2 #3
“It’s been picked up now because it was Rihaan’s birthday the day before yesterday,” he snapped.
“Which meant that the media profiles player normally get must’ve brought your paper into the spotlight.
” His gaze settled on me properly then, silently assessing before continuing.
“You knew what you were doing. Don’t tell me that all this time you’ve worked on your paper, you didn’t look him once to know this.
So, don’t tell me you had no clue that releasing this before his birthday wouldn’t bring spotlight on you, and this paper you’ve published. ”
I let out a quiet, humourless breath. “I knew I was doing what was best for my career when I wrote the paper, yes. When it gets published? That’s nothing I have control over.”
A beat.
“And just because he was one of the players mentioned—”
“Highlighted.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, highlighted, in my paper, does not mean I remember when his birthday is.”
“This,” he gestured vaguely, to the screens, the noise, the headlines, “isn’t just a step in your career, Maeve. It’s trouble.”
I suddenly felt like my chest constricting at the disdain in his voice.
“No, Coach, this is my work. It wasn’t something I’d dreamt of and published over night.
It’s something I’ve been working for nearly two years.
Do you know the amount of time it takes to go through your adviser to get your topic approved?
How many drafts I’d worked on before it got peer reviewed and published?
So trust me when I say this, it had nothing to do with you. ”
“You don’t get to separate yourself from it when it suits you,” he said, his voice tightening. “Not when your name is tied to mine, whether you like it or not.”
“Do you have any idea what this looks like?” he pressed when I didn’t respond. “From the outside? You’re the head coach’s daughter.”
“I’m not responsible for how it looks,” I shot back, my defences rising. “I wrote what I thought was right, and my peers agreed with me.”
“And now,” he said, cutting clean through that, “you can stand by it. Properly.”
Something in my stomach dropped, slow and certain. “What does that mean?”
“It means,” he said, his attention turning to the screens once again, like the decision had been made long before I walked in, “you’re getting a promotion.
Congratulations. You’re joining the team.
You’ll wrap things up with your current role with the Women’s team, have your exit interview, and by the end of this week you’ll move over to the England Lions.
The contract will be in your inbox by end of the day today. ”
“No.” The word slipped out before I could stop it. “I—”
He cut me off before I could finish. “You’ll meet the players first thing next week for physical assessments,” he continued, his tone turning cold, procedural.
“After that, you’ll oversee any rehab work as needed.
We fly to Abu Dhabi on the first of February for a training week, then it’s onto New Zealand for the Test tour.
The team will take care of the logistics, and when we’re back in March, we’ll reassess your position and contribution. ”
“It goes without saying,” he added as I simply stared at his back, “but I’ll spell it out anyway to make sure I’m crystal clear. You’ll be working closely with Rihaan.” A beat. “You wanted to criticise him? His decisions?”
His head turned, gaze settling on me then, sharp and unyielding. “You wanted to show the world you understand his body and the sport better than he does? Well, now you’ll make sure you’re part of the mess you’ve created for him, and prove it. Here’s your chance to make your name in the sport.”
“Dad. I don’t want this. I didn’t do it for this.”
He paused, just briefly, then shook his head like that wasn’t relevant. “It’s not really about what you want anymore, is it?”
I frowned, waiting him to ask the reason he did it for. Sure, when I’d first accidentally emailed the proposal to my tutor, it had been out of anger. But I had come up with a strong enough argument to stick with it.
But the question never came.
“When you decide to make things public,” he said, quieter now, “you don’t get to expect private explanations to matter. As you said, you’ve been working on this for nearly two years now. You had plenty of time to tell me all about it. Now…I simply don’t care to know.”
I swallowed, taking a step back. There wasn’t anything left either of us could say that would make me want to stay any longer. He’d already said the one thing I never wanted to hear.
Or so I thought.
“But Maeve?”A deep frown settled over his features, like he was holding something back, deciding whether it was worth saying. I wished, for once, he’d chosen not to. “I have to say…” he went on, and this time there was no hesitation, “this is the first time you’ve managed to disappoint me.”
The words settled, heavier than they had any right to be.
“I hope,” he added, “you do enough with this chance to make sure someone else’s career isn’t collateral damage the next time you want a little trouble. Though,” a faint edge crept in, “it’s clear you don’t feel any remorse over it.”
I didn’t give him the chance to see my reaction, turning and showing myself the door to make sure I left before the first tear could fall.