The concussion had healed fine, and now 3 weeks had passed, and 2 races that Grace had called out for.
She didn't want to tell anyone what was going on with their baby yet, so she just kept it quiet. Even though a part of her wanted to tell everyone and stop hiding it.
Alex knew her. He knew she needed to deal with everything in her own time before she'd let him in. Even though they'd been married for 6 years.
"Grace we have to talk about this," Alex said as he had just gotten home from Atlanta to Grace laying on the couch. Right where he'd left her on Friday.
"I know. I just don't know how to,"
"We're in this together okay? Both of us,"
"I know that and I hate that I'm like this. I just want to be able to deal with it," she sighed, sitting up so he could sit on the couch with her.
"And we're going to. We scheduled the surgery for the off week. You can work until then, and keep the normalcy until then,"
She nodded a little, hoping to be able to do what he said and keep the normalcy in her life until it was turned upside down.
The week flew by as she tried not to worry about her baby. They were heading to Texas for Circuit of the Americas and she was hoping he could win. Something that would lift her spirits. He got close in Vegas, finishing P3, P9 at Phoenix, and 14th in Atlanta.
COTA wasn't terrible to him in 2022 with him finishing in second. Maybe this year he could put the car in victory lane.
She had a few meetings as well, feeling a little awkward as they hadn't told anyone of their friends what they had found out about their child.
"Hey," Tyler smiled as she walked into the small conference room, "I've missed you,"
"I missed you too. And my job. I just needed a little time off,"
"Yeah, Reags told me when she texted you," he nodded as they both sat down, "How's the baby?"
"Good," she nodded, doing her best to put a fake face on, "I'm about to hit 15 weeks. Almost halfway there,"
"We're excited for you guys. You guys are gonna be great parents,"
"Thanks, Ty," she smiled, listening as their meeting started.
It was an hour of new protocols and everything they already knew to do. Once it was over, she decided to text Alex and take him some lunch since she had plenty of the rest of the day to pack up.
After she dropped off something for him, she went to the store, grabbed a few snacks for the bus as well as a few of her cravings before she headed home, and threw everything to the side.
She was hungry and she wanted to just relax and think for a minute. She wanted to get everything out in the open but she wanted to talk to Alex first.
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With permission from Alex, she put some flowers down on their bed and her ultrasound pictures with it before, posting it with a caption explaining what was going on. She got comments from fans immediately and support from the NASCAR community.
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She wanted to cry with all the support they were receiving, not only from Alex's fan base but from other drivers and teams as well. She knew their baby was going to be loved no matter what.
"Grace I'm home!"
"Back here!" She called from their living room that overlooked the lake behind them.
"How you doing now?"
"Better," She nodded, setting her phone down as she was looking through comments.
"No matter what, our baby is going to be loved and you are going to be fine,"
"It's just in the back of my mind. Its surgery. Basically a c-section before its an actual c-section," She sighed, turning towards him on the couch, "I just want it to all go off without any complications for both of us,"
"I know and it will. I'm sure they do these all the time," Alex nodded, now facing her as they just talked in the living room.
"I looked it up out of pure curiosity and it's only 1 in every 800 pregnancies that this happens," she shrugged, "Our kid was already special and loved but now he or she is going to be some type of miracle,"
"Just has the dramatic flair like their mother," He chuckled, backing away as he knew he was about to get smacked for that comment.
"I should really smack you for that,"
"You already tried!" Alex laughed, grabbing the remote as she turned around and leaned against him. "Criminal Minds?"
"Mhm," She nodded, watching as he put it on the TV for them to watch.
——————
It was only a few days before they were leaving for Texas. She loved COTA, and it had always been a pretty good track to him. The last 2 times they'd been there, he finished in the top 10, so she was hopeful. Maybe it was where he could win and now, with the surgery scheduled for the off week and her long hospital stay ahead of her, she was focused on enjoying every second of the race and her job until then.
"Got everything?" Alex asked, coming into their bedroom as she was grabbing the last of her things to shove in her purse.
"Let's go," She nodded, shutting down everything in the house while no one was there. She locked the door behind her and got in the Tahoe before they were heading off to the airfield and off to Texas.
