Page 53 of Full Throttle

“Everything.”

The way she said it made him believe that Colby was interested inhim, not the billionaire, but the man. Her seemingly sincere curiosity allowed Liam to let down his guard, which he rarely did. “Seriously, there isn’t a lot to know. I work too much. I don’t have a lot of time for anything else.”

“So, no girlfriend?”

“No. Definitely, not.”

“Don’t make it sound so horrible.”

“I suck at relationships.”

“Well, we have that in common. At least, you have an excuse.”

“I find it hard to believe that you suck at anything,” Liam said.

“You’d be surprised. But this isn’t about me. It’s about you. Tell me more. Like, what are your parents like? When you are not working, what do you like to do? I get the impression it’s not racing.”

“Rapid-fire with the questions. Well, I love poker. Love it.” His face softened. “Both of my parents are gone. Killed in a plane crash.”

Colby placed her hand on top of his. “My god. I’m so sorry.”

“It was a several years ago.”

“So, it’s just you and Brian?” Her voice was soft.

“Yeah. We’re a small family.” Liam felt comforted by the gentle touch of her hand.

“I lost my mom to cancer a few years ago too, so I understand.”

“I’m sorry. It had to be tough for you.”

“Very. My mom was my everything. I mean, we were as different as night and day.” Colby reminisced. “I was a handful.”

“Really?” Liam said sarcastically. “I can’t believe that.”

“Ha ha. Funny. Seriously. My mom wanted a girlie girl, and I was anything but.”

Liam had to disagree. Colby was the sexiest mixture of woman and badass. He’d never dated anyone like her.

“How did you and Brian end up in East Moline, Illinois, and the proud new owners of Daughtry racing? I already know it’s not your thing.”

Liam had to tread carefully. “One day, Brian decided he wanted to own a team. Of course, I was completely against it.”

“Of course.” Colby couldn’t hold back her sarcasm.

“He’s a Lockwood, so once his mind is made up, there really is no stopping him. My job is to make sure he doesn’t lose his shirt.”

“Ah. Got it.” Colby nodded.

“Enough with questions about me. Your turn. Why are you single?”

“Ugh. I hate that question.” Colby took a deep breath. “I was in a long-term relationship that ended a few months ago.”

“Why?”

Colby took another sip of wine. “Mainly, we had different goals. I supported his, but he didn’t want to support mine.”

“He sounds like an idiot.”