Page 54 of Endurance
I hear Belle huff beside me and immediately wrap an arm around her, inserting her between me and the ladies. “This is my girlfriend, Dr. Belle Ryan. She saves babies.”
The women all look down at Belle, inspecting her attire. She’s kitted out like a proper football fan. Her dark hair is in a high ponytail and she has a Devils tattoo on one cheek that she bought at a stand outside. The WAGs look like they were dressed by Gareth’s personal shopper, designer money dripping all over them.
Belle chuckles next to me and murmurs in my ear, “Real subtle, Harris.”
“You can call me Belle.” She smiles politely, but the women barely look at her.
“But Dr. Ryan is more respectful,” I add. “Enjoy the match.”
I turn around and pull Belle down into her seat, encasing her in my protective arm.
“Bitchy WAGs, can’t handle any fresh meat stepping in?” she asks.
“They look at you like a wannabe WAG,” I reply. “It’s my fault. My reputation puts a target on your back.”
She cuts her dark eyes at me. “And what will you be like when this is all over?”
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“I mean when you and I are done. Will you go back to how you were before?”
I frown, not having given it much thought. “I suppose a version of that, yes. Not as bad as before, of course. My contract won’t allow it.”
Her brows lift. “I see.” She turns toward the field and stands as the team song begins playing.
“You all right?” I ask in her ear.
She nods and sings loudly with a bright, toothy smile on her face the whole time.
Frowning, I turn my attention to the pitch and listen closely as both of my brothers’ names are announced. Goosebumps prickle my skin when I hear the crowd chanting the Harris name at a deafening volume. This is Gareth’s home turf and he’s served this team well as a defender for quite some time now. He deserves this.
Cam and Gareth find each other on the pitch before the kickoff. Camden says something in Gareth’s ear, and Gareth laughs and socks him in the stomach. The two part ways with big smiles. Cam’s a striker; Gareth’s a defender. The odds are certainly in their favour for colliding again before the end of the match, but nothing can tear away the immense sense of pride I have watching them down there right now.
A cameraman shows up in our section, no doubt having been tipped off by Santino that Belle and I are up here. When he makes it completely obvious he’s shooting us, I throw an arm around Belle’s shoulders and chant right along with her even though our section is a bit sedate.
Belle seems clueless about the cameraman as she screams something vile at the ref. I laugh heartily, feeling like I could just as easily be sitting next to Vi. Vi’s voice carries more than my dad’s at our Tower Park matches. It’s like my ears are hardwired to the tone of her voice.
After watching Belle’s enthusiasm for several minutes, I lean into her ear. “I need to make you a Bethnal fan before this is all said and done.”
She frowns at me like I’m speaking a different language. “I already am! I’ve been to several of your matches. My love for football is multi levelled.” She laughs and trains her eyes back on the pitch.
“So you’ve seen me play?” I ask, not ready to let this go.
“Of course! I live in Bethnal Green. How could I have not been to Tower Park?”
This shocks me. “So what did you think?” I ask, needing some level of approval from her before I can allow us to enjoy the match.
She keeps her eyes focused on the pitch but they narrow, seemingly deep in thought. After a few seconds, she leans over toward me to shout out the side of her mouth, “I think it’s a fucking travesty your brother left. You two danced out there on that pitch together. You were more than strikers. You were goal scorers working in tandem, and both two-footed to boot. It was like nothing I’ve ever seen. But if you suck it up and find your balls again, you can get that stride with DeWalt. He’s not as good as Camden, but he’s deceptively quick and practically surgical with his passing. You can use that. You’re the best goal scorer Bethnal has ever seen. You’re better than Camden, but I’ll chop your balls off if you ever tell him I said so.”
I’m speechless. Utterly speechless. I didn’t have a clue she was even remotely invested in football until now. She gave me no indication except for saying she was a United fan. But hearing her speak so fluently about not only the sport I love, but the team that is my pride and joy, makes me want to drop down on one knee and marry her on the spot.
I grab her arm until she turns to look at me. “You’re not at all what I expected, Belle Ryan.”
She shoots me a sneaky smirk. “The crazy ones are always the most surprising.”
She winks and I can’t help myself. I grab her face and plant my lips on her in an inappropriate for public kiss.
She pulls away laughing. “Good grief, Harris! Control yourself.”
