When Grayson's car pulls up in front of my house at exactly 3 pm, I rush outside and slam the door shut loudly. Tugging a large duffel bag behind me, I walk quickly to the passenger side and slide in. I throw the bag into the back and lean back against the seat. My mouth is pressed into a thin line and I just want him to drive.

Grayson gives me a long, thoughtful look before saying anything. He glances as at my duffel bag, stuffed fat with clothes. "You do know we're only staying one night, not two weeks, right? Did you pack an outfit for every hour we'll be gone?"

After what I went through earlier with my parents, I'm not really in the mood for jokes. I stare out the window as he pulls out of my neighborhood.

Grayson breathes deeply and takes one hand off the steering wheel, placing it softly on my hand. He moves his thumb over the top of my hand gently and gives me a look. His dark eyes beg me to tell him what's wrong. I give him a long look. "It's just my parents."

He doesn't say anything, just holds my hand a little tighter, urging me to go on. I do. "I had to lie and tell them I was going to Violet's tonight for a sleepover. I thought they'd just let me go but they just blew up, going on about how I don't care about the family. My mom called me selfish, said I wasn't going anywhere in life doing what I'm doing and I just..."

My voice breaks and I take my hand from his, using it to wipe my eyes aggressively. I hate that I'm crying over this.

"I just don't know, Grayson. It's like every time that I feel the slightest bit happy, something goes wrong and that happiness is stolen from me." I sniff. "It's like the universe is telling me that I don't deserve to be happy at all and I'm honestly starting to believe it."

"Hey," he says, with a sternness to his voice. "That's not true and we both know that. If there's anyone in this world that deserves happiness, it's you, Riv. And you can't help that your parents can't pull their own heads out of their asses."

I croak out a pathetic laugh, smiling through blurry eyes. My hand finds his again and I lace our fingers together, finding comfort in the way his skin feels against mine.

I'm desperate to change the subject. "Now tell me something. Something about you. And it better be good."

I shake his hand, urging him to give something up. He stares ahead as we get on the highway.

"Do you remember the first time we met? My black eye?" He asks.

I don't mention how that wasn't the first time we met. "Of course. It gave you a sort of bad boy look."

He smiles slightly at my joke but keeps a serious face. "I got that in a fight."

I don't say anything, worried I might deter him from sharing.

"After I dropped Gracie off at practice, I went to pick up my prize for winning a race the week before," he continues. "But one of the guys I beat showed up and started talking shit."

"What'd he say?"

"Stupid shit. Like how I cheat and that's the only reason I've won my past five races. He knew what he was doing and I don't feel bad for how I reacted. He had it coming," he finishes. He leaves me to fill in the blanks: fight ensued, Grayson did some damage, other guy got one good punch on Grayson, creating his black eye.

Grayson looks at me questioningly, as if expecting me to tell him off or voice my fear of him. But I don't feel any different toward him. If anything, I feel closer to him now that he's allowed me into his mind. I rub my thumb over his, letting him know this.

"Five straight wins," I point out. "You must be pretty good then."

I feel tension leave his body. He grins. "Actually, six straight wins now, if we're counting the one you sneaked into."

"So you're telling me I'm accompanying a legendary street racing winner to one of his races." I put on a starstruck face. "I'm the luckiest person alive."

"Well, I can think of one person who may be a bit luckier than you," he replies smoothly, moving his hand from mine and placing it on my left thigh. I melt a little.

"But I have to admit," he continues, "I have been beat once or twice by this one guy."

At these words, I begin to connect the dots. "Is this the same guy who gave you the black eye?"

He nods.

I connect even more dots. My voice lowers. "Is it the guy who slashed your tires last night?"

He nods. My heart stops for a second. His hand tenses on my thigh, keeping me grounded. "You're safe with me, Riv. You saw him last night. The guy has no balls. He just wanted to scare me from racing tonight and it didn't work. Peter's all bark and no bite, promise."

But this Peter guy still weighs heavily on my mind, sparking impractical fears. I'm more afraid for Grayson than I am for me. He had a knife last night so what's stopping him from going even bigger tonight?

Grayson notices my hesitation. "This is the kind of thing I wanted to protect you from but, I swear, I wouldn't have brought you if I thought you'd be in danger. This trip is all about you and me, baby."

My heart skips another beat, but for a different reason this time. Baby. He called me 'baby'. Shit, he really knows how to push all the right buttons.

"I trust you," I say, softening my voice. And I hope he knows I'm telling the truth. To make sure, I lean over the armrest and kiss his cheek softly. His skin is warm, intoxicating so, and I suddenly wish he wasn't driving right now.

"Are you trying to make me crash the car before we even get to the race, Riv?" He says gruffly, holding the steering wheel slightly tighter. I smirk at his reaction and sit back in my seat, satisfied with myself.

"You are trying to kidnap me, right? So that's actually not that bad of an idea."

"Well you're one expensive abductee. I'm hauling your ass across the state. I'm paying for your hotel. I'm taking you to dinner." He exaggerates a groan. "Maybe I would have been kidnapping one of the soccer moms with lower standards."

"Wait, you're taking me to dinner? Like, a fancy one?" I raise my eyebrows, half-expecting him to say he's kidding.

"Of course. You didn't think I'd take you to a street race then take you straight back without wining and dining you, did you?" He shoots me a questioning look. "I hope you have at least one fancy outfit in that colossal bag."

The thought of him taking me out to dinner makes me smile. But then I remember that I only packed a thousand pairs of underwear, two pajamas (a conservative set and a set with far less fabric, just in case the night goes in a different direction), and two possibly scandalous outfits to wear to the race. "No! I actually don't have anything to wear. I'm going to show up to some posh restaurant in cutoff shorts and be the laughing stock of the place."

"You could show up in a burlap sack and I still wouldn't be able to take my eyes off you. And I'm sure everyone else in the place would feel the same."

His words make my chest fill with a million butterflies. "You should stop talking, unless you want my neck to break under the weight of my inflated ego."

"Then I guess now's not the time to mention how funny you are. Or how good you are with Gracie. Or how you make me want to--"

"Nope!" I shake my head, trying to shake the heavy way his words make me feel. I have to remind myself that he's currently driving and the highway is no place for these kinds of feelings. "Not a good time for any of that."

Grayson chuckles, stroking his hand up and down my thigh. I'm powerless against myself to stop him. I lean forward and turn on the radio to at least distract myself from how hot he looks and feels right now.

He eventually reigns in back in and focuses his attention back on driving. I can't tell if I'm disappointed or relieved by his refocus.

The music plays softly through the radio, lulling us into a comfortable rhythm.

Time flies by and soon, gold streams through the window, filling the car with rich light. The perfect light hits every inch of mine and Grayson's skin, lighting us up. The warmth and beauty of the moment is unlike anything I've ever experienced. I tilt my head up to soak it all in, hoping to capture golden hour while it lasts.

From the corner of my eye, I watch Grayson take his eyes off the road to look at me. His eyes land on me and linger there for a second, drinking the sight of me in. The light gives his eyes a strange, yet beautiful glow that illuminates a rich emotion in his eyes that. Disbelief? Awe?

All I can tell that is it's an intense emotion that warms me even more than the golden light. He looks as if he can't take his eyes off me, and he doesn't want to.

The world outside of this car seems to disappear, completely removed from me and Grayson inside this car, our own little world. I feel like I can do anything, go anywhere in this car with him by my side. Watching the road stretch endlessly ahead of us, I realize something.

"Where are we going?"

Grayson finally puts his eyes back on the road and lets out a laugh that seems to fill the car. "I was starting to think you'd never ask."