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It took a few moments, but eventually, Ella gave her the slightest nod.

Sloane sat in the chair in front of her desk, suddenly wishing she was showered and fresh. Coming direct from the training ground put her at a disadvantage. But she was here now. She should say her piece and get out.

“I wanted to catch you before you left.”

Silence.

Okay, she wasn’t going to make this easy.

“I was papped on the way to work the day after those photos of you and Jess came out.” Ella sat up in her chair. “Someone was waiting for me to leave my flat.” She put a finger to her chest. “Me. I’m not a famous footballer. I’m not you, I’m not Jess.”

“But you’re Ella. You’re definitely someone.”

Ella’s wince made Sloane’s stomach clench. Unease kicked her in the gut.

“Not someone who should be photographed at will, though. I’m behind the scenes, not in front of the camera. Maybe you knew that when you didn’t fully commit to us for the past few months.”

“I already told you I’m sorry about all of that. Jess turned up unannounced. She wanted to talk, and I thought I could chat over coffee. Get it done without worrying you. I know now I should have told you she’d been in touch, but I thought I could handle it. Turns out, I couldn’t.”

“My point still stands. Maybe you’d be better off with someone like her, though. Someone who likes the limelight. I don’t.”

Sloane was getting that vibe. “I don’t think so. For the record, I don’t like it either.”

“Your game’s suffering.”

Sloane had missed a sitter in her first game back, and the team were now third in the league. Next up was the FA Cup semi-final.

“That’s because I’m not happy. You know everything has to be right off the field, for it to work on it. I just notched 27 out of 50 penalties today. A new low. I need to sort this out with you.”

A knock on the door frame made them both look up.

Lucy. She walked in and closed the door behind her. She stood to the side of Ella’s desk, arms folded across her chest. “I’m glad I got the two of you together. I’ve been wanting to since we lost the other night.” She sighed. “Remember when I said I was all for this, so long as it didn’t impact the team?” She glanced from Ella, to Sloane, then back. “Tell me this isn’t impacting the team.” She pointed at Sloane. “You’re not training well, and from what I saw just now, your penalties are suffering too, am I right?”

Sloane nodded. She cast her gaze to Ella, then to the floor. This was like being told off by the principal. It wasn’t what she was used to.

“And you,” Lucy said, staring at Ella. “Pre-international break, things were going so well. Now, you’re working from home every chance you get. Hiding in the toilet when you think Sloane might walk past your door.”

Ella’s mouth dropped open. “How did you—”

“—it’s my job to know these things.”

Now it was Ella’s turn to blush and look at the floor.

“Put simply, I need my two best performers back on form. This is the crunch point of the season. I can’t have Ella avoiding the team, and Sloane misfiring. It doesn’t work.” She blew out her cheeks. “Here’s what I need you to do. You’re grown adults. You know what’s at stake. Please sort this out, so that Sloane’s form isn’t affected, and Ella’s sad face doesn’t haunt the rest of the team. I need happy staff and fired-up players, not people at each other’s throats. Can I rely on you to do that?”

Sloane glanced at Ella, and they both nodded.

“Absolutely,” they said in union.

“Good,” Lucy said. “Now I’m going to get out of here before this tension suffocates me. Remember what you like about each other. Please. At least until the end of the season. And remind me never to be a soft touch about staff-player relationships again.”

Sloane waited until Lucy shut the door before she turned to Ella. She wasn’t leaving until Ella knew how she felt.

“I guess we really fucked this up.”

“I guess we did.” Sloane sighed. “But I can cope with disappointing Lucy. I can’t cope with disappointing you. I really missed you while I was away at camp. I missed talking to you, as well as everything else. You’re part of my life, Ella. A massive, non-negotiable part. I don’t want to lose you.”

Ella blew out her cheeks too, mimicking Lucy. “I don’t want to lose you either. But this isn’t cut and dried, Sloane. You’ve been in contact with your ex. You might be leaving in a few months. Look at it from my perspective. Should I put my heart on the line, only for you to walk away? Maybe now’s the time to step back. We can still do well until the end of the season if we agree to be civil.”