THREE - Daniel Ricciardo

Chapter 67 - Talking

AMY

The swirling noises of engines roared through the garage as both McLaren's exited the pits, the grumbling exhausts cascading through the Belgian air.

With the headphones firmly on my ears, one hand resting on the left ear and my other hand sitting firmly against my stomach, I watched on as race day was underway. The monitors displaying all twenty drivers on the grid, raring to go.

With Max leading the pack and Carlos tightly in second position, it was set to be an exhilarating and exciting race. Daniel was placed in 11th, somewhere he didn't want to be following disappointment in qualifying.

Rachel walked into the garage holding three bottles of water; one for her, one for me and one for Michael who watched intently as his friend raced around the track, hoping and praying for better results than previous races.

Even though I wanted to stay with my parents, my mom and dad both protested and told me to go to Spa for the weekend to take my mind off the events which had unfolded last week.

Tomorrow, we would be heading back to London to prepare for court and the day after would be my nan's funeral. Two events which I didn't want to attend.

I wish I could just sleep and wake up when they were both over.

I thanked Rachel for the cold beverage as she sat down next to Michael, her hand touching his on the bench as they kept closeness throughout the race.

I didn't want to pry and I didn't want to ask what was going on between them, but I had my gut instincts that something was happening. Rachel seemed happy and she wasn't willing to go and boast about having sex, so I knew that this 'relationship' they had going on behind closed doors meant something to her.

Michael also seemed to be happier and more focused, spending all of his efforts into training Daniel ready for the weekend after having several weeks off. The last week was meant to be consistent training for the Australians, but my family matters got in the way of that.

As I watched on, my stomach ached as my belly contracted, stretching my muscles to prepare for the life that was growing inside.

My stomach was becoming more of a bump now, but if anyone had seen me, they would've presumed that I had eaten too much or was experiencing pre menstrual bloating.

Only our closest friends in the paddock knew about our news. Max had soon informed Kelly, but she wouldn't dare tell anyone as she understood the pressure that came with being pregnant whilst your other half was a race car driver. All the press with their cameras and questions.

Right now, I wasn't in the mental spot to be informing the whole world of our wonderful news, I needed to relax and take a minute to breathe during such a horrible time in my life.

Shifting positions from being seated on the worlds most uncomfortable stool, to being stood up with my hands on my lower back as I arched upwards, hoping to crack my spine back into alignment, I paced around the garage floor as we watched on.

Red Bull were having a tremendous day, with both drivers providing their team with a 1-2, whilst Daniel and Lando had only provided McLaren with 12th and 15th.

The world also knew that Daniel would not be returning to McLaren for next year, the constant media stories that he was retiring or moving teams floated around the paddock as they presumed his fate.

I for one, also had to presume. He still hadn't let slip of what Max and himself had spoken about in Australia, nor was he willing to at this stage.

I'd had a private conversation with Blake during practice where he had informed me that Daniel was in two minds whether to hunt for a seat or whether to take a break completely.