😊

The sun was high in the sky as I stepped out onto the track. It was hot as hell, the track temperature almost 110 degrees Fahrenheit. Today I had been asked to film a Pirelli Hot Laps video for the F1 YouTube channel.

The paddock was almost empty, most of the teams had already finished packing up after the Spanish GP.

I smiled as I thought back to the exciting weekend that had come to an end.

"That's P5 Sandro, P5!"

"Whoohoo! Yes! Let's go!"

I could hear the cheers from the McLaren garage as I grinned, staring at the large screen from my car.

"He did well," Mark spoke up, fiddling with the controls as we turned everything off.

"Mhm, nice for a change."

"Are you going to go congratulate him?" he smirked, wiggling his brows. I rolled my eyes, getting out of the car.

"Oh Alessandro! You did so well today!" he mocked in a high pitched voice.

"Oh fuck off, would you?"

I made my way over to Parc Fermé where all the cars had been parked post race.

"Hey, congrats on P4!" I grinned, fist bumping Lando as he rushed past me.

"Thanks! Shame it wasn't a podium."

"I know! So close, you could almost taste it," I joked, making him laugh.

I waited by the entrance of the pit lane, scanning for a familiar navy blue helmet. Alessandro remove his helmet after being weighed by the official.

His hair was a mess, the fluffy brown locks sticking every which way. I hesitated, lingering in the back as a few of his crew congratulated him.

I locked eyes with him as he hugged someone and he raised a brow at me. Jokingly, I glanced down at my wrist as if I was checking my watch.

I watched him whisper something in his PR's ear and make his way over to me.

He was buzzing with energy, his eyes sparkling with excitement. My gaze shifted as he unzipped the top of his race suit to reveal a white fireproof top.

The material was thin enough that the outline of his abs were visible under the shirt.

God, he's so hot.

No. No he's not. The weather is hot. Not him.

"How was the race?" he asked, still slightly breathless.

"Hmm, I don't know. P5 doesn't seem too bad," I said, giving him a sly smile.

Alessandro rolled his eyes at my response making me chuckle.

"No, but seriously, congrats. You did really well. P5 is definitely deserved."

"Thank you Kota," he smiled, making my eyes flicker to his cheek. A faint dimple appeared on his left cheek that had me swooning.

"P5!" a voice exclaimed, a figure body slamming into Alessandro.

I jumped aside in surprise as he stumbled over.

"For fucks sake, Lando!" he huffed, rubbing his shoulder and ribs.

"Wow, I come over here to congratulate you and this is what I get. What a shitty team mate," Lando pouted.

"Oh stop being a baby," Carlos said, slinging his arm around the brunets shoulder.

"Shall we celebrate?" I asked, raising a brow at Alessandro.

"What do you have in mind, Sanchez?"

"Champagne and a good night's sleep?" Carlos asked, his tone hopeful.

"Hey Sanchez!" a voice called, pulling me from my thoughts. I huffed, rolling my eyes before turning to look over my shoulder.

Two guys stood near the fencing on the edge of the track, looking in my direction.

"How many guys did you fuck to get that seat?!" he shouted, cackling with his friend at what was apparently a hilarious joke.

"Fuck off," I replied, shaking my head as I went over the schedule.

"How much did they pay you?" his friend shouted over the barrier.

"Was the sex good?" he called, cupping his hands over his mouth.

I clenched my jaw tightly.

Stupid hormonal jerks.

"Hey, tell you what. I'll give you 3 grand for one night," he shouted.

My knuckles turned white as I gripped the clipboard. My patience was wearing thin. I let out a string of curses under my breath, moving back into the FIA hospitality. I was out of their sight, for now.

I pulled out my phone, texting Alessandro to let me know when he was here.

No matter how hard I tried to focus on the material, I couldn't. My mind was reeling and I couldn't stop thinking about what the boy had said.

Is that really what people thought? That I'm some kind of prostitute?

The ringtone of my phone pulled me from my thoughts and I spotted Alessandro standing beside the car.

"Hey," he greeted with a smile.

"Hey" I replied quietly, giving him a tense smile. My eyes flickered over to the barriers where the two boys had yet to notice me.

Alessandro wore a pair of dark jeans and a tight-fitting white McLaren tee.

Ok, now I'm convinced this guy totally knows what he's doing. Cheeky bastard.

I was dressed in light blue mom jeans and a black fitted long sleeved shirt. They tried to force me into wearing a F1 polo, but I would be dead before you caught me in that shirt outside of a race weekend.

