Chapter 11 #2
Ingrid left her grandfather in the capable hands of one of the intern engineers at Wentworth, who was more than willing to learn about the ‘good old days’.
She went back to Antoine’s side as he was finishing up his discussion with Bonnie.
Erik then came over to do their grid ritual before she went to the garage.
Ingrid thought about how much easier this would be when Antoine was with Wentworth.
Dunham wasn’t pleased about the decision, but they had suspected it would happen.
They couldn’t compete with the offer that Wentworth was making.
They were also getting a nice settlement out of it, and their rookie showed more promise than either Castillo or Nakamura.
Antoine lost a place in the first corner to Nico’s teammate, Callipel, but he made it up after the first pit stops.
He wanted to get a podium at Silverstone to prove that he deserved that seat at Wentworth, so he wasn’t going to let anything stop him.
Ingrid knew how focused he was on this race.
She stood in the garage with Daniela, watching, more nervous for a race than she had ever been before.
Silverstone wasn’t an easy track for anyone.
They all needed this podium. The English rain started with 17 laps to go.
Neither Nico nor Antoine was good in the rain.
Inters had to go on for the rest of the race.
Ingrid watched as he went out and then was back behind Callipel.
Dunham had screwed up his strategy. She knew Bonnie would never do this to him.
It was a team call to try to give Nakamura track position.
Antoine went back out fighting. Nico lost control of his car on the slippery painted surface of Copse.
The race was red-flagged with 10 laps to go.
Antoine came back to the garage in P3. Nico was frustrated, but not injured.
“Are you ok?” Ingrid asked Antoine during the break while they recovered Nico’s car.
“All good, I know what I need to do.”
Bonnie came up to him and apologised under her breath. “You know that wasn’t my call.”
“We know,” Antoine smiled at her. “We can still do this, Bonbon. P3.”
The session resumed. Antoine kept it clean and on track. Between himself and Bonnie, he pulled off that podium finish. There was a sigh of relief from Daniela and Ingrid.
“He did it,” Daniela kissed Ingrid on the cheek.
“Did you ever doubt him?” She smiled. “Now, to get through the big news.”
They went to celebrate with their boys. Ingrid was finally reunited with her family.
“How do you choose which side to stand when they both get on the podium?” Her mother asked.
“I always stand with Antoine. He’s my work. Erik knows this,” she responded.
“Oh, darling, I’m glad you’ve found someone who understands and supports you.” She gave her a squeeze.
Ingrid stood there smiling up at the men in her life. She had a Netflix camera in her face at the time, but she didn’t care. Soon, they would be wearing matching race suits. It would be easier then.
???
When the news broke, somehow the story became about her.
‘Ingrid Hansdotter pulls off a match made in heaven for Wentworth’
‘The Racing Pair Ingrid Hansdotter Put Together’
‘How Hansdotter Got Hamadou the Wentworth Seat’
Ingrid was in Monaco with Erik as the stories came out. She was reading them in complete shock.
“Erik, how the hell did this happen?”
“It was always going to be about you; didn’t you realise this?”
“But why?”
She looked at him in astonishment, and he leaned over and kissed her head.
“Everyone suspects that you’re either working with me or dating me. You’re coaching Antoine and have been seen talking to Jonny in the paddock. The rumour mill in F1 is ridiculous. The real sports journalists know that it’s the manager who takes care of these things. Don’t worry about it, Rookie.”
Ingrid put her phone down on the bed. She decided not to look at social media anymore. It just angered her. Instead, she picked up her phone again.
“Where are you going?”
“To call your mamma.”
He laughed, resigned to the situation. When she returned, he asked, “And what did mamma say?”
“To own it.”
“I could have told you she would say that. It’s true, though. Antoine wouldn’t have been able to get that seat without you. He’s my best friend, but I’ve always thought he lacked the structure and focus he needed. You’ve given him that.”
“Even if it means he could challenge you for the title?” She asked hesitantly.
“Oh, bring it on.” He smiled and pulled her back into bed.
“Remember, you’ve given me structure and focus, too.
” He rolled her over and kissed her, putting his hand between her thighs.
“Right now, I would like to focus there.” As he kissed his way down her body, he removed her underwear.
Ingrid opened herself up to him and let him trace corners and straights with his tongue.
Just as she was close to the limit, she pulled him up and said, “Shift focus”.
All of the stories and rumours disappeared as she let him own her. She would own the paddock instead.