Chameleon Soul (Chequered Flag #1) by Mia Hoddell Page A

year. My body craved his touch, to be loved by him, yet that meant he’d need the truth.
    It was a bittersweet revelation.
    Deciding it was a day for confronting my ghosts, I sucked in a breath, held it for a second, and when I exhaled I headed back into the garage.
    My feet were silent along the shiny floor, my ballet flats another form of my chameleon disguise that allowed me to blend in wherever I went.
    The race had already begun when I entered the garage. The cars were whizzing around the track, buzzing like enraged wasps. They weren’t as loud, fast, or sleek as the Formula One cars due to less money being involved in the lower tiers of the sport, but that didn’t make it any less exciting when your best friend was racing.
    The screen showed Dustin in the lead, and glancing down from it, my eyes fell upon Teo.
    “You came back.”
    I could see his guard was up from his cautious stance. His arms were folded protectively across his chest, and his eyes were wary as if he was unsure of me.
    “It wasn’t fair to Dustin. This is his day and he doesn’t need me to ruin it. When he wins he deserves to celebrate, not be torn between that and running off to look after me, which is what he’d do.” I shrugged, feigning nonchalance, and hoisted myself back onto my perch on the cabinet.
    I could do this.
    “Why would he need to look after you?”
    I wanted to slap myself for that slip. I was so used to only talking to the few people who knew all about the incident that I rarely had to censor myself. Nadine knew all about what Dustin did for me, so it was second nature to admit it.
    “You did see the way I ran out of here, right?”
    Teo nodded. “And Dustin knows the reason why?”
    I nodded hesitantly. Keeping my gaze lowered to the floor so I didn’t see his reaction, I heard the breath he blew out forcefully.
    “Why’s he allowed to know, Raine? I thought you loved me at one time…that we could talk about everything and anything.”
    My expression saddened. We had been close. You can’t date someone for two years and not be close. How was I to tell him I did it all so he could live his dreams?
    “Teo, please. This is hard for me and I want to be here for Dustin. Can we forget all of the crazy for now so I don’t have to run off before I see Dustin win?”
    “Is he the only reason you came back, Raindrop?”
    Once again the sound of my old nickname made my heart flutter. I found it impossible to look away from the sincerity in his gaze. He was showing me all of his emotions, even though I’d shown him nothing except madness and anger.
    Rather than answer him, I dipped my hand into the bag of fudge that was now squashed and shrivelled. I pulled out a flattened cube and bit into the corner, making sure a chunk of glacier cherry came with it. I focused my attention on the monitors that were spaced around the garage and followed the action on the track. It had escaped my notice because of Teo, but it finally registered the place was nearly empty. All of the seats that had been filled by the mechanics were free.
    The camera cut to Dustin entering the pits, and I held my breath as he pulled into his box. His team raised the car on its jacks in a split second, the wheel guns whirred, and Dustin was released with four new tyres. It had been a seamless stop, and it put him back out in front of everyone and free to continue on with the remaining thirty laps.
    “He’s good, isn’t he?”
    The neutral question took me by surprise, and I nodded. “Reminds me of how you were. Do you think he’ll get a seat next year?”
    “I can’t say. Seats are hard to come by even if he deserves one. People are already starting to shop for contracts. It also depends on whether he can keep his head. This thing with Elora is really messing with his game.”
    “Tell me about it. I was the one who had to pick him up from the police station.” Strangely a laugh trickled from my lips. Talking with Teo was easy. It felt natural and