Page 54 of Off the Pitch

DavidRead that as please come to my house. There are plans afoot.

DavidGood plans. Promise xxx

I chuckled and rolled my eyes. Trust David to have already made plans for us. We’d talked about having dinner or doing something low-key, but since both of us had been ridiculously busy, nothing had been formalized. Nevertheless, I secretly loved that he’d planned something. It made me feel so loved and wanted; it was something I’d dreamed about for so long. I’d never imagined I’d get to be loved by someone as wonderful as David.

I sent back an affirmative and asked when I should arrive. Then, since I had a few hours, I grabbed a snack and sat back to enjoy my rare TV binging time.

David ushered me into the house with a kiss, wrapping me up in a giant hug.

“Happy birthday,” he said against my lips. “You did great yesterday. I’m so fucking proud of you.”

I knew he’d watched the match, because afterwards my phone had been full of hilarious, sweary, blow-by-blow messages, but it was still nice to hear.

“Now, you need to close your eyes. No peeking.” David placed his hands over my eyes, gently nudging me towards the living room.

“Okay,” he said. “You can open them.”

I blinked my eyes, not quite believing what I was seeing. My mouth fell open, but no sound came out.

The sitting room had been totally transformed into a snuggly little den, complete with giant sofa cushion fort. There were fairy lights draped everywhere, and when I stepped a little closer, I could see the cushion fort was filled with piles of blankets and pillows. On the coffee table was a large chocolate-fudge birthday cake and several bowls of snacks, including my beloved Doritos, some chocolate-covered pretzels, and a bowl of mixed Skittles and Smarties—the ultimate devious snack, since they could be hard to tell apart if you weren’t careful. I hadn’t had a mix like that since I was kid and I used to have sleepovers at David’s house. His mum would let us build forts and watch Star Wars…

“Do you like it?” David asked, his arms wrapping around me as he pressed a soft kiss to the back of my neck that had me melting.

“It’s amazing,” I said because it really was. I couldn’t believe he would do this for me. How had I ended up with the most wonderful human being on the planet?

“C’mon, it’s time to open presents.” David tugged me down to the floor with him, scooting backwards into our fort to retrieve a few carefully wrapped packages. “This one’s from Kit. He’s out at some photography exhibition, but he left this for you. It’s kinda fragile.”

The present was solid and rectangular, but that meant nothing to me. I peeled the paper back, gasping at what was beneath.

It was the most gorgeous piece of artwork, carefully printed and displayed in a large metal frame. At the front was me dressed as Han Solo, complete with blaster, while the Death Star loomed ominously in the background and the Millennium Falcon soared overhead. Behind me was Chewbacca, to my left was Lily dressed in the white robes of Luke Skywalker, and on my leg was my very own Princess Leia. Well, David in a metal bikini.

“How did he know?” I asked, not really knowing what to say. What could I say? This was more amazing than anything I could have dreamed, and despite the fact it was from Kit, I knew that David must have had a hand in its creation.

“I may have mentioned to him that you were a Han Solo fan… even though you’re definitely Luke, y’know with the badass twin sister.” David was grinning, utterly proving my point. “Still can’t believe that bastard drew me in a bikini.”

“It suits you,” I chuckled, placing the picture on the coffee table where it wasn’t going to get smashed by a wayward limb. David handed me another present, blushing as he pushed it into my arms. It rattled a little when I picked it up.

“Sorry it’s not much, but I’m a little short of cash this month. I can get you something else when my teaching money comes in.”

“You don’t need to do that,” I said, squeezing his hand. “Seriously, I don’t need anything. This—” I nodded at the fort and the snacks, “this is more than enough. Just spending time with you. I love you.”

“I love you too, sap. Now open your present.”

This time I ripped the paper open, barely containing my excitement when two familiar logos were revealed. A LEGO Star Wars set with Luke and Leia escaping from the Death Star. It was the perfect addition to my ever-growing collection!

“Do you—” David started to ask, but his words were cut off as I threw myself into his lap, drawing him in to a heated kiss.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” he said, breaking away for a moment. “Now, do you wanna keep kissing or do you want to eat cake and snacks and watch Star Wars? Or I’ve got Disney movies if you’d prefer.”

I frowned, chewing my lip and pretending it was a hard choice. “Star Wars first, kisses later.”

“As the birthday boy decrees!” David said, wiggling out of the fort to fiddle with the TV. When he returned, he bought with him two giant slices of cake and the bowl of Smarties and Skittles. We lay on our stomachs like little kids, staring up at the screen, a blanket draped over our backs as the opening titles ofA New Hopescrolled on the screen.

Chapter Twenty-Three

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Watch Christian King get a surprise dunking from teammates after our Champions League win

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