Chapter Two
Speed tightly gripped the steering wheel of the Mach Five, his agitation growing as he drove. "I can't believe she'd just split like that. She's got no reason to be mad at me when I didn't even do anything wrong! Heck, I'm the one who should be angry with her for taking off like that. Why do women have to get so crazy over nothing all the time?" He shook his head sure that he'd never understand the workings of the female mind. He turned the radio up in an effort to get his mind off Trixie.
At first, the siren of the police car behind him didn't register. Soon, though, as the car got closer, he couldn't help but hear it or see it in his rear view mirror.
"Oh! Better pull over so he can catch up to the guy he's chasing."
Speed drove the car to the shoulder. The cop followed him. "Huh? Why'd he do that for?" he asked himself.
The police officer emerged from the car and walked up to the Mach Five.
Speed forced a smile, unsure of what the cop wanted. "Uh...Hi Officer, how are you today?"
The cop paid no attention to his greeting. "License and registration, please."
"Uh...Did I do something wrong?" he asked, his voice shaking a bit as he handed the officer the asked for items.
"You ran a stop sign back there," the cop said as he inspected the documents.
"I did? Gosh, I didn't see it."
"Well, it's there, plain as day." The cop proceeded to pull out a yellow pad onto which he wrote the infraction. He handed it to Speed. "You can mail in your fine to the address on the back."
Speed stared at the ticket for a moment before turning it over. He read the list of infractions and the fines attached to each of them. "$200? Isn't that a bit steep? I mean, it's my first violation."
"Doesn't matter. That's the fine which includes processing fees." The cop turned to go. "Have a nice day."
"Have a nice day, yeah right." Speed sunk low in his seat, head in his hands. "I think I'm gonna be sick."
The trunk of the Mach Five lifted slightly, two sets of eyes peered out, watching the cop as he got into his patrol car. The human half of the duo spoke, "Uh- oh, Chim-Chim, looks like Speedy's in big trouble! Pops is gonna blow a gasket when he finds out about this."
"Bleep-reeep!" Chim-Chim replied as Spritle closed the truck.
Speed took a deep breath and exhaled. "A ticket...There goes my good driver's insurance rate. When Pops finds out, I'll never hear the end of it." Miserably, he put the car in gear and headed towards home.
---
"Thanks so much for picking me up," Trixie said to her friend, Janine Trotter. "I don't think I could've spent another second with that jerk."
"I wouldn't want to either," Janine said in agreement as she maneuvered through the rush hour traffic. "You know, I think his big problem is that he puts his mouth in gear without first thinking about what's he's going to say,"
Trixie tossed her head back. "Well, I'm not putting up with it anymore. He can stew in his own juices until he figures out what he did wrong."
"That's a good idea. Don't talk to him for a couple of days, that should teach him a lesson."
"It won't be easy, but I'm going to do it. I'll wait for him to call me. I certainly won't call him or go by his house, not for anything."
"Yeah, ignore him," Janine agreed. "Let him come back begging for forgiveness."
Trixie grinned, then groan and made a face. "Shoot, I just remembered something..."
"What?" Janine asked.
"Speed's Mom invited me over for dinner tonight. What should I do?"
"Mrs. Racer's a nice lady. You shouldn't disappoint her just because her son's a moron."
Trixie nodded, "You're right, I can't let her down."
"You want me to drop you off at the Racers?" Janine asked.
"Yes. I was going to go home and change. I had wanted to dress up in something nice for Speed. Ha! Forget that! He doesn't deserve to see me in my new dress."
"He sure doesn't! Save that for our next girls night out," Janine said with a laugh. She headed the car in the direction of the Racer home.
---
Mom and Pops Racer sat at the table with their new neighbors. The man, a tall Texan named Paladin Maverick, had rented the vacant house next door. He heartily drank a cup of black coffee. His beautiful daughter, Dallas, sat next to him sipping a cup of tea.
"I'm sure you'll like it here, Mr. Maverick," Mom said. "It's a nice neighborhood, everybody is friendly."
"Ah'm sure I'll like it just fine," Mr. Maverick smiled. "Ah do like the proximity to the race track."
"Yes, that's a plus for us, too," Pops agreed. "Not that my son wouldn't drive a hundred miles to practice, but it does make it easier on the rest of us to go and watch him."
"Sure does! I hope while you're watching your son, you could maybe take a look at mah Dallas. Ah bet you don't get to see many women racers in these parts."
"Nope, don't see many at all. Well, except for Janine Trotter, but she's still a rookie with a lot to learn."
"Mah Dallas is no rookie, that's for sure. She placed pole in her last three races. Won 'em all, too."
"Daddy," Dallas admonished him in a teasing tone, "Stop that this instant! They weren't on the same level as the type of competition Mr. Racer and his son are used to."
