Page 24 of The Hellion and the Captain (Scandals and Scores #2)
“It’s up to you. If you want to continue with Manchester Central, we need to keep what we have secret until the end of the season.
I could not balance having my… woman and a player on the team never in the same room together.
It would be all the worse if you were ever to be discovered.
Depending on whether you continue with the club, we can decide what to do after the season. ”
She bit her lip. She loved football, but her feelings for Rhys were growing stronger every day. Was one worth risking for the other?
“How about this?” he said, obviously realizing her indecision. “Let’s take it one day at a time. No decisions at this moment. How does this sound?”
“Thank you, Rhys,” she said in a low voice. “But there is one thing you must know.”
“Yes?”
She lifted her head to his. “No matter what happens, in the end, I choose you.”
He leaned in, sealing their promise to one another with a kiss. Sharing soft words and tender touches, their close, intimate moment grew in heat until they practically breathed the same air, Emmaline clutching his shirt to hold herself upright.
“Rhys?” she said, looking up at him. “I have missed you. All of you.”
He looked around them, at the field before them, and Emmaline gestured to the pile of items beside her.
“I have a picnic blanket,” she said, smiling up at him, and he didn’t have much resolve to hold back from her as she broke away from him only to spread the blanket behind one of the trees, hiding them from the rest of the clearing.
Once it was down, she practically jumped on him, her legs wrapping around his waist as he took them both to the ground, laughing.
Emmaline’s hands quickly worked the buttons on Rhys’s shirt, pushing it off his shoulders to reveal his sculpted chest. He groaned as her fingers skimmed over his heated skin, trailing lower to the waistband of his trousers.
Rhys captured her wrists, stilling her movements. “Slow down, luv,” he rasped. “I want to enjoy every moment with you.”
He laid her back gently on the blanket, the soft material cushioning her from the hard ground. Hovering over her, he began placing open-mouthed kisses along the column of her throat, working his way down to the swell of her breasts visible above her neckline.
Emmaline arched into his touch, craving more. “Please, Rhys,” she whimpered.
Understanding her need, he unfastened her dress with deft fingers, baring her to his heated gaze. “So beautiful,” he murmured reverently, cupping her breasts and brushing his thumbs over the sensitive peaks.
Lost in sensation, Emmaline could only gasp and writhe beneath him as he worshipped her body with his hands and mouth. When he finally joined them as one, she had to bite back a cry of pure bliss.
They moved together in perfect sync, as natural as breathing. Rhys drove her higher with each powerful thrust, stoking the fire building within her. Emmaline clung to his broad shoulders, meeting him stroke for stroke, chasing the release she so desperately needed.
“Let go for me, Emmaline,” Rhys commanded hoarsely. “I’ve got you.”
His words were her undoing. With a silent scream, she shattered in his arms, waves of delight crashing over her. Rhys followed her over the edge, spending in the grass beside her a moment later, groaning his pleasure into the crook of her neck.
They lay entwined as their racing hearts gradually slowed, trading soft kisses and caresses. Emmaline had never felt so cherished, most shockingly by a man who seemed more rigid than any she had ever known. Yet in Rhys’s embrace, she found a sense of belonging she had always yearned for.
“I love you,” she whispered, surprising even herself with the depth of emotion in her voice. “I know it may be too soon, but I can’t help how I feel. You’ve become everything to me, Rhys Lockwood.”
Rhys’s blue eyes shone as he cupped her face tenderly. “Emmaline,” he said gruffly, “I am in love with you too. You’ve brought light and joy into my life in a way I never imagined possible.”
They sealed their declarations with a searing kiss, pouring all the love and passion they felt into the intimate embrace. No matter what challenges lay ahead, Emmaline knew they would face them together.
Rhys was her partner, her soulmate, her future in every way that mattered.
They dressed reluctantly, their outdoor haven lit only by moonlight. Emmaline didn’t know where the time had gone. She only knew that when she was with Rhys, it seemed to vanish.
He kept one hand on her back as he helped her pack up all that she had brought with her to the practice and insisted on taking it to the front door of the house, where he left her with one parting kiss.
“I don’t want to hide this from everyone,” she said, looking up at him. “I know we must for now, but I want to be together, in front of my friends. My family.”
“What will they think of a bank manager?”
“My grandfather is a businessman himself,” she said with a smile. “So, they can hardly pass any judgment. Besides, you have given me more than anyone else ever could. They’ll appreciate that. What of your family? Can I meet them one day?”
“Of course. As long as you don’t mind a trip to London. My parents are humble, hardworking people. But they will love you. As I do.”
He swiped his thumb over her face, his eyes roving over her, as though imprinting her image in his mind before he leaned in and kissed her swiftly on the lips.
“Goodnight, Emmaline.”
“Goodnight, Rhys.”
She watched him as he walked down the drive, so strong, confident, commanding, the memory of his support and devotion bolstering her.
She had the encouragement of her friends, which meant more than she could describe, but for a man to understand her ambition, what she wanted, and what she needed?
That was more than she could have ever asked for.