“Ignore her,” I say, waving a hand over my shoulder. “She’s four glasses deep. What can I do you for?”
He straightens and tucks his hands into his coat pockets. “I take it you saw the press conference today?”
“Most of it,” I say with a shrug. “Got the general idea.”
“Jordan’s going to be captain.”
“Yes, Dominic, I know. And Troy’s striker. Is that what you came here to tell me? The team coordination? Because I don’t care.”
“Are you going to come to the game on Tuesday?”
Holly’s words echo in my head, and I shrug. “I was thinking about it. Why?”
“I was talking to the club’s PR manager,” Dominic says slowly. “She thinks it’d be wise for you to… be more present.”
I cross my arms over my chest and frown at him. “Present? How?”
“With the club. Come to games, attend events, that kind of thing.”
I scoff out a laugh. “I don’t give a shit about the club.”
“Yes you do, and I know you care about those players.” Dominic gazes at me intently. “I think it’s important for us to look like a united front right now. Stop any stupid rumours from swirling about.”
“Rumours?” I snap. “What kind of bloody rumours?”
“The stupid shit people say, that you pushed Archie out or made him run away, I-”
“Is that what people are saying?” Rage flushes my face, and I plant my hands on my hips. “That I’m the reason Archie left? That I’m the reason he bloody cheated on me?”
Dominic holds his hands up like he’s just angered a dangerous snake. “Look, it was mentioned in the meeting today that people are going to talk shit, alright? And no one wants this situation to get any worse, so we just thought-”
“Oh you just thought, did you?” I take a step closer and glare up at him. “You just thought you could all blame me for the shit your son has caused for fucking years?”
“It’s not like that, I promise.”
“Is that what you think, Dom?” I jab him in his stupid broad chest with my nail. “Do you think I ran your son off because I’m a bad wife?”
“No, that’s not -fuck.” Dom grabs my hand in both of his, staring down at me with a frown. “I don’t want this whole situation to hurt you more than it has. I want to look after you, and make sure nothing blows back on you.”
I try to yank my hand free, but he holds fast. “I do not need any one of you looking after me, do you understand? I’m doing just fine.”
“You don’t need to keep pushing us all away, Mia.”
“Just fuck off, Dom.” I pull my hand out of his grasp, although I’m pretty sure he let me go. “You’re not my dad, and you’re not my family, alright?”
“I am your family.”
I hold up a hand. “Save it. You’ve never liked me, and you will never like me, and if you want me to play some part in the PR campaign for the club so your son doesn’t ruin your precious reputation, count me out.”
He doesn’t protest, just watches me slam the door in his face. His shoulders draw up in what’s probably a heavy sigh, and with his hands back in his coat pockets, he heads down the path, through the rain and into the night.
I storm back into the kitchen and pour myself a glass of wine that’s probably a little too generous, while Char watches me as though she’s watching an unexploded bomb.
“Wanna talk about it?” She asks carefully.
“He wants me to be more present,” I say in a huff. “He wants me to be some face of the club so they know that I’m on their side and not that I caused Archie to run away or something.”
Char sucks in a breath through her teeth. “They?”
