Page 81 of The Hellion and the Captain
Emmaline pushed herself up, a determined set to her jaw as Reeves had clarified his intentions. Rhys caught her eye and gave her a nod of encouragement, and she rejoined the fray undaunted.
Manchester Central rallied with renewed vigor as the clock ticked down on the first half. The midfielders worked the ball up the pitch with coordinated passes before Felix sent a beautiful cross towards the goal where Emmaline was ready and waiting. She leapt into the air, heading the ball with perfect aim, sending it soaring past the keeper’s fingertips and into the back of the net.
Her cap tipped back precariously, threatening to fall to the ground and expose the length of shiny dark hair hiding underneath, but her hidden hatpins held strong, and she managed to catch it before it displayed any sign of her secret.
The maroon-clad supporters jumped to their feet, their raucous cheering drowning out the groans of the Athletics supporters. Rhys pumped his fist in elation as his team gathered around Emmaline, clapping her on the back in congratulations. The halftime whistle blew with Manchester Central ahead by one.
As the team jogged off to the bench for the break, Rhys pulled Emmaline aside. “Well done out there, Emmett,” he said, squeezing her shoulder. “That was one beauty of a goal.”
“Thanks, Captain,” she replied with a grin, still slightly breathless. “But it wasn’t just me.”
“We’re all playing well,” he agreed, giving his team a quick few words of encouragement before he held up a finger asking them to wait a minute and jogged over to theother bench.
“Harrington!” he called out to the other captain. “A word?”
Oliver Harrington, a good man as far as Rhys knew, nodded and stepped away from his team.
“I know what you’re going to say,” Harrington said. “And I’ll do my best to keep a handle on Reeves.”
“See that you do,” Rhys said. “He’s taken this too far with the threats and trying to take out Williams.”
Harrington placed his hands on his hips as he leaned in toward Rhys. “I heard you last time, Lockwood, and I told him to leave it, or he won’t have a place on this team any longer. I’ve overlooked a lot for him to continue on as he has skill, but at the end of the day, this is just a game. We all have jobs to return to and families to go home to.”
He extended his hand to Rhys, who shook it firmly, looking over Harrington’s shoulder to see Reeves watching them with narrowed eyes.
Harrington lowered his voice. “His accusations are wild, Rhys. I told him to let them go, that you would never allow a woman to play. He’s delusional, is he not?”
“Of course,” Rhys bluffed. “What a thing to say. If you could keep that to yourself, I wouldn’t want that to get out and start rumors. It would halt Williams’s entire career, and it’s just getting started.”
“Very well,” Harrington said, before Rhys returned to his players in time to hear Colin speaking to Emmaline.
“Are you sure all is well, Emmett?” Colin asked her quietly, raising an eyebrow. “Nothing is offside?”
“I’m fine,” she insisted.
“That cringe on your face doesn’t look fine to me,” Colin said. “Reeves got in a few good whacks on you.”
“Nothing I can’t handle,” she said. “I grew up with brothers, remember?” She looked around, finding Rhys had joined them. “Speaking of…” she said, motioning them away from the other players and lowering her voice so they wouldn’t hear her as her eyes flicked nervously toward the stands. “I noticed that both of those brothers just happened to be here.”
“Do you think they recognize you?” Colin asked.
“I hope not,” she said with a shrug. “But at this point, what are they going to do? They will not stop me in front of this entire stadium of people, for that would only bring ridicule upon our family. I’m sure they will have something to say after the match, but it will be too late by then.”
“You’re sure you can continue?” Rhys asked.
“I would like nothing more,” she said, fierce determination glittering in her eyes.
“Very well,” he said, clapping his hands together to capture the attention of all of their players, who were tired but still ready to put all on the line. “Gentlemen,” he said. “Our goal is to win this, obviously. But Reeves clearly has it out for Williams, so keep an extra eye on him, will you?”
“Of course, Cap,” Jonny said with a salute.
“Out we go, then,” Rhys said, urging them back onto the field. “There’s nothing to hold back for now. Give it everything you can.”
And they most certainly did, although the Athletics matched them equally, pass for pass, shot for shot. Reeves was still aggressive, but so far hadn’t taken any dirty shots on Emmaline in this half, giving Rhys something to be grateful for. Perhaps his conversation with the Athletics captain had accomplished its goal.
Colin broke away down the middle, and Rhys cheered him on, his heart in his throat, slapping a hand against his thigh in dismay when the ball went an inch over the goalpost.
It had always been the one weakness in Colin’s otherwise near-perfect play.
