Striker (21 page)

‘And she’s got you by the balls then, has she?’

‘No…’

‘Then get your arse out with the rest of us tonight. Come on, mate. Just because you’ve been one of the few to conquer the ice-queen it doesn’t mean to say you have to stop enjoying yourself, does it? You’re not fucking married. Jesus, I’m frigging engaged and I’ve got more freedom than you have.’

Ryan sighed inwardly. Part of him knew what
Gary
was saying – he was young, he was living the dream, and he really wasn’t ready for cosy nights in in front of the TV. Not
every
night, anyway. But part of him also knew that he was on dangerous ground. He’d been here before. And he should know what he needed to do to stop him from going there again.

‘We’ll be in Goodyear’s Bar, eight-thirty,’
Gary
said. ‘We’ll see you there.’

Ryan quickly ended the call, looking up sharply as Amber entered the room, all sleepy-eyed and sexy in one of his t-shirts, and very little else, from what he could see. He filled two mugs with boiling water as Amber walked up behind him, circling his waist and kissing his naked, tattooed shoulder.
 

‘Who was that on the phone?’ she asked, playing with the waistband of his jeans.

‘Oh… nobody, babe. Just
Gary
asking if I wanted to join him and the lads for a drink later tonight.’

‘And? Are you going?’

Ryan shrugged. ‘Have you got a better offer?’

‘Oh, baby, I’m sorry. I’m working late tonight so you might as well do your own thing. All I’m gonna be fit for when I get home is sleep.’

Ryan couldn’t help wishing that she’d given him a different answer, given him the option to back out of tonight. If she’d made him that better offer then he would’ve had an excuse not to turn up, because he wasn’t sure his willpower was strong enough to do that all on his own. ‘You didn’t need to get out of bed,’ he smiled, turning round and stroking strands of dark red hair from her eyes. ‘I was just making us a cup of tea. I was gonna bring it in to you.’

‘If I’d hung around in bed waiting for you to come back it was only gonna end up in sex,’ Amber whispered, kissing him lazily. ‘And I can’t be late for work again.’

‘Sex, huh?’

‘Yeah. You know, that thing we did last night, and again at half-past-five this morning.’

Ryan smiled again, letting his hands wander up underneath the t-shirt she was wearing, realising that she really wasn’t wearing anything else. At all. He groaned as his fingers gently stroked her hips, pulling her even closer against him as his mouth covered hers in a long, slow kiss. ‘We don’t have to go back to bed for sex, y’know.’

Amber threw her head back, the feel of his lips on her neck and his hard-on digging into her thigh telling her she was going to have to drive like Lewis Hamilton to get to work on time now. Because it looked like breakfast was going to be a purely physical one today. Not that she was complaining. ‘I know,’ she moaned, leaning back against the counter as he pushed her t-shirt up over her hips, sliding his hand between her legs, parting them to allow him in. ‘Jesus, Ryan, you are such a bad fucking influence on me. I used to be such a good girl.’

He laughed that deep, sexy laugh of his as he buried his face in her hair. ‘Good girls are no fun,’ he whispered, running his fingers up and down her spine, settling in the small of her back, keeping her pressed against him as he pushed inside her, backing her up against the counter. ‘Bad girls are so much better.’

She couldn’t help laughing, but he was right. She’d been too good for far too long, but he was slowly making her realise that life could be fun. He was good for her. They were good together. She was having a blast, and that’s what she needed right now.

She closed her eyes and clung onto him as he pushed in deeper, rocking her whole body with every thrust until she finally felt that beautiful release, felt her body shake in his arms as they both reached a quick but more than satisfying climax. She could think of worse ways to start the day.

‘Well, baby, this bad girl had better go put some clothes on and get to work,’ she smiled, pulling her t-shirt down over her thighs and standing up on tiptoe to kiss him quickly, running her hands over his naked chest as she backed away from him. ‘So, you’re gonna have to amuse yourself until it’s time to go training.’

He leaned back against the counter and folded his arms, watching her almost sashay her way back towards the bedroom. She sure was one sexy older woman, and someone Ryan was happy to spend more and more time with. She made him feel things he’d never felt before; she made him realise that maybe he really was changing. Was Ryan Fisher finally growing up? But, if he really
was
growing up, then why was he even contemplating going out tonight? Pushing a hand through his hair he threw his head back and sighed heavily before running into the bedroom after Amber. ‘Amber, hang on.’

She swung round to face him. ‘What’s up?’ she asked, dragging her hair back into a high ponytail.

He came over to her, pulling her into his arms. ‘Let’s do something really crazy.’

‘Like what?’ she laughed, running her hands up and down his heavily tattooed arms.

‘Move in with me.’

Amber looked at him for a few seconds, too stunned to say anything. ‘Sorry?’

‘Look, I know this isn’t something you – or anyone, really – expected to hear from me, but… You’ve changed me, Amber.’

She frowned as she continued to stare at him, trying to work out if he was being serious. ‘And… is that a
good
thing?’

‘I dunno. It
feels
like a good thing.’ Did it?

Amber laughed again, turning her head slightly to stare past him outside at the view of the River Tyne, the early morning November sun bouncing off the water. ‘Ryan, baby, I don’t know how much coffee you’ve been drinking but, you can’t come out with something like that just as I’m about to rush out the door and expect me to give you some kind of definitive answer.’

‘I’m being serious, Amber. Since meeting… since meeting you, everything feels different. It’s like, I can suddenly see what really makes me happy.’ Was that true?

‘And you’re happy to put your playboy past behind you and move in with
me
? A female sports reporter eleven years your senior?’

‘Will you stop banging on about age? You’ve got
a body women
ten years younger than you would kill for.’

