Page 23 of The Hellion and the Captain (Scandals and Scores #2)

Chapter Twenty

“ T hat’s it!” Emmaline called out, trying to be encouraging, but she was biting her lip to prevent her true emotions from emerging.

After months of playing and training with a team of men she had to work to keep up with, she now had a better understanding of how Rhys likely felt when he worked with her.

The women on the field before her had enthusiasm but lacked… well, everything else, for the most part.

A few had some promise, while others, such as Lily, were there solely to support her and bolster her numbers.

She loved them for this, as she knew there were an untold number of activities they would much rather be doing. But she wasn’t quite sure what to do with them.

Rhys. If only he could be here, helping her. He would know what to do, how to encourage them, just as he had with her and always did with the rest of the team.

It had taken all of her will to step back and away from him, but what choice did she have?

If suspicions were placed upon the two of them, she couldn’t let him take any fall for her.

The club and his job were everything to him.

He had worked so hard for it all, and for any question to land upon him for a risk she had taken that he had never asked for wasn’t fair.

So, she had drawn away from him.

And missed him so fiercely that it hurt.

Emmaline watched the women attempt to pass and dribble as she ran down the field alongside them, annoyed by the encumbrance of her skirts, despite wearing a dress with a short hem and more durable material.

She had just reached the area at the end of the field — the very trees where Rhys had always decided was her finish line when they practiced — when she caught a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. Was someone there?

“Lily,” she called out to her friend, who was bent over, hands on her knees as she breathed heavily, “someone is watching us.”

Instead of holding concern as Emmaline expected, a look of guilt flashed across Lily’s expression.

“Lily,” Emmaline said sternly, hands on her hips as she studied her friend, “what did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything,” Lily said defensively, “except, perhaps, allow him to follow us.”

Emmaline’s heart leapt into her throat. It couldn’t be... could it?

But then she remembered that this practice was supposed to have been kept secret.

“Lily,” she chastised, but Lily raised her hands to her sides.

“He was worried about you, Emmaline,” she said softly, and as they both turned to stare at him, Rhys, not hidden nearly as well as he likely thought he was behind the tree, stepped out and waved.

Oh goodness, but Emmaline had missed him.

Accepting his fate at having been caught, he now strode purposefully across the field toward her, looking as ruggedly handsome as ever in his worn trousers and simple shirt with his sleeves rolled up, those fine forearms on display.

Emmaline’s breath caught. She had missed him so much it was a physical ache, but she could only imagine what he would say to her after she had missed practice, ignored his notes, and practically disappeared.

“What are you doing here?” she asked breathlessly when he reached her side.

“First, to make sure you were alive,” he said, as Lily melted away, leaving the two of them to speak alone. “I haven’t heard from you in a week, Emmaline. What was I supposed to think?”

Some anger laced his tone, but she could see from his expression that it only covered the hurt he felt, and she was instantly ashamed of shutting him out, even if she had done so to protect him.

“I’m sorry, Rhys,” she said softly. “After what Lord Harcourt accused you of, and then hearing that it is Victor Reeves out to get me?—”

“How did you know that our suspicions were correct?”

“Lily told me.”

“Ah,” he said, running a hand over his beard. “News travels fast.”

“So it does,” she said. “But I suppose you would have told me directly if I had come to practice.”

“I would have,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “I know you are trying to help, Emmaline, but if you want to play for Manchester Central, you have to be there, for all of us. We have a real shot at the Cup this year, but we all must be committed.”

She met his intense gaze, searching for the truth. “Do you think it is best that I stay? Or am I just putting everyone at risk?”

“There is risk,” he conceded. “We knew that going in. Joining Manchester Central was a serious decision, Emmaline. It wasn’t just for the fun of it. When I agreed to support you, I did so knowing what could come with it. But if you are willing to take it on, so am I.”

Emmaline felt there was more behind his words, meaning that went beyond the football team, but considerations about that would have to come later.

Right now, twenty women were waiting for instructions.

