Page 202 of Made Better Together

I go out to the kitchen and let them have privacy. Connor joins me when they’re off the call and sets his phone on the counter.

“I’m calling Grace now too.” I come behind him and wrap my arms around his waist. “Stay like that, Rosy,” he says softly, as the call rings.

“Hi,” Grace says brightly when she answers. “You’re up nice and early.”

“Yes, well, that’s because…you’re talking to the new starting placekicker for the Waves!”

“NO WAY!! EEEEKKKK! JOHNSON GET IN HERE!”

More screaming and excitement follows. I rest my head against his back, his hand now resting where my arms loop together in his front.

He deserves this moment, and I’m so happy to be here for it.

After Grace’s voice drops to a normal octave, they catch up for another minute until I hear my name.

“Is Eden with you?”

“Yup.”

“Hi, Grace.”

“Hi! Your meeting with Aiden is today? Call me after if you want to talk through any of what he reports.”

“Definitely.”

Once we’re off with her, Connor turns around and pulls me into a full hug. “I’m sorry I can’t be here during your call with Aiden. I need to leave in like twenty minutes.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll give you a full rundown later.”

Connor’s been gone for half an hour when I dial into the Zoom meeting with Aiden.

He’s smiling broadly. “Morning, Eden. Good day so far? A little birdie told me about Connor.”

I grin back. “Yep, it was a nice way to kick off today, that’s for sure.”

“Well, it’s going to get better, I believe.”

Oh really? I clasp my hands together in front of the computer, squeezing them together.

“I know we’ve talked about the teams you’re most interested in not having a striker position open. But remember that wild card idea I mentioned…”

He slides some papers on his desk closer to him. “I have a proposal from the NWSL expansion team coming to Miami.”

“Miami?” They hadn’t been on my radar, but they’re one of two new cities getting a team.

“They’re excited about starting with young talent and having you grow with them.”

My mind whirls. Being part of building a team from the ground up sounds challenging in the best possible way. Plus Miami is close enough that Connor can stick to job hunting in Orlando—and at this point, maybe he’d even have an offer from the Waves?

“What are the specifics?”

He goes over the terms: 2 years, $110,000 guaranteed. “We’ll make sure you add a zero to that with endorsements too.”

“You feel good about the numbers?”

“Yes, it’s a standard amount for new players. We’ll massage the salary up in the next contract.”

Aiden knows this stuff better than me, so I trust him. Plus, I believe in myself. If I go all in, I’ll make my mark.