Chapter 140

Aria’s POV

As soon as the work day officially began, every employee was called into the conference room for an emergency meeting. Given the new employees, the space was crowded again, and I once more opted to stand near the back of the room, rather than to be cramped among the chairs.

Liam and Joanna were at the front of the room, nearest the podium. Another man I did not recognize was with them, and the three of them were talking. From Liam’s stiff and overly polite body language, I could tell this man was not someone to be trifled with.

When the last of the stragglers had found their way into the room, Liam stepped up to the podium and tapped on the microphone as if to see if it was working. It was.

“By now, I’m sure that you’ve all heard of the baseless accusations being leveled against our team,” Liam said.

He paused a moment and looked around the room. I did too, and while most of the employees were nodding, a few remained who seemed confused.

For their sake, I assume, Liam continued, “In case you haven’t heard. Our team has been accused of cheating in our win during last week’s race. As the accuser’s identity is being protected, we have no way of knowing who made these claims or why. For now, we are taking steps to protect ourselves.”

Liam half-turned, gesturing his arm towards the man standing beside Joanna, slightly behind Liam and to the side. “This is Mr. Gunner. He’s a third-party investigator that we’ve hired to look into our operations. As I’m sure he will find no sign of wrong-doing, this will help clear our name and absolve us from these accusations. Does anyone have any questions?”

Waiting a moment, Liam looked around. When no hands or voices raised, he added, “I’m asking everyone to please cooperate with Mr. Gunner. Do not hesitate to show him our work. We have nothing to hide, and the sooner we can prove that, the sooner things can return to normal around here. Thank you.”

Liam stepped back from the podium, signaling the end of the meeting. Joanna attempted to step around him, likely in an effort to reach the podium herself, but Liam held up an arm, stopping her. A few words of disagreement passed between them. I couldn’t hear what was said, but as they both carried looks of annoyance, I assumed nothing positive was said.

Across the room, I spotted Jackson. At that exact same moment, he turned his head and saw me as well. I thought he might try to dash off again. He’d been avoiding me lately. All of the drivers had. I’d thought it was because I was demoted to assistant trainer, but with the revelations of the past day, I wasn’t as sure anymore.

Jackson didn’t run away this time. Instead, he straightened somewhat, as if preparing himself for something, and walked toward me. I didn’t move, even as other employees started to file out of the conference room. I was waiting for him.

When Jackson made it to me, he tucked his head down slightly in apology. “I’ve been avoiding you.”

“I know.”

“I’m sorry.”

The apology seemed earnest, so I nodded.

“I didn’t want to, but…” Jackson’s voice trailed. “There’s been a lot going on around here. More than I’m used to dealing with. I just want to drive, you know? Now, it feels like I’m walking around landmines all the damn time.”

Maybe I should have left well enough alone, but something about what he said bothered me.

“Did someone tell you to avoid me?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he replied. “Well, sort of. She said you weren’t the type of person to become friends with, not if I wanted to keep my contract here with the team. She said you’d lead me into the kind of trouble that would make me a pariah not just here, but in every club across Formula One.”

I could easily guess who had told him that, but I still wanted to hear the verbal acknowledgement. “Who told you that?”

“That new supervisor,” Jackson said. “Joanna.”

Of course.

“I heard she’s engaged to Liam,” Jackson continued. “I really don’t want to make waves with the boss.”

“They aren’t engaged,” I said at once.

“You sure?” he asked. “She has a pretty big ring on her finger.”

I wished there was some way to convince her to get rid of it. As their engagement had been arranged when they were children, I wondered who actually picked out that ring. I severely doubted it was Liam, as it wasn’t his style at all. He’d never go for anything that gaudy.

Maybe Markus, then. Or his assistant. Or perhaps Joanna or her own family picked it out and sent Markus the bill. Either way, I severely doubted that Liam had anything to do with it at all.

“I’m sorry, Aria,” Jackson said. “I was scared even to try to be friends with you.”

“It’s okay,” I told him. “I understand. We’ve all been under tremendous pressure. I would never hold this against you.”

“I’m a terrible friend,” Jackson said.

“You are a man in a precarious position. You need your contract. I understand how these things work better than most people. You do what you need to do to survive and don’t worry about me.”

“I want to stay friends.”

“Jackson, we’re always going to be friends, no matter what happens around here, okay?”

He exhaled a hefty breath of what sounded like relief. “Good. I was worried that…” His voice trailed as he glanced at something behind me. “Please excuse me, I have to go. I just thought of something I forgot.”

With that, he turned and hurried away from me so quickly that he was practically running.

What could have scared him so much that he had to flee from me like this?

Glancing behind me, I looked for what he must have seen. Immediately, I understood.

Joanna was approaching, her eyes on me.

Great.

I thought about fleeing too, but it wasn’t because I was afraid of Joanna or what she might do. Instead, I just didn’t want to have to talk to her. It was emotionally exhausting, talking to someone who was so delusional. She thought Liam was going to marry her.

Even if Liam and I broke up, I still didn’t see him with someone like her. A marriage without love? I couldn’t fathom it for him.

“Aria,” Joanna said as she came to stand in front of me. “Was that Jackson I saw talking with you just now? Where’d he run off to?”

“He’s serious about his driving,” I said smoothly. “He was eager to get back to work.”

She hummed. “And what did he want to talk to you about?”

“He was making clear that all contact with me should be through emails now,” I said. “Or with his manager.”

Joanna narrowed her eyes with suspicion, but, knowing she was targeting Jackson because of me, I wasn’t going to give anything away. I would keep my friendship with Jackson a secret from Joanna, if that was what it took for her to leave him alone.

Seemingly moving on from the topic of Jackson, Joanna looks toward the front of the conference room, where Liam and Mr. Gunner are in another overly polite conversation.

“If only Liam wasn’t so stubborn…” Joanna said.

“The investigator will prove there was no wrongdoing,” I said with confidence.

Joanna looked at me with patronizing pity, the way a teacher might look at a child who answered a question incorrectly. “Aria, this is only the beginning.”