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He moves toward me again, presses a kiss to my forehead, my eyelids, my nose…before slowly taking my lips.?
“There are no negatives to being with you, Archie. We’re going to do this. We’re going to see where this goes. And we’re going to tell our teammates.”
I choke on nothing. Literally nothing. It is a gift. “You’re going to come out?”
“No.” He shakes his head, looking apologetic.
I just stare back confused.
“Well, I’m going to speak to Gideon, Alex, and Vinnie. I want to come out to the team. There is no way I’m going to be able to keep my hands off you, now. It was hard enough before and that was when I thought you weren’t interested.”
I roll my eyes. I still have no idea how he managed to miss that glaring fact for so long.
“The point is,” Tom continues, “I know footballers have a reputation for being dumb, but they’re going to notice and pick up on things.”
I just look at him, one eyebrow arched.
“Okay, well some of them are,” he relents. “Plus, if it does get out I want them to be prepared. Whichever way we play it, the two of us being together affects the team—I want to minimise the damage as much as possible.”
I feel like I’m dreaming.?“I think I have a magic hole,” I blurt out. “One go at it and I’ve hooked you.”
Tom huffs in amusement. “I think it might be a little more than that.” He presses his lips to mine and squeezes my neck, before letting go and reaching above the hob for a pan. “Let’s get you fed and back to bed.”
Chapter seventeen
Tom
“Areyousureyou’reready to do this?” Archie asks, squeezing my hand for support.
Am I ready to let people in on a secret I’ve been harbouring for twenty-five years? Um, no not particularly. The mere thought of any more people knowing this about me is making me want to crawl out of my own skin. But I know this needs to happen if I’m going to have any kind of relationship with Archie. And I want that more than I want to give into the fear.?
I squeeze his hand back and let out a fortifying breath. “Yeah. Let’s do this.”
Reluctantly letting go of Archie’s hand, I push open the door of Gideon’s office, where we’ve arranged to meet him, Vinnie, and Alex. We figured we’d start with those three and then move on to the rest of the team.
Gideon—pristinely dressed as usual—gestures us inside and towards a set of sofas where Alex is already lounging comfortably.
“Morning, boys,” he says with a characteristic smile as we sink into the sofa opposite.
A few moments later, Vinnie arrives, his expression gruff as ever. “What’s going on?” He eyes Alex, Archie, and me warily. “If one of you has gone and gotten yourself injured—”
“It’s nothing like that,” Archie assures him with a bright grin.
That just seems to make Vinnie even more unnerved, but he moves further into the room anyway, taking the seat next to Alex while Gideon props himself on the arm of the couch.
“Okay, Tom,” Gideon says smoothly. “You called us all here. What’s this meeting about?”
I swallow hard, exchanging a nervous glance with Archie. He gives me a slight nod of encouragement and I somehow manage to turn my attention back to the captain, coach, and owner of the club. “We’re…together,” I tell them, preparing myself for the world to crack underneath my feet at any moment.
Three pairs of eyes stare at me in stunned silence.
“Together…?” Gideon finally ventures.
“But don’t worry, we’re being careful,” Archie rushes in. “We’re not doing anything too strenuous. Nothing that could cause injury. I mean, there was that thing with the—”
I place a hand on his thigh and give a gentle squeeze, offering a wry smile. “Remember that thing we talked about? With the word vomit?”
He gives a quick nod, his cheeks flaming adorably red. “Right. Yeah. Of course. I’m going to be quiet now. The floor is yours. Chatter away—”
