Chapter 18
Champagne was sweet on Erin’s tongue as she sat back to enjoy the celebrations playing out in full force in front of her.
The game had taken place at a neutral stadium—Molineux, in Wolverhampton—meaning they had a two-hour coach to catch back to Manchester before the day was done.
But Ayla knew the value of good team morale and had allowed them some time to celebrate in the stadium before trying to corral them back up north.
The changing room floor was sticky with sprayed champagne—a waste, if you asked Erin—and music blared from Adrianna’s Bluetooth speaker. As “Freed From Desire” played—the unofficial anthem of the women’s game in the UK—some of Erin’s teammates began to dance.
Lia was one of them, hauled to her feet by Cerys despite the ice pack wrapped around her knee. She’d been substituted—by Erin—in the eighty-first minute after scoring the first goal and hadn’t been happy to be taken off.
Judging from the shimmy of her hips as the chorus hit, her injury couldn’t be too bad.
Alex threw themself onto the bench next to Erin, pointing a half-empty bottle of champagne toward Erin’s mouth like it was a microphone. “How does it feel scoring yet another match winner in a cup final?”
Laughing, Erin knocked the bottle away. “Damn fucking good.”
Her first goal since tearing her ACL couldn’t have come at a better time.
Both figuratively—what better way to announce herself as back to her best than in a final against the same team she’d gotten injured playing against—and literally, occurring three minutes before they would have been forced into a penalty shoot-out.
Erin hated penalties. The lack of control, the amount of trust she had to put in other players, her inability to be the difference maker. The pressure of everyone expecting you to score.
Give her a last-gasp winner any day of the week.
“It’s good to have you back. And to add another trophy to the cabinet.”
“But let’s not get carried away. We have a league game in four days.
Champions League semi-final next week.” Erin loved the fact that so many trophies were available to her—four over the course of the season with the league, the two cup competitions, and the Champions League—but the scheduling could be a nightmare.
Especially when she was only just getting back from injury.
She didn’t want to push herself too far by playing in too many games, but her desperation for success made her ache to be a part of every victory that brought Albion closer to silverware.
“You sound like Ayla.” Alex poked Erin in the cheek. “Lighten up. We can worry about those games when they happen.”
Erin hummed, mind already looking toward the future. The last time an English team had completed the quadruple had been in the 2006-07 season, long before Erin had made her professional debut. It had been a dream for her since, and one she had no intention of giving up on before she retired.
“Alex! Come dance with us.” As Shanice danced past, she pulled Alex along with her. Wisely, she didn’t try and drag Erin along, too.
She wasn’t alone for long. Escaping from the madness, Lia dropped onto Erin’s other side. “Hi.”
“Hi.” Erin took in Lia’s wide, unfocused pupils and smiled. “Is someone drunk?”
“No. I’ve only had…” Lia tilted her head, eyebrows creasing into a frown. “Two glasses. Maybe three?”
“Okay, let me rephrase—is someone a lightweight?”
Lia pouted, full bottom lip protruding.
Erin had to use all of her willpower not to take it between her teeth. “How’s your knee?”
“It’s fine.” The ice pack was askew, half hanging out of the wrapping meant to keep it in place. “Just some swelling. They think it’s bursitis.”
Nothing too major, to Erin’s relief. She’d had that a few times herself—those pesky fluid-filled sacs around her knee growing inflamed. “So some anti-inflammatories and a few days’ rest and you’ll be right as rain. Not sure the dancing is doctor-prescribed, though.”
As she readjusted her ice pack, Lia’s expression turned sheepish. “I kept most of my weight off it. Do you think Ayla saw?”
“I think Ayla is hiding on the coach so she doesn’t have to see any of our shenanigans.”
“Our?” Lia raised an eyebrow. “I bet you won’t be getting into any shenanigans.”
“I don’t tend to, no.”
“Boring.”
“You think I’m boring?” Erin lowered her voice, knowing the music would drown out her words to any nearby prying ears. “That’s not what you were saying the other night when I had you tied to my headboard.”
Risky, to say such things out in the open. But Erin couldn’t help herself, finding it hard to think about anything else with Lia so close.
But so out of reach.
“Mm, maybe I need a reminder.” Lia’s eyes flickered to hers, her pupils already dilated. “Maybe later tonight I could show you exactly what I thought of that winning goal?”
“You liked it, did you?”
“Me and the twenty thousand Albion fans in the stadium.” Lia shook her head. “You were incredible out there today.”
“Careful. You don’t want to inflate my already over-inflated ego.”
