PART 8
Kale pulled into their driveway only to see Jenna storm out the front door and slam it behind her. He put Kasey�s Durango in park and watched her dig in her purse and unlock the doors of her SUV. He calmly got out of the truck and made it to her driver�s side door before she did.
�Where you headed?� he asked, leaning up against the front of her vehicle.
�I�m going the fuck home,� she said not even looking at him.
Jenna yanked open the door, but Kale put his hand on her arm and stopped her. �Jenna, you are not driving home,� he said calmly. After all his years of dealing with Kasey when he was pissed off, he learned that being calm was the best way deal with Kasey. And Jenna, being as stubborn and hot headed as his brother, was probably very much he same.
�Don�t fucking touch me Kale!� she said angrily. �Or, wait, maybe your brother told you what a slut I am and now you want your turn. A little threesome, maybe?� She turned her icy green eyes on him.
�Jenna, don�t even go there. Give me your keys.�
�Kale, just let me go!� she yelled, trying to climb up into her seat.
He pulled her back before she even got a chance to get in. �I am easily twice your weight, Jen, so there�s no use trying to fight me. Besides, you don�t want Kasey to see this. Don�t let him see you mad.�
She stopped struggling and handed him over the keys. He knew that would work on her. She�s so much like him right now, it�s scary, he thought as he adjusted the driver�s seat.
Jenna got into the passenger side and slammed the door.
�I know you�re smarter than to drive home drunk and pissed off,� he said putting the SUV in drive. �Would you really like to wrap this pretty Lexus up around a telephone pole?�
�Well, according to your brother, I�ll just go fuck someone for a new one,� she said staring out the window.
They sat in silence for a god ten minutes.
�Wanna tell me what happened?� he asked her gently.
�Honestly, Kale, I don�t feel like getting into it with you. You�re his brother after all.�
�Yeah, and I know what a dick he can be, so why don�t you just tell me.�
She leaned her head back on the seat and closed her eyes. �I don�t know what happened. We�ve been spending so much time together and having a lot of fun, or so I thought. I guess he was just using me.�
�If I hear either one of you talk about this �fun� shit one more time, I am going to flip the fuck out, Jenna,� Kale said. �You know it�s bullshit. What was going on between you and my brother was more than just �fun�. If that�s all it was, neither of you would be so pissed off right now.�
He pulled into a parking place outside her condo. �I�m coming in with you and you�re either going to tell me what happened or you are going to tell Amy. All I know is that you were going to risk your job and your life tonight by trying to make a dramatic exit, and that is fucked up.�
Jenna opened her door and got out, leading Kale to her and Amy�s condo. She showed him which keys unlocked the door and sat down on the couch.
�Which door is Amy�s?� he asked.
�Second on the right.�
�Go get changed and come sit back out here.�
Jenna did what Kale told her and went into her room to change.
Kale knocked on Amy�s door. �Amy? Amy? Can you come out here? It�s Kale and I have Jenna with me. I think you�d better get out here.�
Amy opened her door immediately. �Oh my god, is she okay?�
�Her and Kasey had a fight about something and I drove her back here. She tried to get into her Lexus all pissed off and drunk, and I wouldn�t let her. I think she�s calming do-�
�Mother fucker!� Jenna�s yell cut Kale of mid sentence.
They ran to Jenna�s room and saw her standing in just a long sweatshirt, glaring at her wall. There was a big black mark on the wall and Jenna�s boot lay on the ground on top of the Kasey Kahne calendar that had apparently been hanging inches from where the black mark now was.
�Jenna, cool it!� Amy said sternly. �Now finish changing and get your ass into the living room, pronto.� She turned on her heel and walked away with Kale following her.
�Way to handle that,� he said to her, sitting in the recliner.
�She�s been my best friend for ten years now, I�m used to it,� Amy said, sitting on the love seat.
�Yeah, Kasey�s been my brother my whole life and I had to deal with the same shit.�
Jenna walked back into the living room with pajama pants on and her hair pulled back. She sat on the couch and hugged a red pillow to her chest, not looking at either of them.
�You know you want to tell us what is going on, Jenna, so don�t try to get all drama-queen on me.�
Jenna looked at them with tears in her eyes. �I have never in my life felt so bad about myself as I did with Kasey tonight.�
Amy got up and sat by her friend. As tough as Jenna seemed to be, she got hurt easily. Sure, Jenna definitely had an edge to her, but she crumpled just as fast as everyone else did when someone really hurt her.
Kale looked at Jenna and wasn�t sure whether or not he should just get up and leave, but she started talking again, so he decided to stay.
