Page 51 of Ignite

Ethan to Felicity:She’s not talking to me.

Eric:Whatever you did, keep Flick out of it.

Ethan:When were one of you going to give me a heads up.

Eric:About?

Ethan:Darin.

Ethan:Does that mean if you guys sack me, Rylee gets to recruit the next Captain-Coach?

Eric:Want some free advice?

Ethan:About damage control. Yes.

Eric:Don’t say shit like that to the other guys. They grew up with Rylee, and her father treated them like sons. Start making wisecracks about her having a type and you’ll find yourself drop-kicked out of town.

Ethan:I have a contract.

Eric:You won’t be able to play with broken bones.

Ethan:Are you fucking threatening me?

Ethan:Are you really stupid enough to threaten me by text?

Eric:I’m saying that if you’ve fucked up with Rylee, then either fix it or walk away.

Eric:Leave my woman out of your mess.

Eric:Okay. If you want to throw shade at Rylee, then I’m safer than the other guys. It took a while for Flick to accept me when I moved to town, and the rest of Meringa even longer.

Ethan:You didn’t answer my question. When were one of you going to give me the heads up that I replaced her ex as Captain-Coach?

Eric:Rylee asked Reece not to.

Eric:The team protects its own. Like it or not, she’s our little sister and if you mess with her, you mess with all of us.

Ethan:That’s fucked up. You know that, right?

Eric:You wouldn’t have a job if we hadn’t sacked our last Captain-Coach.

Felicity:Eric says I should hear you out. When are you getting back to town?

Ethan:Thanks. I’ll be back for Tuesday’s training.

I took a deep breath and dove into the lion’s den.

Ethan to Rylee:If I was going to convert to drinking tea, where should I start?

Ethan to Rylee:Black tea has more caffeine than coffee

Ethan to Rylee:Does that mean two tea bags makes it a double shot?

Rylee:Tea bags?

The tightness in my chest finally released when her name appeared on my screen. We weren’t a couple, but at least she was still talking to me.

I stayed in Beringi for the next two nights. I met some of the dreaded Bay Tigers at their Monday night training by turning up and pretending to be a footballer looking for a club.

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