One Track Mind (16 page)

K
ANE DROVE HOME
when testing was over. The vandalism infuriated him, but he was the sort whose fury was usually cold, not fiery. Mentally, he listed possible reasons for the damage to the NASCAR drivers’ vehicles. Somebody wanted the track to fail. Why?

He could come up with a dozen scenarios. All were possible, but also seemed far-fetched or incomplete. And there was another complication, just as mysterious to him: Lori. When the Hornings got excited about the old mill buildings, they’d started talking of Halesboro’s potential as a tourist destination.

The speedway was in bad shape, D. B. Horning said, but it could be restored by somebody who knew what he was doing. And Kane had thought,
I’m that guy.
He’d worked at Halesboro, he’d always followed racing, and he had clients who were first-class drivers. He knew racing from the inside out, and he knew an opportunity when he saw it.

What had put him off was that Lori’s father had mismanaged the track, then died, and Lori had been forced to put it up for sale. For years his feelings toward her had been a two-edged sword. She was the first and only woman he’d ever loved. And she’d hurt him worse than any other human being ever had.

Part of him wanted to humble her, even punish her. Another wanted to come to her rescue like a knight on a white horse. And part of him hoped that as soon as he saw her, his obsession with her would die.

He’d been wrong. She still had her trim little figure and lovely face and red-gold hair. The only pathetic things about her were that she’d married that jerk Scott Garland, and that her father had set her an impossible task. But she was still sassy and vivacious; she thought fast and spoke her mind.

The old attraction still held him fast, and he hadn’t expected it. He found himself toying with her, which made him feel like a lout. And, in turn, she seemed to fight her attraction to him, which made him feel vulnerable and uncertain. When he’d been poor and nobody, she’d taken his heart and stamped it flat. Was she proud enough to want to do the same thing now that he was wealthy? Or would she tolerate him now
because
of his wealth?

What he needed was a woman like Zoey, who had her own money, her own success, yet was surprisingly without complexity. He had enough complexity in his life. And always had.

L
ORI STAYED BUSY
and wanted to stay busy to keep from brooding about Kane. But he was always hovering in her mind, like a handsome ghost who wouldn’t be exorcised. So he was in her thoughts when she booked the pre-race enter
tainment, a motorcycle daredevil Kane had recommended, when she ordered the posters, when she checked on repairs to the infield.

In between, she had to plan for her trip with Kane to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race in the mountains of Pennsylvania. She wished she had something stylish to wear, but she wouldn’t allow herself to spend the money. She’d pack her trusty crinkly sage-green slacks and the two matching blouses. She would not, she vowed, try to impress him. After all, he was seeing Zoey Horning, who was young, lovely and a millionairess. She probably had four thousand designer outfits. Lori had worn beautiful clothes once. What good did it do to dwell on it?

She had more important things to think of. The police had made zero progress on the recent vandalism. This was frustrating, as were the estimates coming in from other security companies. The lowest of them seemed outrageous. She worried about Kane losing a fortune and about the whole scheme of the mall, the theme park, all of it, failing miserably. And sometimes she worried almost as much that he’d succeed and view his success as a grim, ironic sort of revenge on the town.

She was nervous and on edge when she drove to the Charlotte airport to meet Kane early Saturday afternoon. He wore jeans and a cobalt blue polo shirt that set off his tan and showed his biceps. But even in jeans and a cotton shirt, he gave off an aura of elegance. People would think she was his frumpy country cousin.
So what?
she asked herself. She’d come to pride herself on living on a budget.

But traveling first-class still jolted her. And in Philadelphia, they checked into a hotel only a mile from the airport. It had a four-diamond rating, and her room seemed big enough for six people. Kane stayed on a different floor this time. Well, he was
acting
like a gentleman. But the room, too, overwhelmed her; it was so grand that she couldn’t imagine what it cost.

Kane took her for supper in the hotel’s beautiful restaurant,
which had stained glass windows and a menu discreetly without prices. “I’ll order for you,” he suggested. “You’d order a slice of cheese on white bread if they served it.”