�We walked into the house and I asked him what he fuck was wrong and he came at me and kissed me, but it wasn�t a nice kiss. He was holding me so tight by my arm and forcing his tongue into my mouth, so I pushed him away. And he said something about me not wanting him because he wasn�t Junior.�
Jenna leaned back into the couch. �And then he said something me wanting to pretend he was Rick Scott.�
�Rick Scott, your ex-boyfriend, Rick Scott?� Kale asked.
�I assume that�s the one he meant,� Jenna said and started to laugh. �You know something, Kale? It just struck me how funny it is that you know the name of my ex boyfriend, and Kasey just assumed he was some guy I was just fucking. Ironic, huh?�
Jenna told Kale about Rick the morning he went running with her. He�d asked her how she got into running and she told him the story of her and Rick. How they started dating at the end of her sophomore year of college and how he was drafted during her senior year and he paid for her to fly around the country to be with him most of that year. She told Kale about missing out on so much her during her last year of college because he said he needed her to be with him.
Apparently, Rick was in Detroit one weekend and when she walked into his hotel room, she caught him in bed with another woman. From what she told him, she called Courtney and Val and they drove from Ohio University to come get her and she never talked to him again. She told him about the months of her not wanting to do anything and the therapy her friends made her go to twice a week. She felt like she wasn�t good enough for him and that was why he was with another woman. Jenna told him how no mater what anyone said or did, she still blamed herself. It was her fault for letting her life revolve around him.
Jenna told him about her waking up one morning at five AM and finding a picture of her with her friends on spring break. She said that something in that picture made her realize that she was letting someone else run her life for her and giving up her independence and she made a promise to never let anyone take who she was away from her ever again. She said she ran out of her apartment and just kept running until she came to an open field. She stood in the middle of the field and yelled at the top of her lungs until she lost her voice.
Ever since that day, she told him, she did what made her happy, and running early in the morning reminded her of the day she made that promise to herself.
That was the day Kale became Jenna�s number one fan. He realized that she wasn�t a girl that was going to get in the way of Kasey's dreams because she was living in her own present.
�So Kasey doesn�t know anything about Rick?�
�I guess he knows that I was associated with him somehow,� Jenna said. �I mean, I never told him about Rick and he never asked me anything about my past relationships. All he cared about was fucking me.�
�Not to be a bitch, Jen,� Amy said, �But what about you? Did you ever take the time to learn those things about him?�
Jenna looked at her friend and didn�t say anything.
�See,� said Amy. �You are to blame here, too. You can�t get pissed at Kasey for not knowing those things about your life because you never took the time to learn about his.�
�Fuck you, Amy!� Jenna yelled standing up. �How can you sit here and defend him? He basically called me a slut to my face and said all those mean things and you say that it is my fault?�
�That�s not what she�s saying, Jenna,� Kale said. �Yeah, Kasey acted like a dick. A big dick. And he had no right to say those things to you. But you see, he�s spent his whole life trying to make it in racing and now that he has, he is bound and determined not to let anything get in his way. Just like you. You spent your whole life becoming who you are and you made a promise to yourself that day you saw that picture that no one was ever going to get in your way again. And by pretending that this whole thing was just about having �fun� was both of you not letting anyone in.�
Jenna stood there looking at Kale. �And all this did, Kale was prove to me that I was right. The truth? I love him. I�ve only known him two months, and I love him more than I ever thought it was possible to love another human being. And I�m not talking about being in love with �Kasey Kahne�. I�m in love with Kasey. The guy who�s belly I rub so that he can fall asleep. The guy who buys me Lucky Charms to keep at his house because I hate Fruit Loops. The guy who signs autographs for a bunch of teenagers because they�re my students.�
Amy stared at her friend. She�d never heard Jenna�s voice so full of raw emotion before and it surprised her.
�But you know what? � Jenna said. �I love myself more. And tonight, not only did I almost drive home piss ass drunk, but let someone else hurt me. And I refuse to break that promise a made to myself two years ago. I�m going to bed.� She walked into her room and closed her door.
Amy looked at Kale. �I�ve never heard her like that. I mean, I knew she was falling for him, but she�s a strong woman. Too strong, sometimes. And she�s not going to change her mind.�
�I don�t know,� Kale said. �I can�t imagine loving something so much and pushing it away because I was scared.�
�You have to understand Jenna,� Amy said. �That shit that happened with Rick? It was a mess. And Kasey being an athlete and all, she is just spooked. I can�t even begin to describe to you what her life was like after Rick. And I admire her for realizing that she was the only one that could make her happy. That�s something I need to learn.�
Amy got up from the couch. �I have to work early in the morning. I can drop you off at your place on my way, okay?�
�Yep,� Kale said. �You�re a good friend to Jenna, you know that?�
�Yeah, well, she�s always been there for me and I just want to see her happy. I know she was happy with Kasey, but this is going to take some time. �Night.�
�Night,� Kale said.
