Sonny looked at him and leaned forward. “So, what‘s the problem?” he said. “What gives with the long face?”
“Aw … I hate this part of it,” Jimmy admitted. “I don‘t want to quit driving your car. I mean … I don‘t want to quit driving sprint cars. I always figured I could do both.”
Sonny listened, and a serious look came across his face.
“So…you‘re going to drive the Indy car, right? You‘re not having second thoughts, are you?”
“Second thoughts? Aw, I dunno…not really. But I‘m pretty sad about this part. It kinda takes the happiness out of the deal, you know?”
“I understand,” Sonny said. “But let me make this easy, Jimmy: you‘re fired.”
Jimmy looked up at Sonny. “Fired? What do you mean, fired?”
“You‘re fired. You‘re not driving my car next year.”
“But … I don‘t get it.”
“Well, I‘m helping you out, right? Listen, you did a helluva job for me. I never once had a second thought about you. No kidding, not since that first race.
“But you aren‘t just my driver; you‘re my pal. And as your friend, I‘m telling you to grab this opportunity with both hands and forget about everything else.
“You‘ve got to quit me. That‘s how it‘s gotta be. But don‘t be sad … celebrate! This is a helluva deal for you, and you can‘t let the idea of quitting bring you down. C‘mon, don‘t be a knucklehead!”
Jimmy managed a weak smile. “I guess you‘re right,” he said.
“Of course I‘m right! So, here‘s the deal … next season, maybe I could kick in a few bucks as a sponsor on your Indy car. That way we could still be a part of what you‘re doing.”
Jimmy stared at him in surprise. “You‘d … you‘d do that?”
“Sure! Well, I‘m not on par with a big-time national sponsor, but I‘ll bet Lou would work with me on a small deal. Just a little decal or something. And even if he won‘t … once you‘re a big-time Indy driver, I‘ll hire you to do an appearance or two for Ellison Paving.”
Jimmy couldn‘t believe he was lucky enough to meet a guy like Sonny.
“Don‘t think for one second that this is a downer,” Sonny insisted. “And listen … I‘m kinda proud, too. I‘d like to think that your time in my race car helped make this opportunity possible. That‘s a feather in my cap too, you know.”
Sonny grinned. “Oh, wait … about your being fired. That doesn‘t take effect until we finish the season. I‘m still hoping to win a couple more races with you!”
The conversation with Sonny went better than Jimmy thought possible. He left Sonny‘s office with a spring in his step, finally starting to understand that this really was a great opportunity.
From Sonny‘s office he walked straight over to the little shop where Harvey was working on the Ellison sprinter. But that conversation wasn‘t nearly as productive.
Jimmy explained the situation to Harvey. He said he‘d just talked to Sonny, and laid everything out. He was sad, but he wouldn‘t be back in their car next year.
Harvey just gave him a blank expression, nodding his head.
“OK, thanks,” was all he‘d offer.
Jimmy hoped he‘d at least wish Jimmy good luck, or something like that. But Harvey turned his attention back to the race car, where he was busy cleaning and lubricating the rear suspension.
After an awkward minute or two Jimmy stepped toward the door.
“See you this weekend at Shoes,” he called out.
“Yeah, see you,” Harvey said.
And that was it.