by Maya Hughes
“Some people like to be higher up to see the whole pitch, but I love being close to the field,” Eve shouted over the screaming fans as the teams began to pour out onto the field. She jumped up as our guys walked out onto the field holding the hands of little kids.
“What’s up with the kids?” Jess shouted to Eve over the roar of the crowd.
“They are called match day mascots; they pick little kids from local schools and sports clubs. It’s a good PR thing and it really makes the kids’ days.” Jess saw the way the little kids were looking up at the players next to them as they walked out. They seemed absolutely awestruck by the players. As the team captain, Aedan was coming in last and the little girl beside him seemed a bit scared by all the screaming fans.
Without pause, he stopped, scooped her up and carried her as the team marched out onto the field, patting her back the whole way. How the hell could she not melt at that? Jess looked at him and saw how careful and caring he was with the scared little girl, holding her throughout all the opening introductions. Eventually, with his coaxing, the little girl’s tears were gone, replaced with a big smile. She was even reluctant to leave the field when all the mascots were being escorted off so the match could start.
“Quite the charmer, isn’t he?” Eve said giving Jess a smile.
“I’m starting to realize that,” Jess said as the crowd quieted down as the captains came out for the coin toss.
Aedan’s team won, and a kinetic first half of play went on non-stop. Unlike most sports in the US, there were no TV breaks or stoppages in the clock, even with all the fake falls going on. Aedan’s athleticism was a sight to behold. Jess found herself standing with the crowd, attempting some of the chants and dancing along with the other people in the stands.
Watching Aedan play, watching him do what he’d trained to do his entire life, made Jess appreciate just how hard he worked to get where he was. Speaking in front of a crowd of twenty was enough to send Jess running for the hills, but here he was, powering through plays, leading his team, and entertaining thousands in the stadium, and even more via TV. The score was two to zero after the first half, with Aedan’s team leading.
As the whistle blew for the end of the first half, Jess turned to look back at all the fans in the stands who were jumping and cheering. After living her whole life with little more than a round of applause after a presentation in a board room, seeing just how much joy Aedan and his team brought to the fans made her appreciate how powerful the whole thing was. She could see why someone might put up with less privacy, nosy reporters, and all the negative things for moments like these. Well, that and the paycheck. That surely didn’t hurt one bit!
“It’s pretty awe inspiring, isn’t it?” Jess could see Eve grinning at her out of the corner of her eye as she took in the atmosphere of the soccer game.
“It certainly is,” Jess agreed, still drinking in the sights.
“Do you want to head to the box or stay down here for the second half?”
“Definitely stay!” Jess turned back to Eve, who was wearing a big smile.
“It looks like we may have a football convert,” Eve proclaimed.
“Maybe; it always seemed so boring on TV the few times I’ve caught a few minutes of a game. This is definitely not boring.”
“Of course not. Do you think I’d put up with spending an entire afternoon here if it sucked?” Eve grinned.
“I guess not.”
Grabbing two mini orders of fish and chips, they sat down just a couple of minutes before the second half began. As Eve started eating, the vinegar from her fish and chips dripped onto her jersey.
“Damnit, I’m always making such a mess. I don’t even know why I buy these things.” Rooting around in her handy bag-o-tricks Jess pulled out a detergent wipe and handed it off to Eve. Eve worked on the stain until it was almost gone.
“This thing is bloody magic,” she managed to wipe away all the vinegar before it could stain. ‘What else do you have in the duffle bag of magic? I have to say it’s probably the biggest handbag I’ve ever seen.”
“I know. My friends always give me crap about it, but if you couldn’t already tell, I’m a bit of an organization and preparation junkie. Wouldn’t want to be without my umbrella, first aid kit, mini flashlight, extra change of clothes and energy bars.”
“Are you serious?”
“I mean, that’s at least some of what I have in here.” Jess shrugged and grinned, letting her know she was being totally honest.
“You’re mental, but I like you and I know who to come to should I ever had any kind of clothing emergency, injury, or case of famishment.”
The second half was just as exhilarating as the first half, with the other team managing to score a goal sixty minutes in and almost making a goal in the last couple of overage minutes. Jess could feel her heart beating like it was trying to jump out of her chest as she squeezed Eve’s arm as the ball sailed through the air. She was finally able to let out the breath she’d been holding when it sailed over the net and behind the goal. Jess was screaming and jumping up and down right alongside Eve as they hugged each other at the end of the riveting match.
As they waited for people higher up in the stands to file out, Eve and Jess talked about the rest of Jess’s plans for her time in London.
“How much longer do you have?”
“A week. Three weeks was all I felt I could swing off work. I could have probably gone for a little more, but I’m paranoid like that. I haven’t gone on vacation for almost three years, so I don’t think they are too worried.”
“Three years?! That is absolutely mental. You Yanks and your crazy work schedules—if I go more than four months without a little time off, my bosses are practically locking me out of the office.”
“That would definitely be nice.”
The crowd thinned a bit, so they made their way up the stands to the concourse.
“Are you coming to the meet-and-greet?”
“I’m not sure, Aedan didn’t mention it.”
