Page 46 of The Lady and the Footballer
She put her attention into her work with the club, which not only gave her some purpose but also was a connection to Colin, as limited as it was.
All seemed fine for about a week, until she began to notice discrepancies in the ledgers – all related to one man.
Colin.
Of course.
Everything in her life seemed to be leading to him.
“This can’t be right,” Lily murmured as she sat at her desk, noting that it seemed all the receipts he had submitted for travel were higher than what was actually paid, like he was trying to swindle money from the club.
“Why would Colin be targeted for each one?”
There was only one thing to do – whether she liked it or not.
She needed to talk to him.
Sitting at her writing desk, Lily pulled out a piece of paper and an envelope, found the correct nib, dipped it in the inkwell, and set it to the paper, writing a quick note asking Colin to meet her. Before the match against Notts County, she hadn’t found time to meet with him, and after that, she had been too nervous to spend time alone with him again.
But her parents were going out tonight. They had asked her to accompany them, but it was to a boring dinner that she had no wish to attend anyway. It would be a good night to sneak out.
Lily asked Colin to meet her at the club offices, where hopefully they could see if Mr. Pritchard had any additional records.
It was short notice. She had to hope that he would receive it in time.
And that he would still be willing to see her.
Colin returned home from his day at the mill, exhausted.
He was sore from Saturday's game, and one day of rest wasn’t enough to recover, not when he was returning to a job that was often just as laborious on his muscles as a football game. He was looking forward to one of his mother’s meals and then falling into a deep sleep for the rest of the night.
His plans, however, went awry the moment he walked through the door and Sally practically knocked him over in her excitement to give him the paper she held in her hand.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“It came for you,” Sally said, her eyes glowing. “It’s ever so fancy. Look at the handwriting. And the quality of the paper. It evensmellsnice, like lavender or flowers on a beautiful summer day.”
Colin took the letter, his heart racing as he knew exactly who it was from.
Only one woman could afford such elegant stationery and knew his address. Only one woman who held a scent that he would have described just as Sally had.
Lily.
He tried to move away from his sister to read the note peacefully, but she was relentless.
“Who’s it from? What does it say?” she asked, trying to jump high enough to read over his shoulder, and he looked at her in affectionate exasperation.
“I would have to be allowed to read it before I could answer any of those questions.”
“Fine.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “You have two minutes.”
He chuckled as he eased his sore body into a chair and read Lily’s note, asking him to meet her at the club offices again. Tonight. Of course.
He sighed. He supposed he wouldn’t be getting that sleep he had hoped for, although his pulse picked up at the thought of seeing her again, as much as he knew he should stay away.
“Well?”
Oh, yes. Sally.