“You…eh…live a bit high on the hog. I’m not used to it.”

“You were used to it once. And it’s no sin to enjoy life.”

She shrugged helplessly and let him order her the filet mignon. Once she’d been used to such material luxuries. Now she felt her greatest luxury was being out of debt. It bestowed the kind of security and peace of mind she’d once taken for granted.

He’d ordered a bottle of red wine brought to the table. As the waiter left the table, Kane said, “I’d like to take you out to see Philadelphia. But we have to get up early tomorrow morning to beat the traffic. Then we fly out of here at 8 p.m. It’s going to be a long day.”

“I’m interested in this track,” she said. “It’s independently owned, like…yours.” She’s almost said
ours.
What a faux pas that would have been.

“Right,” he said. “And it’s got an interesting layout and an interesting history. I want to look closely at this one.”

“This is the raceway they literally rebuilt,” she replied. “Almost the way you want to eventually.”

Kane said, “Not quite. The guy who started it realized it was built wrong. After a bunch of setbacks, he tore it down and began all over. Now it’s a showplace and has two NASCAR races. I’d like even one race, but I don’t want to tear down Halesboro. Just fix it up so it can be at its best.”

The sommelier came, poured the wine for Kane to taste, then filled both glasses and silently slipped away. Kane touched his glass to Lori’s. “To resurrection of the Pennsylvania track—and to one just as successful for Halesboro.”

“I’ll drink to that,” she said, “but they poured a lot of money into the one here.”

“Yep,” Kane said without emotion. “The byword at the raceway here is PFC—pretty, friendly, clean. I want the same for Halesboro.”

“It’s a fine goal,” she said. “If you’ve got the money to spare.”

“Not to spare. To invest. And if I fail, I have job skills to fall back on. Waiting tables, sweeping floors, digging ditches. But my question is what do
you
do after you’re finished helping me make the transition? Stay in good old Halesboro and go back to teaching?”

“I don’t know,” she said uneasily because she was reluctant to think of the future. “I suppose. It’s home, after all.”

“The only place you’ve ever lived,” he said.

“Yes.”

“But there’s a big world outside it, Lori. Don’t you want to see it?”

She smiled and said nothing. She was happy in Halesboro. Wasn’t she?

T
HE
I
LLINOIS SPEEDWAY
had risen up from the flatness of the cornfields, but Pocono was in the mountains, which seemed less alien to Lori. There was a lovely countryside and thick forests. The summer sky was blue and streaked with white clouds, and more than once she saw deer grazing beside the highway.

And the raceway
was
impressive. Lori loved the midway with its towering spruces, gazebos and picnic tables. The size of the track astonished her, although she’d known it was large.

The track’s sharp turns and low banking dictated less speed than other tracks, but those who loved it said it was a driver’s track, all the way.

Lori and Kane went to a sponsor’s skybox above the main straight. More than forty people milled in the big room with its floor to ceiling glass overlooking the track. A caterer dispensed food and drinks, and there was tiered seating, as well as closed-circuit TV.

Kane was right. There was a large world outside of Halesboro, and, at last, she was seeing it, even starting to feel comfortable in it.

But then something unexpected happened. A beautiful girl came into the skybox with a tall man. She looked about, saw
Kane, smiled in delight, ran and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him and kissing him soundly on the cheek.

She had an astonishing figure, emphasized by her azure tank top and low-slung stretch jeans. She was someone completely different, with luxuriant blond hair and blue eyes. The blonde kissed Kane again. And she wasn’t Zoey Horning.

K
ANE AWKWARDLY
embraced the blonde, then disengaged himself.

Lori was almost certain that he blushed, ever so slightly. Kane blush? It seemed impossible. But he looked at Lori, nodded at the blonde, and said, “Er…do you remember my little sister Stacy?”

Lori, who’d been shocked at the blonde’s forwardness, suddenly sped backward in time and remembered the pretty but skinny little girl who was Kane’s half-sister. She had the same classic cheekbones as Kane, but otherwise didn’t resemble him.