Laughing, Lia leaned away, putting some much-needed distance between them. “True. We wouldn’t want your head to explode.”
“No, that would be unfortunate for you.”
Lia’s mouth opened, no doubt ready to say something teasing, when a shadow fell over them.
Adrianna stood there, hands settling on her hips. “What are you two whispering about?”
“Just talking about the game.” The lie came easily to Erin’s lips, and she leaned further away from Lia, resting her back against the wall.
“Boring.” Adrianna’s gaze flickered to Lia. “We’re going out tonight when we get back to Manchester. Come with us?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I’m tired.” Unlike Erin, Lia’s lies weren’t as convincing.
“Come on! It’s your first trophy with us!” Adrianna reached for Lia’s hands, stroking a thumb over the back of her knuckles.
The bruise from the imprint of Lia’s teeth had faded, but it still rankled Erin when Adrianna’s thumb came to rest in the same spot.
“There’ll be more trophies.”
“But not first ones. Besides, when we went out for coffee last week you promised me a night out.” Adrianna batted her eyelashes, then tugged Lia to her feet, shifting her hands to Lia’s hips.
The touch was too familiar, the look in her eyes too wanting, and Erin had to fight not to react. She had no claim on Lia—no right to dictate who she spent time with. Who Lia let touch her.
And they’d been out for coffee? Alone together? Was it a date, or just a catch-up between teammates? Though the look on Adrianna’s face as she glanced at Lia’s lips was not exactly friendly.
To her credit, Lia looked uneasy as she encircled Adrianna’s wrists with her hands and gently pulled her away—only for Adrianna to slide their fingers together and squeeze. “Honestly, I’m exhausted. Next time, though. I promise.”
“Fine.” With a dramatic sigh, Adrianna let Lia’s hands go. “But you have to come dance with us. As forfeit.”
Lia glanced back at Erin. “Yeah, okay. Give me a sec.”
Adrianna followed Lia’s line of sight and frowned. “You’re blowing me off for her?”
“No. I’m finishing a conversation you interrupted.” Lia’s voice was sharp enough for Adrianna’s eyes to widen. “I’ll be with you in a minute.”
With a simpering sigh, Adrianna turned on her heel and flounced off to join the few players still dancing on the other side of the room.
Erin glared at Adrianna’s back, a muscle in her jaw twitching and hot fury running through her veins.
“Haven’t seen a frown like that in a while.” Lia looked far too pleased with herself as she sat back at Erin’s side. “You used to direct those at me.”
Erin was supposed to say something flippant—maybe mean. But what came out instead was: “She wants to fuck you.”
Lia blinked, mouth opening and closing a few times before she spoke. When she did, the words were careful. “I know. She’s made that abundantly clear since I got here. Are you jealous?”
“No.” The word was little more than a snarl. “Why would I be jealous of her?” Jealous of someone who had never gotten the privilege of knowing Lia as intimately as Erin had over the last few weeks? What did she have to be jealous about?
Except Adrianna could touch Lia freely, so thoughtlessly. So carelessly. Like it meant nothing, like it was simple. Easy.
When Erin had to try so hard to hold back from leaning too close into Lia’s orbit.
“Because you’re kind of acting like you are?” Lia’s frown deepened. “You know you don’t have to be, right? There’s nothing there.”
“It would be none of my business if there were.” Erin had no right to Lia. No right at all to feel anything untoward watching Lia and Adrianna interact. If Lia wanted to go out and sleep with half the team, Erin wouldn’t be able to do a thing about it.
And that had never seemed like a problem until now.
Until Erin realised how much it knocked the air from her lungs.
“But there’s not.” Lia reached toward her like she was going to touch Erin’s hand before seeming to think better of it, dropping her hand back into her lap. “You have to know that.”
Erin did know that, but it did nothing to quiet the roiling storm of thoughts in her mind. She turned her head—freezing at the sight of Alex standing on the other side of the room, arms folded across their chest, a considering look on their face.
As their eyes met, Alex raised a single eyebrow, their question clear.
Erin swallowed, not wanting to know what emotions Alex was reading on her face.
She was forgetting herself. First, with Jessica, and now, there in the changing room, surrounded by their teammates.
Made lax by the heady way Lia made her feel, she was getting sloppy, letting her personal life creep into her professional one.
The thought of what might happen—of what Erin might let slip through her fingers—if she carried on down that path was sobering. Hadn’t she just been dreaming of the quadruple? Could she do that if she kept letting Lia worm her way into her head? Distracting her from her goals?