A/N: Here we go! Has anyone else seen the photos from the wedding? So cute and we are so happy for Scotty and Chloe.
Anyways, Imola this weekend. Hopefully will be able to watch but with work and the time change probably not. Let me know what your favorite moments from the race are!
As always, thank you for reading and let me know what you think with a comment or a vote!💚💚💚
Daniel
Max had brought us a nice bottle of red to celebrate this moment, telling others again as if he wasn't part of the reason we didn't want to tell anyone else. His attempt at being more supportive in the situation was highly appreciated by me though. Maeve was already so off the last two weeks. Exhaustion is more than evident in everything she does. She missed lunch because she was sleeping today. If Max had fought us on anything else, I might lose Maeve and that was enough for me to be visibly anxious.
Still, Michael and Max sat on the couch just conversing with us about the upcoming week until Pyrita, Steve, and Blake arrived one after the other. Given what we had told each of them as to why they would be meeting in my hotel room, each was confused that Max and Michael were also here.
"I don't know what kind of business meeting this is Daniel." Blake raised an eyebrow at seeing everyone in our smallest inner circle seated around the room as he took a timid step into the foyer. He looked at each person before turning back to me.
"Well, you were the one that was late." I motioned Blake further inside the hotel room, closing the door behind myself before following him. He wasn't late, just arrived at eight o'clock on the nose. I took the moment to grab an extra wine glass for Blake from the kitchenette before making my way back into the living room.
"Welcome to the party!" Max smiled happily at Blake before he sat down in the free dining table chair that had been brought over to accommodate everyone that was joining us.
"Again, was told this was a business meeting..." Steve looked at Blake while sitting in the lounge chair with surprise. As the newest person here, he wasn't quite aware of the way things tend to happen around us. We were giant balls of random, tons of chances to throw a wrench in anyone's plans and we always did it by accident.
"It sort of is. We have news to share and outside of this room, no one else knows right now." Maeve started, but a few people already had questions.
"Is this about what we're working on?" Steve asked, surprise in his voice as he turned back to Maeve. Alluding to the deal that she was working on as if no one here knew made me want to chuckle, but again he didn't know how we operated yet. He was about to find out that even without the current investment in our secret relationship, we'd always been thicker than thieves.
"Well-" I tried not to smirk at Maeve as I joined her and stood next to the chair she was in, knowing it was a good idea to say something. She stopped talking when she noticed the smirk that instantly came to my face. Her face changed into a grimace, unhappy with the satisfaction I was getting from being the one in the room to actually know what was going on. A silent scolding for how much I was enjoying this at the moment.
"That and something else that has to do with that." I answered for her, smiling down at her from my place next to the cushioned chair for one in the living room.
"Wait, you know?" Steve asked. I just gave him a small smile as I crossed the circle to bring the wine to Blake.
"Know what?" Blake followed as I handed him a glass that Max poured wine in for him just moments later before I walked back over to the chair Maeve was seated in.
"We'll get there." Maeve was already exasperated by the thought of doing this. I placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look at me.
"I can do it..." I reminded her. She only nodded, placing her hand over mine on her shoulder.
"Alright," I cleared my throat and looked at the three in the room before us," Maeve and I have been dating since June." While Blake and Steve looked shocked, Pyrita still sat on the couch with her arms crossed.
"Tiesin sen jo. Mitä muuta on tekeillä?" (I already knew that. What else is going on?) Pyrita asked in her native tongue. Since I didn't understand, Maeve looked at her with a small smile.
"Yeah, I know. We thought you did, but we wanted to tell you respectfully the same way we told them in hopes you'll continue on this journey with me."
"So she did know!" I chuckled as Maeve gently pulled on my hand. She wants me closer to her.
"Olet hyvin salaperäinen. Onko jotain tekeillä?" (You are being very cryptic. Is there something going on?) She asked again, addressing Maeve.
"Yes. You know I never ask this too, but can we stick to english please? The boys aren't quite on our level of languages." She smiled at Maeve before nodding.
