Page 102 of Playing the Game

The next morning Adam sat in the kitchen, staring at his phone screen.

“Shit.”

“What’s the matter?” Jen asked as she breezed in.

He held the device up. The headline screamed “Third time’s the charm for Adam and Jen.” It was accompanied by an alarmingnumber of photos of them taken at the bottom of the drive the day before.

Jen’s jaw dropped.

“Oh you’re fucking kidding,” she wailed. “You’ll have to put out a statement saying nothing of the sort is happening. I can’t, can I?”

Adam frowned. “Why did you delete all your accounts?”

“Hormones, I suppose,” she replied. “Never mind that. I can’t face the bloody media crawling everywhere. If they get one photo of Olive, I’ll…”

She burst into tears.

“Jen. Don’t. Please.”

He got up but she held her hands out. “Give me a second.”

Slowly he lowered himself back into his seat.

“I will speak to the club,” he said. “Howard will know what to do. He’s been great about me and…”

Oh for fuck’s sake. Me and my big mouth.

“You’re with someone?”

He nodded.

“Even though I can guess who, I’d like you to tell me.”

“Jonas. But no one knows. Well apart from Javier and probably Steven. Oh and Udo and Goran.”

Jen shook her head. “You never could keep your mouth closed. So you’re trying a proper relationship with a guy? Interesting.”

“I don’t know what it is,” he said. “I care for him. It’s probably shot to shit now.”

Jen sighed and ran her hands through her hair. “I can’t face photographers and reporters everywhere, Adam. We’ll be living like prisoners.”

Fear seized him. “You’re not going to take her away, are you? I’ve had no time.”

“I don’t know what the fuck to do. I need to think.”

Without looking back, she ran up the stairs.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

There was no point in trying to change her mind. Then his phone rang. No prizes for guessing who.

“Hi, Steven.”

“I’ve got Javier and Howard with me.”

Adam went through to the lounge and closed the door behind him.

Three worried faces filled his phone screen.