The Champion (Racing on the Edge) (32 page)

It was exhausting and I could completely understand why
some animals eat their young.

Arie was a handful. I could handle Axel because we
thought the same way. I knew what I wanted, in turn, I understood him.

Arie was something else entirely.

One particular trip to the grocery store after we arrived
home from the hospital assured me I’d never take her again. Hating grocery
stores in general, this didn’t help matters.

There I was, picking out some fruit when a sale associate
with the store tapped me on the shoulder.

“Um sir?”

I turned around to see a woman pointing at Arie, who was
stark naked and looking up at us with curiosity. Emerald green eyes outlined by
thick black lashes blinked as though she had no idea there was anything wrong
with this situation.

Being only two this could have been worse but what made
me laugh was the way her diaper had been tossed in the apple bin and her
clothes were strategically and neatly hung on the bananas.

“Can you please keep your daughter clothed?” She asked
and then fished the diaper out of the apples for me.

I just laughed. What else was I supposed to do?

She was only two and it’s not like she knew any better.

I laughed, mostly because I had no idea what else to do.
Sway had left me lists. An actual fucking list on what it was that I was
supposed to do but taking clothes off in a grocery store wasn’t on the list.

When I got home, Arie was clothed again and I asked Sway
if she did this often.

Sway laughed as she burped Casten. “Yeah, all the time,”
she told me as if this was no big thing. “I once had to duck-tape her diaper
on.”

“Thanks for the warning.”

“No problem.” She giggled. “What’s with all the apples?”

“They made me buy them.”

Tommy, who frequently stayed at our house, came into the
kitchen and grabbed an apple from the counter. The apples I intended on
throwing away.

He took a seat at the kitchen island and ate the apple.

After a moment, he noticed us staring at him and trying
like hell to contain our giggles.

Sway leaned into my shoulder. “Should we tell him?”

Tipping my head toward hers, I chuckled. “I don’t think
it would even make a difference to him.”

“What is your problem?” Tommy asked finishing his apple.

“Nothing.” We both replied snickering.

“You guys are so strange.” He said walking into the
family room to play a video game with Axel.

Sway got up and headed for the apples. She opened the
door to the trash bin and I sprung up to stop her.

“Don’t do that. We have to at least make a pie for
Spencer with them.”

“Oh, good point.” She grinned and put them into a large
bowl away from the rest of the fruit on the counter.

Later that night, I decided to take my family out to eat
since Sway was still recovering and most of my energy was spent on the kids
that afternoon and neither of us felt like cooking.

So there we were at the local Outback and Arie tossed her
juice cup on the floor. Naturally, Sway bent under the table to get it.

Axel was busy playing with his food and Arie thought
she’d help Sway out by saying “There, look there!” at the top of her lungs
every few seconds. As if Sway didn’t know it was under there.

I hated going to restaurants with the kids because it was
like we spent more time making sure they weren’t being annoying to others;
begging them to eat; picking up shit they threw and then telling them to stop
staring at people; and then trying to actually eating our own meals.

Tonight wasn’t any different.

While Sway was down there I looked around the room when a
group of frat boys started cheering at what they thought was my wife giving me
a little micro polishing under the table.

I would have never allowed this with kids present but I
decided against my better judgment, to pretend a little.

I nodded a little arrogantly provoking them.

“Oh, there it is.” Sway said reaching for the cup that
was now by my foot.

Trying to keep this up a little longer, I threw my head
forward as though I really was enjoying it and kicked the cup away.

“Don’t kick it asshole.”

I grinned again and the group of guys high-fived each
other.

Sway eventually got the cup, got back in her chair and
glared at me. “Jerk,”

Axel snorted and looked at me with a smile. “You made
mama mad.”

“Nothin’ new little man,” I said taking a big bite of my
steak and then chewing slowly before I winked at Sway.

She shook her head and then excused herself to feed
Casten in the bathroom. She returned at the worst time when the group of frat
boys came by.