She tugged on my hand again as she stood. I took the hint and sat down in the chair she was just seated in before she sat in my lap. I wrapped my arms around her waist and held her close as Blake and Steve digested the information provided to them.
"You know this should be disclosed before we go through with everything right?" Steve was the one that spoke up.
"We know," I answered for Maeve," We're telling Toto whenever we can get a minute with him. As well as Seb since he's acting GPDA director." Steve sighed.
"When I was warned by you directly that I was in for a wild ride, this was not what I was picturing." I could feel the stress in Maeve's body. She was rigid and it was getting worse with each passing moment.
"Well, I'll always keep you on your toes." She smiled at him as she joked, but it didn't reach her eyes.
"No kidding. I'm guessing this is coming up because of the contract?" I nodded for Maeve.
"You're also aware of what is going on then?" His question was directed at me this time.
"Of course, she's told me everything for half a decade. That surely wasn't going to change now that we're together."
"Alright so what's the play here? Do we have plans to tell the world?" I shook my head at Blake's question.
"No, It will stick to the list. Everyone in this room, Toto, Seb, and my family. We want it to stay that way. Unless you're in a room alone with us you would never know anyways. With the contract coming up though, we needed to cover our bases. And well," I looked to Maeve, still sitting stone still on my lap as the anxiety set in further,"She needs help guys..."
Pyrita spoke first, in her native tongue again where I could not understand.
"Sorry, help how?" She rephrased in the language of everyone in the room.
"She's been struggling... With school and everything going on in the garage between me and her... it's just been a lot and getting this taken care of, some kind of assurance that we will be ok would make all the difference in the world right now."
Steve turned to Blake.
"Looks like we're in this for the long run." Blake scoffed.
"Welcome to my life," He looked back at Maeve and I," Why now though? She's going to be at Red Bull and you'll be at Renault. Christian wouldn't do anything to harm you in that situation." Steve spoke up this time.
"You're ok with everyone in this room knowing?" He directed the question to Maeve. It was her information to give and he wouldn't provide info without speaking to her first. Despite having had limited interaction with the man, I could tell that he was perfect for his job and cared about Maeve's future. That made him alright in my book.
"I've been offered a contract with Mercedes for next year. I intend to take it if I can be released from my current contract with Red Bull."
"Look at you, mate! Way to level up." Blake smiled genuinely at Maeve, an early congratulation that was still welcomed.
"You don't have a new contract with Red Bull?" Max raised an eyebrow at that, the full story hadn't been given to everyone in the room.
"Oh boy, it's going to be a long night." Steve picked up his wine glass, taking a languid sip as he sat back on the end of the couch.
Maeve and I spent the better part of an hour laying out what led to this and the plan going forward to everyone in the room. Even going as far as to tell them all the crazy ideas we had to make it work if the FIA stepped in. Unsurprisingly, a few people also thought our plans were foolish as Max had. We didn't even tell them about the marriage part. He was a bit too smug about that for my liking, but he was here and trying to do his best to be there as a friend now for Maeve and I. Maeve, who was letting sleep get the better of her as she sat in my lap still, barely spoke as we came to the end of the conversation.
Steve and Blake agreed that this was the best approach given what we were dealing with. They both said that our team principal's going into next year needed to be notified of what to expect between the two of us. I argued that Cyril didn't need to know, just as I had when we were discussing this just between the two of us. He was a new party in this, one that was on my side and not Maeve's. The whole issue to begin with was that Maeve was the first of her kind, a woman driving full time in our sport with a bright future. She was the one we had to be careful with, not me. Blake didn't like it, but he understood that the focus of the problem was with Maeve. Cyril couldn't really do anything to me, but Maeve was poised to lose a lot more than I had to give.
"Of course, pending all of this, I hope that you'll come with me to Mercedes if we can get this all figured out..." Maeve addressed Pyrita. Who showed real emotion for the first time ever, a smile that I saw as hopeful.
"Of course. It would be preferred." Maeve nodded as I stared at everyone in the room.
"This is 100% serious. I know we swore for years it wouldn't happen, but this is us and it's going to stay that way. I don't know how long we're going to wait before we tell the world." When no one said anything, looks shared around the room, I turned to Maeve.
