Grace Gealey and Trai Byers Are Engaged: ‘Empire’ Stars Make It Official In Chicago

Grace Gealey and Trai Byers, two of the stars of Fox hit Empire, are engaged, E! Online is reporting.

The couple were in Chicago Sunday night for what Grace thought was going to be a small 31st birthday party for her, at tony Windy City restaurant Kinmont. Instead, Trai had worked some magic behind the scenes, an anonymous source close to the couple says.

“She thought it would just be the two of them going to dinner, but when they got there, he had arranged a party for about 20 of her friends and family members to surprise her.”

Grace was spotted wearing a diamond engagement ring at the restaurant, so it seems Trai had popped the question beforehand.

“Had so much fun celebrating @gracegealey’s life!! Happy Birthday to an exquisite human being! Thank you @kinmontchicago for hosting us. Amazing spot, wonderful food, UNFORGETTABLE night.”

Several of Grace and Trai’s Empire costars were on-hand for the dinner, including Kaitlin Doubleday, Gabourey Sidibe and Jussie Smollett.

Another source describes the happy couple as “cute” according to MSN.

“They are definitely going strong. They make a really cute couple.”

Fans of the couple are also suitably impressed, if not a little blindsided, with the news.

“WHAAAT you two are dating omfg i just found out, congraaaats babes”

“Congrats didn’t even know you all were dating till I saw it on Facebook.”

“Aww you guys are sooo cute together”

On Empire, which has brought huge ratings for Fox, the relationship between Grace Gealey’s and Trai Byers’ characters is a little more complicated than their relationships in real life. Grace’s character, Anika Calhoun, head of Empire Entertainment A&R, is engaged to the father of Trai’s character, Andre Lyon. That means that, when the wedding is done, Grace will portray Trai’s stepmother (Grace is 31, Trai is 33).

Meanwhile, on the upcoming season of Empire, look for some big-name guest stars to share the screen with Grace and Trai. Word has it that Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, Chris Rock, Ludacris, and Lenny Kravitz are all slated to appear next season. And if boffo ratings and top-tier guest stars aren’t enough, Empire has also been nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards.

Look for Grace Gealey, Trai Byers, and the rest of the Empire cast back on your TV on September 23rd, when the show returns for its third season.

[Image courtesy of: Getty Images/Maury Phillips]