Catherine joins us, and it’s the first time I’ve seen her out of a Collings Motors polo shirt and shorts. She’s wearing a gorgeous rose-colored halter dress that ties around her neck. The long gown has a slit up the side, and because she’s wearing nude strappy heels, her legs look incredibly long. Catherine’s black hair cascades down her back, and her soft pink makeup looks perfect with her coloring and the dress.
I’ve always thought she was beautiful, but seeing her out of Collings Motors clothing and with glam hair and makeup? She’s stunning.
“Hello, Adrien, Isla,” Catherine says. “How are you this evening?”
“I’m good, thank you,” I say.
Small talk is made about tonight’s event, and I realize how much I hate this. I can’t talk to Caleb like I want to. Or feel his hand on the small of my back or be close enough to inhale the cologne lingering on his skin. I feel like I can’t even look at him for too long or people will see something in that.
Soon guests are coming up to talk to Adrien and Caleb and take pictures, and Catherine takes a moment to step aside with me. To my surprise, she leans over so she can speak directly in my ear.
“I know it’s hard, but you are handling this so well,” she murmurs. “Nobody would suspect anything. I had to rein Caleb in a few moments ago because he waspissedoffwhen he saw Adrien making a move on you.”
I jerk my head up and look at her. “That was work!”
Or at least I thought there was a fifty-fifty chance it was all work.
Catherine’s eyes sparkle in amusement. “For you, yes. For the other person? Not so much.”
I lean over to talk in her ear now. “He wants to be onOutside the Cockpit.”
Catherine laughs. “Oh, I bet he does,” she says softly. “Adrien loves a hookup.”
Okay, so it wasn’t all work. I still want to interview him, though.
And I will. He just won’t be getting anything other than a handshake after the interview is done, that’s all.
I step back and decide to speak in code again. “Well, I’m currently seeing someone,” I say, smiling at her. “And he hasnothingto worry about.”
“I see,” she says, grinning at me. She glances down at the expensive-looking watch on her wrist. “I’ve already got to move Caleb along. He has a dinner tonight, and then of course, qualifying is tomorrow. Are you coming?”
“I’m going to watch the F2 sprint race and do some content for my channels. Then I’ll watch qualifying from the media center.”
“Isla,” Adrien says, coming back over to us. “Sorry to interrupt, but I’ve got to go. It was nice meeting you, and I’ll text you soon.”
“Okay, great,” I say, smiling at him. “Thank you.”
Adrien says his goodbyes and walks off.
Caleb is still talking to people, and it hits me that this is how we’re going to have to be while we are dating in secret. Each of us greeting each other, being friendly, but oh so careful not to give anything away, spending more time apart than together, even when we are at the same party.
This is my first time doing this, and I already don’t like it. Every look, every word spoken, every interaction has to be carefully measured for fear of tipping people off. I swear this is more stressful and harder than being live on-air.
“Catherine, it’s so good to see you,” a woman says. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight!”
Catherine begins a conversation with her, and I’m left alone for a moment. Caleb suddenly steals a glance in my direction and then heads back over to me. With so many people around, we can’t talk freely, but at least I have a few minutes with him before he leaves. We won’t see each other tonight. I will go over for dinner tomorrow, but I have to leave early because of the race on Sunday. And then?
If he wins, he’ll have to go to the Prince’s Ball, hosted by Prince Andreas and Princess Chantal of Monaco. Then no doubt off to some glamorous nightclub to celebrate with drinks and dancing.
Meanwhile, I’ll be back at my hotel, packing to head back to France for a very long trip back to Miami.
And I’ll be alone.
I swallow. Navigating this is going to be hard.
But as Caleb draws closer, I know it will be worth it. He moves over to the side, a few feet away from Catherine, and I join him.
“It’s good bumping into you again,” he says. Then his eyes grow intense and he lowers his voice. “And you’ve obviously met Adrien.”