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�This one�s ours right here,� Kale said as Amy pulled up in front of his and Kasey�s place. �Is she going to be okay?� When they�d left the condo, Jenna was just getting back from her morning run. She�d talked to them as if nothing was wrong.
�Yeah,� Amy said. �This is her way of dealing. She�ll pretend like nothing happened until her life goes back to normal. And thanks again for driving her home last night, Kale.�
�No, problem. I�ll see ya, Amy.�
�Bye, Kale.�
As he walked into the front door, he spotted the red Civic parked next to Kasey�s Durango. �Fuck, Mandy!�
He entered the house, ready to sit and have a talk with his brother. He felt that Kasey needed to know what Jenna told him about Rick Scott. He took of his shoes and saw that Kasey decided to take out his anger on the hallway wall.
�I hope he broke his fucking hand,� he said to himself.
�What was that, Little Bro?� Kasey said walking out of the kitchen. �Just getting home?�
�What he fuck is Mandy doing here?� Kale asked him.
�Probably the same think Jenna was doing to you last night. Only, unfortunately for me, nowhere near as good, I�m sure.�
Kale grabbed Kasey by the neck and jacked him up against the wall. �Fuck you, Kasey.�
Kasey smirked at him. �Oh yeah, she must have fucked you really good for you to be getting so angry.�
�You know,� Kale said with his hand still at Kasey�s throat, �I�m not even going to dignify that with any sort of reply. You fucked up, Big Brother. Now live with it. Hey, Mandy,� He said releasing his grip on his brother. �Glad to see you still come running when Kasey calls.� He walked up the stairs to his room.
Kasey stood there rubbing his neck.
�What was that all about?� Mandy asked.
�Nothing, forget about it,� Kasey said.
�Did you have breakfast yet, Kasey? I am starving.�
Kasey was hoping Mandy would be gone when he woke up, but he ended up never going to sleep. He was so pissed when Jenna left the night before that he�d punched the wall and Ray and Tommy were going to kill him. But he wasn�t thinking about anything at that moment except for the fact that Jenna played him. So he�d called Mandy and she came right over.
He knew what she must have been thinking when he called and he knew what she must have been thinking as she laid underneath him while he fucked her, but he didn�t care. He just wanted to get Jenna out of his head.
But Mandy wasn�t Jenna. He had no desire to make her feel good, only get himself off. With Jenna, all he could think about was satisfying her, savoring every inch of her. He loved watching her as she came, knowing he was the one responsible for her pleasure.
Sex with Mandy was a poor substitute. He just pumped and pumped at Mandy, never kissing her or looking her in the eye, he just wanted to get Jenna out of his mind. He finally came and rolled off Mandy, but it didn�t work. All he could think about was driving over to Jenna�s and begging her to forgive him. Telling her that he didn�t care about her past or that she was using him. He just wanted to be with her.
He lay there listening to Mandy go on and on about how much she loved him and how she knew he loved her too and he wanted to scream. �I�m sorry, Mandy, but I can�t sleep. I�m gonna go do some work.�
�Please, Kasey, just lay here with me until I fall asleep?� she said to him.
�Nah, I really just need to go do some stuff, there�s too much on my mind right now,� he told her, putting on a pair of pants. �I�ll be back later.�
He closed the door to his room and went no his office. He pulled the Rick Scott article back up and looked at the picture of Jenna. She was staring up at Rick and smiling as he waved at the camera. Kasey leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hands over his face. I have to go see her now, he thought.
He grabbed a hoodie from the hall closet and his keys before he realized that Kale had his truck and he never heard him come in. He looked out the kitchen window and saw his Durango parked there, but Kale�s shoes weren�t by the front door. Kale always took his shoes off when he came into the house. It was a habit he picked up from their parents� house and was a lot better at remembering it than Kasey was. Kasey ran up the stairs and Kale�s bedroom door was open, but he wasn�t there. He walked into Kale�s room and looked out the window and realized Jenna's Lexus was gone.
That mother fucker! he thought. He went home with her!
He went back downstairs and a look at the clock told him that it was four AM. Kasey sat down on the couch and flipped on the TV. Well, I�ll just wait here for loverboy to get home.
And when he heard Kale�s key in the door at seven, he pounced on him. I can�t believe she fucked my brother, he thought to himself.
