Page 104 of Scrum Heat

The words hang in the air, and I swear, for a moment it’s as though nobody breathes.

“You’re sure?” Theo says. “And not just—not just that you’re sure of the decision, but you’re sure that’s what you actuallywant?”

I nod firmly. “I’m not doing this because they’re pressuring us. I’m doing this because Iwantto. Because I alreadychoseyou.”

“We don’t want to rush you,” Rory exhales, bracing his arms on the table. “This is… big.”

“Itisbig,” I agree. “But it doesn’t feel wrong.”

Finn smiles and leans in, his voice soft and perfect. “Then we’ll make it good. Safe.Real.”

“You’ve already made it all of that,” I smile back at him. “Now… let’s just finish what we started.”

And just like that, the tension in the room shifts. It’s still heavy, but now, it’s carrying momentum.

I said yes once, and I’m saying it again.

This time?

For all of us.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Rory

The house is quiet when we get back.

Frankie disappeared up to her room the second we walked in. Not in a bad way—at least, I don’t think so. Just tired; worn thin and drained. She gave Theo a soft smile, squeezed Finn’s hand, nodded once at Jax—and then she was gone. Maybe to shower. Maybe to breathe.

Probably to process the fact that the board of the Alderbridge RFCandthe Omega Safety Compliance Board are now both apparently invested in her reproductive future.

I should check on her.

Instead, I pace.

The living room feels too hot. The hallway feels too loud. So I end up in the backyard, where it’s quiet, but not still.

My head’s not still.

Everything is… messy. And I fuckinghatemessy.

It’s only a few more days until we play Denton Vale. If we win, we go top of the leaderboard. If we go top of the leaderboard, we’re in the final. And if we make the final, the scouts will be there.

Regional-level. Semi-pro contracts.

Real careers.

This isn’t just a game anymore. I’ve spent ten years chasing this—built this team from the inside out. I’ve trained hungover, played through injuries, even covered other people’s rent when it came to it. I’ve dragged Finn out of corners he didn’t know he’d backed into, made Theo look like a saint against all odds when it really mattered, and sat in Jax’s room for hours when he wouldn’t speak. I’ve held this team together with duct tape, rage, and twenty-six different color-coded spreadsheets.

Now we’re here, and the thing that could tear it all down…

Is Frankie.

It’s not her fault; Iknowthat. She’s not the problem—but the attention is. The headlines. The suspicion. The quiet murmurs of "is it safe?" and "is this compliant?" and “aren’t you worried about scent aggression?” Somewhere along the way, she’s become the headline, the problem, theanomaly—

But the only thing wrong with this pack is that she wasn’t in it sooner, and I’ll quite gladly die on that hill.

She said she wants us, that she wantsthis. That she’s already claimed us in every way that matters, except the one.

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