And neither of us hesitated for a second. We didn’t even think about it as we came together. It was instinctual. Two magnets drawn to each other by force.
The hallway is busy with the athletic staff and my teammates, and now that I’m aware, I can feel the stares.
“Rory…” I start, my gaze flicking to the people passing by. “I think we have an audience.”
Her eyes widen briefly, and she goes to drop her arms, but I pull her tighter, not letting her step out of my arms.
“Let them stare,” I say. “We’re done hiding. Your dad knows, the coaching staff knows. Everyone else can know that you’re mine, Rory. I don’t want to have to keep our relationship in the dark. I want to be with you, out in the open, without giving a shit about what everyone thinks.”
Her eyes soften, and I feel the tips of her fingers running along my nape. “Really? That’s what you want?”
“Are you surprised by that?” I chuckle, reaching to cradle her jaw in my hands. My thumb sweeps along the edge, her skin soft beneath the rough pad. “Baby, I’m crazy about you. Let the whole world know thattheRory. St. James is my girlfriend. That if they even bloody look at you, I can fight.”
Her laugh wraps around me, filling every empty space inside me.
The last thing I ever expected to do when I came to Prescott was fall in love. I didn’t think it was possible to love someone the way that I do Rory because my heart was too bruised and broken. I was still piecing myself back together, picking up those fragmented shards and attempting to make myself whole again.
I failed time after time, sabotaging myself and everything I love. Because I thought it was what I deserved. But the moment I met Rory, everything changed.
She broke down the walls that I built high around my heart and forced her way inside a fortress that was forged of heartache, guilt, and pain.
For the first time in a long time, I see the other side. I see the old me. The one who wasn’t broken. I’m working on healing, on a permanent fix instead of a temporary one.
I owe that to her.
To the girl who showed me it’s okay to lean on the people whocare about you. To give them some of the weight from your shoulders so you don’t have to carry it all alone.
Who taught me that I can’t be greatjuston my own.
Because of her I found afamilywho loves me despite all my faults and the past that haunts me.
I used to think that leaving London was leaving my life behind, but the truth is, it’s just beginning.
Rugby may be my future, but Rory St. James is myend game.
EPILOGUE
Cillian
Remind me again why the hell we agreed to this?” Fitz mutters from the seat beside me, a wrinkle forming between his brows as he glances down at the kitchen table.
Wren scoffs, answering for me, “Because our boy Cillian here has this problem where he can’t tell his girlfriendno.”
“Bullshit,” I retort in defense, even though fuck… okay, maybe it’s a bit true. Shit, thisismy fault. After that realization, I blow out a breath and wince. “Sorry, mates.”
A chorus of groans rings out around me from my teammates, and I roll my lips together, shrugging. “What do you want from me? You know what, you’re one to bloody talk, both of you.” My gaze bounces back and forth between Wren and Fitz. “She’s not even your girlfriend and she’s still got you by the balls.”
“What was that?” Rory asks as she walks back into the living room with a plate of cookies.
Wren’s eyes widen, almost comically, and he licks his lips, stuttering, “N-nothing Rory.”
I bite back a grin.
They can say whatever shit they want about me being wrapped around Rory’s finger, but they’ve been wrapped far longer than I have. My teammates would do anything for Rory St. James, and it’s been like that long before I ever arrived at Prescott.
They’re not wrong though. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my girl, and if that means I’ll be teased relentlessly for it non-bloody-stop by my teammates, then so be it.
I’ll take it any day if I get to be with Rory.