Page 52 of We'll Meet Again

“Well, what do you do to cheer up after a bad day?” he challenged.

“Soak in a bubble bath and drink wine, like a normal person!” she retorted.

His head fell back with laughter and he picked up the television remote. “Sounds classy, for sure.”

“It’s amazing, you should try it sometime.”

“Maybe I will,” he said. “But right now, I need to see orcs get stabbed.”

“Fair enough, play the movie.”

He did, and Billie’s head came to rest on Ethan’s shoulder. That action alone made him feel like a bigger hero than if he had saved all of Middle Earth himself. But it also reminded him of something.

“Hey,” he said with a gentle nudge, and she turned her face to look at him. “How’d it go with Tony today?”

“Oh,” she replied, and glanced away. “Fine.”

The brief stiffness in her body told him she wasn’t telling him the whole truth, but her tone indicated she wasn’t interested in discussing it further. He put his arm around her shoulders and brought her a little closer.

“Good,” he said simply. “Let me know if you need any help there.”

“I will.”

He didn’t quite believe her, but for now, he would let it lie.

Chapter 14

Youfreeafterthematch against West Ham? I’ve got an idea for our second date.

Billie stared at the text, finger hovering over the send button. Never in her life had she spent so much time agonizing over a text message to a man. But she found something she knew she simply must show Ethan, so she felt she had to take the initiative. After their movie night, he hadn’t made any firm plans, but she understood. Between learning that his childhood hero was dying, and then telling her the awful story about his mother, she didn’t blame him for being emotionally tapped out for one day. He still showed up with coffee the following morning to walk her to work, and he seemed almost back to normal. But there was just a little less light behind his cheerful, green eyes that she couldn’t help but notice.

She was determined to make him happy. If anyone deserved to be treated to a night out, it was Ethan. After learning about his life, she was even more impressed with how upbeat he was. With everything he had been through, he had every right to be angry and resentful, but he wasn’t. He walked through the world with kindness, leading with his heart, and offering it freely to someone like Billie. Who was beginning to feel less and less deserving of it. She knew herself to be closed off and a bit self-centered. But perhaps, if she could reciprocate his level of generosity, she might feel the playing field even out a bit.

So she was sending this text. Wondering if it sounded too casual or too serious or too eager. Should she split it up into two messages or would that be too desperate? Would he see double texting as needy?

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she scolded herself with a shake of her head. “Send the damn message, you coward.”

She finally did. The little blue bubble appeared with a gray “delivered” beneath it. She watched with bated breath for it to turn to “read” with the time stamp. Though logically, she knew he was probably in the locker room already and too busy to send a response, she wanted one right away. She must have manifested it out of sheer will, because a second later, a gray bubble with three dots appeared on the screen. Her heart skipped a beat.

For you? I’m always free, darlin’

A beat passed while Billie caught her breath. Then he texted again.

Looking forward to seeing what you’ve got in mind

She texted back quickly.

You’ll love it. Can you be at mine around 7?

She didn’t even have time to lock her phone before he replied.

Yes, ma’am

She grinned. Then she wished him good luck at the match before heading to the Hive herself. As an employee, she always had tickets if she wanted them, but hadn’t really cared enough about the team to take advantage. Ever since Manchester City, though, she found herself quite invested. Especially since if they beat West Ham today, it would bump them up to sixth place in the league. For the first time, that really mattered to her.

The smile on Ethan’s face when Billie opened the door for him came as no surprise. Stanmore beat West Ham United 2-1, narrowly avoiding a draw in stoppage time thanks to a pass from Ethan back to the midfield, letting Artem shoot from the wing and right past the goalkeeper. The stadium roared, Billie right along with them, thrilled that they were moving up. Ethan was making such a difference at the club - and beyond it as well.

“Congrats, you!” she greeted excitedly.

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