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“Come on, you can throw them one insightful bone of a comment,” Isla says, reaching over and putting her fingers on the corners of his downturned mouth, pushing it upwards into a forced smile.
Chuckling, he puts his hand over her fingertips and kisses them. “Only if they ask me something intelligent.”
I look at the way he’s smiling at her and how her eyes are nowhere but on his face. They really love each other.
Again, GOALS.
It’s an achievable one, as long as I don’t insist the man be Mason.
I fill myself with resolve. No problem. I’ve got a whole new mindset now, and I’m determined to run with it.
“I have complete faith you will somehow survive the press conference,” I tease, taking a sip of my coffee. Ah, perfect. I think Sydney is one of my favourite people at Collings Motors.
“What do I have after that last media call?” Caleb asks, tucking into his scrambled eggs.
I don’t even need to consult my iPhone, as I have his weekend memorised. I go through the rest of his schedule. Caleb nods as he listens and continues to eat.
Once I finish reviewing it, I decide to unveil my plans to both of them. “I did some thinking during the break,” I say slowly, “about my career path.”
Caleb’s eyes quickly dart to mine. “Are you leaving me?”
I flash him a reassuring smile. “No.”
“Thank God,” he says. Then he shakes his head. “Not that I don’t want you to pursue social media, but as a selfish arsehole, I love having you as my assistant.”
“I know you do, and I like working for you. It’s just time for me to take the next step. To take matters into my own hands, like Isla suggested months and months ago.”
Isla’s face brightens. “Oh my God, are you thinking about doing content creation?”
“Yes. I took the summer break to make a plan. To think about what my own social media content could look like, and how I can make it different.”
Isla lets out an excited squeal, putting her hand over mine on the table and squeezing it reassuringly. “Oh, go on! I’m so excited to hear this, Catherine!”
“It’s all you. I don’t think I would have decided to take this leap without you. Seeing what you did inspired me, and your words encouraged me. I can’t thank you enough.”
“You’re the one doing this. All you needed was to hear that you could, and as your friend? I’m so proud of you.”
I feel a warmth spread through my body. Her encouragement means everything to me.
“What are you going to do? Cover F1?” Caleb asks.
“Yes, but in a different way. And Caleb, I need your help to get started.”
He looks warily at me. “You’re not going to make me ride a space hopper, are you?”
I laugh at that. Social media asked Mason and Caleb to race each other on space hoppers in the spring, and whilst Mason was keen to do it, Caleb said absolutely not.
Isla’s changed him, though. I know he’d do it—grudgingly—if I asked him to.
“No, I’m not going in that direction. That’s for the social media team and Isla—to do the irreverent stuff. I want to do paddock fashion.”
“Fashion?” Caleb asks. “I know you love fashion, but how would that work?”
Excitement fills me. “I want to focus on the fashion of a Grand Prix weekend. In the paddock. At events. I’d like to talk to drivers and guests about what they are wearing and why. I studied photography at uni, so I know I can take decent pics for social media. But I want to go beyond that. Like take a peek inside drivers’ wardrobes where they show me their style and favourite pieces. Talk to TV personalities and paddock guests, things like that. And as a huge favour, I’d like to ask you to be my first victim.”
“You don’t want him,” someone says.
I freeze at the familiar voice. The slightly raspy, super-sexy voice that causes goose bumps to sweep across my skin.