Racing the Sky
by Layla Dorine
When you Race the Sky, Gravity Always Wins
Cover Art for Racing the sky by 8th Floor Studio
Blurb
Nicky dreamed of Cliffhangers, Suicide Cams and the Kiss of Death, wanting more than anything to make it to the professional motocross circuit and dazzle fans beneath the bright arena lights. His bike was his life, his world, especially after his boyfriend, Terry, dumped him for earning a sponsor when Terry couldn't. It's still devastating, being cheated on and cast aside by the only man he’s ever loved, but there’s little he can do about it now but go out there and win, if only to spite Terry.
Enter Gray, and a chance meeting at a roadside diner that leaves Nicky with something more to focus on than the Coffin and Lazy Boy and how impressive a backflip he can pull off at the end of the next event. As the sting of Terry’s betrayal begins to fade, Nicky finds himself drawn to the older man, returning to the diner, and Gray, in every free moment he can spare. It’s almost perfect, but nothing ever lasts, not in Nicky’s world and Terry isn’t quite done making him pay for his success.
In the aftermath, Gray is left helping Nicky pick up the pieces once again, only this time, nothing will ever be the same. Will Nicky be able to see beyond his dreams of twisting in the air and dangling from beneath his bike.... to learn that when you Race the Sky…gravity always wins?
Trailer
Excerpt:
The thrill
of winning the second qualifier left Nicky feeling confident and excited to
race again. It gave him some breathing room to sit back and see who else would
race in the finals. Terry made it, strutting like a peacock after he came in
third in the last qualifying race. His suit was open and Nicky could see the
rune he wore at his throat. It gave Nicky a twinge of wistfulness to see it,
but the real pain hit when Dirk congratulated Terry and Nicky caught a glimpse
of him wearing the matching rune.
Nicky’s
rune.
Vic saw it
too and clasped a hand on Nicky’s shoulder. “Don’t let it bother you. Focus on
the race. It’s yours to win.”
Nicky
nodded, but couldn’t seem to tear his eyes away from them.
“Hey!” Vic
said sharply, drawing Nicky’s attention to him. “He’s an asshole. Forget him.
You don’t need a necklace to win a race. He, on the other hand, might want to
hang a horseshoe around his neck if he hopes to place.”
The corner
of Nicky’s eyes crinkled before his face split into a grin. He laughed, and the
tension seemed to melt away as they fist bumped and leaned back against the
fence.
“Thanks,
Vic.”
“No
problem.”
Nicky’s
eyes swept over the dirt track, then out beyond it, letting the noise of the
restless crowd fade a little, grateful for Vic’s silent company. Like it had
for so many years, the nagging mournfulness crept in a little bit as he wished
he still had family left to come and see him race. With a sigh, he pushed those
thoughts aside and focused on the jumps and turns that made up the track.
It wasn’t
long before they were calling the racers to bring their bikes to the start.
“You’ve got
this,” Vic said as Nicky pushed away from the fence.
Nicky just
grinned and ran off, eager for the race to begin.
As soon as
he felt his bike rumbling beneath him, every stray thought and lingering doubt
fled. It was just him and the machine and the track stretched out in front of
him. Let the others race for second. He felt the vibrations run through him and
then the gate dropped and he gunned the bike and fought for the lead.
The first
jump was always the most exhilarating. There were moments, alone on a practice
track, when he just threw his arms out and yelled as he soared over it. Today,
however, he focused on landing and getting the best angle into the turn, heart
hammering in his chest as he felt the closeness of the other riders.
It took him
most of the first lap to gain the lead and keep it, and even then he knew the
other bikes were close. He occasionally caught sight of one to his right,
creeping up. Each time he’d lean lower, gun the bike faster, hit that next jump
looking for bigger air, all the while thinking, Come on, come on.
He almost
went down in the second lap. He leaned a little too much on a turn, quickly
corrected, wobbled, lost the lead, and had to fight to get it back. So stupid;
he knew better. He got a good series of jumps and a great turn to take it back,
but now he had riders just behind him on both sides.
The third
lap a bike went flying by him on a jump. A flash of numbers told Nicky it was
one of the Runnell twins. He caught him on the triple and they ended up neck to
neck, with another bike creeping up on his left as they went into the forth
lap. Every jump was a fight, one bike passing the other, trading the lead,
until Nicky finally caught a huge jump and surged ahead. He could see the
finish, went through the rockers, and headed for the last big leap with the
throttle wide open…
About the Author
LAYLA DORINE lives among the sprawling prairies of Midwestern America, in a house with more cats than people. She loves hiking, fishing, swimming, martial arts, camping out, photography, cooking, and dabbling with several artistic mediums. In addition, she loves to travel and visit museums, historic, and haunted places.
Layla got hooked on writing as a child, starting with poetry and then branching out, and she hasn’t stopped writing since. Hard times, troubled times, the lives of her characters are never easy, but then what life is? The story is in the struggle, the journey, the triumphs and the falls. She writes about artists, musicians, loners, drifters, dreamers, hippies, bikers, truckers, hunters and all the other folks that she’s met and fallen in love with over the years. Sometimes she writes urban romance and sometimes its aliens crash landing near a roadside bar. When she isn’t writing, or wandering somewhere outdoors, she can often be found curled up with a good book and a kitty on her lap.
Layla Dorine can be found at:
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Author Website: layladorine13.wix.com/layladorineauthor
Author on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9814124.Layla_Dorine
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