Love in Victory Lane (A Chase Elliott FanFic)

Chapter Forty-Five - The Final Lap

*Emily's POV*

"We need to talk." I heard his voice break the silence of my solitary breakfast at the track's cafe, causing me to drop my fork. 

I spun around in my chair and made eye contact with Ryan Blaney for the first time in six weeks. My heart fell out of my chest, my eyes began to sting from tears, and my lungs felt as if I had just been punched in the ribs. "R-r-ryan," I stuttered. "I-I-I-I," I could not force any words to come out of my mouth. 

"I know, Ems", his voice softened. "Can we please just talk?" 

Still incapable of speech, I shook my head in agreement. I got up, and without warning, I found my hand intertwined with Ryan's. He led us to a golf cart and drove us out to a field by the track where he started talking. It had been so long since I had seen him, and I honestly could not believe what was happening. 

"Look, Emily," Ryan started, turning on the golf cart bench to face me. "I know what I said to you when Dylan had his wreck. I was angry, confused, and hurt; and I thought I could live without you, but I can't. I hate being away from you, and I hate fighting with you, and I am so sorry for everything I said to you." 

I still did not know how to respond to what Ryan was saying to me. I just stared at him in disbelief, and when looking in his eye became too much, I had to look away. "Is anything I said at the hospital true? Do you have feelings for Dylan?" he asked me. 

After a long, uncomfortable pause, I looked deep into Ryan's beautiful eyes. "Ryan," I began shakily. "I have never met someone like you, nor loved someone as much as I love you. I meant it when I said Dylan was just a friend." 

Ryan looked away, and when he looked back he had tears in his eyes. "I am so sorry. I was jealous, and I don't really even know what came over me. When I saw you two together after you rushed to him so quickly, I became obsessed with this idea that you were in love with him. I pushed you away to avoid getting hurt any more than I already was, and there wasn't even a reason for me to be hurt. I can't expect you to forgive me." 

As he fought back the tears, I felt my heart soften, and the hurt and anger I had been holding for so long drifted away. "Ryan," I spoke softly as I took his hands into mine. "I should be the one asking for forgiveness. I should have never even given you a reason to feel that way, and I should have fought harder for you to realize how much I love you and that I want to be with you. Because I do. I want to be with you more than anything in the world. I knew Dylan was stepping out of line, and I didn't do anything to stop him; therefore, this whole thing is my fault."

"No, Ems, that isn't true, and you know it. It takes two to tango," he replied, sighing. 

"Can you forgive me?" I asked.

 "Of course I forgive you." He brought me into his strong arms and held me for what felt like a long time but not long enough still. I breathed him in, all of him. The smell of his hair, the feeling of his arms around me, the warmth from his body. He held my face in his hands and kissed me, and for the first time in a long time I felt like I was at home. 

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*Hunter's POV*

Chase just ran his final laps of the season, and even though he did not win the championship, I could not have been any more proud of him. As I watched him and all of the other drivers pull their cars onto pit road, I got up off my seat in the pit box and started making my way to Chase. I knew the sponsors and everyone from the crew would want to greet Chase as he exited the car. Everyone wanted to congratulate him on a wonderful season. He had overcome so much adversity this year that everyone felt that even though he had not won the trophy, he was still a champion. 

My Champion. 

I waited for Chase to make his way through the swarms of people, and once he got to me, I flung my arms around his neck and gave him a big old bear hug. "I am so proud of you," I whispered into his neck. 

"I want wait to celebrate with you tonight," he smiled into my hair. "Alone." 

Chills went down my spine as per usual for being around Chase. He turned around to do a few interviews, his arm around my waist the entire time. Afterwards, he needed to help the guys in the shop and talk about the performance of the car, so I went back to the RV to get everything set up for our special night. 

On my way out of the pit box, I ran into Chase's crew chief. "My plans still a go?" I winked at him.

"For sure." He winked and patted me on the back as he walked away. 

An hour later, when Chase opened the door to the RV, I was just putting the finishing touches on his favorite meal. I had candles ready to light in the bedroom, dinner on the table, and the Xbox on so I could kick his ass in Forza after dinner. "Do I smell chicken parm?" Chase smiled as he walked over to me in the kitchen as I grated fresh parmesan over the sauce. 

"Of course you do. I figured it had been a while since you had a home cooked meal, and I wanted to prove my cooking skills to you. You've made me breakfast, so I think it is only fair that I make you dinner." 

After we were full of noodles and chicken and bread, we played Xbox with each other and laughed until we cried about how horrible I actually was at the game, despite all of my smack talk. I grabbed his hand when he put down the controller, and I pulled him off of the couch. "Come on, Chief. I have a surprise." 

"What are we doing here?" Chase inquired as I stopped him in front of the NAPA number 9 hauler. 

"Alan helped me out, because I wanted to surprise you." I led him up the ladder to the top of the hauler, where there were little tea-light candles, a bunch of pillows and blankets, and some Chris Stapleton playing in the background. 

"You did this?" Chase was surprised. 

"All for you, baby." 

He grabbed my hand and we swayed to the music with the lights from the track twinkling all around us, not saying a word, but instead just enjoying each other's presence. The view from the hauler was incredible, and the impact of the moment was definitely powerful. After a few songs we laid down amongst the pillows and blankets, and we began to talk. 

"Can you believe that we've only know each other for a few months?" I asked. "It feels like forever. Not long ago I was just a fan who knew you would never even give her the time of day, and yet here we are. I can't even believe it most days." 

"I know, babe. There was just something about you. I knew as soon as I saw you that I would love you. I thought, 'Damn, she's absolutely gorgeous.' That smile is what did me in. It left when you saw me looking, and I knew it was because you got nervous, but before it did, I saw it and I loved it. Words can not even describe the things I feel for you, Hunter Roberts." 

I looked into his big, beautiful, chocolate eyes; the eyes I could look into forever. "I love you so much, William Clyde Elliott the Third," I laughed as he scrunched his nose at the name. "No matter where we are tonight, tomorrow, or ten years from now, just know that I have never been more in love than I am in this moment. You will forever hold my heart." 

"You will forever hold mine." 

As the night and yet another NASCAR racing season came to an end at Homestead Miami, both Chase and I knew that this night was only the beginning of our love in victory lane.