Alessandro let his eyes wander over the curve of her waist, highlighted by the tight shirt. She looked good in everything, even casual clothing and it drove him crazy.

He noticed her wary gaze flickering over to the barriers, piquing his curiosity.

The two boys suddenly noticed Kota's presence out in the pitlane and immediately began whispering to each other. Alessandro didn't say anything, silently watching them from the corner of his eye.

One of them pulled out their phones, pointing it in their direction.

He tried not to show his annoyance. Fans were always trying to get a picture in, but he understood their fascination. He used to be one of them after all.

However, he did notice how Kota shifted uncomfortably, moving closer to him as if she was hiding behind him.

Confused, he discretely turned his body a little to shield her from the camera.

Maybe she wasn't used to being in the spotlight.

"Alright, I have three rules," Zak began as the camera crew began filming.

"One, don't crash the car. Two, don't throw up in the car. Three, don't crash the car."

"Did you get that Alessandro?" Kota teased, my name rolling off the tip of her tongue perfectly.

"You're asking me?" he raised a brow making her grin.

"So here's what we're gonna do. One of you will be blindfolded in the passenger seat and you have to guess which turns are on the track. When you get near the finish line, you have to call out when you think you've crossed the line."

"Blindfolded?" Kota whined, her shoulders slumping.

"Who's idea was this?" Alessandro asked, looking around.

"I just want to have a little talk," he said as everyone laughed.

"Are you ready for this?" she asked, her eyes twinkling mischievously.

"I'm always ready, carina," he said, the Italian word rolling off his tongue making her shiver.

"I'm sure you are, casanova," she teased, turning to look at Zak as he approached them.

"Wait, who's going first?"

"I dunno, doesn't matter to me."

"Ok, rock paper scissors," Zak suggested.

After 3 rounds of rock, paper, scissor, shoot, Alessandro won.

"Great," Kota muttered as they got into the car and put on their seatbelts.

She turned to face Alessandro who was already looking at her with a mischievous smirk.

She huffed, giving him a warning look before slipping on the blindfold.

His heart was racing, not because he was scared. But because he couldn't handle the fact that Dakota was sitting next to him in the car.

Alessandro waited for Zak to give the signal before putting the car into gear and hitting the gas.

The car accelerated rapidly, pressing them back against the seats.

Kota felt her heart drop to her stomach, but knew she was in good hands. She trusted Alessandro just enough to relax slightly as he drove on the track.

She focused on the feel of the car's movements as he drove.

Kota reached up to clutch the grab handles above the window as Alessandro turned sharply.

"Turn one, man this blindfold makes very thing seem more unstable than it is," she muttered.

He snickered, constantly glancing over at her. He had heard how the other drivers absolutely hated it. It was much worse when you're not the one in control of the car.

"Turn two,"

He smirked, deciding to play some games with her. Her breath caught in her throat as she gripped the side of her seat tightly. He spun the car sharply, the force pushing her against the door

"You're a dick Moreno," she huffed and he chuckled.

He was impressed by how well she was taking it, no screaming or complaining involved.

"Sandro, are we facing the wrong direction?" she asked, trying to gather her bearings.

"I don't know, you tell me."

She felt like kicking him.

"Fuck," she muttered as he continued to drive in a zig zag pattern.

"Uh, turn 7. There's the mountains on the left I think."

Alessandro nodded, giving the camera an impressed look.

"Turn 12, Moreno you're all over the curbs," she huffed, feeling the rumbled of the cement below.

"Well, this road car is new for me," he defended.

She suddenly lurched forward as he slammed on the breaks. Even more confused when the car started moving backwards.

"Did you almost crash into the barrier?" she asked, her voice laced with amusement and a bit of disbelief.

"Almost," he replied with a grin on his face.

"There should be a very sharp - ah there it is," she said as he almost made a u-turn at the hairpin.

She gripped the handlebar tightly as the force pressed her against the door.

"Ok wait, we should be approaching the end," she said, focusing as much as she could on the feel of the shifting gears.

1

2

3

4

5

"Right about.... Now."

"Not bad," Alessandro grinned, glancing over at her as she removed her blindfold.

'You didn't shift to 6th gear," she frowned, knowing it had thrown her off.

"I shifted to fifth right before the line. Why?'

"Because it confused me," she frowned.

"Good."

Kota leaned over and punched his shoulder. He winced, rubbing the spot.

