Thanks for the reviews. Sorry for the hiatus. Glad to see everyone's still with me. Sorry for the lack of talent in this one.

Chapter 10

(Rylan)

I was barely listening to Jesse as he rattled off the many cars that were scattered all over the construction site. I was mentally counting the seconds until the sirens and red and blues came barreling our way. Not watching where I was going, I smacked dead into a stopped Jesse.

"Dude!" I yelled, holding my forehead. He didn't respond, at least not to me.

"Jared. Long time no see," Jesse's voice spoke. I moved around to see who he was talking to, and was instantly stunned. A tall, lean beautiful black man with pearly white teeth and bright brown eyes was standing in front of Jesse, arms crossed; he looked royally pissed.

"I thought I told you I didn't want to see you Cali boys around here again," Beautiful Man said, leaning casually against his ride. "Y'all cause too much trouble with my boys."

"Oh c'mon, J. You know you love when we come through town. We bring all the racers out when we're here," Jesse replied, oh-so-cockily. I hadn't seen this side of Jesse before, and it made me laugh. "Nothing to worry about, man. I'm the only one here," I huffed, nudging him in the side. "Oh yeah, and my girl right here. This is Rylan, she's part of the family," I felt my heart shutter at the smile Jesse gave me. Saying that I was part of the family and that smile of reassurance made me the happiest I had ever been.

"Hey there Lil' Lady," the man said, smiling brightly at me. I hadn't been significantly interested in guys, with all the shit going on in my home. But this man was gorgeous. I nervously smiled and nodded at him, thankful that someone interrupted the odd situation.

"I want a race," my eyes nearly popped out of my head at Jesse's order.

"No way man, next time," Jared laughed, waving Jesse off.

"Bro, come on. You know how I do it. I'll split you some of what I win. Whaddaya say?" Jesse asked.

"That sure huh?" he nodded. "Alright. I'll round up some of the guys. One race and your gone, got it?"

"Sure."

After Jared walked away, Jesse turned around to me, smiling brightly.

"What was that all about?" I asked, following Jesse to the car.

"Leon, Vince, and I used to come here a few years back and gamble. Afterwards we'd follow the party to these parts and race. After we started winning all the money, Jared banished us from his town," Jesse replied with a laugh, lifting the hood of the Ferrari, taking a look at the engine. He began rambling off the engine specs to the car, leaving me clueless and nervous.

"Who's Leon and Vince?" I asked.

"Your mom doesn't tell you anything does she?" I shrugged my shoulders. "They were part of the crew. We all lived in one house together. We were one big happy family, then shit hit the fan," Jesse seemed a little bitter a he slammed the hood down on the car. "Get in," he ordered as he slid in the car.

We followed the stream of cars down a strip about half a mile away. As everyone pulled to the sides of the road, three cars were parked in the street, each fired up and ready to go.

"GTO, Integra, and Rx-8," Jesse named, looking over at each of the cars. Jared walked over to the car, leaning in on my side. I tried not to blush as she so blatantly looked down my tank top.

"Alright Jess. The boys wanna throw in eight," he said vaguely.

"How 'bout ten?" Jesse asked, a sly smile on his face. Jared removed his head from the window for a second, then reappeared.

"Done," Jesse handed him the money and revved up the engine of the Ferrari. I sat nervous and patiently as a blond bimbo walked out in front of the cars. I looked over at the other racers. The guy in the GTO was staring back at me, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Why don't you come ride with a real man, cutie?" he said, a smug smile on his face.

"Until you're driving a Ferrari, you aren't a real man," I gave him a fake smile, then rolled the window up.

Jesse laughed, but turned towards me. "Okay, I take it you've never been in a race?" I shook my head no. "Okay. This will go by extremely fast, but you'll feel a rush that you can't get from anywhere else. Everything is such a blur and for those few seconds, you think of nothing but positive thoughts. It's a high no drug can stand up too. It's incredible," the intensity of Jesse's gaze as he spoke about racing was astounding. You could tell he absolutely loved doing this.

I sat back, strapping my self in the seatbelt. I took a deep breath and watched the bimbo in the road.

She raised her arms, a scarf hanging from her hand. Jesse revved the engine, eyes glued to the girl. She twirled her hands, and within seconds, the scarf fell from her hands. Almost a millisecond later did the Ferrari speed off down the road.

My hands instantly grabbed at the seat, surprised by the speed of the car. My body was forced to the back of the seat as nothing but blur appeared outside the window. I looked over at the cars next to us, but only saw one; the GTO. I watched Jesse shift quickly, gaining a further lead on the car.

After I got over the initial shock of the race, I relaxed my body. I shut my eyes and let the adrenaline pump furiously through my veins. Without seeing the action, I felt like I was gliding in the air. This is what he meant. This feeling was a rush unlike anything I had ever gone through. When I opened my eyes, we were going much slower, objects outside the window were actually clear and visible.

