??? I just read your email!” Cristina was literally shrieking on the other side. That morning, during lunch break, Isabella had emailed her friend in Italy, updating her on what was happening on her side.

  That was the first time they had spoken since her departure.

  “I don’t want to keep you on the phone too long” Isabella said, afraid to disturb her.

  “Uhhh international phone call. Got it. No worries. I’ll answer your email after dinner. I’ll let Carlo put the kids to bed tonight” Cristina paused. “So what’s up?”

  Isabella touched her forehead and took a deep breath.

  “I have a date tonight”

  “Wohoo”

  Isabella touched her ear, while her friend screamed on the other side.

  “Perhaps, I should rephrase that. He probably thinks it’s a date. I’m just going to put an end to the flirting”

  “Wow, wow. Wait a minute. What?? Why would you do that? Who’s the guy? Not good?”

  “It’s not that. I work with this man, I just met him. I don’t think it’s a smart move” Isabella paused to think.

  Should she tell her friend the whole truth? How Christopher had come up to her a few hours before, just as she was leaving the swimming pool, to ask her if she had made up her mind about the dinner, with that look in his eyes, as if he was speaking to the most gorgeous woman on the planet?

  Should she tell her friend how she had felt, when he had smiled at her and touched her shoulder, after she had said yes, and then left her with that strange feeling of longing and excitement? Should she tell her how good it felt to talk to him and how they laughed together?

  “Isabella, we don’t have time for this. Do you like this guy or not?” Cristina’s voice was curiosity itself. She loved how her friend cut to the chase.

  “Yes, but…” Isabella paused.

  “Did you two kiss?”

  “No” But he touches me, pulls my hair back, leaves me breathless.

  “But you said he thinks it’s a date, right?”

  “I guess” Isabella bit her red lips and then shook her
head “Maybe he doesn’t. I don’t know. I’m confused. We flirt and then we joke around. He IS a flirt, with everyone”

  Isabella sat on the end of her bed and told Cristina how she wasn’t sure what to make of it all, if it was better to stop this relationship before it even started.

  After all, Christopher and her would have to see each other every day for at least a year. What would happen if it ended badly between them?

  “What is this, high school?”

  Cristina’s words shocked Isabella a little. It was such a Cristina thing to do, to just say anything she was thinking

  “Screw the ifs and the buts. You need to relax a little. This is your first date after breaking up with Salvo. Do you think he is sitting around, alone with ifs and buts?” Isabella flinched again. The thought of Salvo going out with girls hadn’t crossed her mind. Yet.

  “Just go and have fun. Trust your instincts” exactly what Isabella wasn’t capable of doing. She had spent so many years now, blaming instincts for the mistakes that people did -for what her father had done to her mother- that she just couldn’t relax and enjoy the moment.

  Isabella heard Cristina’s kids screaming in the background.

  “You know it’s hard for me to do that” was all she said to her friend. She knew it was her limit, her weakness. The only time she trusted her instincts was on the job.

  But love? Relationships? She was a mess. Her family hadn’t provided a good example for her.

  “Here’s what you are going to do. Listen to me. You are going to dinner with this man, you are going to enjoy every minute of it and you won’t read anything negative or anything positive in it until the night is over. Just relax and enjoy. If it’s just sex and you feel like it, go for it. If you don’t like him enough, you’ll stop seeing him like that. You don’t need to decide these things now”

  Isabella nodded. She knew Cristina was right, she really needed to relax and take it step by step. There was one thing though that her friend didn’t quite grasp: she wasn’t unsure if she liked Christopher or not. Isabella could feel the chemistry between them.

  “Mind blowing sex is exactly what you need right now” Cristina added and giggled on the other side.