“Man, you are our hero!”

I smiled and nodded but gestured toward Axel and Arie
looking up at them curiously.

“Shh,” I gestured to my little spaz kids and their
curious eyes. “My kids are here.”

Clearly what I did wasn’t appropriate but it was funny to
me.

A few other guests had looked in direction too at the
commotion the guys were making.

“What was that about?” Sway kicked me under the table
when a women muttered something about what I did being completely
inappropriate.

“I have no idea.” I said and finished eating my steak that
Axel had spilled his milk on. I wouldn’t have eaten it at that point but I
couldn’t let on to Sway what I had done.

My wife is not stupid by any means and picked up on it.

“Why you dirty man.” Her head cocked to the side with suspicion.
“With our kids present!” she smiled despite her bitter tone.

I looked around, ashamed and amused and then leaned
forward and motioned for her to come closer with my finger. She did and I
winked.

“So many judging looks coming your way.”

Her mouth twitched into a smile, one she didn’t want to
reveal.

She kicked me again but I did get some micro polishing
that night after the kids went to bed. She loved me and couldn’t stay mad.

I was out on the balcony outside our master bedroom
laying in a lounge chair when Sway came out after putting Casten down for the
night.

Slipping outside, she stubbed her toe on the edge of the
railing just as she always did when she came out here. “Son of a bitch!” she
cursed. “We need to move this.”

“We can’t. It’s a railing.”

She knelt beside me and then lowered herself on my lap,
her legs falling to the sides leaving her crankcase directly in line with my
camshaft that was very eager to have some attention.

Removing my shirt, her hands lingered over the ridge of
each muscle as though she wanted to remember the feeling and texture. Looking
down at me, her left hand rose to cup my face bringing my lips to hers. With a
need I couldn’t explain, I gasped at the feeling being covered in her skin.

Taking in a deep breath, I folded my arms behind my head.

“That was not a very nice thing you did at the restaurant
...
” she whispered moving down my body as she
removed my jeans enough to get to what she needed.

I couldn’t speak when she drew me into her mouth. So
warm. So soft and I missed it so much.

“Jesus Sway, I want to fuck you so bad.” I breathed into
the night air.

The subtle waves of the lake created a light slapping at
the dock. The clouds from the day had rolled apart highlighting the lake with
glistening silver streaks.

My focus wasn’t on the lake. They couldn’t be with this
beauty sliding down my body giving me pleasure in ways I’d never imagined
feeling for the rest of my life. Thoroughly determined, her hands reached
around my hips to draw me further into her mouth, her movements speeding as
though she couldn’t get enough of me. It was just the opposite. I couldn’t get
enough of her.

My hands shot to her hair trying to tug her up when I
felt the familiar stir in the pit of my stomach.

“Honey, you should move if—”

Just as she always did, she pushed my hands away but she
did slow her motions. She wasn’t done with me and that just excited me even
more.

“It’s like you know exactly what to do.” I stroked the
side of her face tenderly.

She looked up but kept me inside her mouth, her eyes soft
and I watched carefully as I slid in and out of her full lips hypnotized by her
unreserved love for me.

My breathing turned erratic as I tried to fight the
feeling. Regardless that she slowed her moves, the way she was looking at me,
and the way I was sliding in and out of her mouth, I was giving into the hold
she had on me. Flashes of our past, passionate lovemaking, on this very deck,
fluttered behind my closed eyelids when my head fell back, my body clenched and
I knew I couldn’t hold off.

Sway crawled back up my body and her lips found mine as
my head lulled to the side.

“I hope it was good as you pretended it to be in the
restaurant.”

Rolling my eyes, I laughed. “I know it was wrong but I
couldn’t help myself. It was funny.”

She removed herself from the lounge chair, grabbing her
midsection as she did so in pain.

“You okay?”

Sway winced and righted herself into a standing position.
“Yeah, just sore.”

I stood beside her buttoning my jeans when she poked at
my chest.

