Page 57 of Sports and Sinners Box Set

EPILOGUE

OLIVIA

T he crowd roars around us, and I gently take hold of Leo’s chubby wrists so I can wave his hands in the air. “Yay! Daddy scored a goal!” I cheer, despite the fact that our thirteen-month-old can neither understand what I’m saying nor really hear me at all because of the ear defenders clamped to his head. He looks adorable like this, his tiny feet kicking for what I can only assume is joy.

There are only seconds left in the game, and this goal has just taken the Macaws from a tie that would have kept them in the middle of the league to an epic victory that’s going to shoot them up the table. And it’s all because of Miles.

The ball gets kicked back into play, but the referee blows the final whistle before anything else can happen. Again, the crowd cheers for the home team, delighted to know the Macaws are heading towards the top.

And then there’s Miles.

As he always does when he scores the winning goal, he rips his shirt off and throws it onto the ground so that absolutely everyone in the stadium can get a good view of his fantastic abs. Raphael comes up behind him and lifts him into the air, smiling the widest grin I’ve ever seen.

Over the last year or so, those two have almost become friends. I think Raph doesn’t see him as a threat anymore, either to his status as the most eligible player on the team or as a star in his own right. They all have an important part to play, and it’s been good to see them realize that.

When Miles’s feet finally hit the ground again and he’s high-fived everyone on the team, he stretches his arms out wide and sprints around the pitch, tipping his head back as he revels in the excitement of the crowd, of the way they’re chanting his name. I’ve seen him run six or seven laps in the past, going until he runs out of energy and adrenaline, or until the crowd get bored.

But today, he only makes it halfway round the pitch before he grinds to a halt in front of us. Leo and I are right in the front row, getting the best possible view of our boys.

“Hey, big boy,” grins Miles, leaning over the barrier to fuss at Leo. “And my lover too.”

“Go keep running,” I say, shaking my head fondly at him.

“Can’t,” he says.

I give him a questioning look, a freezing shot of fear racing through me as I consider all the problems he could be having. “What’s wrong?”

He jumps over the barrier, falling on his knees in front of us. “God, Miles, are you okay?” I ask, mostly concerned for his knees on the hard ground.

But he looks up at me and shakes his head. “I’ve never been better, babe.”

I watch him, unblinking as he pats himself down, fumbling in his pockets until he finally finds what he’s looking for. Slowly, he pulls out a small black box, and the entire world slips away from me, the cheering of the crowd reduced to a throbbing in my head as I realize what he’s doing.

Distantly, I catch a glimpse of my face on the screen, my shock projected for everyone to see.

“Olivia,” says Miles as he shuffles onto one knee. He flips open the box to reveal a silver ring encrusted in a beautiful array of diamonds. “I love you so much. I want our family to keep going forever. I want Leo to have siblings, and I want you in my life until we’re so old and wrinkly we look like tortoises.”

I laugh. “Yes, Miles. Yes.”

“Hang on,” he says, giving me a fake look of contempt. “I haven’t asked the question yet. That was just the foreplay.”

“Sorry. Go on.”

He clears his throat and readjusts himself. “Olivia Herrera. Be my wife?”

“Yes, Miles. Of course.”

Miles jumps to his feet, turns to the camera and nods, giving them a thumbs-up and mouthing she said yes! with wild exaggeration.

The crowd roars again, but I wouldn’t have cared if they hadn’t reacted at all. All I care about is my baby and my Miles. My fiancé. The word makes me tremble with delight.

I hold out my hand so he can slip the ring onto my finger, then he bends down to kiss Leo on the head before kissing me hard on the lips. Leo sits on my lap, blissfully unaware of anything that’s happening, bouncing gently in his own delight as he smiles at everything.

This is all I need, right here. I have my family and a job I adore. I get to go home to the love of my life every day. I don’t want anything else in the world.

The End