She was breathing heavily from anger but not nearly as heavily as Nikki was from desire.
“Nikki.” Shannon seemed to be repeating herself and getting nowhere.
“You want this as much as I do. Frank doesn’t know and if he did he wouldn’t care. All he’s interested in is your body for the money it
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can make him.” She moved closer to Shannon again. “I, on the other hand, am also interested in your body but for what it can do for me, and what I can do for you. I know your type, what you want. Quick, fast, anonymous. Let’s celebrate your victory.”
“That’s very flattering, Nikki, but I’ve told you, and at the risk of pissing you off, I’m going to repeat myself. I don’t do this. I don’t do married women. I don’t do straight women, and I certainly don’t do the boss’s wife.”
The look in Nikki’s eyes told Shannon that she was trying to decide if she was going to get angry or let it pass and try again. She chose the former.
“Who do you think you are?” she spat. “Where in the hell do you think you’d be without my Frank and his company? Who gives you money, buys your first class tickets, your hotel suites? You ride a bike, a silly little bike. One that happens to cost eight thousand dollars. For a bicycle, for God’s sake. How stupid is that? You would have nothing if not for my husband. And you are very close to having nothing again.”
Nikki was not known for her subtlety, and she didn’t disappoint Shannon now. There was no mistaking the innuendo in her words. With one word to her husband, she could have Shannon’s contract canceled.
She would do it.
“Nikki, I’m sorry if I offended you. You’re a very attractive woman. Another place, another time, another situation.” Shannon let the words hang in the air letting Nikki draw her own conclusions. “But I don’t do this. I’m sorry if it upset you.”
“Don’t flatter yourself,” Nikki snapped. “I can have any women here I want. As a matter of fact, I have. And your main competitor, I’ve seen the way she looks at me. I think I’ll go over to her trailer and see how she’s doing. See if she needs any consoling from her loss.”
Without another word she spun and left with a parting, “Ta ta.”
v
Caroline felt it was only right to congratulate Shannon. She had run a good race. She looked around the expo grounds and the vendors packing up their wares. With no sign of Shannon, she headed to the
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TKS trailer. It would be the last place she’d look before going back to her hotel room.
Caroline didn’t knock on the door. She didn’t think she needed to. She didn’t think at all. She opened the door and froze. Shannon was pressed up against the lockers, a woman’s body flush against her hers.
From the angle, Caroline couldn’t see who it was, but she was able to see it was a serious kiss and the woman’s hands were under Shannon’s shirt, palms splayed across her breasts.
They were obviously too deep in what they were doing to notice that she had walked into the tête-à-tête. Finding Shannon in such a compromising position was shocking. Caroline backed out as silently as she entered.
“Stupid, stupid, stupid.” She berated herself with each step taking her farther away from the scene that was burned into her mind. Why did it bother her so much? Shannon was a playgirl, she knew it. She had accused her of it earlier and Shannon hadn’t said anything to try to change her mind. So why should she be so upset to find her in such a position? She had no claims on her. Shannon had said as much to her earlier. Why shouldn’t she celebrate her victory in any way she wanted? Hell, if I’d won the race and had a good-looking woman, I’d be celebrating the same way as well. But this was different. This was Shannon and she had made love to her not twelve hours ago.
Since they’d made contact again, she thought about Shannon constantly. Why couldn’t she get her out of her mind? It was obvious that Shannon was no good for her. She didn’t even want her. Caroline didn’t want Shannon in her life. She had a career, a future. NASA was waiting. Shannon was a career liability and Caroline knew it. She couldn’t risk it. She wouldn’t risk it. Shannon had no place in her life.
Could she imagine showing up at a NASA party with Shannon on her arm? She might as well give up her dream of being an astronaut right now. It would never happen.
She came to see Shannon and what did she get? A slap in the face—again. She was much better off when they weren’t speaking to each other. Barely acknowledging each other’s existence. There was a lot less pain and confusion the way it used to be. She walked back to her hotel room vowing Shannon would never hurt her again.
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• 154 •
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ChaPTER TwENTy
The flight to Melbourne for the final race of the series was grueling. The fact that Fran peppered her with questions about her night with Shannon didn’t help.
When she had an opportunity to close her eyes, all Caroline saw was images of Shannon. The fire in her eyes just before she kissed her. The trembling of her hands as she removed her clothes. The hard, demanding kisses of desire. Shannon wanted her and Caroline had surrendered without a second thought. Jesus, what had she been thinking? Shannon was her rival. She stood in the way of everything Caroline wanted, what she had trained for, sacrificed for. She could not afford the diversion and disruption Shannon caused in her life. Not now. Not when she was so close to winning.
But she had. Boy had she. Heat raced through her body as it reflexively recalled Shannon’s touch. How she had practically begged for her touch. Caroline wasn’t normally an overly aggressive lover, but with Shannon she was insatiable. The instant Shannon’s lips touched hers she lost everything. Her inhibition, her doubts, fears, and most troubling, herself.
Making love with Shannon was the most exciting, most moving experience of her life. It was nothing in comparison to what they had shared years ago and absolutely nothing like the women she had been with since. It was more than simply the physical release. Her heart pounded in her chest, her blood churned, and she was lost in sensation and emotion. Shannon’s lips were soft, her tongue teasing, her hands
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in her hair holding Caroline to her while she flicked her tongue over Shannon’s hard clit. She wanted Shannon. She halfheartedly tried to tell herself that it just happened, that Shannon had taken advantage of her.
But that was bullshit. She knew what she was doing from the moment it started, and she did nothing to stop it. She didn’t want to.
No one made her body respond the way it did when Shannon touched her. No one excited her with just a look. No one made her come alive like Shannon did. She had never compared lovers, but now that she had been with Shannon again Caroline realized that no one could ever compare.
But it would never happen again. Not after seeing Shannon and the woman yesterday. The woman’s hands were under Shannon’s shirt and it appeared as though both of them were getting what they wanted. She hadn’t stayed around to see the rest, preferring to throw up in private behind the trailer instead.
Caroline eventually made it through customs and to the cool hotel room in Canberra. With a population of over 345,000, Canberra was Australia’s eighth largest city, located 170 miles southwest of Sydney and 410 miles northeast of Melbourne. The race was to be held at Stratford Park with over twenty-five miles of fire trail and single track trails.The twenty-four hours of Australia was a grueling marathon of riding through some of the most breathtaking, treacherous terrain on the continent. After ten races in twelve weeks, the course pitted rider against nature against the clock against stamina. The race was simple.