Stacy’s blue eyes opened wider. “I remember you,” she told Lori. “You taught at my high school. I was never in your class, but I knew who you were. It’s great to see you again.”

It was Lori’s turn to blush. She’d been grateful Stacy had never been her student, and hadn’t wanted to think about the girl. She’d brought back painful memories of Kane. Like him, she’d been poor, ill-dressed and an outsider. But now she seemed in full, healthy bloom.

“It’s good to see you again,” Lori said, and it wasn’t exactly a lie, because at least this lovely girl wasn’t one of Kane’s paramours. “What are you doing these days?”

“I’m a fitness instructor,” Stacy said. “I work for Cargill-Grosso.”

“Cargill-Grosso?” Lori repeated, almost disbelieving. Why hadn’t Kane told her?

Now, almost sheepishly, he said, “And now she and Nathan
Cargill are…seeing each other. That’s Nathan over there, stealing all the cashews out of the mixed nut dish. Excuse me. I’m going to go make a citizen’s arrest.”

Stacy gave him an affectionate swat. “You’re incorrigible. As usual.” Kane headed toward Nathan, and Stacy turned her attention back to Lori. “Kane and I just sort of rediscovered each other,” she said. “I’m really happy to have hooked up with him again. He’s a super guy.”

Lori blinked. Was there yet another facet of Kane she didn’t know?

Stacy must have seen the puzzlement on her face. Lowering her voice confidentially, she said, “Our mother was a disaster. When he was home, he was my hero. I missed him something awful when he left. Sometimes I cried at night because he hadn’t taken me with him. And finally, when I was fed up with Brenda’s problems, I left. I wanted to find him.”

“I can imagine,” Lori said, feeling real sympathy for the young woman. “And you did find him. I’m glad.”

Stacy gave a self-conscious shrug. “It took a long time to catch up with him. And at first Kane sort of kept his distance. I think he was afraid I’d turn out like Brenda. But he and I are cool now. We’re family again. I’ve got my big brother again.”

“That’s good. Very good,” Lori said.

“And it’s good to see you with him,” Stacy replied. “I know that he was crazy about you. Not that he ever told me. I found out from Brenda years later. Kane plays it close to the vest. He doesn’t like to show his feelings.”

Stacy’s frankness was disarming. Lori said, “I…we’re not exactly together. It’s a business arrangement.”

“Yeah.” Stacy flashed a grin. “Sure. That’s what
he
keeps saying.”

Lori tried to change the subject. “Kane said no one has heard from your mother in a while. I’m very sorry. “

“Brenda wasn’t stable,” Stacy said, suddenly more solemn, “I know that she hit Kane up for money, but he stopped sending it when she just kept spending it on drinking. She did
the same thing to me once I was older. I came to feel like Kane. I couldn’t just keep enabling her, you know?”

Lori shook her head, feeling a tug of sympathy not only for Stacy but for Kane.

“I mean,” said Stacy, “the money was one thing. But the emotional see-saw was worse.”

No wonder Kane was so emotionally elusive, thought Lori. His mother had taught him to beware of caring. And Lori herself, in her youthful ignorance, had reinforced that painful lesson.

“I’m glad you and your brother reunited,” she told Stacy. “Things must have been very hard on you both, growing up.”

“He’s strong,” Stacy said. “He was always strong. Even though I was so young I saw that. It broke my heart when he left Halesboro, but it was the best thing he could do for himself.”

She took Lori by the arm. “But I’m babbling. It’s so strange to see a familiar face from Halesboro. Come meet Nathan. He used to come to Halesboro Speedway with his dad. Do you remember?”

“I do,” Lori said with a smile. She kept the smile in place, but Stacy’s words unsettled her.
He’s strong. He was always strong.

Was he strong enough to fight all the shadows gathering around them at Halesboro Speedway? And were either of them strong enough to face the complexities of their relationship?

O
N THE PLANE
back to Charlotte, Lori said, “I liked your sister. She told me how she missed you when you left. How glad she was to find you again.”

