Page 244 of Off the Pitch

I didn’t care that the world was watching, or that I’d unintentionally just fucked up Christian and Hugo’s coming out announcements. I had a man who loved me, and that was worth everything.

We broke apart to utter chaos. Journalists crowded us, cameras flashed, people shouted, and Liam leapt up and down at the back of the room, high-fiving Lily and Micah as the rest of the team cheered.

“Well,” said Félix, leaning over to whisper in my ear, his hand slipping into mine. “That wasn’t quite what I was expecting today.”

“Gonna be honest,” I said, as a camera flashed in my face, “wasn’t what I had in mind either.”

Chapter Thirty-One

#mine #bisexual

Félix

I squeezed Jordan’s hand tightly as I dragged him from the Greenwich press centre, elbowing members of the press out of the way and not caring if I trod on anyone’s feet.

For the first time in my life someone loved me. Really loved me. I almost wasn’t sure what to do with the information. It was as if something inside my brain couldn’t quite compute the idea.

I’d written off ever being loved around the time I’d been kicked out of football. I’d never thought anyone would love me the way I was. I’d been told I was just some rich party boy with more money than sense, so I’d spent my life living up to that expectation. After all, if nobody else was going to expect me to be a better person then why should I expect it of myself?

I knew Lucas had tried over the years, and Lara had called me out last Christmas, but ultimately it had been Jordan who had given me the desire to be better. He’d given me the connection I needed. He’d ploughed into my life and hadn’t stopped, and honestly, I couldn’t be more grateful.

Jordan’s face was a mess of emotions, but he laughed as I slammed the door behind us and dragged him towards his car. There was a look of pure exhilaration in his eyes and a wild smile on his lips, as if he couldn’t quite believe what he’d done. I couldn’t believe he’d done it either.

Apparently, taking the measured approach of his teammates wasn’t quite Jordan’s style.

I wondered if he’d even planned to do it at all. I suspected not.

“Fucking hell,” he said, rubbing his face and laughing as he collapsed into the driver’s seat. “Shit, man, that was not what I intended to do at all.”

“I thought not,” I said. Jordan flicked on the engine and pulled the car out of the car park before the press, or worse, my brother, came looking for us. We could deal with that later. Right now, I wanted a moment for us. “I’m glad you did it though.” I reached my hand out, and he took it, squeezing it quickly before releasing it.

“Me too.” He laughed again, fuelled by nerves and adrenaline. I knew he’d probably crash at some point, and I hoped he wouldn’t regret what he’d done. After all, publicly declaring your love for your coach’s little brother, in front of the world’s media, would probably have a few consequences.

“Don’t worry,” he continued, as we pulled up to some traffic lights. “I’m not going to regret it.”

“You must have read my mind.”

“It’s written all over your face. You’re not as good at hiding your emotions as you think.” I huffed but smiled. How was it he knew me so well? It was like someone had given him a manual that told him exactly what made me tick.

“I’m sorry,” I said because I didn’t know what else to say.

“Don’t be. I like that I know what’s on your mind. Plus, you’re cute when you’re thinking. It’s like your brain is working very hard.”

“You’re an asshole,” I said with a chuckle. I’d take being cute though.

“And you love it. And my asshole,” he said, reaching over to squeeze my thigh, his fingers dangerously close to my cock.

“You know, if you don’t want us to crash, I’d suggest putting both hands on the wheel. I don’t want to get arrested for distracting the driver.”

“I do know how to drive. It’s not like you’re driving.”

“I know how to drive,” I said, almost petulantly.

“I’ll believe it when I see it.” Jordan snorted.

“I could drive now.”

“You are not driving my car.”

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