Jump Start: Fast Love Racing, #1

By Shaw Hart and Cameron Hart

Jump start: In a standing start, when a vehicle moves from its grid slot before the start of a race is signaled.

Hendrix Calter only has one speed. Fast.

He sped away from his toxic father as soon as he turned eighteen, and he's been in Sequoia, California, for the last three years, studying at Sequoia University and racing every chance he gets to pay his bills and save for his future.

He's got his dream life in his sights, and nothing is going to derail him from reaching the finish line.

Then one night, he meets Locklyn at the Stud Farm Race Track, and he's hooked. There's just something about her that has him feeling like he's going a hundred miles an hour.

Too bad for him; he's already messed it up with her.

He jump-started, and now he needs to kick it into high gear if he wants to catch up to the girl that's meant to be his.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shaw Hart
• Release date: Jan 29, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224899463

Book preview

ONE

Hendrix

We’re going to be late, Kade tells me as he pokes his head around my bedroom door frame.

I’m ready to go. We’re waiting on Thorne.

You look real pretty, man! You can stop messing with your hair now, and we can go! Kade yells to Thorne, making me grin.

He’s going to be in a great mood now, I tell Kade as we head toward the front door.

Isn’t he always?

I chuckle, ignoring Thorne’s dark look as he stomps into the living room and past us to the front door.

Thorne has been a grouchy dick for as long as I’ve known him, so Kade and I are used to it. Now we just consider it part of his charm.

I’ve known Kade and Thorne for years. They’ve been my best friends since middle school, and we’ve been through everything together. We have big plans for the future too. We’re going to open our own mechanic shop as soon as we graduate, and I can’t wait.

We’ve always loved cars. The speed, the adrenaline rush, the wind curving around you as you slice through the air with your powerful car… everything about being behind the wheel clicks with me.

I never had much control of my life growing up. The first time I wrapped my hands around a steering wheel and felt the engine roar to life, I felt… free. Like I could outrun my demons if I drove fast enough. In fact, my stepsister, Palmer, used to joke that I only have one speed – fast. She’s definitely right.

I jog down the stairs after my friends, and we each hop into our cars, taking off down the street after Kade and Thorne. We’re headed to the Stud Farm, more specifically to the race track on the far east side of the property.

We’ve been racing at the Stud Farm since our freshman year at Sequoia University. It was one of the biggest reasons why we decided to come here. At least, it was for Kade and Thorne. My biggest reason for coming to California for college was that it was as far away from my father as I could possibly get.

My dad has always been a controlling asshole. He’s all about status, and if you can’t meet his ridiculously high expectations, well… he’ll let you know with his fists. He started getting violent with my brother, Finn, and me when we were teenagers. The bruises healed, and the scars are starting to fade, but the abuse we went through was more than just skin deep.

I got as far away from him as fast as I could, but Finn stuck around Pittsburgh to be there in case Palmer, our stepsister, needed anything. Our father has never hit Palmer or her mom. Not as far as I know, anyway, and I would hear about it. Finn wouldn’t stand for that, and Palmer’s new husband wouldn’t either. Hell, I bet the whole Eye Candy Ink and Kings Gym family would go after my dad if he ever even thought about laying a finger on Palmer.

I push thoughts of my fucked up father out of my head as we hit the dirt road, slowing down to turn onto the Stud Farm property. There’s already a steady line of cars headed over to the track, and we join them. Rock music is blaring from the field, and I smile as we round the last hill and see the rows and rows of cars lined up and people milling about.

Thorne, Kade, and I line up at the end of the second row and climb out. It doesn’t look like any of the races have started yet, so we have time to place our bets and mingle with everyone.

The track at the Stud Farm is a mile-long dirt track. We’ve been racing – and winning – for the last two years, and I know this year won’t be any different. I’ve been using my winnings from racing here to pay my bills and save up for after we graduate. We all need to be able to put money up for the garage. Thorne won’t have to worry since his parents are loaded, but Kade and I are on our own. That means that I need to save every penny that I can.

I’m going to place my bet, Kade says, and I nod, handing him a stack of bills so that he can do mine too.

Thorne passes him some money, too, and we watch as Kade heads off into the crowd toward Malachi. I glance at Thorne, rolling my eyes when I see how bored he looks.

Want to grab something to drink? I ask, and he shrugs.

He’s been a shell of himself since his high school girlfriend dumped him right after graduation. They were all set to go to college together, but she broke up with him and then ghosted him. He changed his plans then and came to Sequoia with us, but he hasn’t been the same since.

He hasn’t looked at another girl since then either, so I don’t bother asking him if he wants to check out the crowd or the group of track bunnies dancing on the makeshift stage over to our left. He’d only get more annoyed if I suggested it.

Not that I’m interested in the track bunnies or anything. Far from it. No judgment for the racers who indulge, as long as everything is consensual, but I don’t want a quick lay. I want something meaningful, and I haven’t found it yet.

Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the racetrack! Malachi says into his microphone. The bets for the first race are still open but place your bets soon! First race starts in five minutes. Come watch as Hendrix Calter faces off against Simon Jones!

The crowd cheers, and I clap Thorne on the shoulder before I head back to my car to get ready. He follows me, leaning down and resting his elbows on my open window as I climb behind the wheel.

Ready? he asks.

Of course, I say with a nod. I’m actually a little annoyed that they paired me up against Simon.

I know. It’s not going to be much of a race. I wonder if it’s too late to ask Kade to switch my bet to Simon, Thorne says, and I flip him off.

Hilarious.

He grins, the smile there and gone in the blink of an eye. I wish I could do something or say something to make what happened with his ex-girlfriend better, but I wouldn’t even know where to start.

I’ve never had a girlfriend. I’ve never even been out on a date. I knew I wasn’t sticking around after graduation, so I never even bothered looking when I was