Billy Weston cruised through the open spaces at the Ryan practice track with a bounce in his step. He didn't care that the rumor of Jason Morgan's pulling out of the upcoming race hadn't actually been confirmed. He was still on cloud nine at the thought of it. He stood there wringing his hands like some mad scientist from the movies whose evil plan had just been set in motion. He even laughed like one as he continued his way across the infield. He almost had it all and if he could only have found a way to make sure that Pat Ryan never knew the true circumstances behind his break up with Elizabeth all would be set for him.
For all intents and purposes Billy was almost sure that his prowess on the track could yield him nearly anything from Pat Ryan. For the both of them the bottom line was winning and Billy had seen his way clear to showing Pat just what a winner he was. He knew that would always come first as far as the team's owner was concerned. Yet there were times when Billy picked up on the father protective vibe that Pat elicited when it came to Elizabeth. It was those times that worried Billy – worried him enough to wonder if he shouldn't have a back up plan if there ever came a time when Elizabeth decided to be forthcoming with the events that caused the collapse of their relationship.
Part of him knew that Elizabeth would never open her mouth if only for the fact that she wouldn't allow herself to be pitied or made a spectacle of. That only could have been Billy's saving grace. Not to mention that the tale he had spun already hadn't left her in a good light. He was a little bit shocked that everyone had so readily believed him especially since Elizabeth was well known for her love of racing. She had been a fixture at the track long before he ever entered the picture but apparently her tight lipped take on things allowed him to make most people believe what he wanted them to particularly when she wasn't there to refute any of it.
"Hey man, get a load of this," one of the other drivers on the team stopped Billy waving a piece of paper before him.
"What?" he asked reaching for it.
"Can you believe that?"
Billy felt his hands tighten around the thin white paper with the Ryan Racing logo sprawled down the left side of the letterhead. It creased and crinkled under the pressure of his fingers yet even through the folds the words remained unchanged.
Ryan Racing announces the addition of Jason Morgan to its team. While the situation is a temporary one while Mr. Morgan's CrewChief, Jake Russell, recuperates from his recent heart attack, we at Ryan Racing want to welcome such a capable driver to our team.
"What the fuck!" he growled through clenched teeth.
"Like I said man, can you believe that?" the other man stressed.
Billy didn't even bother to answer him but rather headed off in the direction of Pat's track office. As he stomped his way across the pavement the paper stating Jason Morgan was now his team mate balled in his fist the fire inside him grew into a raging inferno.
"What the hell is this?" Billy yelled as he stormed into Pat's office throwing the object of his anger directly in the owner of Ryan Racing's face.
Pat covered the receiver of the phone seeing as how Billy neglected to notice that he had barged into the room while he was in the middle of a conversation. "I'm on the phone if you didn't notice," he said the way a mother would to a child who had taken to interrupting her.
"Like I give a damn!" Billy huffed in return. He wasn't about to leave the room without some answers.
Pat let out a heavy sigh and clenched his jaw tight for a moment. Putting his own ire for Billy in its proper place he addressed the person on the other end of the phone. "I'll have to get back to you. But yes the press release is indeed true. Yes, I will be in touch," Pat assured whoever he was speaking with before placing the receiver in the cradle. "What was so god damn important that you come storming in here like some banshee?" Pat asked eyeing his star driver sternly.
If Billy hadn't already been so angry Pat's tone of voice might have set him off but at the moment it went unnoticed. "This!" Billy again picked up the crumpled piece of white paper and waved in front of the owner's face. "What the hell is this?"
"Looks like a balled up piece of paper." Pat couldn't help being coy. He suddenly felt as though coddling Billy Weston wasn't as necessary as it once was.
"Very funny," Billy sneered. "Is it true?"
"Is what true?" Pat echoed still toying with the irate young man standing in front of him.
Billy tightened his fists at his sides and clenched his jaw in a vain attempt to control all the insults that were so incredibly close to slipping passed his tongue. He had to find a way to keep himself in check. "This," he said again as his smoothed the wrinkled Ryan Racing letterhead.
