Lies || Ryan Blaney

2.5 - Epilogue Part 2

Courtney

As I stood beside Ryan, listening to the National Anthem being sung, I couldn't help but feel the nerves coming again. Ryan's left arm was wrapped around my back, absentmindedly rubbing circles on my side to help calm me. He had to sense the nerves pouring off me. I know Daytona was their Super Bowl, but did it ever scare the daylights out of me for the first race. 

Even if Ryan had a knack for restrictor plate races, I always hated the on-edge feeling associated with them. 

When the last words were sung, and the roar of the crowd threatened to deafen me, I turned to my husband to give him some good words. Instead, he pulled me close, as close as he could with our boy in the middle of us, and kissed my lips. 

"Be careful out there, have fun, and bring Rylan and me home that trophy," I told him when we pulled away, knowing it would put a fire under him to win it all today. That was just how he was with it. "What my baby wants, she gets." He smiled before turning a bit serious and telling me he'd be careful. With a final look, I moved away from him. He put on his helmet before letting his team help him get into the car. I could just make out his eyes still on me when the window net went up, and then his sun visor came down to cover his eyes. His white-gloved hand reached out the window to give me a wave. A smile formed on my face, watching him get into the rhythm of things.

While the grand marshal came over the speakers telling everyone to start their engines, I was making my way back to the motor home. Lisa had offered to watch Rylan and Louie during the race so I could be focused on Ryan and help calm his ass down if need be. He was known for using a string of curse words over the radio. Dave had decided to come into the pit area to go back and forth between Ryan and Erin and Emma. The two women sat down in the twenty-four pit box.

Although when I made it back to the pit box, with a much warmer outfit on, and was handed another set of headphones to connect myself to Ryan's radio, everything was calm. Granted, they hadn't been out there racing long, I knew it was bound to come at some point. There was always a calm before a big ass storm.

When Larson had clipped his left rear tire or even when the first Big One happened, causing a lot of really good cars to be taken out, Ryan wasn't saying much, just asking about Erin's boyfriend. My heart went out to Erin and William as I saw his car smack the inside wall on the back stretch.

On the restart, Ryan had got the lead, getting a few good pushes from the car behind him. My heart was a jumping mess every time he took a push that sent him a little bit sideways, and even worse when he got shuffled to the back before the end of the second stage. He may not have gotten any stage points, and he had voiced his displeasure about it over the radio after leaving the pit box but quickly stopped when he got back rolling. 

How Nascar didn't bring back radio sweetheart for this guy was beyond me. He deserved the award during some of the races. I don't think I have ever heard of the crafty ways he could string so many curse words together.

"Wrecking behind you." Jonathan's voice came through my ears, hearing the same words Ryan did.

"Anybody important to us?" His question earned the answer of his teammate. Austin was in front of him so he was safe, Joey's car didn't get too much damage but it would put him in the back, and with many of the laps dwindling fast, it didn't look like he would be helping them get pushed to the lead.

While they got the track cleared, I could feel that there were going to be many more caution flags to come. Listening in on the game plan for the next restart, I could tell they were going to try to line up in the same row as Austin. It was a good idea if there hadn't been another caution right after both of them got together at the front. Ryan had just told Jonathan to tell Jeremy that Cindric couldn't be lifting against his pushes down the backstretch when a car went sideways right behind them, causing another big pile-up.