"I'd get lost if I were you."

"Hey man, it was just a misunderstanding. But great race yester-"

"You have two seconds to leave before I call security," he said lowly, stepping in front of Dakota.

"Look, we don't mean any trouble. She wa-"

"Leave. Now."

The two boys shared a look before hurrying away from the barriers towards the street.

"Are you okay?" he asked Dakota as she let out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, thank you. What an asshole," she muttered.

"Did he hurt you?"

"No, no. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" he asked, concern clear in his green eyes.

Dakota gave him he best genuine smile she could muster.

"Can we get food, I'm starving," she said, handing him a water bottle.

"Of course," he nodded, placing a hand on the small of her back and guiding her towards the parking lot.

She stiffened at his touch, her spine straightening under his palm.

"Where are we going?"

"You said you were hungry, didn't you?"

"Yes, but the dining area's that way."

"Shh, it's a surprise."

"Fine, your car or mine?"

"Definitely mine, not with your whack ass driving," Alessandro said, shuddering a little.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad."

He narrowed his eyes at the brunette.

"Okay, maybe I was a little extra."

Dakota bit back a smile as he opened the door for her.

"How gentlemanly, thank you."

"I'm not a cave man, Kota," he rolled his eyes.

She felt her heart skip a beat at the nickname. Her whole life she had never had a nickname until now.

"You're 49% asshole and 51% dickhead."

"That's no way to treat someone who's taking you out to dinner," he scolded, a mockingly stern tone.

"Oh. Oh! Is that what this is? You taking me out?" Dakota said, turning to look at him.

"What is that phrase you American's say? In your dreams?"

"Ha. Very funny, Moreno."

He chuckled, shaking his head as he pulled out of the parking lot.

The cars' vibrations made Kota relax, the silence in the car making her feel tired.

Alessandro's gaze flickered over to Dakota every now and then. She was so close. Just an arms reach away. Her head was turned to the window, watching the scenery pass by.

It was quiet, but a comfortable kind of quiet. For once he didn't feel obliged to make conversation, just to avoid the awkward silence.

He was caught by surprise at the sudden urge to place his hand on her jean clad thigh. Instead, he gripped the steering wheel tighter, shaking his head.

"Where are we going?" Kota spoke up, shifting in her seat to face him.

"To eat," he replied.

"No shit sherlock."

"Sorry," he chuckled, "Lando's rubbing off on me. He always does that."

"What's it like at McLaren? Are you enjoying it?"

"Yeah, it's my dream. I couldn't ask for anything better," he replied, eyes focused on the road ahead.

Dakota tilted my head, scrutinizing his expression.

"Come on. There has to be a catch. Something that's not as you expected," she prodded.

He shrugged indifferently, glancing over at her.

"How's Lando as a teammate?"

"Aren't you full of questions. He's nice. Provides some comedic relief."

"Hm. You guys get along well?"

"Yes, you could say that. It's just fucking annoying every time he finishes higher than me."

"Understandable. But hey, it's only your first year," Dakota reminded him as they pulled into the parking lot.

"The amount of time's I've heard that statement," he sighed.

"It's the truth. Don't be so hard on yourself. Plus, the McLaren's way harder to drive if you're new to it."

He nodded, opening the door for Dakota.

"Maybe you're 1% nice," she said, getting out of the car.

"Are you going to start ranking my personality traits now?"

"Maybe. If you have enough of them."

Alessandro shook his head, but couldn't help the smile that snuck onto his face as he followed the brunette into the restaurant. They chose a secluded corner table near the back door and took a seat.

Dakota stared at the menu for a moment before it was snatched away from her.

"Hey!"

"Don't hey me. As if you would be able to decide what you want to order."

Dakota opened her mouth to protest, but then decided against it. He was right. She couldn't pick a dish for the life of her. She sat silently, watching him carefully as he skimmed over the menu.

"Don't give me that look," he rolled his eyes.

"What look?" I asked, feigning innocence.

"Like you're trying to figure me out," he replied, his lips pressed into a thin line.

I held his gaze as his green eyes bore into mine.

A challenge.

Who would look away first.

This time, I let him win.

"This one's pretty good, but I squally get this one," he said, pointing to a few dishes on the menu.

I hummed in response, skimming over the description of each dish before settling on one.

"So, tell me about yourself Miss Sanchez."

I raised a brow, taking a sip of my own water.

"I have nothing to tell," I shrugged.

He rolled his eyes before responding.

"Of course, I forget you're just as headstrong as I am."

I stared at him expectantly before he finally gave in.

"There's been some issues, within the team. But I'm sure its just miscommunication."

"Issues like?"

"Just, Dave. He's my engineer. For the past three races he's made the wrong call about my race strategy. I mean, I know he's doing his job and mistakes happen. But it seems odd to me."

She hummed in response, thinking about what he had just revealed. That would explain his seemingly terrible luck recently. It would also explain why he and Lando were so far apart, despite having a perfectly capable car.

"Have you talked to Zak about it?"

"You think my boss is going to like it when I tell him I think his lead engineer is sabotaging me?" Alessandro deadpanned.

"Ah. Good point," Kota nodded, pushing her food around with her fork.

"What about your strategist, Ivan? Isn't he the one who calls the shots?"

"That's the funny thing, he and Dave don't get along well. My strategist and my engineer always have disagreements, mostly because Dave never relays Ivan's message to me."

"That's... that's really odd. It's probably just minor, have you asked Ivan about it?"

"Look, can we not... talk about work right now," he muttered, looking down at his plate.

"Of course," she nodded quickly, her cheeks turning pink.

I swear you're so stupid Dakota. Who wants to talk about work when they're out at dinner.

The rest of dinner passed in silence as they both thought about what Alessandro disclosed. Dave was a nice man. He didn't speak much. Always head down and seemingly hard at work.

She would be keeping a close eye on him. Mark could probably find some dirt on him as well.

By the time the two finished eating, the stars were bright in the sky above.

A cool summer breeze rustled Kota's hair as the door to the restaurant swung shut behind them.

"I know you like to chat, but you better not say a word about this," Alessandro narrowed his eyes at her.

"About what?" she asked, a smile tugging at her lips.

He bit down on his lower lip, nodding in satisfaction. His hands were shoved in the pockets of his jeans, the wind ruffling his soft hair.

God, he's so attractive.

Her heart skipped a beat as she stared at him, a foreign feeling settling in her chest.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

Alessandro looked down at her as she kicked a pebble with her foot.

"For?"

"Scaring those guys off, bringing me here. Just, everything. I had a lot of fun today. Filming, the hot laps, dinner. It was really nice."

"Well, I had fun too. Maybe you're not so bad after all," he joked, nudging her shoulder playfully.

"Ready to go?" he asked, turning to look at her.

She felt her cheeks heat up under his gaze. He made her feel flustered without even trying.

Dakota nodded wordlessly, following him to the car.

Oh God. What have I gotten myself into