Pat looked down at the press release and didn't need to read it to know what it already said. Not more than a few hours ago he had penned the statement into fact for all of those on the circuit to see. Maybe he should have forewarned Billy but there was a part of him that didn't want to deal with his inevitable tirade – but there he was dealing with it just the same.
"Well," Billy pressed. "Is it really true? Please tell me this is some kind of a joke right?" If Pat hadn't known better he thought he could almost hear a hint of pleading in the driver's voice.
"It's true," Pat stated without as much as a falter in his inflection.
"WHAT!" Billy's angry voice boomed off the walls of Pat Ryan's office. He felt each heavy breath as it escaped his nose trying desperately to hold his emotions together. Yet it was quickly becoming a losing battle for him. Billy's body physically shook with an unbridled rage he himself never knew he possessed. The image of Jason Morgan swirled around in his brain until it made him dizzy.
"I think you heard me. It's true," Pat said again. "It's like it says in the press release. Jason Morgan is your team mate." He all of the sudden enjoyed twisting the knife. The way Billy's face blanched with those words had Pat Ryan inwardly smiling. He wanted this to be a wake up call for his star driver and apparently by the expression on Billy's features that's exactly what it was. Pat's only hope was that he wasn't putting all his eggs in one basket when it came to Jason Morgan.
"NO WAY! I won't race with him!" Billy said like a spoiled child demanding his own way.
"Who said I was giving you a choice?" Pat cocked his brow almost challenging Billy to speak against him.
"What the hell do we need another driver on the team for?"
"Jason's only with us on a temporary basis," Pat said as though that should have made some big difference to Billy.
Without realizing it Billy began pacing in front of Pat's large oak desk. He wasn't sure if it was the pent up anger looking for a way to escape his frame or if the movement helped him to think. He had to come up with some way to get Morgan off this team. He didn't give a damn how temporary this arrangement was – even running one race with him as a team mate was one too many as far as Billy was concerned.
Pat eyed his driver curiously. He hadn't realized until that exact moment just how much Jason Morgan had Billy Weston rattled. He chuckled to himself and continued to stoke the young man's fire with his words. "I don't understand what you are so upset about. It doesn't matter who's a member of this team and who isn't. If you're the best driver than you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Right?"
Billy grunted out a discernable response as he was still lost in his own thoughts about getting Jason out of Ryan Racing as soon as possible.
"Really son, what's the big deal. You'd be racing against Morgan no matter if he was part of our team or not…."
"That's not the point," Billy interrupted him.
"Then what is?" Pat asked more than a little curious to hear the answer.
Billy stumble and stuttered trying to come up with a reply but one evaded him. He looked on as Pat leaned back in his leather chair and waited for a response a slow smirk taking over his face. It was that smirk that enraged Billy all the more. He felt like Pat was taunting him and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why. Without a single word Billy turned on his heel and stormed out of the room as quickly as he had blown in. Pat propped his feet up on the corner of the desk and was more than a little proud of himself – even if Jason didn't turn out to be the winner he hoped for he had certainly lit a fire under Billy so from where Pat stood he would come out a winner no matter what.
The door to the bar swung open and Theresa Kennedy disentangled herself from her latest conquest as she watched Billy Weston make his way to the corner of the bar. The burly bartender placed a bottle of beer and a shot of whiskey before Billy who downed the amber liquor quickly and pushed the shot glass to the edge of the lacquered surface suggesting he wanted another.
"I'll take one of those," she said as she slipped into the stool next to Billy. He only gave her a sideways glance and continued nursing his bottle of beer. She studied his strong profile and noticed the tension that filled his jaw. Easily she brought her hand to his neck and began massaging his taut muscles. Billy rolled his shoulders as she continued to work her way down his spine. "You're so tense baby," she purred in his ear. "I know a way we can work that off," she suggested seductively wrapping her arm around his waist toying with top button of his jeans.
"Not now T," he almost growled. He was still too worked up about Jason Morgan being part of his team and the fact that Pat seemed to be rubbing it in his face not moments ago.
