Can't Help Falling in Love {Ryan Blaney}✔️

| twenty-six |

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"Lara Hendrick?" the doctor poked his head into the room.

Lara nodded, sitting up, "That's me." Her stomach churned as the doctor approached her. She had spent the entire time waiting for him trying to figure out what could be going on.

The doctor sat on the stool next to Lara's bed. "So between the bloodwork and the ultrasound, it's pretty clear to me that you have an ectopic pregnancy."

"A what?" Lara asked, her mind spinning. "I can't be pregnant." She and Chase had been careful every time but once. And she was on birth control.

The doctor chuckled softly, "You are pretty conclusively pregnant but the pregnancy is not viable. The embryo burrowed in your fallopian tube instead of your uterus." He explained. "And because of your pain, I fear that you have progressed far enough that your fallopian tube may be compromised so we need to go in and see if we can save the fallopian tube."

"Surgery?" Lara sputtered. "I can't have surgery. I have to race next week."

"It will be laparoscopic as long as everything goes well and you can race in three weeks or so." The doctor explained. "You don't really have a choice, Lara because if this fallopian tube ruptures, you will bleed to death. Do you understand?"

Lara nodded slowly, trying to grasp the information that had just been delivered to her. She was pregnant with Chase's baby but it was an ectopic pregnancy, probably her fault because she hadn't known and she had kept racing. Tears welled in her eyes, "Is this my fault?" She choked out.

The doctor shook his head, "We don't know why some embryos implant in the fallopian tubes but we do know that it is random and there is no external cause. We're going to move you and get you prepped, okay?"

Lara nodded and the doctor stood up, exiting the room. She laid back on the pillow, closing her eyes, trying to digest everything. She was pregnant but it wasn't viable. She could lose a fallopian tube and she didn't even want to think about what the recovery time would be.

"Do you want me to get your grandfather?" A nurse asked.

Lara opened her eyes, thinking for a moment. She didn't really want to tell her grandfather that she had been reckless, so damn reckless. But she knew that she had to. "Yeah, if you could, that would be great." She finally answered.

Lara's phone buzzed. She looked down, Ryan's face on the screen. She knew that she should answer it, he was probably worried sick because he had been the one that had hit her. But how could she tell him? How could she tell anybody? Lara sighed, declining his call.

"Lara?" Her grandpa appeared in the doorway. "The nurse said the doctor came in and talked to you."

Lara nodded, "Yeah. Why don't you sit down?"

Rick's brow furrowed as he sat in the chair next to her bed. "What's going on, Lara. You're scaring me."

His last statement brought tears to her eyes, "Grandpa..." She paused, trying to figure out what to say next. "I have an ectopic pregnancy."

Rick's eyes widened, "You're pregnant? Lara, do you know what this means for your career?"

Lara shook her head, "The embryo got stuck in the fallopian tube, Grandpa. It's not viable. They have to go to remove it and hopefully save my fallopian tube. The doctor said I'd only be out for maybe three weeks as long as everything goes fine."

Rick nodded slowly, not saying anything for a moment. "I'm glad it's nothing serious. How much should we tell the press?"

Lara shrugged, thinking for a moment, "Just tell them that I had a previously unknown condition unrelated to the accident that required a small operation and no further information will be released, or something like that."

Rick nodded slowly before lifting his eyes to the ceiling. "I don't know why I'm asking this but would it have been Ryan's or Chase's?"

Lara's eyes widened in surprise, "Why do you think it would've been Ryan's?"

Rick gave Lara a pointed look, "Lara, I see the way you two look at each other. I may be old but I haven't forgotten the look of love."

Lara shook her head, "Grandpa, we're just friends and business partners."

"So it would've been Chase's?" Her grandpa guessed. "Are you going to tell him?"

Lara shrugged, "Should I? We didn't exactly end on speaking terms and I'm not sure what telling him would accomplish."

"I think he ought to know. I would want to know even if it won't change anything. You've never been one to tiptoe around anything so I'm not sure why this would be different. Maybe it could lead to a productive conversation, maybe you could gain some peace. You deserve to be happy and allow yourself to love, Lara. I think you might have that in Ryan. Go chase it and don't let Chase get in the way." Rick gave her hand a squeeze, his eyes sparkling by the off-key joke he had made.

"Okay, Grandpa." Lara gave him a small smile, thinking about what he said. She knew he was right, that Chase should know and maybe it would give them both peace. But as far as chasing things with Ryan? That she still wasn't so sure of.

She was falling in love with Ryan, there was no doubt about that but she was sure that Ryan didn't feel the same way. And if he did, he wouldn't once he found about this, that she had gotten pregnant with his best friend's baby. She shook that thought out of her head, she didn't want to think of it that way.

"Alright Lara, we're going to take you and prep you for surgery," The nurse poked her head in.

Rick stood up, leaning down and kissing her forehead. "I'll be here when you wake up."

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