“I love him.”
“That’s something, I suppose. Jamie is going to lose his shit if he finds out,” Javier said.
This could mark the end of Steven’s career. He’d broken trust and had more conflicts of interest than he knew what to do with.
“Should I go?”
“Go where?”
“Home.”
“And leave me to deal with all this shit? I don’t think so.”
It was as though a glimmer of light had shown itself.
“What are you saying?”
“When Nikki and I met, she worked at my club,” Javier said. “I would be a hypocrite if I sacked you.”
Javier’s glamourous wife, Nikki, had swapped careers and made a name for herself as a successful interior designer. Steven had forgotten she’d been in the football industry once.
“I’m not going to pretend this is ideal,” Javier continued. “Who else knows?”
“No one.”
“Then we’ll keep it that way. Your early sessions with Udo finish now.”
Steven nodded. Tears were pricking his eyes.
“I’m sorry, Javier. Truly I am.”
Javier clapped him on the shoulder. “Love is a bastard. That’s for sure. Does he know how you feel?”
“We haven’t said as much.”
“Keep your distance without looking like it and no more scrapping. Jesus,” Javier said. “Let’s get to the end of the season, then we’ll see how the summer plays out.”
“Thank you,” Steven replied. “I mean that more than you ever know.”
Unfortunately, the elation of having Javier on his side lasted around forty-five minutes. They’d started the lads on agility training. Each one taking it in turns to pass the ball and taking it the length of the pitch before passing once again.
There was tension but they were trying their best. Even Riggs who hadn’t dared catch Steven’s eye. Neither had Udo.
Javier glanced at his phone.
“Mierda,” he said.
“What now?”
“We’ve been summoned to Jamie’s office. Immediately.”
That was never a good thing these days. Steven could only imagine how furious he would be about the negative publicity. Having taken the club over from his father, Jamie obsessed over their public image. He supposed there were plenty of people waiting for Jamie to fail. The pressure must be intense.
It made for a terrifying prospect that they had both been called.
“Adam,” Javier shouted to the captain. “Take the whistle.”
He threw his whistle, which Adam impressively caught.