“Can we talk about this later?” she said, gesturing behind her. “I’m a little busy at the moment. I’m sure Lily filled you in.”

“She did,” he said, his blue eyes boring into hers. “And I came to help. I know how much this means to you, Emmaline. Let me assist in any way I can.”

Tears pricked her eyes at his unwavering support. Having Rhys here, willing to guide her fledgling women’s team that was already a disaster, meant more than she could express.

She nodded with a smile, and together they turned toward the field.

“Ladies!” Emmaline called out. “We have a treat. This afternoon, we will have some guidance from the captain of Manchester Central. What do you think?”

The women exchanged glances, a few of them looking a bit too enthusiastic about working with the handsome football captain. Still, Emmaline knew that Rhys was doing this for her, and she had little fear that he would be tempted by anyone else before him, as lovely as many as the ladies were.

They weren’t swooning for long once they realized that Rhys would not treat them like ladies but rather hard-working women.

Together, Rhys and Emmaline demonstrated proper technique and offered encouragement.

Under Rhys’s expert tutelage, some of the women began to show marked improvement, their passes crisper, their footwork more precise.

Pride swelled in Emmaline’s chest as she watched them blossom. While they still had so far to go, this was her dream taking shape.

“Thank you all for coming,” she said at the end when she gathered them all around her, many of them appearing considerably relieved to be finished.

“I know this was a trial for many of you, to determine whether this is something you might be interested in. I am working on building this club, finding sponsors, and making football a more respectable pursuit. If you want to continue with me, please leave your name and address with Mrs. Thornton, and we will be in touch.”

The women nodded, some thanking her, others too exhausted to say anything, but at least half of them found their way to where Lily sat at one side of the field, with a pencil and paper.

As Emmaline watched them, Rhys came to stand beside her, reaching out to her and lacing his fingers with hers, his large, warm hand engulfing her smaller one.

“You’re doing an amazing thing here, Emmaline,” he said gruffly. “Making change. Giving these women an opportunity.”

Emmaline’s heart turned over at the raw emotion in his voice, as she knew that he was not a man who gave out compliments easily.

“I couldn’t have done it nearly as well without you, Rhys. Having you here, supporting me… it means everything.”

“I followed your lead,” he said. “All I ask is that next time you give me some warning.”

Emmaline looked over his shoulder, seeing Lily wave to her before she and Minnie and Ada followed the other women off the field.

They would ensure that all of the women were seen to their carriages.

Emmaline had told her parents to expect guests as she was hosting a picnic with a few of her closest friends .

They had seemed pleased, if disinterested, before leaving for a dinner party of their own.

Finally alone, Rhys skimmed his fingertips over her cheek in the barest caress.

She shivered before he captured her lips in a searing kiss that made her toes curl.

They lost themselves in each other for a few stolen moments, the world fading away along with the setting sun, until it was just the two of them, wrapped up in one another, finding their way back together after too much time apart.

Breathless, Emmaline finally pulled back, resting her forehead against his broad chest. “We probably shouldn’t stay together here for too long.”

“I know,” Rhys sighed, but he made no move to release her from his embrace. “But I hated being apart from you this week. I needed to see you.”

“I felt the same,” she confessed. “But we must be careful, Rhys. I couldn’t bear it if my actions cost you everything you’ve worked so hard for.”

“You’re worth any risk,” he vowed fiercely. “I told you, Emmaline. I have my job, this club, yes, but I want more from my life.”

“You honestly think that… that I could be the one to fill that space?”

“I do,” he said, his eyes searching her face.

Emotion clogged her throat. This man, so strong and steadfast, was willing to risk everything for her.

She couldn’t help that small tug at the back of her mind questioning whether he meant what he said, whether this would go beyond the time they spent together and if he could see himself with her for any considerable length of time, but to ask would gain nothing.

She could see the sincerity in his eyes, and knew that his intentions, at least, were true.

She was reminded of why she was falling in love with him .

She reached up, touching his face, running her fingers over his beard. “Where do we go from here?” she murmured.