"Hey check this out," a voice from the other side of the bar spoke as the bartender turned up the volume on the television that hung overhead.
Once more Billy was forced to listen to the Ryan press release being discussed. If it wasn't already bad enough now the entire world would know that Jason Morgan was the next big thing for Ryan Racing. He wrapped his hand tightly around the long neck bottle with enough force that it should have shattered between his fingers. He turned and looked at Theresa who was now staring intently at the television screen – at the photo of Jason Morgan plastered across it. Billy felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand erect as the entire bar focused their attention on the great news about Jason Morgan and Ryan Racing.
"How about some service here?" Billy asked angrily banging the bottom of his glass bottle on the bar in an effort to get the bartender's attention.
The man reluctantly turned his attention away from the small screen and focused it on Billy and his request. He reached into the large cooler and retrieved the long neck amber bottle twisted off the cap sat it in front of his customer and went back to listening to the run down on Jason Morgan's racing stats.
"I can't fucking believe this," he mumbled under his breath.
"What's the matter baby?" Theresa asked one eye still trained on the television as she stroked Billy's cheek with her long fingers. The idea of Jason Morgan running for Ryan Racing certainly appealed to her in more ways than one. "You aren't worried about a little competition are you?" she asked probingly.
Billy pulled back and looked at her incredulously. "HELL NO!" he barked. "That two bit amateur – you think I'm worried about him? No way. Pat's just offering the poor guy a hand out. Well he better watch it cause I'm going to bite it off!" Billy stated taking a long gulp of his cold beer.
"I'm sure you will," Theresa agreed as her thoughts wound their way to the previous qualifier and how Jason Morgan had pushed his way around the track leaving Billy eating his dust. "How about another shot for my friend?" she said pushing the empty shot glass to the edge of the bar again.
Billy sat there stewing in his anger as the conversation around him centered on the buzz of the addition of Jason Morgan to Ryan Racing. It was like suddenly he wasn't even a blip on the radar screen of these people. All that was on their minds was Ryan Racing's next big thing – Jason Morgan. He had worked too damn hard to get where he was in the Ryan organization to just sit back and let some nobody who thought he could waltz in and just take over get the upper hand. Billy was more determined than ever to get rid of Morgan by any means necessary.
"Let's get out of here," he said tugging on Theresa's arm. He had been so lost in his own thoughts that he had totally missed the intensity of her interest in the conversations about Jason Morgan going on around her.
"Sure baby," she agreed grabbing her purse from the bar and following him out the door.
Theresa pressed her half naked body against Billy's tanned back. She reached around and caressed his taut chest fingers entangled in the dark curls of hair that hid his erect nipples from her. Standing on her tip toes her tongue suckled his earlobes until a deep moan escaped from his lips. She smiled at her talents.
Easily Theresa began to undo each of the buttons that held his jeans in position. She toyed with them as she felt his bulging manhood pressing hard against the tight denim fabric searching for an escape. Again she heard a husky groan roll off his tongue as her thumbs massaged his engorged form before sliding his jeans down to his ankles. Once he stood naked before her, Theresa came to stand in front of him. She saw the hungry look in his eyes as she began to slowly discard her own articles of clothing. Just as she dropped the last piece to the floor Billy scooped her up and threw her on his unmade bed. He did little to hide his animal desires and without a word he took her hard and fast. The deed was done and both lay there covered in sweat – one a little more satisfied than the other.
That little diversion didn't do much in terms of ridding thoughts of Jason Morgan from Billy's mind. He was still pissed at Pat for bringing Jason onto the team and even more so for the nonchalant manner in which he addressed him about it all. He didn't like the way all of the sudden it felt like all that he had worked so hard for was slipping away. He turned and watched as Theresa's breathing had finally evened and wondered if in the end this had all been worth it.
Theresa felt Billy's eyes on her but she didn't turn to look at him. All she could think about was Jason Morgan and what it would be like to make love to Ryan Racing's next sure thing.