"Want to add anything?" She shook her head instead of looking at me. Her body had turned slowly over the course of the conversation and she was now laying fully against me in the chair and fighting sleep.
"Looks like she should be going to sleep. God, when did you get so boring." Max laughed. Maeve had a response for that.
"When I decided to help carry an entire F1 team while getting a doctorate and trying to keep driving next year. Keep up Max." Everyone laughed at her.
"Alright, I think it's bedtime." I sighed, knowing that if this devolved into an insult war one of them would get cranky.
Normally it would've been max and it's whatever because we can kick him out. Maeve had been at the end of her rope for a couple of weeks now though. It was obvious it was taking a toll on her. She had snapped at someone during a strategy meeting apparently and I hadn't heard about it until we made it back to the hotel.
"Alright, bed time for you." I stood as Max opened his mouth to respond, taking Maeve with me in my arms.
"I can walk, you know." She grumbled as I walked towards the bedroom.
"What's the fun in that?" I asked her back as I carried her bridal style into her room, ignoring the eyes of everyone else in the room.
I kicked the door so it was barely cracked. They couldn't see as I gently placed Maeve on the bed before kneeling over her on the bed.
"Breaking our dry streak with other people in the room? Didn't take you for an exhibitionist." She smirked up at me.
The cocky face was gone when I leaned down to kiss her, my body slowly lowering onto hers. She only hummed lightly until I nipped at her bottom lip. The slight gasp is the perfect parting of her lips for this to continue, but instead I pull away.
"You don't know the half of it sweetheart," I winked at her," but we called this a business meeting and that might be a little extreme." Standing as I finished my sentence, she pouted at me with wide eyes.
"You can't keep teasing me like that. It's not fair," She reached over for my hand, pulling it down and laying it flat on her stomach," I'm tired and sore all the time with no relief." She played with the matching bracelet on my wrist as she spoke.
"It's for both of us, baby. Let me go say goodbye to our guests and then we can get some real sleep."
She still pouted at me. A kiss was not sufficient enough to satisfy her, but again we had guests.
"Every time you two are behind closed doors now, I'm just going to think you're doing something inappropriate." Max laughed as I closed the bedroom door completely behind me.
"I already think that whenever you have a girl anywhere, but that's what teenagers do." I shot back. He rolled his eyes, but there was no denying the slight redness that came to the young man's cheeks.
"Alright, so now I understand why Maeve said I should get to know you." Steve looked to Blake.
"You realize this is going to be like co parenting toddlers with attitude problems and access to adult money and alcohol?" I rolled my eyes at Blake as I sat back down in the chair at their description of us.
"We are not that bad. In fact, we're the least problematic driver's in the paddock I would say." I crossed my arms, staring between the two managers as I spoke. They didn't seem to believe me though, instead scoffing at the idea as there was a brief laugh shared between the two men.
"No, he's right." Max actually agreed with me, making us all stare at him.
"You good mate?" Blake leaned over and tried to feel his forehead before Max smacked it away, "I've never heard you be so courteous before when someone is saying you're a problem." There was a small round of laughs from everyone, even Pyrita.
"I'm fine, just stating a fact. I think if they went public it wouldn't be a problem. Best PR move ever really." I tightened my hands into fists at hearing the exact opposite of what I wanted. This was my worry from the beginning.
"Absolutely not!" I sounded way angrier than I thought I would, but it got the point across.
"Look, uh, Daniel," Steve looked at Blake first before sliding forward in his seat so he could face me," I have no intention of taking this anywhere that you or Maeve don't want it to be. We need to start preparing for eventualities though."
"He's right, Dan," Blake joined in,"We need to get ahead of it in case it comes out. We will do everything we can for you two, but you have to do the same thing. You guys need to be careful where you share certain things and even how you post. Everything is already scrutinized so if you give anyone a reason to look further into something, they will figure it out." I sighed.
