?<strong>Chapter 1301:</strong>


    “I thought you’d abandoned me today,” she whispered.


    “You never answered my messages.”


    A tender smile yed across Cliff’s lips.


    “You must have missed me terribly.”


    Indeed, from the moment Cliff appeared, Laney’s eyes had been drawn to him like a moth to a me. Her feelings for him had always been transparent, as clear as ss.


    Nestled against him, Laney tilted her face upward, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.


    “Are you joining the race?”


    Cliff’s gaze drifted to her lips as she spoke, finding them irresistible. Without warning, he imed them with his own.


    Caught in the moment, Laney instinctively deepened the kiss, her tongue meeting his. Reality crashed back just secondster, and she pulled away, her cheeks zing scarlet.


    Cliff’s lips curved into a satisfied smile as he drew back.


    “I used to race in my younger days, though I’m not certain I’ve kept my edge.”


    The air around them buzzed with whispers and gasps from the crowd at the pair’s intimacy.


    Though Laney and Cliff had shared countless private moments, they had never disyed their rtionship so openly.


    Laney wasn’t ready for this. The thought made her stomach flutter with uncertainty.


    “Everyone still believes we’re just cousins,” she murmured anxiously.


    |??è$? ￠??t?€я? 1n ??lπoνεl?.c??


    Cliff’s throat worked as he swallowed, his voice dropping to a husky whisper.


    “Let them think what they will. Isn’t it a cousin’s duty to cherish his younger rtive?”


    As the dust settled at the starting line, Laney made her way back to Kailyn, her cheeks still flushed with excitement.


    “Cliff’s kissing technique is absolutely mind-blowing! I could see from here how he—” Kailyn bubbled with enthusiasm before Laney’s hand shot out to silence her.


    “Just focus on the race,” Laney muttered, her eyes fixed on the track ahead.


    The racing circuit stretched before them like a serpentine path, with sharp turns and treacherous bends promising both glory and danger. As the vehicles vanished around the first bend, an inexplicable knot formed in Laney’s stomach.


    “Cliff hasn’t raced in ages. What if something goes wrong?”


    “Worried he won’t take the crown?” Kailyn teased.


    “The trophy means nothing to me,” Laney’s voice softened.


    “I just need him toe back in one piece.”


    The truth hung heavy in the air—Cliff wasn’t racing for glory, but for Laney’s heart.


    When Cliff had shown up earlier, pure joy had coursed through Laney’s veins. Now, watching the fierce determination etched on everypetitor’s face, that joy had turned into genuine fear.


    Minutes crawled by like hours until, finally, Laney rose to her feet, squinting at two distant shapes emerging from the bend—Cliff and Merrick, neck and neck.


    .


    .


    .