Page 260 of Off the Pitch

I’d already told Liam because he was my best mate, and I didn’t want to keep anything this big from him. There’d been a few tears and a couple of hugs, but he understood. And apparently Félix and I were gonna be hosting him, Ali, and the kids at some point so we could all visit Disneyland together.

He was clearly not prepared for how much sugar I was gonna give his kids. Clearly he’d learnt nothing from the past eight years.

I looked at everyone around the table, eating, drinking and chatting away. I’d enjoy this for a minute, and I’d tell them later.

I grinned at Félix and speared another piece of steak on my fork. “Before we go,” I said. “I’ll tell them just before we go. Then we can make a break for it when Christian gets pissed.”

Félix laughed. “I’ll have the car keys in hand.”

* * *

Félix

I knew Jordan was worried about telling everyone about our move, but looking around the table, I didn’t think he needed to be. They were all so close, particularly Jordan, Liam, Christian, and Hugo, that I didn’t think they’d be anything but supportive.

When lunch was well over and the whole party was starting to wrap up, I knew it was time. It was either now or Jordan would put it off for another month, and that would be a problem since we were flying to LA in two weeks.

It was just Liam, Christian, David, Kit, and Hugo around the table. Some of the kids were still playing, the various dogs were all flat out snoring, and Lily had taken Harper home for a lie down. I wasn’t sure exactly when their baby was due, but it couldn’t be too long now.

“Hey,” Jordan said, draining the last of his beer. “I need to tell you all something.”

Liam nodded, a knowing expression drawing a line across his mouth. A wrinkle appeared between Christian’s eyebrows, and I wondered if he suspected something. Jordan said they’d had quite a long, deep conversation before the final, and I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d put two and two together. Everyone else just looked curious.

“I’m, er, I’m moving. To LA… I’m gonna play for Santa Monica.” There was a moment of stunned silence. I’d joked about having the car keys ready, but I hadn’t been serious. Now I was wondering if I should have been.

“I still can’t believe you’re doing it,” said Liam, finally breaking the silence with a smile. “Santa Monica… Mate, you could have picked a better team. They really suck.”

“What the fuck, man?” Jordan laughed, the bright sound easing the knot of worry that had been forming in my chest. “They’re not that bad!”

“Dude, they finished like twelfth in their conference last season. There’s only, like, sixteen teams. I googled it. Go play for Kansas or Seattle.” Liam grinned. “They’re at least sort of decent. Then again, it’s the MLS. Everyone kinda sucks.”

Jordan turned to me with a stony expression on his face. “Right, Liam is now banned from coming to Disneyland.”

I laughed. “How about Ali and the kids come to visit us, and Liam stays here?”

“That’ll do. We can just send him pics while he’s sucking it up in the pouring rain.”

“Wait, Disneyland? We’ll come instead,” David said.

“I’m not your babysitter,” Jordan said. “I’ve got football to play.”

“Eh, it’s not like it’s gonna be difficult,” added Christian with a grin.

“You all suck! Nobody gets to go to Disneyland.” Whatever tension had been building around the table melted away. I knew Jordan had been worried, but it was easy to tell that these men would be friends for life, no matter where in the world they were.

I already knew Jordan and I would be coming back to London frequently. Our families were still here, and Jordan’s sister, Mia, had a blossoming gymnastics future ahead of her at only fourteen. The two of them were very close, and I knew he’d want to come and see her as often as possible. And his Nan was getting into her eighties, even if she didn’t act like it. She’d said she thought the California sunshine might do her some good, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she took up residence with us throughout the winter.

We were definitely going to need a bigger house since Jordan and I liked our privacy. Or one with an annex. Maybe I’d just suggest we buy another house nearby for guests. That might be easier, and it wasn’t like we couldn’t afford it.

Everyone asked Jordan questions, and there was a little bit of piss-taking and a little bit more reminiscing.

“So, I guess, if we’re all being honest,” Christian said. “I’ve got some news too.” He smiled softly and then looked at David. “I’m retiring.”

“Shit, seriously?” Liam asked.

“Yeah.” Christian nodded. “I’ve been thinking about it, and I’ve got nothing left to prove. And I’d rather stop now while I can still get out of bed in the morning.”

“Yeah, the terrible knees are the not fun part,” Hugo said. “When did you decide?”

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