"No darlin', but Ah'm sure in time they will be."
Dallas turned to Pops, "Mr. Racer, Ah've watched your son race, he's just the most spectacular driver Ah've ever seen. Ah'm sure much of the credit for his skill must go to you, his father." She batted her long lashes at him.
Pops actually blushed. "Uh...I guess some of it must have. Chip off the old block, you know?"
Mom interjected, "Oh, Speed's a chip off the old block alright. Especially in temperament." She flashed a quick look at her husband he seemed oblivious.
The sound of a powerful engine could be heard pulling into the driveway. Pops looked out the window, "That's Speed now." The front door opened and was slammed shut. Pops flinched at the sound of keys being thrown on the coffee table and stomping feet. "Kids, you know how noisy they can be," Pops forced a grin. "I'll go get him."
Pops lumbered into the living room where he found Speed sitting on the couch scowling. Ignoring his son's obvious bad mood he spoke, "We've got company. Come in the kitchen and meet the new neighbors."
"Aw Pops, do I have to? I'm really not in the mood to talk to anybody."
"Yes, you have to. And I don't give a damn what kind of mood you're in. I don't need Mr. Maverick thinking my boys are rude, spoiled brats." He glared at Speed, "Even if they are!"
"Fine." Speed arose from the couch. "I'll go say hi, okay? But, then I'm going up to my room. I have a headache."
"You'll have worse than that if you don't change your attitude," Pops said as he shoved him towards the kitchen.
"I'm going, I'm going. You don't have to push me. Sheesh!"
The new neighbor sat at the kitchen table. He was dressed in western gear, a cowboy hat sat on the counter behind him. A woman sat beside him. Her chair was on an angle so that Speed could only see the back of her. She had her long, blonde hair tied into a ponytail. Pops motioned him towards them.
"Speed, meet Mr. Paladin Maverick and his daughter, Dallas. They just moved next door." The two stood. The girl slowly turned towards him. She wore a mini-skirt which showed off her shapely legs.
Speed's frown quickly turned into a dreamy smile as his took in the beauty that was Dallas Maverick. "H-h-hello..." his mouth was having trouble working correctly.
"Hi again, sugar," the hot blonde from the track cooed. "Ah didn't know we were neighbors."
"Me neither," he squeaked.
She lightly touched his arm; "Y'all have to show me 'round town sometime."
'I'd like that," he said, lips quivering. There was fire burning where she'd touched him. He'd never had feelings like this over a girl before.
"Hr-UMPF!" Pops coughed. "Speed, are you forgetting your manners?" He motioned him towards Mr. Maverick.
Speed forced his eyes off Dallas. "Oh, sorry..." He thrust out his right hand towards Mr. Maverick, "Pleased to meet you, sir."
"Howdy there, son," he said with a grin as he shook Speed's hand. "You're a fine lookin' boy. I hear tell that you fancy race cars."
"Yes, Sir, I do. Racing's my life."
"Well, then you and Dallas should get along right well. She's a racer, too, the star of her team," he boasted.
"She's a star alright..." Speed spoke softly, his head tilted to the side. He had some very wicked thoughts running through his mind at the moment.
"You are just toooo sweet," Dallas said, her sexy voice sending tingles down Speed's spine.
Speed's reaction to the girl wasn't lost on his mother. It didn't make her happy. There was something about Dallas Maverick that she didn't like.
The doorbell rang; Mom had a feeling she knew who it was. She turned to Speed, "Would you get that, please?"
"Huh?" the dazed young man asked.
"The doorbell. Could you please answer it?" She shook her head; her son had it bad for this girl. Hopefully, when he opened the door and saw who it was, he'd come back to his senses.
"Be right back," he said to Dallas.
She took hold of his arm, "I'll come with you, sugar."
"Damn," Mom said under her breath as she watch them leave the room. Dallas had dug her hooks deep into her son. No good would come of it that was for sure.
---
Trixie stood outside waiting for the door to open. Her anger at Speed had begun to dissipate slightly. Though, she still was miffed enough to give him the cold shoulder.
"Trixie," Speed said in surprise when he opened the door halfway and saw her standing there. "What are you doing here?"
"Your mother invited me over for dinner tonight. Don't you remember?"
He shrugged, fake-smiling, "Guess I forgot."
"I'm not surprised," she said coldly. He made no move to open the door wider. "Well, are you going to let me in or not?"
The door opened. "Sorry...come in."
She took a couple of steps before stopping in her tracks. Dallas Maverick stood next to Speed, her arm in his. She moved closer to him, as if he were a possession. There was a sickeningly sweet smile on her face. "Why Trixie, how nice to see you again. Ah'm so happy you can join Speed and me."
Trixie glowered. A jumble of emotions, all negative, coursed through her. "Damn you, Speed," she hissed with rancor as she pushed past them.
