Page 7 of A Surprise for the Holidays
It took every ounce of Bailey’s self-control to not laugh and look in his coach’s direction. He’d heard the ‘it’s the only fucking football in this country actually played with the feet’ rant at least twice a week since the man had started coaching their team.
“I stand corrected,” he replied instead, then held up the bags he’d brought with him. “Anyway, I’ve brought you some presents.”
Her little face lit up in wonder. “Presents? But it’s not Christmas yet.” And then, as though a lightbulb went off over her head, she looked to her dad, horror-stricken. “Will Santa come for me this Christmas? Because I don’t live at my old home anymore and” —she let out a gasp— “it’s sohothere! Christmas is s’posed to be cold, Daddy!”
“Well, no, Christmas is different all over the world…” Jacobs tried.
But Bailey could see the tears welling in her eyes and, fearing that he’d get in trouble for setting off a tantrum, he jumped in with: “Aussie Christmases are even better than cold ones. We have pavlova, and play backyard cricket, and have barbeques, and go swimming and everything. I can totally show you.”
Jacobs inhaled sharply before Bailey could register the offer he’d made. “I don’t think that’s necess—”
“Really?” Ava cut her dad off with wide, wet, imploring eyes. “You’ll have Christmas with me? And Santa will still come?”
“Of course Santa will still come. He goes all over the world in one night.” Bailey answered, feeling his coach’s gaze boring into the side of his face.
Good one, Peters,he thought sarcastically.Just invite yourself to his first Christmas with his kid. Moron.
Thank God it would take more than Jacobs’ word to have his captaincy revoked.
“And you’ll show me and Daddy how to have an Aussie Christmas?” Ava prodded, sounding far too endearing when she said ‘Aussie’.
Bailey’s resolve to backpedal crumbled.
“Yeah, of course,” he repeated, then tried a sideways glance at his coach. “If, uh, if your daddy’s okay with that.”
She flung her little body at her dad, headbutting him in the hip as she begged, “Please, Daddy? Bailey’s my friend an’ you’re my family. Christmas is for friends and family.”
Bailey watched as Jacobs took a deep, visibly calming breath and then looked to the ceiling, muttering, “Give me fucking strength,” before he smiled lovingly back down at his daughter.
Thatexpression set off a whole different set of butterflies in Bailey’s belly, which he promptly ignored.
He was an out and proud bisexual player with a thing for older men, but crushing on that particular arsehole was a step too far. Besides, as far as he knew, Jacobs was straighter than an arrow.
And he was his coach.
Jacobs, meanwhile, was begrudgingly agreeing to allow Bailey to crash their first Christmas as father and daughter, and he tacked on a mildly hopeful, “Unless Pete—Baileyshould be spending it with his family?”
The familiar pang of homesickness hit Bailey as he thought about his large family back in Adelaide. His siblings, parents, and his multiple nephews and nieces. They were one of those sickeningly close families, with a group chat and in-jokes. This would be the first Christmas he spent away from them, and he had looked into flying to Adelaide and back, but when he’d seen the cost of the tickets to do so, he had baulked.
Yes, he was the team captain, but it was a new team to the A-League, and they weren’t paying enough for him to justify that kind of cost. Plus, with the season’s training schedule being what it was, it would have only been a short trip, which made it even harder to justify going.
Pasting on a bright smile, which felt false as fuck, he shook his head. “Yeah, nah. They’re all back in Adelaide. I was planning on crashing Whitmore’s Chrissy, but I think he only invited me out of pity.”
Jacobs smirked one of those infuriatingly smug smirks at him, and probably would have said something to get his hackles up if Ava hadn’t pointed at the bags he was still holding and asked, “Do I still get presents now?”
Finally, an easy question to answer.
Bailey grinned at her, handing over the first of the bags. “You sure do.”
She squealed and tore into the gift with glee, pulling out a selection of Barbie dolls, My Little Pony toys, books about unicorns and princesses, and more.
She thanked him effusively for each and every one, and when he held out the second bag, he said, “I pro’lly shoulda’ started with this one. It’s got some clothes and stuff in it. More boring than the first bag.”
Ava surprised him, though, by getting even more excited with the prospect of new clothes. She ‘ooh’ed and ‘ahh’ed over the outfits his sister had sent, getting particularly excited over a frilly pink swimming costume.
“Daddy, I can wear this to the beach,” she told him. “It’s got long sleeves so I don’t get burned.”
That was true, though it was a one piece which would still leave her legs exposed. Bailey wondered how long it might take her to adapt to the blistering hot rays of the Australian summer sun, or whether he shouldn’t also bring a vat of SPF 50 sunscreen over for Christmas, too.