“You shouldn’t do that with the kids present. What if
someone would have made a big deal out of it? You wouldn’t want your sponsor
finding out your wife was micro polishing with kids present, would you?”

Now that she put that spin on it, no, I wouldn’t. It was
in good fun and just a joke to rouse a few teenagers but in turn, I didn’t
think of how that looked to the outside. Here I was a NASCAR driver and I’d
pretended my wife was on her knees under the table with my three kids present.
Not smart.

I kissed her forehead. “You always know what to do.”

Sway laughed slipping into our bed. She patted my side.
“I should know what to do. I write the pit board.”

I laughed. “You write the pit board eh?”

“Yep. I know when you need your next pit stop.” I laid
down next to her after removing my clothes. “I know what adjustments you need
on your next stop. I know how much fuel to give you and the right air pressure
adjustments. I know you.” Her index finger touched my nose.

Smiling that she was right, my eyes closed. “That you do
honey.”

Pit Board – Sway

Glancing around at the overflowing shopping cart, I knew
who was to blame for this. Having only come for coals for the barbeque, I had a
feeling I wouldn’t be leaving with
just
coals.

“Axel Riley, get your ass over here right now.”

The mother next to me gasped at my crudeness.

“Sorry.”

I was thankful all the kids weren’t with me at the
moment. It never failed. When I had them all together the little shits liked to
scurry in different directions as I would try to get them in line or try to
keep from dropping everything in my hands. It’s like they knew I wasn’t an
octopus and could sense the fear any time I picked something up and had no free
hands.

Axel came tearing around the corner with an arm full of
chips and marshmallows. Somehow, though I’m not sure how, he found room in the
cart. “I got what I need. We can go now.”

“Smartass,” he snorted and smiled. “Why do you need all
this?”

He held out his hand with the same smirk Jameson gives.
Without thinking, I pulled out a dollar and gave it to him. This no cursing
thing was making my kids millionaires.

“Thanks mama.” His eyes focused on the marshmallows.
“Lane and me
...
we gonna have a s’more.”

Anything Lane wanted to do; Axel wanted to do. Anything
Lane and Axel did, Noah, Charlie and Cole copied. It was an endless cycle and
soon, Casten would be involved.

“S’mores, eh?”

“Yes, that’s what I said.”

A few hours later, we were heading back to the campground
with our s’mores, chips and whatever else Axel stuck in that damn cart.

Jameson laughed when he walked up to the Expedition as
Axel and I tried to carry the bags. “I thought you were getting coals?”

“I did.” I slapped the bag with my free hand trying to
conceal my own smile. He’d taken Axel to the store before and knew the drill
very well.

He grinned and leaned against the back of the car, his
arms crossed over his chest.

“I see that,” he gestured toward the bags. “I was
referring to all that.”

“Um
...
”

He pulled me firmly against his chest. “Admit it honey,
they own you.”

“If I avoid it
...
it
doesn’t exist.” Untangling myself from him, I glared.

Still leaning against the side of the car, his head
tilted to the side as his hand ran down his jaw.

He winked. “So
...
you
wearing a bikini under that dress?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” I snarked as I strode past.
“Don’t forget the bags.”

“Tease!” he yelled after me.

Walking toward the lake, I heard the laughter of the kids
playing in the water, the crackle of camp fires nearby and the crisp pop of
beer opening. It was the sounds of camping.

Why does it always feel like life is passing you by in a
blur?

Before you know it you’re a mother of three, your husband
is worshiped by women, and maybe even men, all of the world and you don’t know
where all the time went.

All I really knew was that when we had the opportunity to
be a family, we were.

After the July, 2008 race in Chicago, Jameson had a
bi-week before the race in Indy. Against our better judgment, we took all the
kids camping, tent camping to be exact.

Aiden convinced all of us to go camping at Lake
Guntersville State Park where he spent most of his time growing up. We had so
many people with us that we had to rent out most of the park.