Settling the Score (The Summer Games #1)(110)
Freddie. Walking out of the dark tunnel. Half cloaked in shadows and then gloriously lit under the stadium lights. He was wearing a fitted navy suit with brown leather oxfords. He was clean-shaven and his thick chestnut-brown hair was styled back with a smooth wave. I’d gotten used to how devilishly handsome he was day to day. At home, he usually walked around shirtless in a pair of sweatpants that had seen better days. I’d roll out of bed and find him in front of the stove, flipping pancakes, eggs, or bacon. He loved cooking breakfast and I never got tired of watching him from my perch across the kitchen island.
Home Freddie wasn’t the version I saw walking toward me from the tunnel. This was a smooth, refined version of the man I loved. A version that made my hands shake as he continued walking toward me. The stadium erupted when they saw him, and I started to walk toward him with my hand pressed against my heart. I was trying to force it to calm down, but it was too late. Once I caught a glimpse of the line of people trailing out of the tunnel behind Freddie, the first tears were already falling. Kinsley, Liam, my parents (in their summer whites), Becca, Penn, Georgie, and Freddie’s mom; each of them trailed out after Freddie, smiling and waving as I shook my head in disbelief. I hadn’t seen my mom and dad in a few months, and I hadn’t seen Kinsley and Becca in twice as long. Moving to London and leaving them behind had been one of the hardest things I’d ever had to do, but it’d been worth it.
I locked eyes with Freddie when we were only a few feet apart. My heart kicked up a rapid beat and he smiled wider. I shook my head and asked him what was going on. As soon as he reached me, he pulled me into a tight hug and I inhaled his clean, sharp scent. It was the smell that brought me peace at the end of a long day. It was the smell of a man who was supportive, and loyal, and loving. He bent to kiss my cheek and then he pulled back to look at me. His warm brown eyes assured me that everything would be okay.
My family and friends were around us then, circled up and watching from a few feet away as I completely lost it in a fit of tears.
“I can’t stop,” I said with a laugh and a hiccup.
Freddie smiled and bent forward to wipe a tear from my face. “It’s okay.”
“You look cute!” Kinsley shouted.
“Dang, girl!” echoed Becca.
I laughed and then inhaled a shaky breath as Freddie took a knee before me on the turf.
Oh my god.
“Andie Foster…”
Oh, Jesus I could hardly hear him over the sound of my sobs. He took my hand and pressed his lips to the center.
“The first time I met you, you asked me for my knickers…” Everyone around us laughed, but my hands shook and my heart beat wildly. “But you took my heart instead.”
I inhaled a breath and shook my head. I couldn’t do it. He was kneeling there, staring up at me with earnest eyes and an open heart, and I couldn’t wait for him to finish. I knew how much he loved me; he showed me every single day. I knew he wanted to spend his life with me; he told me whenever he got the chance. I knew he and I were a perfect pair. We loved going for runs in the morning right after breakfast. We loved teaching and coaching one another. Freddie had greatly improved my skills in the pool, but teaching him to kick around a soccer ball was all but hopeless. We loved trying new recipes, subsequently failing, and then hopping in a cab to the nearest restaurant. We loved hanging out with Georgie and going to pubs with friends. We’d sit across from each other, laughing and talking, he’d glance over to me and I’d reach out for his hand, and it was enough. It didn’t matter where we were, Freddie and I were in it together. His struggles were mine. My triumphs were his.
“In those first few weeks,” he continued, “you made me work for every smile and every word. I had to fight for you to give me the time of day, but even then, I think I knew I was fighting for my future wife.”
I crumbled to the turf and threw myself against him. He was in the middle of his proposal and I was sure the words he was about to say were beautiful and compelling, but I didn’t need them.
“Yes,” I whispered against his neck. “Yes. Yes. Yes.”
He laughed and wrapped his arms around me to keep me against him. “You didn’t let me get to the good part.”
I turned and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “This is the good part.”
EPILOGUE TO THE EPILOGUE
(BECAUSE I CAN)
Andie
FREDDIE AND I both agreed that we wanted a low-key destination wedding, preferably somewhere tropical.
Georgie was an early advocate of the plan. “Yo quiero mucho rum y shirtless hombres” were her exact words on the subject. I hope she takes her maid of honor duties more seriously than her Spanish lessons.
Coach Decker retired after the games, and Liam replaced her as head coach of the Women’s National Team. Kinsley took a break from her club team in Los Angeles, as she and Liam are expecting their first little soccer prodigy (!!!) this summer.
Becca responded to Kinsley’s news with just one text: “Umm, looks like we might have two soccer prodigies in the making. SURPRISE.”
Two weeks after the Olympics, Caroline sued Freddie and Sophie for libel and defamation. After losing the case, she was forced to pay for court costs and legal fees. She then checked herself into a hospital retreat for exhaustion. (Who could blame her?)
One week into her stay, she was arrested for biting a nurse who refused to sneak her extra Tramadol. After posting bail, she fled the country and subsequently announced her engagement to some prince living in Dubai.