Page 63 of Payback
Hayden stops jogging and props his hands on his hips. “Bunny, I love you, but you cannot sideline coach me right now or I am going to come over there and spank you.”
Vi pulls her lips into her mouth to hide an amused reaction that is rather odd. Vaughn seems equally disturbed, and I hope he’s not thinking about the nature of their bedroom antics like I am.
Speaking of which, I haven’t spanked Allie in a while either. Now that that’s on my mind, I’m struggling to focus on the task at hand.
I shake my head to clear away my wayward thoughts as we resume our match. The ball is mine this time, and Gareth defends me like we’re at the World Cup instead of in a garden at a home in Chigwell.
Booker does his best to help me, but Camden and Tanner have double-teamed him, leaving Hayden wide open because they’ve given up all hope that he’s worth anything.
Finally, when I can’t seem to make any progress past Gareth, I pass the ball over to Hayden, who’s standing five feet from the goal. He stops the pass, his eyes flying wide in triumph. But his expression turns to horror when Gareth, Camden, and Tanner all tear after him in a dead sprint.
“Shoot it, Hayden!” I shout and hear Booker shouting the same thing. “Shoot it in the net!”
Hayden hesitates, obviously sorting through the limited soccer knowledge he has so he can make a clear shot.
“Just kick the bloody thing!” Vi screams.
Hayden snaps out of his thoughts and kicks the ball just before he’s trampled by his brothers-in-law. The ball hits the back of the net and we erupt in cheers, running straight for Hayden, who is on his back in shock as Booker and I knee slide toward him. We both place our hands on his chest and make dramatic motions to shock his heart. His body jerks twice before coming back to life in full-on celebration mode.
The women and Vaughn laugh from the sidelines. Allie just places her hands on her temples, shaking her head in complete surprise over how fun this is turning out to be.
Unfortunately, the match ends in a five to three loss for me, Hayden, and Booker. We’re all drenched in sweat and I’m flopped down on the grass. I stare up at the sky and wonder how the fuck training with a professional soccer team is easier than scrimmaging against the Harris Brothers.
Suddenly, shadows fall over me. I look up to see the four of them looming over me, dripping sweat all around me.
“I lost,” I state knowingly.
“We know,” Tanner replies with a chuckle and squirts a drink of water into his mouth.
“I’m dating her regardless,” I reply. At this point, what more could they possibly do to me?
“We know,” Gareth states and stretches a hand out to me. He yanks me up onto my feet and slaps his hand on my back. “But it still felt good to kick your arse today.”
“You still got it, bro,” Tanner states with wide, puppy-dog eyes.
Gareth smiles proudly and claps a hand over his abdomen. “Retirement hasn’t made me soft yet.”
I look around at the group of them and ask, “What now?”
Tanner throws his arm around my shoulders. “Now we eat.”
It is completely impossible not to stare at Roan like he’s some sort of complex painting in a museum that I have to figure out as I sit across from him at my uncle’s kitchen table.
He just played soccer against my insane family for me! The grandest gesture I remember Ghost Penis doing to prove his affection was sending me flowers on my birthday. Even then, I’m pretty sure it was his father’s secretary who had them sent because it was on her calendar.
Roan and I are only dating, yet he was willing to go that far. What does that mean? We were supposed to be casual, for Christ’s sake!
I watch him spread lingonberry jam on Swedish pancakes while laughing at something Sophia says in his ear. He’s talking with my little cousin like it’s a normal Sunday. And every once in a while, he winks at me as if to say he knew this would happen all along and I was worrying for nothing. But was I worrying for nothing? Does the fact that my family has accepted him mean that everything from the past is forgotten?
Doubtful.
If he knew what I did two years ago, he’d be out the door and probably hiring a lawyer to sue me for indecent exposure or something.
The longer I watch my family interacting with him, the more anxiety creeps in around me. Having him here, entrenched with my cousins and making their kids giggle, makes him more human than ever before. Far more human than the night we met, and I thought he would be the perfect faceless man for my payback plan.Boy was I wrong.
Honestly, though, what was I thinking back then? How did I think I could record something like that and put it out there for Ghost Penis and Rosalie to see? That’s not me! I’m not that kind of person. I’m this kind of person. The kind who sucks at casual and falls for a guy after introducing him to her family.
I feel my emotions spiraling out of control, so I excuse myself for the bathroom. Instead of stopping at the hallway toilet, though, I move toward the front door, thinking some air might help calm me down.
