The next day passed in a flurry of repeated calls and messages that Liam never answered, and worry was starting to settle in. What if he was already gone? Cold fear chipped away at me, and I wasn’t sure about anything anymore.

I had convinced myself that was okay, went out to a club, and returned home at two in the morning hammered, only to come to the conclusion that it was one of the worst nights of my life. I had rejected several men, who offered to buy me drinks or wanted to dance with me, always comparing them with Liam.

Liam was taller. Liam was more handsome. Liam didn’t sound so lame. Liam’s lips were way more sensual. Liam, Liam, Liam.

His name was like a broken record, and by the time I finally gave up on pretending clubbing would do me any good, I was in the worst mood of my day.

Claire called to check on me, reprimanding me for chickening out that easily and giving up.

“What can a girl do?” I whined, sounding so unlike myself. Obviously, I had fallen too hard for him. “I called him and sent him so many messages that it was bordering on psychotic, but he’s giving me the cold shoulder.”

“Look, I won’t let you give up on him that easily. He’s obviously in a pinch and doesn’t know how to feel or what to do. So, I’ll talk with Jared and ask him if he knows where Liam is. Then you can go and talk to him.”

It was easier said than done. I was a bundle of nerves the next time Claire called me, and I had to remind myself twice that I was a strong, independent woman and I wouldn’t let this minor hurdle stop me from going after what I wanted. If he hadn’t left the U.S., I would talk to him and see if I could solve our issue. If not…

“I’ve talked to Jared,” Claire informed me.

“And?”

“Liam is currently at the soccer field. You may still find him there if you go right now.”

My pulse turned erratic. So he hadn’t left the U.S. “Thanks. Did Jared tell you anything else? Like, is Liam okay?”

“Why don’t you ask him yourself? Remember, you can do this.”

I repeated Claire’s words of encouragement as I dressed—a pretty navy blue sheath dress with the lace embedded at its sides and black wedges, which was definitely not the right outfit for the field, but I needed all the weapons I could get to win this. I left my messy curls the way they were, remembering he had once told me he was crazy about them.

I arrived at the soccer field just when the match was coming to its end. I found him in the first row, intently watching the game, and just seeing him focused like that brought me pleasant shivers. He was too beautiful, freezing me in place, and I needed a few moments to make my legs move.

I didn’t remember when the last time was I had been so nervous about speaking with a guy, which was quite ironic since guys were the ones who had been doing the chasing, not me. I never cared that much, always so poised during breakups that one would think I felt nothing.

Here goes nothing.

“Hello, stranger.” My sultry voice was right on point. He whipped his head up to look at me. I smiled at his surprised expression and motioned at the seat next to him. “Is this taken?”

He didn’t reply immediately, taking his time to study my appearance. His face showed nothing, but his eyes, oh those eyes, flashed for a brief moment with something that could only be described as lust. That was a good sign.

“No,” he replied gruffly and looked away, his jaw tightening.

With a small sigh, I sat next to him and clasped my hands together on my lap, bringing my gaze to the game.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his tone distant, not bothering to look at me.

“Trying to see the match?” I responded, hoping to turn this into a more comfortable moment.

“You wanted to see this match?”

“Yep.”

“Do you even know who is playing?”

I could sense him watching me from the corner of my eye, and I turned my head to look at him. His face was mocking me, his eyebrows too winged up as he studied me.

“Los Angeles Lakers vs. Chicago Bulls?” I made a half-baked joke.

“Wrong sport, honey.”

“Wrong timing for my outburst too.”

He knew exactly what I was talking about. “Then why did you do it?”

I glanced away, biting my lip. One of the players was close to scoring, but the rival player stole the ball from him and rushed to the rival’s goal.

It occurred to me that Liam and my “relationship” resembled soccer. Both of us were fighting for the ball, chasing around and hoping to score, at odds because Liam’s career was always looming over our heads. I committed a foul, so now I was treading a thin line.

“Because I like you.” There. I said it. “I like you, maybe, too much. So I acted pretty selfishly because I feared I meant nothing to you.” I kept our eye contact, ignoring the maddening thumps of my heart. “And now I feel guilty for getting mad at you when you were in trouble. I’m supposed to support you, not make things more difficult for you.”

The referee blew his whistle, calling foul. The audience was becoming tenser with each minute ticking by, but I couldn’t care less about the game. Apparently, Liam couldn’t care less about it either, if the way he was looking at me was anything to go by.

The coldness in his gaze was gradually ebbing into softness, the one that was reviving me and making me feel like everything was possible. Like we would be alright.

“I tried reaching you—”

“I wasn’t ready to talk to you,” he interrupted me. “I wanted but… At first, I thought you wouldn’t understand me. I thought we would just fall into another argument.”

“No.” I placed my hand over his before I was even aware of what I was doing. Both of us looked at our connected hands, and both of us did nothing to break our contact. “I understand this is a major moment in your career and you need time to deal with it. I’m sorry, Liam. I want to help you. I want you to count on me to stay and be with you through everything. I don’t want to argue with you or stop you from doing what you want.”

He had yet to say anything about my confession. I was feeling extra vulnerable, but then again, I had nothing left to lose anymore. I had to be honest with him and communicate, as Marissa had told me.

And then, his other hand was on mine, and the edgy lines were gone from his face. “I also have to apologize. It’s not all your fault.” His thumb was caressing my wrist in circles, and my blood pumped faster. “As much as I hate it, I was wrong. I was acting obsessed and trying to do the impossible, instead of facing the fact that I was barking up the wrong tree. Even if I played in the cup, I wouldn’t have been at the top of my game, which wouldn’t do well for my career either.” He tucked a curl behind my ear, leaning a bit closer to me.

