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Miri nodded and stroked his cheek with an indulgent smile. “It’s true. Look at him. He’s too pretty.”
I laughed. “If anyone’s beating Sean up, it’s me.”
“Stay at the Beaufort as long as you need. Although I’d avoid the mushroom soup.” Gabe smiled and raised a sardonic eyebrow. “Mother suspects it’s from a tin.” He bent down to kiss the top of Miri’s head. “I’m going to take Evan back to the office. Call me if you need me.” He transferred his gaze to me. “We’ll talk later. Think about the opportunity, Skylar. We don’t want to lose you, but I’m thinking about what we’d all gain.”
He gave Miri one last kiss then headed toward Evan. Evan—still with the phone pressed to his ear—flashed me a smile and a wave before the two of them walked back to the training suite. Miri smiled as she watched Gabe’s retreating back. A little pang pulled at me. It must be nice to find your person and have it be so uncomplicated. Why did things have to be so complicated with Reece?
Miri wrapped her coat around her huge bump and transferred her gaze to me. “Are you going to kick a few more balls?”
Drizzle misted my face. “You don’t have to do this with me, you know. It’s cold out here. I’m fine alone.”
“I know, but I like the company.” Miri pulled up the hood of her raincoat. “Gabe said that PR is doing a statement about you and Sean today…”
My stomach clenched. “Yep.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Nope.”
I found a nice piece of grass and laid the ball down before firing it into the top corner. Practicing penalty kicks was important, but it was never the same. You’d never be able to recreate the pressure and tension of a match day. Still, it was a necessary evil.
“Hope Reece isn’t getting too heavy with you?”
My football boot skidded in the mud on my run-up and I nearly went flying. “What?”
She quirked an eyebrow. “The meditation classes? He’s been coming home late.”
“Yes. Meditation. It’s great. I’m so fucking Zen, I’m levitating.”
Miri chuckled. “I wish Reece would take his own medicine and find some bloody Zen. It’s hard when we’re all in the house together. Don’t get me wrong, we all love each other, but my siblings are a constant pain in my backside.”
I shrugged. “Tell me about it. I have three older brothers. I know all about annoying siblings.”
“I hope getting out of the hospital helps him. I’m worried about him.”
I tried to keep my voice casual. “Worried why?”
“I shouldn’t tell you this, but he didn’t come home last night. I mean, that’s fine. We were all at the house and Mum is doing so much better. She has a nurse on call so he doesn’t need to fuss as much, but he said he was staying with a friend.”
My shoulders tensed from talking about Reece behind his back, but I needed to know if I had to give him a heads up. Clearly he wasn’t ready to tell his family what had been going on.
“So? Maybe he was staying with a friend. He’s a grown man, isn’t he?”
“Whenever he used to say that it always meant Megan.”
“Megan?”
“His ex. She was awful.” Miri grimaced and shook her head. “I don’t want them to get back together.”
My stomach hardened. “Why? What’s wrong with Megan?” I asked the question tentatively. I didn’t mean to pry, but curiosity got the better of me.
Miri sighed and toed at the pitch. “They met at Cambridge.”
“She’s smart, then? Like him?”
Miri nodded. “Ambitious, too. Reece wants to make people happy, but she bossed him around and took advantage of his good nature. He gave so much to her, but when he needed her, she disappeared. I think she broke his heart, although you’d never know. He doesn’t talk about it.
“We all tease him, but Reece is the rock that holds the family together. He got us all through last year with Mum.” Miri shielded her gaze from the rain and looked up into the stadium. “He bottled everything up after we lost Dad and he took on the burden of being the man of the house. He’s more like a dad to the twins. Grief affects everyone differently. Nobody could get him to talk about how he felt back then. He became so controlled and uptight.” A wry smile twisted her lips. “Now he won’t shut up about people’s feelings. Anything to not talk about his own, I suppose.”