"You all right?" I didn't even realize had said something to me until his hand was waving in my face. "Yo, Kid! You okay?" he asked with a smile.

"That was fucking incredible," was all I could muster. He turned the Ferrari around and sped back to the starting line.

-X-

(No POV)

Letty looked at her phone again, noticing that it was now two in the morning and Jesse and Ry wasn't back yet. She tried not to worry, knowing that Jesse wouldn't let anything happen to Rylan. And she knew Rylan was tough and could handle herself, but those two together could only mean trouble. Both Stacy and Robbie were already getting sleep, and as much as she wanted too, Letty couldn't make herself fall asleep.

Twenty minutes later, the door to the motel opened, Jesse and Rylan stumbling in.

"Where the hell have you been?" Letty yelled, her eyes fiery and angry.

"Mom, we were just hanging out, lost track of time."

"Yeah, Let. It's cool chica," Jesse replied with a smile.

"What the hell were you doing that you lost track of time for three hours?" she asked, her cheeks flushed. She didn't intend on getting this angry, but Rylan never stayed out late.

Both Jesse and Rylan looked at each other, unsure if they should tell Letty about their night of mischief. Letty crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her hip, a signature move she did right before she was about to snap. Both Jesse and Rylan knew that look very well and one was about to crack.

"We went to a race," Jesse's voice was low and his face was skeptic. He wasn't sure how Letty would react.

"You did what?! Jesse what the hell were you thinking?" she said in a loud whisper. "You know she's only seventeen right? What would have happened if the cops raided? Damn Jess, do you think?" Jesse lowered his head in shame. He always wanted to make Letty happy and when she came down on him, it crushed him.

"Mom, it's okay. Everything went smoothly. Hell, he even won!" she cheered, slapping Jesse on the back. Letty noticed the look in Rylan's eyes as she talked. She was familiar with that look. It was the look of addiction; Letty knew Rylan was hooked.

Letty pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh. She knew she couldn't try to keep Rylan out of that world, as much as she would want too. She knew the dangers that came with being a racer: crashes, big losses, and police arrests. She didn't want Rylan to risk the future she could create for herself. She was a brilliant and aware kid and could do a lot more with her life than what Letty did.

"Go to bed, we gotta go moving in a few hours," Letty waved them out of her sight. She sighed heavily and crawled in bed, trying to get a few hours of sleep.

Mia waddled her way through the Toretto home with a bowl of potato salad as Spanish hip-hop music softly played through the speakers outside. She stuff all of the food that'd fit into the oven to keep warm for a while. She turned and was only a few more feet from the door and her back was killing her. Thankfully, Brick was walking from the bathroom and noticed her huffing and puffing.

"C'mere, Woman. I thought I told you to sit down and quit trying to work?" the huge man scooped the pregnant woman up into his arm and carried her effortlessly out the door.

Over the years, Mia grew a close relationship with the new guys of the shop, Reese and Brick. Though she was skeptical of getting new employees whom they didn't know, but after getting to know the guys, she couldn't have picked better men to hire. Brick was indeed huge and intimidating, but he turned into mush when it came to Mia. He treated her like baby sister and loved making her happy. When Dom came back, he sure didn't enjoy all the attention Mia gave Brick.

Reese was more of a flirt that a brotherly friend. To Mia, he was another Leon; horn dog but as sweet as could be. He was definitely a bad boy, with his many tattoos and grungy clothes. He was a misfit as were Leon and Vince and he fit right into their little family. Dom joked with him, saying that he had "short man syndrome". Anytime there was an altercation with a larger man, instead of letting Brick or Dom settle it, Reese was always the first to step up to the plate. Reese was Mia's comedic relief at work when the other boys were busy. He always kept her laughing.

"Where's Vince?" Brick asked as he sat Mia at the picnic table.

"He went with Reese to get some drinks," she huffed enthusiastically as she put her feet up on a stool.

Dom brushed some barbecue sauce on the ribs on the grill, his body almost on autopilot. Today was the day. Jesse called that morning to let Dom know that they were only a few hours away. Ever since that call, Dom had been in his own little world. She would finally be here in a few hours.

What would Dom say to her? How would she look? Would her husband be with her? Could he convince her to stay? Dom didn't know the answer to any of these questions and it frustrated him. He'd gone over everything in his mind that he wanted to say to her, but wasn't sure how it'd work out.

Hey Let, I missed you. Sorry I left you, I was stupid and scared. I love you, marry me?

Yeah, Dom, that'd really work.

So since you're back, you could leave your husband and come back to me? You know, like the way we were supposed to be before I fucked up and ran.

Not quite.

I'm sorry I bailed and I'd love to start over again. Give me a chance?

Hey, that might work, he thought.

"Yo D! I'm talkin' to you man," Vince yelled from behind Dominic. Dom snapped out of his daze and turned to his friend, who's hands were full of Coronas. "Grab these brother."

