Ada started slightly, quickly plastering a smile on her face, one that she didn’t feel in her heart, but she didn’t want to worry her friends any more than she had to.
“Yes, of course,” she said. “I’m just… keeping an eye out.”
Lily followed her gaze toward a few rough-looking men who seemed more interested in observing the spectators than the match itself. A shiver ran down Ada’s spine as she couldn’t help but wonder if Sharpe’s men were here, keeping an eye on Jonny.
Lily reached over and squeezed her hand. “I know you must be worried, especially after what happened at the wedding.”
“If he was willing to make such a bold confrontation, what else is he capable of?” Ada asked, finally voicing her worries aloud.
“Did you feel safe with Jonny last night?” Lily asked, tilting her head with the question.
“Yes,” Ada said, her lips curling into a small smile as she remembered their late-night conversation and the way he had held her. “Despite all that we are facing… I’m not sure I have ever felt so safe before.”
“That’s good,” Lily said, squeezing the hand she still clasped within hers.
“How was staying with him?” Emmaline asked, leaning in with interest after apparently hearing some of their conversation.
“It was just fine, actually,” Ada said. “I felt like I was something of an inconvenience at first, but I think Jonny was nearly as shaken as I was about everything that had happened, and he didn’t know how to say what he was feeling. We figured things out.”
“Together?”
Ada laughed at the insinuation in Emmaline’s tone.
“He was a comfort to me.”
“I see,” Emmaline said, giving her one last suspicious glance before returning her attention to the pitch.
The two teams battled back and forth, Manchester Central clinging to its narrow lead. Jonny seemed to be everywhere – winning tackles, starting attacks, rallying his teammates. As the final whistle blew, Manchester Central had held on for a hard-fought 1-0 victory.
"Well done, lads!" Emmaline called out as the players walked past them after the game, flush with triumph and dripping with sweat.
Jonny lifted a hand to wave at Ada as he walked to the changing area, his eyes intense upon her until the door closed behind him.
As the stands began to clear out, Ada turned to her friends with a worried look.
"What do you think will happen now? With Sharpe and the plan to take him down? It's so dangerous..."
"I don't know," Minnie said, biting her lip. "But the men seem determined to see it through. We'll have to trust them."
"And help however we can," Emmaline added. "They may need us before it's over."
As they were finishing the conversation, the teams had reached the stands and Jonny immediately came to Ada, tugging her close. She didn’t miss the way her friends all watched Jonny’s arm hook around her hip, most of them smiling at the action.
“That was quite the game,” Ada said.
“It was,” he said, letting out a breath as the other men joined him. “A little too close.”
“Doesn’t matter how close you are,” Rhys said confidently. “A win is a win, and we are moving on to the final.”
“When is that?” Ada asked.
“Two weeks.”
Two weeks. It would be interesting to see how much would change in that time.
Jonny had played as hard as he could, despite being unable to prevent his eyes from continually drifting over to where he knew Ada was sitting for the entire game.
She was wearing a maroon dress that Maggie had loaned her, the same color that Manchester Central wore, and his heart warmed with pride that she was choosing the team, choosing him, even though he hadn’t provided her with any reassurances.