“Then I’ll bring you along. The guys have to do a short press conference after the match, then onto the meet-and-greet, then showers and home. They don’t usually do the meet-and-greet thing after a match, but it’s the first friendly of the season, so it’s a bit of a special day.”
29
They made their way into the bowels of the stadium, flashing their lanyards the whole way. The guys were all lined up along the far wall of an expansive room that was covered in banners and a giant replica of the team logo in front of a backdrop for pictures. Lots of people were hanging around in addition to the fans lined up for their handshake and pictures. It looked like it was only Aedan, Deano, and two other members of the team that remained for the meet-and-greet.
“Where’s the rest of the team?”
“I’m sure they’ll be here. They probably sent Aedan along early to keep the fans happy. No one will miss the new right wing, but if Aed wasn’t here I’m sure a fan would have an aneurysm thinking they had missed their chance to shake his hand and get a picture with him.”
Aedan was shaking hands and taking pictures with fans with a big smile on his face the whole time. He seemed happy to be there, interacting with the fans and making them happy. Some fans wanted a standard arm around the shoulder picture, but a few tried for some more ‘out there’ shots. One carried Aedan on their back, another woman had Aedan and Deano hold her horizontally while she gave a thumbs up. Eve and Jess both laughed at some of the fan interactions.
It would have been the perfect day, except for the entrance of the Ice Crew, as Eve dubbed them. She brushed off their appearance. Apparently, there were always a few new ones every season that thought they would rule the WaGs roost, Eve had learned to ignore them. Jess found that she did not possess Eve’s deflective abilities and the new arrivals made her particularly uneasy.
Her stomach started to do that knotted dance that it always did when she felt like she was under a microscope. It was like
walking into the high school cafeteria after her sisters graduated. For some reason, the mean girls wanted to assert their authority over the high school domain once her sisters had left. Why they thought Jess would be a threat, she would never know, but they had and ensured that no one would make the mistake of associating with Jess. She got the same vibe from this group.
Turning her attention back to Aedan, Jess watched as the rest of the teammates arrived and joined the line for handshakes and photos. Aedan turned to the door where he saw Even and Jess. Aedan tapped Deano and pointed them out to him. Aedan gave her a shoulder shrug as a woman threw her arms around his neck and Jess couldn’t help but laugh. The woman had to be at least sixty years old. Aedan was a good sport and let her give him a few pecks on the cheeks, although he did manage to evade her roving lips. Eve was in a full belly laugh as the woman moved onto Deano and he was not quite so lucky. She felt like they heard that lip smack from way across the room.
“Looks like I’ve got some competition,” Eve managed to gasp as she bent over at the waist, laughing until she cried.
“Can’t blame her for trying,” Jess chuckled along.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Eve was finally able to catch her breath. “No, I guess not. Oh, he’s going to get a ribbing over that one later tonight.”
As the woman pulled away from the guys, the white collars of their jerseys were covered in lipstick marks.
“Hey Jess, it looks like the guys could use something out of your wonder bag.” The photo set up helpers were trying to get it out with some club soda and someone was shouting that they needed new tops.
Rummaging around in her bag, Jess found the wipes and walked over to the guys.
“Sorry, excuse me,” Jess made her way past the photographer and assistants. “I’ve got something that will help,” she held out the wipes for everyone to see.
“I know exactly what would help right now,” Aedan bent down to give her a kiss. Jess evaded his lips. “Not here,” she whispered as she worked on the collar.
“Why not?”
“I just feel really self-conscious with everyone watching.”
“All right then, but when we get back to my place all bets are off.”
“Oh, I sure hope so,” Jess countered. His crooked smile got Jess’s heartrate going and the way he was looking at her brought the butterflies on full force. Momentarily lost in thoughts of what those lips would be doing later on, Jess stood there frozen until Aedan whispered in her ear, “I think the spot is gone, but if there is somewhere else you want to rub, I can cut this meet-and-greet short in a hurry.”
Clearing her throat, Jess backed up and went over to Deano to get the lipstick marks out of his collar. He held out his hand to her, “Jessica Montgomery, I’ve heard a lot about you. Thanks for keeping my Eve company today.”
“I’ve heard a lot about you too and Eve’s really great. Thanks for having her come a bit early to show me around.”
“No worries, we’ll be seeing you later then?”
Looking to Aedan, Jess saw him nod as he was sandwiched between two fans for the next picture.
“Looks like it, see you later.” Her work there was done, so Jess started to walk back to Eve. James entered the room with the last of the players and pulled Aedan aside. She passed by the Ice Crew who spoke loudly enough for her to hear. “So, nice that Aedan’s decided to get an assistant. Too bad she so dumpy. But it will really help free up his time to spend with Kate this season. Too bad she couldn’t be here today.”
That churning nauseated feeling was back in Jess’s stomach, made even worse by James’s presence. She didn’t like him at all, not one bit, but she couldn’t tell Aedan that. James had been his manager for years; she didn’t want to overstep. For some reason, she had no problem telling off people when they were acting like stuck up bitches to others, but when it came to defending herself, she froze like a deer in headlights. Especially when she didn’t feel like she was on her home turf. In DC, Jess would have had Sam and Meg there to back her up. Here … well here, she was a fish out of water.