“God love her,” he said, but he didn’t meet Lori’s eyes. “I should have taken her with me or at least tried to provide for her better. I was wary about sending more money. I knew Brenda’d drink it all up, and that would only make things harder on Stacy.”

“And you really don’t wonder what’s become of your mother?” Lori probed.

“I try not to think about her. I’ll say one thing for Brenda. She made a person toughen up. If Stacy and I hadn’t toughened up, we wouldn’t have survived. But we did, and we’re together again. Now let’s change the subject. I talked to some NASCAR people.”

Lori blinked in surprise. “Did they say anything about Halesboro?”

He turned and faced her. “We spoke in glittering generalities. Nothing concrete. They’re smart about business, exceptionally smart. We have to prove that Halesboro would be good business for them.”

“Did they say anything about the vandalism?”

“Just alluded to it. I said we’re putting in a state-of-the-art security system. And they know that several teams are already testing there. In the meantime, our job is to ensure we get as many seats filled as possible. We need strong local and regional support to get us going and keep us going. And we’ll get it—if I have to rent thirty elephants to stand on their heads in the infield.”

“You’re kidding, I hope.”

“No, babe,” he said, looking into her eyes. “I’m not kidding. I told you—I play to win.”

She narrowed her eyes speculatively. “And what exactly, in the end, do you want to win?”

His gaze fell to her lips and lingered there. In a low voice, he said, “I’m still figuring that out.” But he thought he knew now. Maybe he’d known from the day he’d picked up that old yearbook and bought it.

N
O ELEPHANTS
stood on their heads at the next Halesboro race. But the country-rock band was a huge hit, and so was the poster-signing session with Kent Grosso. The late-model race thrilled the crowd, and so did the twenty-five prizes of gas cards given throughout the night. Kane felt that the guests left happy and ready to return for more.

The security system people were still making estimates so
he’d hired a third company to provide a double complement of guards, as well as backup off-duty state troopers.

The only dark moment came when Lori’s Mustang went cranky again. Kane said he thought it needed new spark plugs. She was exhausted, and he sensed that she was close to tears with fatigue from all her work on the race and her frustration at the car’s continuing troubles. His heart contracted as he looked at her, realizing how strong she was in spite of her vulnerability.

“Come on,” he said, as gently as he could. “I’ll drive you home. I’ll see that Clyde takes care of this tomorrow.”

She seemed reluctant, but agreed.

He walked her to her door, and on impulse he said, “Could I come in for a while? There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

“Sure,” she said, but uncertainty vibrated in her voice.

What am I doing?
he asked himself. As soon as the door shut behind them, he knew he was getting into the very situation he’d sworn not to. But some inner force, too strong to resist, drove him.

She offered him a drink, and he accepted. She poured them each a glass of white wine, and they sat on the couch in her small living room.

“We made a lot of money tonight,” he said, looking at her over the top of his glass. “Almost a third of what we spent.”

Puzzlement crossed her face. “And that doesn’t bother you?”

“You have to expect it at first,” he said wryly. “If I’m still in the hole after ten years, I’ll wonder if I made a really stupid mistake.”

She cocked her head, the way she used to when they’d talk seriously. “I still don’t understand. Why are you doing all this?”

He set his glass on the coffee table. He looked at her. He realized how tired he was of disguising how he felt, hiding it, especially from himself. The moment for truth had come. He took a deep but unsteady breath. “Why? For a lot of reasons. But the main reason? I guess it’s you.”

Her eyes widened, and her beautiful, so beautiful lips parted in surprise.

“I never got you out of my system,” he confessed. “Ever.” He felt as vulnerable as if he were standing naked on Main Street at high noon.

“But,” she said, her voice quavering, “you and Zoey Horning…”

“I’m her friend. And a decoy. She’s engaged to Rome McCandless. They want to stay out of the news. Rome’s a famous guy, but he’s also very private. That’s why last winter I brought her and her father to Halesboro. She wanted to see where Rome grew up. He was at a game in Florida that day. I’m trusting you to keep this secret.”

“Good grief,” she said.