�Kasey? Kasey?� Mandy was looking at him, trying to get his attention. �Did you hear me? I said I was hungry.�
�Yeah, come on.�
The walked into the kitchen and Mandy sat at the table.
�I gotta get to the shop soon, so I don�t have time for a big breakfast,� Kasey said reaching up into the cupboard for a box of cereal and puling out Lucky Charms.
�Fuck!� he yelled and threw the box across the room.
�Kasey!� Mandy screamed. �What are you doing?�
He turned on her. �You know what, Mandy? I think you�d better go. I need to be by myself right now.�
He walked out of the kitchen and out the front door, leaving a startled Mandy staring at the mess of cereal on the floor.
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Jenna�s cell was ringing when she got out of the shower. Please, please, let it be Kasey, she thought as she ran into her room to pick it up. But it was Robyn, The Pussycat Dolls founder.
�Hey, Jenna, it�s Robyn. I hope it isn�t too early.�
�No, not at all� Jenna said. �I just got out of the shower after my morning run.
�Good! Now I have a question for you,� Robyn said hurriedly.
�Shoot,� Jenna told her.
�Well, I know next weekend is the first performance and you�ll be at that, but I was wondering if you were available on the 21st for a performance? I know you work and it will be a late show, but this is a big deal.�
Jenna pulled out her planner. The 21st was two Sundays from now. �Well, I do have the next day off because of President�s day, but��
�And there would be no travel required of you. The performance is in Charlotte.�
�Charlotte?� Jenna was surprised. Most of the performances that were scheduled so far were in New York and a couple were in Miami Beach. Charlotte seemed like an odd choice.
�Yeah. I am not at liberty to discuss the details, but this could be BIG, Jenna! This was what I wanted to happen when I brought the PCD brand to the east coast.�
"Well, count me in, Robyn. I�m anxious to hear what this is all about!�
�Great! I�ll see you Saturday. Bye.�
�Bye.� Jenna flipped her phone shut and sat on her bed.
At least this will keep me occupied, she thought, looking at her planner and seeing that the 21st was the day of the Daytona 500.
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Kasey walked around the shop talking to some of the engineers.
�Less than a week away now, Kahne,� one of the guys said to him. �You ready for it?�
�Yeah, man, I�m getting there.�
He was leaving for Daytona that night for race week. His schedule was jam packed until after the race on Sunday. He knew he could win this year. His testing was flawless and the new Charger was amazing.
�Sup, Bro?� Kale said walking up next to him.
Things had been strained between him and Kale for the last week and a half. They were both so busy getting ready for Daytona that they barely saw one another. Kale usually left the shop earlier than Kasey, and when Kasey got home, he was in bed for the night. They were cordial to each other when they were working on stuff, but they never talked about what happened between them. Once he cooled off, Kasey realized that his brother would never have slept with Jenna, but he didn�t know how to apologize to him for his accusations.
�Nothing much Kale. Just thinking.�
�You ready?�
�Yeah,� Kasey said. �I can�t believe it�s time already, you know?�
�Yeah,� Kale said, �I know. But no more Rookie stripe this year, man.�
�Pretty cool, huh?� Kasey said turning to face his brother. �Did you ever think I�d be here? Doing this?�
Kale laughed. �You know what, Kase? There was never any doubt in my mind.�
Two bothers stood there, the sounds of being in a race shop all around them as guys worked on the cars making final adjustments.
�Kale, look,� Kasey said, starting to walk out to the front door. �I just wanted to say that I�m sorry for being a dick.�
�Which time?� Kale asked with a smile.
�Fuck you, man,� Kasey said opening the door. �I�m guess I mean I�m sorry for saying that shit about you and Jenna. I know that no mater what, you wouldn�t do that to me, even if she did want to do you.�
�Whoa, Kasey,� Kale said, stopping midstep. �First of all, Jenna would never want to do me.�
�Okay,� said Kasey. �You have no idea about her. That night? I was reading an article on ESPN.com and I saw this picture of Jenna-�
�With Rick Scott,� Kale said.
�Yeah, with Rick Scott. And then I did an image search on Google for her name, and there were all these pictures of her with him and some other guys who played for the Giants and she was siting on their laps and shit. But wait, how did you know I saw her with Rick Scott?�
�Kasey,� Kale said sitting on the curb outside of the shop,� you might be smart about driving, but you sure are a dumbass about other shit.�
Kasey sat down next to him.
�Why did you assume that those were just random pictures of her with some guys she was fucking?� Kale asked his older brother.