"We know. The only time we're alone together is behind closed doors. We don't do anything in public ever. It has been like pulling teeth everyday to make this-"
I had to stop myself, emotions from the last week of over thinking running high as I brought my hands up to my face. Dragging them down as a mental reset in the conversation. These were the people closest to us, besides working with us, friendships had developed for years and would continue even if we stopped working together tomorrow. This was the moment of honesty that I needed.
"Look, not to get all sappy and emotional, but I love Maeve so fucking much. Like it hurts when I can't shout to the rooftops that I landed the woman of my dreams. Not being able to hold her hand in public, to kiss her before we get in the car, everything normal couples can do that we can't because no one can know it physically hurts sometimes. And we decided that, for her, for me, so both of us can continue living this crazy dream we're living in." I threw my hands up to motion to the room around us.
"I would do anything humanly possible to protect her, but I also enjoy my privacy. I don't need my relationship to be broadcast to the world. It's not for PR or branding or image control or anything like that. Every relationship I've ever been in has had that twisted into it somehow and I know that comes with the job. Not for us, I spent years thinking it would never happen and now that I have her I refuse to let anyone get involved or try to read into it while I just want to enjoy being with her. I don't need her reading hate comments on instagram or being asked if dating me brought her into the spotlight. This is just for us."
The room was silent after I poured my heart out for effectively no reason. They needed to hear it though. This had to be taken seriously or they would keep asking questions that I wasn't prepared to answer right now. I never ever wanted to hear that Maeve and I were just enjoying a fling. More so, with how stressed out she was now I didn't want to add another level to it. She needed a break.
"Mate, wow those are some real feelings." Michael smirked at me, having heard all of this so many times at this point.
"Well they were planning to just get married without us so yeah." Blake and Steve both snapped to Max so fast I was worried they'd have whiplash.
"Married?" They said almost at the same time.
"We're not," I covered quickly to them both before staring at Max,"and someone needs to learn to keep their mouth shut." He scoffed.
"In terms of irrational thinkers here, you take the fucking cake Daniel so don't try me," he waved me off before standing," Daniel, we're all happy to for you two. I called this years ago. Do me a favor though and stop making this into a bigger deal than it has to be. Just enjoy it, be the two of you that you want to be."
He walked closer to me, making me stand up.
"Seriously. Happy for you both, just don't do anything stupid."
Max, the child was being rational. All I did was give him a small small before giving him the brohug we're used to.
"I'm going to bed. I forget how much the travel wipes you out." I laughed as he stepped away.
"Yeah, get used to it 'cause you'll be popular next year."
"Yeah yeah, goodnight everyone."
He left the room first followed by Michael and Pyrita. Steve and Blake stayed behind, only to ask a few questions about when we were telling Toto and Seb. They asked to be kept in the loop when it happens so they can have discussions with people as needed. After they left, I finally returned to the bedroom.
"D, Everyone's g-" I stopped when I noticed that she was asleep on the bed.
Still fully dressed, her team polo twisted around her torso for her moving in her sleep as she settled into the middle of the bed. It made me chuckle, but I was also a good boyfriend. She wasn't going to want to sleep in her shoes or jeans. I carefully pulled both shoes off before trying to undo her jeans.
"So you won't touch me if I'm awake? That's pretty kinky even for you Daniel." She groaned as she woke up just enough to know what was going on.
"Why do you make it seem like I have these insane kinks that are weird or crazy? We aren't that bad." I crawled up the bed, giving her a kiss as I finally undid her jeans.
"I have some things we can try if you want to make the list weird..."
There was a glint in her eyes, something dangerous and alluring. If she wasn't half asleep, that might've been what broke me. Instead, I laughed, moving back down the bed to help her out of her jeans.
"How about we put a pin in those until you're not falling asleep between words?" I chuckled as I took off my own pants and shoes.
"Or I can just lay here and you can do all the work." I scoffed as I took my shirt off.
"That's not fun for either of us and you know it." As I crawled into bed, she sat up just enough to pull her own shirt off.
"Could be, haven't tried it yet." I pulled the comforter back and crawled into the bed.
"No, now get under here," I emphasized my statement by jerking the comforter from under her, " and cuddle me or I'll go back to my room."