He put his hands on her upper arms, drawing her closer. “And I’m trusting you to understand this—when I left, I felt like you’d betrayed me. It poisoned me. I resented it for years. And I came here wanting to kick sand in the town’s collective face. To do it with a vengeance. But vengeance doesn’t feel so good. And you—”

He bent closer to her. “I wanted to show you what a mistake you’d made. I wanted to humble you, make you feel humiliated and ashamed. But I’ve come to realize what happened to us happened because we were too young to know better. As soon as I saw you, it all came back. The attraction. The affection. I guess I have to say it—the love.”

He took her glass from her and set it aside. Then he pulled her tightly against him and kissed her until he got lost in it, just the way he used to. He was blind and deaf to everything else in the universe except her.

One tiny corner of sanity flickered in his mind, telling him this was dangerous. He was giving her the chance to hurt him again as badly as before, to reject him again.

But she didn’t reject him. She wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back until they both were breathless, and once again he was hers. Completely.

H
E MADE LOVE
to her twice, and they dozed together, nestled like spoons, her back against his chest, his arm over her, guarding her, cherishing her nearness. She woke him in the early hours of the morning.

“You should go,” she whispered, turning and touching his face.

“I don’t want to.” He kissed her, nuzzled her neck, her bare shoulder.

“You have to,” she insisted, raising herself on her elbow. The room was shadowy, but he could make out her features by the light from the hall. “What will the neighbors think?” she asked.

He shook his head to clear it. “Aren’t we old enough not to worry this time?”

“No,” she said. “It’s…it’s different for a man. People will talk.”

“They’re already talking, if I know Halesboro. They’ll imagine that we swing from chandeliers and—”

She put her fingertips over his mouth to hush him. “Please,” she said. “I’ve always played by the rules. Except when it came to you. I don’t want to seem brazen.”

He laughed and tried to pull her nearer. “What you seem is
quaint,
love. I mean it’s so old-fashioned it’s cute, but—”

“Kane, I mean it. If I go back to teaching, I’ve got to watch my reputation. I’ve got civil duties, and—”

“All right, all right,” he muttered. She drew away from him. She stood and quickly slipped into a robe—so modest.

She helped him gather his clothes. One of his socks had landed on the lamp shade. Then she and he spent so much time kissing goodbye that he wanted to take her back to bed, but she refused. “Please,” she begged. “Let’s be careful, that’s all. I didn’t expect for this to happen.”

So he was soon alone in his car, thinking yes, her concern was practically Victorian and sort of charming, but it was also annoying as hell. Would she never outgrow this small town?

He slept uneasily in his motel bed, and when he awoke a few hours later, he phoned Clyde to tend to Lori’s car, and then called her. He still had mixed feelings about her need for secrecy. He didn’t ask her to breakfast; he
told
her they had a date. He didn’t intend to take no for an answer.

He picked her up half an hour later, and when she came out of the house, his heart tightened with desire. She wore a dark green shorts outfit of some kind, and she always looked sensational in green. But she seemed self-conscious, almost shy.

He wanted to kiss her, right there on the front porch in the strong young daylight, in front of God and everybody. Then he’d like to pick her up and carry her back inside, straight to the bedroom. He wanted to make love to her until they were both sated and exhausted in each other’s arms.

“Good morning,” he said. “How does it feel to be a fallen woman?”

She managed a smile. “It feels surprisingly right. Somehow.”

An unfamiliar knot formed in his throat, almost choking him up. “Yeah,” he said gruffly. “It feels right. Are you my girl again?”

“If you’re my guy.” She gave him a bashful glance.

“I always have been,” he said. He yearned to put his arm around her shoulders, but for the sake of what the town thought, he didn’t.

I
T WAS
S
UNDAY MORNING
, and few people were yet in The Groove. Some would gather here after church for lunch or for coffee and pie. But for now Lori and Kane had it almost to themselves. Kane dropped coins in the jukebox and played “Got My Mind Set on You.” The song had been a kind of anthem for him during the enchanted months of their romance.