"How was it?" Zak grinned, watching as Kota leaned over with her hands on her knees.

"My head is spinning," she complained.

"Your turn Sandro," he smirked, handing him the blindfold.

He got into the passenger seat, the scent of Kota's hibiscus shampoo still lingering in the car. The car rumbled to life, vibrations going through her body. The engine roared as she left the pitlane and moved onto the track.

She could tell that Alessandro was already tense, his hand gripping the handle.

The blindfold made him feel uneasy. He was used to keeping his eyes peeled on the track, always knowing where the car was going.

The car swerved sharply making his heart drop.

"Kota," he warned, making her bite back a laugh.

"Yes?" she replied, making a full 360 circle.

"Dakota! What the fuck?"

She laughed at his confused state as he sat straighter, trying to focus on the car.

"Turn 3," he said, pointing out the window to the right.

Although covered by the blindfold, his eyes widened as the car went faster. He knew there was a turn approaching but Dakota didn't seem to slow down.

"Break, break! Dakota!"

She was known to be a late breaker, especially with road cars. She avoided the large sausage curbs, better than Alessandro did at least.

Alessandro felt like he was about to have a heart attack.

"I think I am going to throw up," he muttered.

"What? Are you serious?" she laughed, glancing over at the Italian.

"You're driving like... you know when you don't tie a knot on a balloon and let it go and it goes everywhere," he said, not realizing what he said made no sense.

Dakota gave him the most puzzled expression she could muster, looking at the camera and mouthing the words "he's crazy."

"Do you know what I'm saying- turn 9. No wait, turn 10? What turn is it?"

"I don't know, you tell me," she repeated his words.

"Fuck," he mumbled.

Dakota smirked, deciding it would be fun to mess with him just a bit more.

"You know we could be going in the opposite direction?"

"What?" he exclaimed, turning to face her even though he couldn't see.

"Just saying."

"No shut up, you are trying to confuse me," he muttered, waving her off.

"Ah this is the straight."

He had to pull all concentration to feel the gear shifts as they neared the finish line. Dakota was an extremely smooth shifter and he had to focus hard to differentiate.

"Now!"

"Holy shit, how did you do that?" Dakota laughed as he guessed the exact spot.

"Because I am amazing," he replied, pulling off the blindfold.

Dakota rolled her eyes, smiling nonetheless.

"I think I am actually going to be sick," he said quickly, rushing out of the car.

His head was spinning as a wave of nausea came over him. He could hear Dakota laughing with Zak as he closed his eyes, trying to push down the unsettling feeling.

"I am never doing that again," he said, walking back to them.

"So clearly, I won that round," Dakota said, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

"Yeah right," he scoffed, bumping her lightly.

"Zak? You have the final say."

"Hm, I'd say it was pretty even. Sandro guessed the turns correctly, but Kota drove better on the track."

"Ha! Take that!" Dakota jumped, claiming victory.

"I still won the main part of the competition which was guessing the layout."

"I still drove better than a professional F1 driver," she countered.

Alessandro shook his head, but couldn't stop smiling.

The two finished up with the team's film crew before heading into the garage area to cool down.

His body was buzzing with energy, something he noticed around Dakota's presence.

Dakota walked outside the FIA's garage to grab some water from the table, but froze when she heard someone laughing. She whirled around to find the two boys from earlier still hanging around the area.

"So, have you thought about my offer?" he asked, nudging his friend who snickered.

"Go fuck yourself!" she spat over her shoulder, storming away from the two.

"Come on, don't make me come over," he called and her heart sped up.

There was no way he would dare to jump the fence, right?

The soft thud of shoes landing on grass proved her wrong.

Every fiber in her body told her to run as her hands gripped the two water bottles.

Alessandro frowned when he heard Kota yelling something along the lines of "fuck yourself" as he rounded the corner. Dakota was taking longer than usual to grab water, prompting him to check on her.

And he was glad he did as he caught sight of someone grabbing her by the elbow.

"How bout 5 grand? Just one night, what do you think about that princess?"

A stern voice interrupted, coming from just outside from the motorhome. The tone of his voice sent a chill down her spine.

"You'll be disappointed to know 5 grand is less than 5 percent of her salary. She'd fuck anyone before stooping to your level."

The man immediately let go of her arm, taking a step back as Alessandro approached.

Dakota's heart was hammering in her chest. She could feel his presence behind her, his chest vibrating against her back as he spoke.

"I'd get lost if I were you," he smirked, a hand resting on her waist.