Dreams Beneath Racing Skies

In the third year of Lyra Hawthorne's engagement to Ryder Calloway, he found himself a beautiful grid girl named Nova Voss abroad.

The day before Valentine's Day, he deliberately brought Nova to see Lyra and demanded to break off the engagement.

"Nova and I share the same interests. A simp like you will never understand the thrill of racing."

Lyra refused to accept it and asked, "Does it have to be today?"

He laughed. "Do you need to check the calendar to call off an engagement?"

She nodded and didn't argue any further.

A month later, she entered the same race he did. What he didn't know was that she had understood the thrill of racing long before he ever did.

Later, she got married on his birthday.

With reddened eyes, he asked, "Does it have to be today?"

She smiled as well.

"Of course. You do need to pick an auspicious day for a wedding."

When Ryder Calloway came to see me, I had not seen him for nearly half a year.

He had studied abroad for three years, yet after returning home, he had not sent me a single message.

A few days earlier, I received a voice recorder mailed from overseas. The moment I turned it on, the first thing I heard was a burst of laughter.

"Hahaha, Ryder, you're unbelievable! Not only did you get your racing license, but you even hooked up with the hottest grid girl in the paddock! Nova, hurry and tell us, how does Ryder drive in bed?"

A flirtatious female voice answered, "Do I even need to say it? Straight to the fast lane, obviously!"

A piercing shriek followed instantly, so loud it almost tore through my eardrums.

I lowered the volume of the recorder and kept listening.

"Ryder, what about your fiance back home? Haven't you two been engaged for three years? Aren't your families pushing you to marry her?"

My fingers clenched unconsciously as I turned the volume all the way up.

"Fiance? What do kids know about love? Lyra Hawthorne and I haven't even seen each other for more than half a year. At best, she's just my parents' free live-in caretaker. She's obedient and easy to deal with."

Someone teased him, "Damn, Ryder, you really are something. You even got the Hawthorne heiress to willingly play nanny."

The voices paused for a few seconds. Then I heard Ryder give a mocking laugh. "Well, what can I say? She likes me that much."

After I finished listening to that recording, my mind went completely blank. All I did was wait for Ryder to come back and give me an explanation.

Now, his red Porsche was parked right outside my house. The car window was open, and he was sitting in the driver's seat.

One hand pinched the girl's chin beside him. The other cradled the back of her head as he kissed her deeply, lingering, completely without restraint.

Suddenly, I remembered the day three years ago when Ryder