Jess continued toward Eve, wanting to get away from those women as quickly as she could, but when Jess looked up, Eve wasn’t where she’d left her. She was barreling toward Jess with a look of fury on her face. She completely bypassed Jess and went straight for the Mean Queens.
“Why won’t you slags ever learn to play nice? You stay away from my friend and if I hear you say one cross word to her I’ll have you all out on your ears.”
“You think you can talk to me that way?” Head Ice Queen snarled at Eve.
“I sure as hell do, and you want to know why?” Eve asked.
“Yeah, why?” She challenged.
“Because while you’ve only been blowing Dirtbox for seven weeks, I’ve got one of these,” Eve said as she flashed her humongous diamond ring, so sparkly it threatened to blind them all. “And I might work in London, but I’m a Peckham girl through and through and no one fucks with my friends.” Just as she started to move toward the group, a pair of large muscular arms came from behind her and pulled her to his chest. It looked like the guys were through with their photos.
“Starting trouble again,” Deano chuckled into Eve’s ear as he held her hips tight to his.
“Don’t you know it,” she said as she turned in his arms. “You know how I like to scare the uber bitches,” she added before planting a kiss on Deano.
“Run along now, your boys aren’t going to blow themselves,” Eve threw out over her shoulder before going back to making out with Deano. Jess swallowed her laugh as they made their move past them.
Aedan finished speaking with James just then and walked over to their group. The room was clearing out. “I knew that Eve would be the perfect guide for you today. Pick up any pointers?”
“I sure did,” Jess laughed and planted a kiss on Aedan now that there weren’t as many people around.
The guys went to shower up and get changed while Eve and Jess hung out in the lobby area. Steven was there with the car, but Jess didn’t want to leave Eve to wait for Deano alone. It was only 4 p.m. and Aedan had invited Eve and Deano over for dinner at their place at 8.
“You’ll be really happy to know I’m not cooking, but I think Aedan’s got some really good stuff up his sleeve. I have no idea what half of the stuff he bought was when we went shopping earlier today, but it all smelled amazing.”
“You’re so lucky, Aedan’s cooking is pretty renowned around this place. If only he could give Deano some pointers. I don’t know how one person eats so many grilled chicken breasts. I’m not even eating it and it makes me want to vomit. I swear Deano begs Aed to invite him over every week. And I’m certainly not as creative as Aed, Deano always complains that I’m trying to get him off plan with my fish and chips.” She batted her eyes, playing innocent. It didn’t hold long, though.
“OK, I definitely am, but it’s just because he’s so much fun to rile up.”
“That’s terrible,” Jess laughed.
“I know, but I only do it every once in a while, and mainly so Deano will beg Aed to invite him over, which means I also get an invite. And Aedan’s dinners are to die for.” Over her shoulder, Jess saw Aedan come out of the locker room, rubbing his hands together before clapping. “Who’s ready for some food?”
30
Aedan rubbed his stomach, which was filled with delicious nutritionist-approved food, while staring longingly as Jess finished her piece of chocolate cake. Deano and Eve left out not to long before. It wasn’t really the time for a late night out after their first match, even if it was just a friendly. They were both pretty wiped. It was a fun dinner with great conversation and company. He’d have to make sure he invited them over again and maybe have Eve take Jess out before she left.
“That meal was so good. And I can’t believe it’s healthy. With you as my personal chef, I might lose this extra weight.”
“There is no extra weight to lose Jess; you’re perfect just the way you are
,” Aedan said as he edged his way toward her chocolate cake.
“In that case, I do not feel guilty at all about finishing this whole piece of chocolate cake,” Jess said as she teasingly began devouring the last bits of the slice. Aedan knew it was against nutritionist’s orders, but he had to have a bite.
“Jess, what’s that?” Aedan pointed over her shoulder, and Jess turned to look the other way as he snagged the last bit of cake with his fork.
“You sneak!” Jess said as she turned back in her seat and saw what he’d done. “I’m going to tell your coaches on you.” Aedan started laughing when his phone rang on the counter. Checking the screen, he saw it was James. Just the guy he didn’t want to hear from right then. Picking it up, he mouthed “James” to Jess. She nodded and started clearing the table.
“James, what is the update? Have you sorted things with Kate?” Aedan asked in a whisper as he walked into the bedroom.
“I believe so. It comes with one condition.”
“Which is?”
“You have to attend the children’s charity dinner with her tomorrow night. It’s a silent auction. I’ve put up you and Deano playing a two versus two with the lucky winner as one of the prizes. It will be great PR.”
“What does that have to do with Kate?” Aedan ground out.
“Calm down, she’s agreed to attend the dinner as your date—”
“James, that’s not going to happen.”
“Let me finish. As your date, but just as a friend. This will be your final event together where you can show everyone you’re still friends and there are no hard feelings. You can arrive separately and leave separately. You just have to have your pictures taken by the event photographer and all pictures will be vetted before being released.”
“And Kate agreed to this. Once I do this she stops playing the victim and leaves us alone?” Aedan asked skeptically.
