“My ex-fiancé cheated on me. I am well within my right to start a new relationship with someone who knows what I’m worth,” I say. “We’re only telling you out of professional courtesy. We’re still going to be together at the end of the day.”
She sighs. “Right. Are you going to be posting about it immediately, or is it going to be a soft launch later on in the year?”
I look to Eloise, who catches my eye and nods. “A soft launch,” I say. “We’re taking things slow and want privacy as we explore our relationship.”
The HR rep nods, turning to the GM. “It would be a very good decision for you to keep both of them. Fans would be fuming if they discovered we broke up a new relationship by trading someone.”
He nods, looking at his phone for a minute. “I’m not concerned about that. I’m concerned about the hostility that you two have shown each other over the last month and throughout the last few seasons. Are we going to have to intervene if there’s a break-up?” He pins both of us to our seats.
“Taylor is happy to set up a trade agreement if there’s ever an issue post relationship, but our clients are willing to work together to make sure that won’t be necessary,” Mindy looks at me from her seat. The way her brow is raised makes me wonder if she knew about everything that I put Eloise through before we got together.
Nah, there’s no way.
“There’s definitely no concern there,” Annalise says, “but Eloise is also willing to put a trade clause into the contract in case there’s an issue should they break up.”
“So, we could lose both of our starting defenders instead of just one?” the GM says. “Is that really wise?”
“Negotiations will be held to determine the best course of action. But this is a break glass in case of emergency clause; Eloise and Taylor are both open to exploring the relationship as long as possible. They are,” Annalise says, eyeing the two of us warily, “committed to each other.”
The HR rep shrugs. “Legally, we can’t do anything, and with the trade clause in place, it would be protecting us as much as it protects them,” she says.
The GM scowls. “I just don’t like this. Our hands are tied.”
“Regretfully, sir, if this is such a big issue, I’ll look at other teams for next year,” I say, suddenly emboldened by his lack of tact. “My contract is up soon, and there’s several teams close to Vancouver that would make it easy to fly back and forth on bye-weeks and international breaks. There have been several couples in the advent of this league who have been on different teams. I imagine that we will also have that longevity if that’s the case.” Eloise’s hand on mine is a steadying force, the warmth something to focus on instead of the panic crawling up my throat.
He scowls. “Fine. We accept; just don’t do anything unbecoming of the team.”
I nod, trying to keep the smile off my face. Eloise doesn’t do much better as the hints of a smile are curling her lips upward as well. He gets up, walks away, and the HR lady is talking with Mindy and Annalise about the changes to our contracts with the trade agreement.
“We did it,” I whisper just loud enough for Eloise to hear. “We actually did it.”
“Of course we did.” She leans in, her lips brushing my ear. The gentle tickle has a shudder rolling through my body, and I wonder how else I can expect my body to react to her in the future.
The possibilities seem endless.
“We should let the team know sooner ratherthan later. Winnie’s probably bursting at the seams to tell someone,” I say. “She’s going to gloat about how she got us together.”
Eloise’s sigh says enough. “She knew I was crushing on you since college. She’s going to be insufferable.”
I still, the nervous energy transformed into lightning, zapping me where we’re touching. “You were crushing on me?” I ask, teasing. “Since college?”
She groans, “Don’t do this. You’re too pretty to be smug.”
I snort. “You like it when I’m smug.” Her flushed cheeks are all I need to know. “If you don’t want me to know what you’re thinking, you’re going to have to get that blush under control.”
She leans in to kiss my temple, and the simple act has heat simmering through me. I’ve been wanting to make out with her since last night, but then Brynn had to go and ruin it for me. Sending her away before I got to enjoy myself like I was a tween again. “I don’t think you’ll be able to figure out what I’m thinking ever, considering it took you this long to realize that I was crushing on you.”
“That would mean that I was paying attention to you, and I wasn’t, because I was too busy trying to figure out me.”
Her lips curl into a smile against my skin. “You hated me because I was good; you were paying attention to me.”
I scoff, trying to ignore the way the heat crawls up my neck. She’s right, but if I don’t dignify it with a response, then I think she’ll pretend that she didn’t hit the nail on the head. She’s so competitive, and there’s the potential that she’ll lord this over me for the rest of time.
“Should we go?” Annalise asks, breaking the little bubble that we were ensconced in. I jolt and pull away from Eloise. Annalise looks down on us with a bemused smile while Mindy is starting to walk away exasperated. I mouth ‘thank you’ to her as she waves.
“I’d love that,” Eloise says sharply, responding to Annalise. I don’t think that my cheeks are going to calm down anytime soon. They’re burning hot after being interrupted.
“Mindy and I are going to be going back and forth with them for a little bit longer to make sure the contracts are set in stone, but you guys are pretty much in the clear. Hold off on announcing the relationship for a few months to give us enough bargaining time, but congrats.” She places her hand on mine and Eloise’s and pats it.
