Page 209 of Off the Pitch

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Green,” I said, turning on my most charming smile. “Jordan’s told me all about you.”

She gave me an inspecting look, and like her son, looked from me to Jordan several times. Then she smiled. “Well, aren’t you charming? Jordan, why didn’t you tell me about him?”

Jordan stared, mouth half-open. “Well, I, y’know,” he stammered, trying to find the right words. His dark skin had flushed slightly, almost enhancing the pink undertones in his cheeks. I’d never seen him look like this, and it was adorable.

“It’s my fault,” I said. As amusing as this was, I was going to step in before Jordan drowned. “I’ve been in America for the past five weeks, and Jordan and I haven’t known each other long.” I left enough vagueness in my words that they could construe what they liked from it. If they wanted us to just be friends, that was fine, and if they wanted to believe we were dating, then I could live with that. I’d been a fake boyfriend once or twice in my lifetime for friends, usually for weddings when their families wouldn’t get off their backs about bringing a date. I got free food and alcohol, and they got a handsome and charming date. It was always a win-win.

“Well, I forgive you,” Mrs. Green said. “You boys don’t need to be here though. I’m sure you’ve got much better things to do than sit here.”

“It’s fine, Nan.” Jordan set the bag of food on the bedside table. “There’s some snacks and drinks in there too. Just in case. I don’t know if we’ll get anything to eat.”

“You will.” Mrs. Green gave Jordan a pointed look. “You’re going to take this charming young man and go and get some food. I know you played today, and you need to eat something.”

“But—”

“Don’t you ‘but’ me. At least I’ll only have to deal with one of you worrying about me and refusing to go home.” I bit back my laughter. Clearly, she wasn’t one to take no for an answer, and I didn’t think Mrs. Green would take too kindly to arguments either. She reminded me a lot of my late aunt Clara, who’d been exactly the same.

“Fine. You win,” Jordan said. “But I’ll come see you tomorrow.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be back home by then.” She smiled at him and smoothed the sheet over her legs. “But if I am, will you drop by the house and bring me another book? I’ve figured out the one I’m reading already, and I need more of a challenge.”

“I promise.” Jordan gave her a quick kiss goodbye.

“Goodbye, Mrs. Green,” I said. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”

Jordan stopped to say something to Isaac that I couldn’t hear, but by the time we walked back down the corridor, it seemed like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. It had been sweet to see the difference between Jordan with his family and Jordan on his own. He was softer here. More relaxed. It reminded me of a couple of moments when we’d been together, when he’d let his guard down and been completely himself, beautifully unaware.

“I guess it’s too late to make dinner?” Jordan asked as we climbed into the lift.

“Yes, sorry.” I turned a few ideas over in my mind, trying to think of somewhere we could go. I wanted to spoil Jordan. He’d played well today and then had a rough evening. He deserved it. One restaurant stuck in my mind. It seemed like Jordan’s sort of place, but I didn’t know if he’d been there before. “But I have a couple of ideas. Have you ever been to Raphael’s?”

“No, I don’t think so, anyway.” Jordan shrugged, looking down at his feet. “I’m not the biggest restaurant goer. I never know where to try.”

“Are you embarrassed by that?” I asked. I had no idea why he would be.

“I don’t know. You’re, like, super charming and rich, and I’m just me.”

“Well,” I said, turning to him and sliding my fingers under his chin, tilting his face up to look at me. “I likejust you.” I kissed him. It was the first time I’d tasted his lips and felt their softness against mine in weeks. His lips were perfect, and I would have kissed him endlessly if we hadn’t had to get out of the lift.

I took half a step back, looking into Jordan’s dark eyes. He’d already made me break all my own rules, and I didn’t give a fuck. Looking at him now, I was prepared to break more of them. It scared the fuck out of me. But weren’t you supposed to do scary things in life?

“I like you too,” he said, so softly I could barely hear him. That didn’t matter though, because the words echoed in my ears, louder than a million drums.

Chapter Fifteen

#secretsexdungeon #allthefood

Félix

Raphael’swas a little Mexican restaurant hidden underneath one of my favourite bars.

I’d met Raphael himself a couple of years ago in front of the bar, and when I’d asked if he had any recommendations for a restaurant, he’d given me a wink and taken me down a flight of stairs and through a heavy wooden door. The restaurant was tiny, seating maybe twenty people at most, but it served the most amazing food based on Raphael’s modern twists on some of his family’s recipes. It was Raphael’s pet project, and he spent most evenings in the kitchen, cooking away to his heart’s content and occasionally popping out to chat with patrons.

Since it was a Saturday, I didn’t know if they’d have any space, but I was going to push my luck because I got the feeling Jordan would love it.

Our Uber pulled up outside the bar, and Jordan gave me a quizzical look as I pulled him from the car.

“I thought we were going to get dinner?” he asked.

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