Free Slide Job (Cameron Motorsports) by Sutton Fox

sigh of relief at the short reprieve. The resolution in her mom’s voice meant she knew something was up, but she’d chosen not to press it at the moment.
    “Carter’s feeling up to company tonight, so the Baldwins are coming over for a bit.”
    It wouldn’t do for Mom to learn what had happened just before they’d pulled out of Nebraska. Mom had enough to deal with. Morgan could hardly believe it herself.
    She’d been thoroughly surprised to see John and Rob Haskell at the track. Haskell’s Performance had sponsored her red and white number seventy-one for the last five years.
    Rob told her flat out their contract with Blade Motorsports was void. Negated, due to the fact that her father wasn’t managing the team and she was. When they’d left, she’d been thoroughly humiliated and they were no longer her sponsors. Oh, well, one disaster at a time.
    “I’m so glad Dad’s doing better, Mom. Is his treatment working this time?”
    “I don’t know, honey. His doctor says we have to wait and see. I saw your friend Lynn today. She’s such fine nurse, and so good with your daddy. She said to tell you ‘hello.’”
    Wait, wait, and wait some more. It drove her nuts. She could only imagine how aggravating it was for her parents. “Oh, thanks. When you see her, give her a hug for me. Okay, bye, Mom. Hug each other for me. Love you.”
    She closed her phone and turned in her seat to see the cameraman, Blake Hardy, still filming. She’d had enough cameras for one day.
    “Hey, Blake, would you like a beer?”
    He grinned at her and nodded.
    “Can you play poker and hold that camera at the same time?” She smiled back at him, got out of her seat and moved to the living area. She reached into the small refrigerator, pulled out three beers, then dug into a drawer and drew out a deck of cards. She sat at the table and began shuffling.
    “How about you, Steve? Should I deal you in?” She winked at the director, giving him her best conniving grin. “Or are you afraid of being taken by a girl?”
    “Never. Deal me in.” Steve closed whatever he’d been working on and put away his laptop. He leaned tan forearms on the table, rubbing his palms together.
    Her crew chief looked at her in the rearview mirror with tired eyes.
    “Jack, aren’t we coming up on a rest area? I bet you could use a break from driving. Get out and stretch a bit.” She wished they could afford a full-time driver so the guys wouldn’t have to switch all the time.
    “Yes’m, I sure could use a stop.”
    “Phil, no beer for you. Once we hit the stop, you can take over the driving and give Jack a break. We’ll stop for dinner somewhere between here and Knoxville.”
    Phil stretched his arms and yawned like a sleepy tiger. “Sounds good to me. Are we spending the night in Knoxville, then?”
    “Yeah. That’ll leave us about three hundred miles to cover in the morning and we’ll be there.” Her attention turned back to the cards, sliding through her fingers.
    “Five card stud okay? Ante up, gentlemen. Two dollar limit.”
    She dealt the cards smoothly, with her usual economy of motion, hole card face down, next one face up.
    “Steve, it looks like you’re low man, with that three of clubs.”
    Steve reached in his wallet and pulled out a dollar to toss in the pot. He spared a glance at Phil sitting on his left.
    Phil raised his cards with a grimace and tossed them in the center. “Fold.”
    Everybody came complete with a life story they loved to tell. She’d learned that a long time ago. Stories were a great way to pass the time. No sense beating around the bush about it, might as well ask what she wanted to know.
    “Have you guys worked in television a long time?”
    Steve peeked at his hole card, and then rested both back down on the table. “For about eight years. Tyler hired both of us at the beginning, to be on his crew.”
    She smiled to herself, watching the expressions whirl across his face. He would be an easy mark. “Wow,