‘Oh, I should move in with you purely for that comment alone,’ she laughed, running her fingers over his chest, the muscles hard and taught beneath her fingers.
 

‘Then do it. Come on, Amber. Live dangerously.’

She smiled, kissing him slowly, her fingers now playing with the waistband of his jeans. ‘Yeah, but not
that
dangerously.’ She gave him one more kiss, grabbed her bag from the chair by the door and walked out of the bedroom, blowing him a kiss and winking at him over her shoulder.

He looked down at the ground, running a hand over the back of his neck before looking back up at her retreating figure. ‘I’m serious, Amber!’ he shouted after her. But the front door closing out in the hall told him the subject was over as far as she was concerned.
 

All of a sudden he needed a release, something to take his mind off all the unwelcome temptations that had suddenly appeared. So much for moving back up north to get away from everything. That had worked, hadn’t it? He’d been stupid to think running away was going to solve anything.

Sliding his phone out of the back pocket of his jeans he scrolled through his contact list until he came to a number he’d been given by a “friend” back in
London
. Just incase he ever needed anything once he was back up north, they’d said. A number he should have deleted, but he hadn’t. And right now he was glad he’d left it where it was. He pressed
call
before he had a chance to change his mind. They answered after just three rings.

‘Hey, Ryan. Callum told me I might be hearing from you. What can I do for you?’

Ryan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ‘The usual. Did Callum tell you what that is?’

The voice at the other end of the line laughed. ‘Hey, man. No problem. Welcome home. Personal collection? Or do you want somebody to come round?’

‘No!’ A million second thoughts suddenly raced through his head. But what was the problem? He knew what he was doing. He could handle it. It was just a release, that was all. A brief escape from everything. Something to calm him down, chill him out. He could control it now, couldn’t he? ‘I’ll come to you. Give me an address.’

Ryan quickly scribbled down the address he was given and ended the call, his heart beating hard against his ribs. He’d forgotten how weird but also how exciting the rush could be. Scrolling down his contact list again he found another number. Something else that could give him that brief escape. And anyway, once training was finished he had a whole afternoon to kill, didn’t he? He might as well make good use of it.

*

Amber sat on a bench overlooking the River Tyne, the cold autumn air penetrating the material of her coat and she pulled the collar up to shield the back of her neck from the cool breeze that seemed to be growing stronger as the afternoon wore on.

She didn’t have to work late that night. Not really. She’d had quite an easy day, if the truth be told. But, for some reason, she’d felt the need to lie to Ryan – why? Because she was scared of what she was starting to feel for him? Or was she scared of the fact that she just didn’t want to spend as much time with him as she’d first thought. Because of someone else.

Cupping her hands around the steaming carton of coffee she’d just bought, she continued to stare out at life going on all around her, the bustling atmosphere of the Quayside somehow pulling her back to reality, giving her some kind of clarity. She couldn’t let Jim Allen back into her life. She couldn’t. It would be stupid, it would be wrong. Why would she put herself through all of that again? When he’d only hurt her, just like he’d hurt her before. He wasn’t going to change. Not now. But Ryan, he just might. If she gave him a chance.

She took a sip of hot coffee, sitting back against the wooden bench, the low November sun hitting her face. Shielding her eyes she watched the steady stream of people walking across the
Gateshead
Millennium
Bridge
– a stunning pedestrian and cyclist tilt bridge that linked Gateshead’s Quay’s arts quarter on the south bank and
Newcastle
’s Quayside on the north. She loved this place. She never really wanted to leave the North East, it was her home. But the reappearance of Jim Allen had tarnished everything slightly. He was a distraction she had to forget about, before it took over again. And she could do that. It would be hard, but she could do it. She had to. She had no choice.

Taking another sip of coffee she thought about what Ryan had asked her that morning. He was trying really hard, she knew that. He was trying really hard to prove to her that he wasn’t that playboy the tabloids would have you think he was, and that was sweet. But who was he kidding? He couldn’t switch all of that off just like that. He was a twenty-six-year-old professional footballer with the world at his feet, so no matter how much he told her he’d changed, she wasn’t going to hold her breath. She’d just enjoy what they had and take each day as it came. What else could she do? At least Ryan provided a decent distraction from Jim. And any distraction was better than none at all.

She put her coffee to one side and pulled her phone out of her bag, looking at it for a few seconds. Should she call Ryan? Tell him she wasn’t working late? Tell him she had that better offer for him after all? One he wouldn’t be able to refuse? Her finger hovered over his number for a few seconds as she looked up at the river again, the sun bouncing off the water, making her squint slightly. No. He’d probably made plans now, anyway, and she didn’t want to be one of those girlfriends who made him feel guilty about going out with his friends just because she was now at a loose end. She wanted him to spend time with her because he
wanted
to, not because he felt he had to. No, she’d leave it. She’d see him tomorrow. They could do something together then, if he had nothing else planned. She’d go and see her dad tonight; spend an evening catching up on things.

Stuffing her phone back in her bag she picked up her coffee and stood up, walking slowly along the Quayside, one hand shoved deep in the pocket of her coat. Now she’d given herself that silent talking to she felt better about everything. So maybe now it was time to finally begin the rest of her life, without Jim Allen constantly being at the forefront of her mind. Maybe now it was finally time to start living.

*

Ryan closed the door and leaned back against it, closing his eyes as a surge of uncharacteristic guilt swept over him. Maybe he should have been stronger, but when you had a whole afternoon stretching out in front of you with nobody to spend it with and nowhere to go, what else was he supposed to do? Training had finished not long after lunch, and after a quick pint in the pub with
Gary
and a few of the other lads he’d had nothing else to do but amuse himself. And he’d managed that, although, if Amber found out just how he liked to amuse himself he wasn’t sure she’d stick around long enough to hear his explanation. Not that he had one, anyway.