Dom grabbed the cases of beer from Vince and sat them in the cooler next to him. He pulled out two already-cool brews and handed one to Vince, popping the other open himself.

"How 'ya feeling?" V asked, taking a gulp of beer.

"Like if I don't keep busy, I'm gonna jump in my car and go get them myself," he said with a nervous chuckle, flipping the undone ribs.

"Just cool out, bro. If you start losing it now, you'll be a wreck when they show up," Vince nudged Dom's shoulder as he walked away.

"I'm already a wreck," Dom mumbled to himself, chugging his brew.

(Letty)

The next day we were on the road again, closing in on the last few hours until we made it back to L.A. We all dressed casually, knowing we weren't stopping until we made it to the place. Jesse finally filled me in that they were throwing a barbecue on Echo Park for our arrival. It was the last thing I wanted; to see Dominic on my first day back.

That's a lie Arletta and you know it, my mind argued with me. The first thing on my mind this morning was seeing that beautiful smile of his, those amazing chocolate eyes, that nearly perfect body ... Let, you need to quit. Can't drive under those circumstances.

We were currently entering the state of California. I nervously bit my fingernails as I steered behind Jesse, mentally counting down the minutes until we finally made it to Los Angeles. I didn't expect myself to be this jittery about returning to a place I was so familiar with. It wasn't the place that made it scared; it was that dickhead who still had my heart in his hands.

"Mom, you okay?" Rylan asked from the passenger seat of the Ferrari. The morning after their race, I convinced them to sell the Mustang, as a way to ditch the hot car. We got twenty grand for it, which was a surprise considering the car probably didn't even cost as much. It wasn't a bad looking car, but you could tell it had some engine problems.

"Yeah, I'm cool," I smiled, lying through my teeth.

"Liar," she looked over at me with shaded eyes.

I smirked, "What about you, you okay?"

You could see the wheels turning in her head; it was obvious she had a lot going on up there. In only a few hours, she will be meeting her birth father for the first time, it was a lot to deal with in such a short time.

"I dunno, I guess I'm okay. It's just gonna be weird, ya know? I guess a part of me is scared that he won't even think that I'm his," Rylan admitted, emotion clear in her voice.

"Trust me hun, anyone who knows Dom will know that you're his. Then again, he's a bit of a dummy," I smiled, thinking of Dom's many unintelligent moments. She smiled at me, picking at her fingernails also. Like mother, like daughter, I thought. "Look, don't freak. You don't have to speak to him. But please be nice to your Aunt Mia, she's too nice for her own good."

Twenty minutes later...

I picked up my cell and called Stacy, telling her not to lose me on the main roads. The L.A traffic was still as shitty as ever. Rylan and I drove around in silence; me from panic, her from gazing.

"Man, why couldn't we grow up here?" Rylan asked in awe, staring at the grungy neighborhoods and the pimped-out rides that rode.

"Are you serious? You had a nice childhood," I replied, shocked. Growing up in the fabulous Manhattan, Rylan, Robbie, and Stacy had a life that most children would envy. Having a money-hungry, rich father, they were given things that I hadn't dreamed about.

"Yeah I know, but this just so much ... realer. I just get the vibe that I belong here. I feel like I fit in here perfectly," she replied, her tone so confident.

"How can you tell?"

"Because I've had chills since I read the Welcome to California sign," her eyes were so passionate that it gave me chills.

I dropped the conversation as we were pulling up on the infamous street: Echo Park. I pulled up behind Jesse's Jetta and parked the Ferrari in the driveway. The Rover pulled in behind us and killed the engine. I dropped my head onto the steering wheel, trying to catch my breath. I was hyperventilating!

"Mom, chill out. Just be yourself," Rylan patted me on the back. I followed her advice and took a deep breath, regaining my composure.

I got out of the car and waited for Robbie to come hold my hand. We all walked to the backyard together, as if we were our own tiny little family.

Upon arriving, the whole gang (plus some additions) were lounging around the backyard. Leon was sitting at the table, a pretty blond on his lap. I instantly noticed the ring on her finger wondered if Leon was dipping in the "married-women" pot again. Mia was kicked back at the picnic table, her feet up while Vince rubbed her belly tenderly. I noticed a little boy with shaggy brown hair and wide chocolate eyes kicking a soccer ball around the backyard. My heart pounded in me as I saw the obvious Japanese features on him. My eyes finally traveled the rest of the yard, noticing a large man with a thick neck and bulging muscles, holding a smaller, more tattooed man in a headlock. I looked over to the center of the backyard to the one man I've been avoiding for almost two decades. Looks like the gang adopted new strays.

And there he stood with white pants and a white beater, shades atop of his head. He looked even more toned than before and had a little shadow growing on his face. It took everything in me not to run to him and give him the fucking of his life.

"Who's a girl gotta threaten to get a welcome around here?" I smirked slyly.