Chapter 7 #2
I stop behind a nearby tree, and my heart plummets when I see them lie down. His mouth is on hers, and her hands are running the length of his back like a spider. I gasp when I see his hand slide up her skirt.
“Booker, wait.” The girl’s voice is high-pitched and smooth. I instantly recognise her as Sidney Carmichael—one of the more popular girls in school who lives down the street from us. Everyone loves her because her family has a pool in the garden of their summer house.
Booker pulls his hand out from under her skirt, and she sits up, digging around in her purse. She pauses, looking into his eyes. “Are you sure Poppy means nothing to you? This fort you built out here together seems very special.”
My breath hitches when I hear my name, and I cover my mouth to silence myself for his response.
“She’s just a mate is all. I could never look at her the way I look at you.”
Her white teeth sparkle in the moonlight, and she pulls a tiny foil packet from her purse and holds it up to him. I watch in horror as he reaches out to grab the condom, but she holds it back and says, “I love you.”
I turn away, cupping my mouth as tears well in my eyes. I think I might be sick.
When a sob attempts to rip its way up from my throat, I begin running in the dark, tripping on a tree root and buggering up my ankle. I limp the entire way through the dark woods, tears falling down my face as my love flower morphs into complete and utter betrayal.
Of all the places Booker could have taken her, he brought her to our tree. The place where we’ve spent countless hours together. The place where we complained about our overbearing families and made our life decisions. The place where we laughed and grew closer.
The place I thought was sacred.
Witnessing what I just saw makes one thing perfectly clear. Whatever blooms I had for Booker Harris aren’t flowers of love. Not at all. They are shrivelled up weeds that need to be pulled.
I make my way down the aisle and spot Vi’s blonde hair right away. She turns and when we make eye contact, she looks like she’s just seen Santa Claus himself.
“Poppy!” she squeals and hands her baby off to the guy next to her. She rushes up the concrete steps and scoops me up in a tight squeeze. “I haven’t seen you since you were a child! Just look at you!”
Her blue eyes are raking over my entire body. I get this a lot when I come home. It’s the hair. It was a shock to my parents, too. But as soon as I cut it, I knew I’d never go back.
“Look at you,” I reply with a smile. “Vi Harris, officially grown up and a proper mummy. Congratulations on the baby. Booker said you guys call her Rocky?”
She beams. “Yes. Her name is actually Adrienne. She was a bit of a fighter when she was born, so we were inspired by Sylvester Stallone when we named her. Come and meet her!”
She grabs hold of my arm and leads me down the rest of the stairs to our seats in the front row. “This is Hayden, my fiancé. We’re getting married this summer, after football season is over, of course.”
“Oh, do you play, too?” I ask, looking up at the stunningly handsome man holding an equally stunning baby.
He laughs, his eyes narrowing on Vi. “No, but Vi is an unpaid sideline coach, so football comes before our wedding apparently.”
Her jaw drops in mock offense. “It’s not like that. We’re planning to go away for the wedding and I want all my brothers there, so we’re waiting until July when their schedules are a lot more manageable.”
“That sounds fun!” I beam, enjoying the sight of Vi and her happy little blonde family.
My eyes zero in on Rocky. “Hello, you.” I reach out and clutch Rocky’s perfectly chubby baby hand.
She has the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen on a child, and her blonde hair is so thick and feathery, I can’t help but run my fingers through it.
I laugh at the little sweatband they have around her forehead. “Vi, she is absolutely beautiful.”
Vi looks from the baby to Hayden for a moment, absorbing the compliment. “She really is. You won’t hear any arguments from me.”
Hayden chuckles. “I’ve never been more grateful for all of Vi’s brothers than I am now. When she’s older and boys start knocking down our door, I won’t hesitate to call in a Harris Shakedown.”
This makes me giggle because it’s such an easily conceived scene.
Vi gestures to the brunette standing on the other side of Hayden. “Sorry…This is Belle! Tanner’s future victim, I mean wife.”
Belle’s laugh echoes as she reaches around Hayden to shake my hand. She’s a stunning tall, dark, and curvy brunette whom I can’t help but stare at.
She cuts a look at Vi. “If anyone’s the victim, it’s him. Believe me, I’m no picnic. You should see me after a twelve-hour surgery. I’m a nightmare.”
