Page 101 of All For You

The kids gave out a collective groan. Darcy laughed at their reaction, and I loved that about him. I’d thought he was prideful, someone who never reflected on himself, couldn’t laugh at himself, but that wasn’t true. He’d realized on his own that he was insular and self-reliant to a fault, but I believed he’d try to communicate better. I believed he would do better in the future. Maybe mess up, but he’d always try.

“And I’m supposed to call you on the megaphone, but I still don’t know what that means,” he said.

“I think because we have an audience, you’re already doing it,” I said.

“That works, then.” He smiled, then gave a shaky sigh of relief. “Oh Lizzy, I love you so much. I don’t know what I would have done if you’d turned me down.”

He shuddered, and I saw in his eyes a deep yearning. He pushed his hands into my hair and took my mouth passionately. I briefly worried about our audience, but then with a turn of his mouth, the world disappeared.

Until the clearing of throats and shuffling and a loud whisper came from behind us. “Kids. Let’s leave them and head back now,” said one of the coaches.

But I couldn’t hear any movement behind me.

He smiled against my lips. “I think we have an audience.”

“I think you’re right,” I said with a happy hum.

He held my hands, and we stared at each other, smiling like idiots as I heard the kids reluctantly head back with their other coaches.

“What now?” I asked.

“Do you want to come back to my place after this?” he asked.

“Oh, but I’ve left Oodles at home with Mum. And even if I got Mum to stay overnight, I have to be back at home for a reading at my local bookstore tomorrow morning. They’ve been so loyal over the last year when I haven’t released anything, I don’t feel I can cancel.”

“That’s okay. I’ll drive us. I’m coming home with you.”

“Just like that?” No invite needed.

“Just like that.”

He’d been humble before when he needed to be, but still, I liked how he was also assured and confident.

“Oodles is going to be so happy to see Max,” I said. “And get better acquainted with Topaz.”

He kissed me softly on the lips. “Not half as happy as I was to see you.”

We headed back to the sidelines, his arm around my shoulders, his hand rubbing my arm, resting our heads against each other’s. He kissed my cheek, my neck, and my lips. We strode along, locked together, passing silly comments and smiling at each other dazedly.

Walking like this, wrapped around each other, me swaying against his broad chest, should have felt new. But I was home under the weight of his arm, my head tucked securely under his chin. I circled my arms around his waist, squeezed, and looked up at him.

“Hello.” I was so overcome, tears pushed at the backs of my eyes.

“Hello.” He blinked quickly as if he felt the same. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

A couple of hours later,I spotted Wills and Jane striding toward us as the tournament was ending. Darcy had joined in again with the coaching, standing on the sidelines next to the benches and water canteen and other coaches, and I’d waited beside him, cheering and chatting with the other coaches and surreptitiously ogling him in his sweats.

Jane waved some papers as they got closer, a huge grin on her face.

“It’s going to be okay,” she said, joining us. “We got our cease and desist.”

I enclosed her in a huge hug, and Darcy slapped his brother on the back.

“What happened?” I asked. “How did Sebastian do it?”

“He’s had five law clerks on the job since he heard from Darcy Sunday morning,” Wills said. “He’d thought he’d found ahole in the contract, because Jane’s and Wickham’s signatures should have been witnessed. But Seb didn’t want to rely on that. He also found evidence to argue that the photo was never for commercial release and was instead for Wickham’s own use. But then we wouldn’t be able to enforce an action where Wickham was forced to hand the photos over to us. His law clerks ended up working through the night and found an obscure case precedent in the law books. It’s the revenge porn rule, where if you use pornographic material as a form of revenge, you can be sued.”

“But would we want to sue him in court?” I asked. “That sounds very public.”