“I just needed a few days to come to terms with not being able to play. Now, I’m much better.”

His lips broke out in a gorgeous smile. I was dazed. “That’s good to hear.”

“You know what is even better for you to hear?”

“No. What?”

His face was only inches away now. Our breaths mixed. “That I fell for you too.” Our lips were only an inch apart... “I feel like I can go through any crisis with you next to me… And I need you.”

And then we were kissing, and the fireworks were erupting in me. I grabbed his shirt to pull him closer, not caring in the slightest that we probably had quite a few pairs of eyes set on us. His taste pervaded me, the silky feel of his tongue on mine reaching depths that were starving for him, for his touch, for his body.

He grabbed my head and deepened our kiss, pressing harder against me, and everything in me pulsed in urgent need. As if we were separated for weeks, I embraced him with all of me.

“Let’s get the hell out of here,” he muttered hoarsely and pulled me to my feet.

He took me to a locker room that was completely empty since the game wasn’t finished yet.

“We don’t have much time until the guys arrive, but it will be enough,” he said as he yanked me into the first shower.

His lips and hands were on me again, no time left for words as our bodies moved with urgency. His kisses were too potent, owning me, creating a pool of desire in my panties.

He ground against me as his lips lowered to kiss my breasts over my dress, and I was glad for the thin material of my bra that allowed me to feel his lips much better than the push-up bra I had originally wanted to wear.

His hand snaked its way under my dress and into my undies, finding my wet clit.

“I’ve fantasized about this all these days. I was so mad at you, but I couldn’t help but want you... This pussy… Everything.”

I moaned, and he clamped his other hand over my mouth. “Keep quiet.”

It was next to impossible to stay quiet when his fingers created such divine pleasure. He knew exactly how and where to touch me, increasing pressure or speed at right times, and it was all too easy for him to bring me to my first orgasm.

I was writhing against the wall when it hit me, my legs shaking as he continued rubbing me until the pleasure faded away.

“So sexy. And mine. You know that, Alison? You know that you’re mine?” He cupped my cheek, pushing his wet fingers into his mouth. “Mmm as always, you’re so delicious. I wish I could eat you right now.”

“Jesus, Liam. You really know how to turn on a girl.” His chuckles turned into a smirk when I reached for him. My hands worked quickly, unfastening his belt and unzipping his jeans. His erection sprung free, standing out in all its glory, and I grabbed him with both hands, dying to touch it.

“No time for that, sweetheart. Later.”

He removed my hands and pulled my dress higher. Positioning himself at my entrance, he picked up my leg and wrapped it around his waist before he pulled my underwear to the side. His lips covered mine the moment he plunged inside of me, drinking my breathy moan.

I was so full, so high, responding to his thrusts frantically. The whistle in the distance signaled the end of the match, which meant the guys could arrive here any minute, but the prospect of getting caught only made me hotter. It seemed that Liam felt the same about it since he started moving faster and more forcefully, tearing through my swollen walls.

“You’re so tight and wet. I’m going to cum really hard.”

“Yes. Cum inside of me. I need you to cum deep inside.”

This seemed to really turn him on, because a few violent thrusts later, he was filling me with his load to the brim.

“My naughty girl.” He tapped my nose, staring into my eyes while drawing long breaths in. “I missed you.”

“I missed you—”

The voices sounded in the distance, and we disentangled from each other in an instant.

“The girls’ locker room is right next door. It’s open, so you can clean up there.”

“Thanks,” I said and pecked a kiss on his cheek. I picked my bag up from where I had dropped it earlier and scurried to the girls’ locker room as fast as my wedges allowed me.

He took me to his place, promising to make me a delicious dinner.

“Wait for me here. It will be ready soon.”

I responded with a goofy smile and slumped onto his couch, turning on his TV to flip through channels as I waited for him. He had told me a lot during our car ride to his place, mentioning how he had gotten attached to me and how confused he was with his feelings at first.

“I wasn’t sure if what I felt for you was real,” he said in the car. “I’m really not used to this—to attachments—so I just wanted to spend more time with you and see where it would lead us. But now I know. I want to be with you.”

My heart was dancing in joy, but then, there was a part of me that realized we hadn’t talked about his future. Would he stay? Would he actually stay now that he felt the same way I felt about him?

I wanted to talk about it during this dinner and clear everything up once and for all. I needed to know what I was in for.

Liam’s phone, which he had left on the couch next to me, started ringing.

“Liam! Your phone!”

“Who is it?”

I glanced at the screen and said, “Roger Raymond.”

He was next to me within half a minute, and I could see this was an important call.

“Who is that?” I asked him.

“My manager. Hello, Roger. How are you doing?”

He sat down next to me and palmed my knee. My eyes closed, my mind unveiled the fantasy in which he would move that hand upward and touch me like earlier. My mound was ready for round two.

“I got a what?” his voice was filled with incredulity and my eyes snapped open. He was now back to his feet, pacing in front of me left and right. “You’re kidding me right?” His lips stretched into a gigantic smile, his whole face glowing. “Yes!” he exclaimed, fist-bumping the air, and several moments later, he ended the call.

“Liam?”

He picked me up and kissed me, locking me in a bear-hug. Our lips mashed together, his joy rubbing off on me.

But then he pulled away and uttered the words that put all my rushing thoughts to a halt.

“I got an offer to be a coach in England.”