A SECOND CHANCE MAY BE TOO HOT TO HANDLE
They say there are no second chances, and for Lily Onassis, ever since she walked away from Formula World driver Max Becker, she's considered this true. Instead of a glitzy, glamorous life on the auto racing...
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LILY
The next morning, after Max wakes me up with kisses that end with me on all fours and him absolutely pounding into me from behind — and another soul-draining orgasm — we shower, and throw on T-shirts, shorts, sneakers and matching Team Onassis ballcaps.
Never in my life have I been the kind of person to wear matching clothes with a guy, but here I am. We look so adorable in the hats that I insist on taking a selfie of us.
"We should put that on the team's Instagram account," he says.
"Yeah, right. My dad would lose his shit."
I'm wearing my bathing suit underneath my clothes. Max puts a couple of towels, two water bottles and some granola bars in a backpack and we inform the security — who are staying in a small cabin next door — that we're leaving. We head outside alone, freed from the shackles of 24/7 monitoring because we're so secluded and safe here.
According to the photocopied, dog-eared instruction manual left in our cabin, there's a path in the backyard that leads to a small pond. We find it easily and begin to walk. The cool morning air, damp with dew, mingles with the hush of the forest. I breathe in deeply, relishing the freshness against my throat. The sun is beginning to rise and the path is illuminated in soft light and warmth. For the first time in a while, I'm totally relaxed.
Max makes me walk ahead of him, and we're mostly silent as we make the two-mile trek to the pond. It's a comfortable silence, and I easily slip into a fantasy.
This is how our lives could be.
He'd retire and we'd travel the world, having adventures together. Maybe learn to mountain climb — Max has always been intrigued by extreme sports, and I like the idea of roughing it, backpacking, being in the middle of nowhere with just him.
Just as I'm about to ask him if he's ever thought of going to Nepal, I spot a rustling in the brush up ahead and slow my gait to a stop.
"What is it?" Max whispers. He comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my midsection while planting a kiss on my neck.
"I don't know." I point in the direction of where I saw the movement.
"Oh! Look, look, look," he whispers in my ear.
There, on the trail ahead of us, is a giant deer. The kind with horns. It's about twenty yards away, but we're close enough to make eye contact. I feel as if I could reach out and touch its sleek brown coat, which glows in the morning sun. I see its enormous eyes watching us, cautious and thoughtful.
"Wow," Max breathes.
The buck surveys us for a long moment, then darts off, into the woods.
"That was really cool," he says, then starts talking excitedly about deer in Germany near his family's home. "Hopefully you'll see them when we go visit."
Although I'd met his family years ago at various races, I'd never been to their home in Germany. Years together stretch out in my mind. Adventures, possibly a family of our own. Max would be a great dad, involved and caring. Although he'd probably want his child to be involved in racing.
We stroll and talk all the way to the water. When we reach the pond, I realize it's more of a lake, ringed with deep green pine trees and a small patch of sandy beach. It's the opposite of the frenzy we'll experience in a few days in Montreal, and I couldn't be happier.
"It feels like we're the only ones here." My voice seems tiny against the vastness of the landscape.
"That's a blessing." Max strips off his T-shirt, revealing his lithe, fit body. "I'm going in. You?"
Since I'm sweating from the sun and exertion, he doesn't have to ask me twice. I strip down to my bikini and chase him into the cold water, screaming at the sensation against my skin.
We splash each other and scream, and at one point, I try to swim away so he'll chase me. Being so athletic, he catches me easily by the ankle and pulls me into his body. My heart pounds as I wrap my legs around his waist and arms around his neck, mesmerized by the way the sunlight reflects on the water droplets clinging to his eyelashes.
We kiss, slowly and deeply. This is probably the time to tell him I love him, but I also don't want to ruin the moment with words.
I rest my forehead against his, and close my eyes, trying to hold on to this moment in the cool water that's caressing our skin.
When we pull away, each of us looks surprised by the intensity of what's passing between us. A smile is plastered on my face so big that it hurts.
"I'm glad we're here together," is all I manage to say before we start kissing again.
We're practically inhaling each other here in the lake and when he begins to slide a hand under my bikini top, I break away.
"Let's go back."
"You don't want to—"
"Here?" I interrupt, with an incredulous laugh. "No."
Even though there doesn't seem to be anyone around, I'm not quite comfortable enough to have sex out in the open.
"Okay, okay. But what if I buy us a private lake in Germany?"
I kiss his nose. "Is that your fantasy, to fuck in nature?"
He squeezes my ass, hard. "Maybe."
Giggling, I swim away, back to shore. We loll on the little beach for a while, drying off and eating the granola bars. He glances at his watch.
"Crap, I have a call with my agent in an hour. We'd better get back."
It's probably for the best, because I'm certain I have a mountain of emails as well. We power off, neither of us wanting the morning to end.
The sun's rays caress my damp face. The smell of pine permeates the air and I take a deep breath, closing my eyes and memorizing the scent for a few steps. Although I think my balance is impeccable from my occasional yoga classes, it's obviously not, because I lose my footing, stumbling and toppling over.
I land, laughing, in a thicket of verdant foliage. Max rushes over, asking if I'm okay.
