Erin risked a glance at her. Lia had her cheek pressed to the headrest, eyes on Erin’s profile. Despite the long day, she didn’t look tired, her eyes bright in the darkness. Her hair, wet from the rain, curled against the sides of her pale cheeks.
“Sorry.”
“We’re all alone now. You can say whatever you need to say.”
“I’d rather wait until I’m not on the road.”
“That serious, huh? Should I be worried?” She didn’t look it, though. If Lia was nervous, she was hiding it well.
Much better than Erin was, apparently. “No.”
“So, relax.” Lia stretched out a hand into the space between them, settling her palm high on Erin’s thigh.
Even through the thick material of her sweatpants, the touch burned. “That is not relaxing.”
Lia squeezed gently, fingers pressing into the muscle of Erin’s thigh. “Do you want me to move?”
Letting out a slow breath, Erin shook her head. The touch was electric, making her heart race, giving her hope that maybe Lia wouldn’t be so eager to turn her down.
Lia kept her hand in place until Erin had parked in the underground car park beneath their building, pulling away only to exit the car. Left cold by the absence of Lia’s touch, Erin hurried to get their bags and walk to the lift, eager to return to the safety of her apartment.
Even if she had no idea what she was going to say when they got there.
Gerrard greeted them, winding around first Erin’s and then Lia’s legs with a loud purr the moment they stepped inside. Erin flicked on the light with trembling fingers, watching Lia hover in her hallway, looking at Erin with an expectant gaze.
“Well? Tell me what you wanted to say.”
“I don’t know where to start.” Erin wandered toward her couch; Lia’s soft footsteps followed behind her. “Maybe with ‘I’m sorry’?”
Instead of joining her on the couch, Lia crouched beside the coffee table to stroke Gerrard’s head. She didn’t look at Erin as she scratched behind his ear. “For what?”
“For everything. For pushing you away. For getting jealous. For ruining everything.”
With a hum, Lia lifted her head to meet her gaze. “So you admit you were jealous?”
“It’s not my proudest moment.”
“You didn’t have anything to be jealous of! You were the one I wanted to go home with. You’re too clever not to realise that.”
“Turns out I can be obtuse when it comes to pesky things like feelings.” Tracing the number eleven imprinted on the pocket of her sweatpants in order to do something with her hands, Erin settled further into the couch. “I’ve never been good at them. Having them or admitting to them.”
“Shocking.”
Erin huffed. “I’m trying here, okay? Can you not make fun of me right now?”
“Don’t you think you deserve it?”
“Probably.” Erin had treated Lia unfairly from the moment she’d arrived at Albion. “For my entire career, I’ve had my rules: Don’t mix business with pleasure. Don’t get too close to anyone else on the team. Don’t get too attached. And don’t ever let my personal relationships affect anything I do on the pitch. You’ve made me break every single one of those rules.”
“Made you?” Lia’s eyes flashed. “I haven’t made you do anything, Erin! Do I need to remind you that you started this? You were the one who tried to kiss me!”
“I know!” Frustrated, Erin ran a hand through her hair. “That wasn’t what I meant. I’m not blaming you. Every decision I’ve made has been my own. I just meant you’re special. I can’t stop thinking about you.” Saying it out loud was a relief. “It goes against everything I’ve ever stood by; it’s everything I swore I never wanted again. But I can’t deny it anymore. I don’t want to.”
Puzzlement slid across Lia’s face, a frown creasing her brow. She’d stopped petting Gerrard, and he headbutted her hand with an indignant meow. When she kept her hand extended, frozen in place, he stalked away. “What—what are you saying?”
“I’m saying that I miss you. That I hate the way we left things. And that maybe I don’t want it to be just casual anymore. Maybe I want more than that. If you’re open to it.”
“You want a relationship. With me.” Lia didn’t phrase it as a question.