�I assumed that because, well, I guess I assumed because-�
�Because you were looking for something wrong, man,� Kale finished for him. �You have no idea. You found someone and you were s scared that things were right that you had to find something wrong with her.�
Kasey looked at Kale. �What was I supposed to think, Kale? Jenna walked into my life and she was just too perfect. I mean, I met her and had her in my bed a few hours later and then she split right after. And then I see pictures of her with a bunch of other famous athletes? Tell me. What he fuck else was I supposed to think? She was probably out at that club that night just looking for the next on her list of famous bed buddies.�
�Are you really that fucking self centered, Kase? I mean, are you?� Kale asked him. �And as I recall, even though I was pretty wasted, you were the one who walked into her life, not the other way around.�
Kasey remembered that night as if it were last night. He and the guys were out at a bar and Mark had wanted to go to Toxic because he said I was THE place to go on Saturdays. All of them were pretty buzzed at the time so they�d called a cab and went there. They found a table just as the DJ announced a dance contest.
�ALRIGHT! WE�VE GOT A TREAT FOR YOU ALL TONIGHT! LOOK AT ALL THESE SEXY LADIES READY TO GET THEIR FREAK ON! REMEMBER, YOU�RE THE JUDGES SO MAKE SOME NOISE WHEN I WALK BY THE ONE YOU WANT TO WIN!�
He and his friends turned their attention to the stage.
�Look at that blonde in the white top!� Kale had said as the girls on stage started to dance.
�Shit, look at that tall brunette on the far right end,� Bryan pointed with his beer.
�Ahhh no,� their friend Dean said. �Check out that little brown haired one with the rack two to the left of the tall one.�
Kasey looked at the girl Dean pointed out. She had a smirk on her face and was shaking her hips to the beat of the music. Her arms were moving seductively and she caught someone�s eye in the audience and made a kissing face at him.
�Fuck!� Kale said raising his beer. �A toast to the tiny dancer!� Their table whooped it up when the DJ stood next to her.
Kasey couldn't take his eyes off her. He was usually attracted to blondes, but something about her drew him in. She obviously had that effect on a lot of the people there that night because the crowd roared.
�Whattya think, Kahne?� Dean asked him.
�She�s hot,� Kasey said, drinking his beer.
�Hot?� Bryan exclaimed. �She�s fucking amazing! You could bounce a quarter off that ass. WOOOOO!�
It was down to the girl they were talking about and the blonde in the white tube top. The blonde was rolling her hips and really getting down. Kasey watched the other girl�s face as she watched her. She was sizing up her competition and when it was her turn to dance, it was like watching MTV. That girl knew how to do more than just gyrate her hips. She was arms and feet and hair and accentuating the beat of the music with each move. She was amazing.
When she won, his table went crazy. �Yo. Someone has got to go talk to that chic and get her over here,� Dean said.
�I�ll do it!� Mark told them.
�Shit Mark, you got as much game as Kale!� Bryan said.
�Hey, fuck you, man!� Kale said.
They watched the girl and her friends get drinks and head out to the dance floor where guys were already ascending on them.
�Kasey, you go,� Dean said pointing with his beer.
�Dude, every guy that has walked up to them has been shot down,� Mark said. �Haven�t you been watching?�
�Yeah, I�ve been watching,� Dean said. �But Kasey hasn�t walked up to them. Chics love him!�
�Yeah, Kahne,� Bryan said. �Use the celebrity status, man.�
The guys all laughed. �They probably have no idea who the fuck I am,� Kasey told his friends. He was dying to go talk to her, but he wasn�t used to approaching women, they always attacked him.
�Look,� Dean said. �This is Charlotte. If they are from here, they know NASCAR. If they aren�t from here, they are probably here because of NASCAR. They know who you are, dude.�
�Kase, just go!� Kale said. �The friends are hot, too.�
�Fine,� Kasey said. �But if they shoot me down, you fuckers just remember who had the balls to go talk to them.�
And that was how he met Jenna.
�Yeah, so I walked up to her, big deal? What the fuck kind of girls do you meet in bars, anyways? I�ll tell you Kale,� he said. �You meet the one that fuck you and leave you, that is what.�
Kasey was getting angry and his leg started bouncing up and down.
�The why were you so pissed when you thought she was just some pit lizard, Kasey?� Kale said. �You never got pissed that any of your other random fucks were pit lizards.�
�I don't have time for this shit now, Kale,� Kasey said standing up. �I�m leaving for the biggest race of the year tonight. I need to concentrate on it.�
�Go ahead and keep denying it, Kasey, but you were in love with that girl,� Kale said as he stood up. �But before you assume anything about her, just remember that you never asked her anything about her past. I think if you would have not put up such barriers and thought with your mind instead of your dick, you�d know what I was talking about. See you at the plane in a few.�
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