La Rosa Gialla

Chapter 28

March 2024

"And it's a 1-2 finish for the Ferraris!" Crazy joy broke out in the garage. Another great result for the red team. Carlos kept his first place and Charles took the second position after a great overtaking maneuver on Norris. I moved with the others under the stage and watched with enthusiasm the two men in red overalls as they received their trophies and then we sang the Italian national anthem with passion. The sight of Charles all wet from champagne probably won't stop entertaining me ever. And strangely also excite me.

Andrea pulled my hand and with a strange movement of the head, which looked more like a tic, gestured somewhere backstage. I glared at him, but he just rolled his eyes and dragged me by the hand to the stairs leading from the stage, which was out of sight of the fans in the stands and from the cameras as well. Before I could realize where I actually was, Carlos appeared in front of me, he just gave me a friendly smile, followed by Charlie. He wiped the remains of the champagne from his eyes with his fingers and grinned at me. "You look happy today," I smiled, looked around to see if anyone was watching us and stroked his cheek. He was soaked with alcohol, but that didn't stop him from leaning in and kissing me on the lips.

Charles then had to go to the press conference together with the others, but even before that he managed to inform me that I should be taken to the hotel, where Kika would be waiting for me with a surprise. I narrowed my eyes a bit with incomprehension, but decided to trust him and did as he told me. I got to my room before 7 PM, barely had time to shower and throw on a white hotel robe, when there was a knock on the door. I opened the door and let in Kika in a beautiful light green dress sewn with delicate sequins. "Wow," I breathed and then looked down at my robe. Kika laughed and waved a large paper bag in front of my face. "Put this on. If you want, I'll help you with your hair and make-up after," she smiled at me and showed the bag into my hand.

I stood in front of the mirror and stared at my own reflection, which looked like someone completely different. My mostly unruly hair now cascaded down my shoulders and back in neat waves, my skin looked absolutely perfect, and my lipstick matched the most daring dress I'd ever worn. They were short, red, with narrow straps and were studded with glittering rhinestones. If someone had shown them to me in a store, I would have told them they were crazy and that I could never look good in them, but they fit me like they were made for me. "You look stunning," complimented Kika, who appeared behind me. "The boys will be here any minute," she added as she checked the time on her phone.

Charles and Pierre arrived later in the evening and both looked absolutely delicious. Charlie, of course, a lot more, but Kika probably wouldn't agree. I glanced over at Charles and stopped at his white shirt, which had the first few buttons undone, revealing his neck and collarbones. I exhaled the air I was holding in my lungs and he walked over to me. "Sei bellissima," he whispered in my ear and kissed my cheek lightly. I felt heat rush to my face. "You're not so bad yourself," I laughed lightly, but as a sign that I was joking, I grabbed the back of his neck and connected our lips. "Hey!" cried Pierre. "Save that for later. Now it's time to party!"

Loud music was playing in the club and the four of us fit into a box that was a little away from the dance floor. I don't know how, but four shots landed on the table and Pierre immediately grabbed one of them. "Cheers to today's race and all the others in which I will surely beat you," he smirked at Charles and the four of us drank. I don't know how many more shots and drinks we managed to drink, but Charlie was less and less in control of his hands. He kept running his palm down my thigh or the exposed part of my back and couldn't take his eyes off me. I couldn't tear myself away from his dimples and those damn collarbones. Since when do I care about something as banal as clavicles? I would prefer to go back to the hotel right away and unbutton his shirt slowly, button by button. "Let's dance," I suggested instead, letting go of the sinful thoughts. Without objection, he stood up, took my hand and led us through the crowd to the dance floor. For a while I watched the other clubgoers who were unashamedly swaying to the beat, often inappropriately, and Charles laughed when he saw my face. Then he grabbed me tightly around the waist and pressed me to him so that there was not even a millimeter of space between us. I felt my hip occasionally touch his crotch and I shuddered each time. I could tell by the look in his eyes that it didn't leave him unbothered either. After a few more fleeting touches, I could already feel his excitement elsewhere than just in his eyes. I sighed softly and licked my lips, then leaned into his ear and whispered, "Shall we go back to the hotel?" Charles nodded quickly.

We quickly said goodbye to Kika and Pierre and waited outside for a few minutes for a taxi to take us back to the hotel. I remember nothing of the walk to the room except for Charles's hand on my back and the frantic pace of his walk. If he had been this fast in the afternoon, he would have won the race for sure. As soon as the door slammed behind us, I rushed to the buttons on his shirt, which I wanted to unbutton all evening.