“Please!” Vi argues. “Tanner is marrying up and there’s nothing you can say or do to change that fact.”
The two laugh with each other momentarily until the Bethnal Green Pride song starts and the players begin to march out. Hayden passes Rocky off to Vi and says he’s going to go grab some Pukka Pies for us before the match begins.
After he leaves, I have to doubt Hayden’s judgement skills a bit because Rocky is getting all kinds of jostled by Vi’s exuberant screams to sing along with the song.
It’s quite a comical sight. Rocky’s big blue eyes stare up at her mother in wonder as Vi focuses all of her energy toward the pitch and projects her voice as loud as she can.
“Do you want me to…” I hold my hands out to the baby and Vi nods eagerly.
“Thanks!” she says as she passes Rocky off to me and then stands up on her seat to sing even louder.
I clutch Rocky to my side, enjoying the weight of her.
I’ve always loved babies and have never shied away from holding someone’s if they let me.
Rocky nestles into me, all cuddly and soft and oozing warmth and cosiness.
I smile brightly at her and wave her hand to the anthem.
Her smile is heart-melting, and I laugh when I look up to see Vi still cheering at maximum volume after the song has ended.
I press my lips to Rocky’s ear and whisper, “Your mummy is a little nutty for footy, isn’t she?”
Rocky coos and giggles at me as if she’s saying I’m late to the party and this isn’t new information.
I laugh and nuzzle her with a hug, finally turning to look out at the pitch.
I’m surprised to see Booker lined up with his team right below us, only twenty feet away.
But while everyone else is facing the pitch, he’s facing us.
Our eyes lock and it’s a peculiar exchange.
He’s not smiling or frowning. He’s simply…
watching. The intensity in his gaze makes my chest flutter.
And he won’t look away, which makes it impossible for me to look away.
It’s like his glower is holding me captive.
As I stand here, feeling the weight of his eyes on me, a pressure-filled sensation moves up my chest and into my throat.
It continues all the way to my eyes, blurring my vision.
Finally, Hayden breaks our eye contact as he attempts to shuffle past me and Rocky with a tray full of food. While he returns to his seat between Vi and Belle, I shake my head to try and clear my foggy brain.
I manage to hold Rocky for most of the first half of the game, but she begins fussing around halftime.
Hayden takes her from me and tips her into a sideways position in his arms. He starts rocking her back and forth in a swinging motion.
I watch in awe because it seriously takes all of three minutes for her to pass out in his arms, asleep like a baby.
He holds Rocky the rest of the game while Vi continues screaming at the refs.
Hayden is too busy laughing at her to mind.
Belle is a bit more of a silent sport watcher.
She looks nervous and completely focused on Tanner.
In the end, the match was quite exciting for the Bethnal Green offense as they racked up five goals to the opponents’ zero.
Bethnal truly bossed the game in the first half, only allowing the opponents one shot.
It was a sudden, unexpected back kick to Booker that had my heart in my throat, but it was all for naught.
He caught it with ease and punted it so far back down the field, my jaw dropped.
So much power in his legs. So much precision in his hands.
He really has blossomed into an incredible athlete.
The attacking duo of Tanner and his fellow striker, Roan DeWalt, was impressive to witness. The two volleyed off each other and went goal for goal, earning a pair each. The fifth goal was from a gorgeous back-pass assist from Tanner to a midfielder who shot high, right past the keeper’s gloves.
The second half was when Booker truly had his shining moment in the game.
After a poor tackle from a Bethnal defender, the opponent earned a penalty kick.
My nerves were at an all-time high as I watched the player standing so close to Booker, preparing for his shot.
The chances of Booker stopping the kick were small.
The striker clearly had the advantage. But Booker held his ground—gloves out, eyes narrowed, legs bent.
That boyish face of his was gone and replaced by the image of a supreme career athlete.
He has never looked more intimidating.
The kicker had a delayed run up on the penalty shot.
He angled like he was going to kick to the right, but it ended up whizzing low and down the middle.
Booker took the fake and dove left, overshooting by a lot.
I cringed because it looked like the ball was going to skate right past his legs.
But at the last second, Booker stretched his boot out and blocked the ball with his foot, sending the fast kick flying out of bounds.