Page 144 of The Penalty

“Sure.”

“Last one there is buying.” Cade punched my shoulder before trotting over to his car. I laughed, knowing full well he’d drive like a nutter to get there first.

Settling behind the steering wheel, I let the events of the day roll off me as best I could. I hated losing. Especially when I know I didn’t do enough to help the club win.

Before I left, I debated on sending Victoria a quick text. I wasn’t sure if she’d arrived yet but maybe she’d appreciate a little hello from me. Or maybe not.

Bloody hell.

Me: Hope the flight to Seattle was alright. Good luck tomorrow

Could I sound like more of a knobhead? And why the fuck was I so nervous to text my girlfriend?

Annoyed with myself, I turned the radio up and started driving.

The more of London I could see in my rearview mirror, the better I felt. By the time the roads became smaller and filled with curves, I relaxed. But as I approached the stretch of road where I first saw Victoria, my heart seized.

I could still picture her, clear as day, pacing in circles. After pulling off the road, I must have stayed in my car and watched her for longer than was socially acceptable. But I was just so damn captivated by her. I’d never felt anything like it. And then when I finally got out and she walked right into me? Jesus Christ, I wanted to take her in my arms right then and there. I didn’t even know her name but all I wanted was her.

Blinking myself out of the memory, I focused on the road.

Ten minutes later I parked near Black Rose. Cade was already waiting for me by the door, surrounded by a few fans. We’d been coming here after matches for years so it’s not surprising to see a small crowd.

We signed some autographs and posed for pictures before going inside.

The pub wasn’t too crowded so we sat at the bar.

“My boys are here,” Dawn exclaimed, flashing her megawatt smile when she walked over. “Just the two of you tonight?”

“You sound disappointed,” Cade teased. “Don’t tell me Bennet is your favorite.”

“Stop.” She swatted his arm playfully. “It’s been ages since you’ve all been here together. I miss my three princes.”

I smiled. “You say that to all the lads.”

“You—” she reached out and ruffled my hair “—can’t charm your way out of explaining why you haven’t been here to say hello. I know for a fact you’ve been spending a lot of time at Victoria’s cottage.”

If there’s one person who knows what goes on in Briarcliff Village, it’s Dawn Halston. She and her husband, Ray, own this pub. Nothing gets past them.

My eyebrow winged up. “Spying on me?”

Dawn tilted her head and pursed her lips. “If I hear one more young lady talking about the dishy guy with tattoos walking around shirtless in front of that house I’ll—”

“I can walk around shirtless in here,” I cut in with a smirk. “Help drum up business.”

“Mate, you’ll scare everyone away,” Cade jeered.

The pleasant smile on Dawn’s face soothed my frayed nerves. One of the main reasons why I haven’t been in here should be obvious. I knew Dawn would mention Victoria and I’m powerless to hide any type of reaction to hearing her name.

She clasped both our hands and told us she’d return with drinks.

A good thing about being out with Cade was his ability to sense when I refused to talk about certain topics. In this case, the banned topic was Victoria. After she left, I shut myself off to any conversation about her with him or Bennet. The only updates I wanted from Bennet involved Jordan. I still didn’t know where he’d flown to. All I knew was he left England.

My hands clenched. When I do see him again, he’ll regret touching her.

“Did I tell you what happened this week?” Cade slapped his hand down on the bar, jolting me from venomous thoughts of Jordan. “Most frustrating thing ever.”

Dawn placed two beers in front of us, took our food orders, and went to assist other customers.

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