“I shouldn’t have had to. It would be nice to have some support from my own parents,” I said bitterly.
“You like her as more than a friend, don’t you?” My mum had been studying me silently, her eyes still a little watery, but a gleam came into them as she spoke.
I nodded. No point denying it.
A smile flitted across her face, before she turned to my dad. “I think I speak for both of us when I say that we’ll make an effort here. But I want you to try, too.”
“Don’t think I’m going to stop giving you a hard time about your schoolwork,” my dad added gruffly. “But I want you to know that we’re proud of all you’ve achieved.”
“Okay. Good. Thanks.” Suddenly I wasn’t sure what to say, and I shuffled in my seat, suddenly needing to get away. My dad cleared his throat.
“Was that everything you wanted to discuss?”
“Yeah. That was it.”
“Alright. Then if you’ll excuse me, I need to make a couple of phone calls.” He stood, placing a quick kiss on the top of my mum’s head, before leaving the dining room.
My mum also stood. “Be careful with Rainey, Carter. She needs to be taken care of. But for what it’s worth, I think the two of you could have something special.” She smiled at me, before leaving me alone with my thoughts.
Since that conversation, my parents had backed right off. Still riding me about my schoolwork, but no more comparisons. I’d roped Imogen into the rest of my plan. She made me fucking grovel when I told her what a dick I’d been, and to start with I wasn’t even sure she’d help me. When I flat-out begged, I think she finally realised I was serious, and she’d agreed to help.
All through the game, my focus had been on football. I owed it to my team to play my best game and not allow any distractions. As soon as the final whistle had blown, though, the euphoria from our win was drowned out by the pressing need to get to Raine and put in place the final part of my plan.
I hadn’t even allowed myself to look for her in the stands, but I saw her straight away, watching me with the same intensity I was watching her. As I ran towards her, I could see the apprehension in her expressive hazel eyes, and all I could do was hope that the statement I was about to make was enough for her.
When I lifted her over the barrier and into my arms, the win suddenly became completely insignificant, and I knew that this was the most important moment of my life so far. As I staked my very public claim on her, everything inside me settled. Nothing and no one was more important than her, and I intended to show her just how much she meant to me.
“Mate. That header was fucking epic,” I called to Kian across the changing room as I finished pulling my clothes on after the showers. “Nice work.”
“I know.” He gave me a smug smile as he grabbed his jacket from the peg next to him. “Give yourself some credit, though.”
“Oh, I have,” I assured him, making him laugh and roll his eyes.
“Great teamwork,” I added. “All of us. I’m really fucking proud of us.”
He grinned, picking up his kit bag before moving over to Preston. “Yep. Although, with me back on the team, a win was inevitable, really.”
Preston gave him a pointed look and he grinned. “I suppose our golden boy had something to do with it, too. I’ll share the praise with Preston, since we both scored a goal.”
“How generous,” Preston muttered, but he was smiling as he grabbed Kian’s hand.
I laughed. “Look at you. You finally learned to share, and it only took you eighteen years.”
“Fuck off.” Kian threw up his middle finger at me, and I returned the gesture, before I pulled on my hoodie.
“As much as I’d love to hang around and insult you all night, I’ve got my girlfriend waiting for me.” Grabbing my bag, I hauled it over my shoulder and pushed past Kian in my rush to get outside, leaving him laughing behind me. The friends and families of the players were clustered around waiting for us, but I couldn’t see Raine anywhere. Frowning, I leaned against the wall, pulling out my phone to check if she’d sent me a text. Nothing.
The crowds thinned out, and soon there were only a few people left. Glancing at my phone again, I saw almost fifteen minutes had passed. Where was she? I hit Xavier’s number and waited.
“Carter! What’s up?”
“Is Raine with you?” My eyes kept scanning the area around me, in case she appeared.
“No, I thought she was with you?” His tone instantly put me on alert. “When we left her, she was walking to meet you. We didn’t hang around because I knew you had plans with her on your own, and we didn’t wanna be in the way.”
“She’s not here.” I swallowed hard. “She’s not…I haven’t seen her. How long ago did you see her?”
There was a pause. “Uh…I think about forty-five minutes ago?”
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“I’m gonna try her phone.” I hung up on him without saying goodbye and immediately dialled her. The phone rang and rang and eventually went to her voicemail. Frustrated, I navigated to her social media to see when she was last online. As I did, my phone sounded with a new message alert. I hit it instantly, and the relief at seeing her name was instantaneous.
Raine: Went home. Feeling sick. Sorry. No drama, I promise. I’ll feel better after a good sleep. See u Monday. BTW don’t forget your business studies homework!
My stomach churned. Something wasn’t right. And what the fuck was she talking about my Business Studies homework for? She wasn’t even in that class with me.
The unease grew and grew, until it was
