at practice?” she asked.
“Not in this condition, no,” Jack said mildly. “Macy, honey, you’re spilling that stuff on your dress.”
Macy was pouring champagne into her glass, letting it overflow. Macy looked a little dazed, and Audrey wondered if Macy hadn’t already been drinking quite a bit before getting into the limo.
Everyone was quiet for the last few minutes of the ride. The gala was hosted at The Fox Theatre downtown, and when the limo pulled up Audrey stepped out onto an actual red carpet.
Fancy, she thought. Liam climbed out and offered Audrey his arm, then escorted her down the carpet through a wall of photo flashes and chattering reporters.
“Wow, I had no idea that there was going to be press,” Audrey said.
“Football’s finally gaining traction here,” Liam said, giving her a hawkish smile that she couldn’t help but return. “Real football, I mean, not that American nonsense.”
“I wouldn’t let anyone hear you say that,” Audrey said as they swept in through the Theatre’s front doors.
The whole place was done in a 1920s jazz theme for the event, with champagne in coupe glasses and a jazz band playing at one end of the ballroom.
“Put your best smile on, because it’s all press interviews from now till supper,” Liam said, once they had drinks. “Only four big names on the whole team, so I’m bound to be popular tonight.”
He sipped from his tumbler of whiskey and winked at her. Audrey rolled her eyes, but Liam wasn’t the least bit wrong about it. The next hour and a half were nothing but Atlanta Unified’s PR team bringing up reporters for introductions, stepping back for a few minutes, then bringing up a fresh face with the same questions.
How are you enjoying Atlanta after playing in London so long?
Is it true you were bounced from the England Nationals team?
Will you stay in Atlanta for longer than this season?
Liam played along, giving the same answers over and over. He’d clearly been coached at some point prior, and he stuck to the script perfectly.
At last, food was served. An attendant showed them to their table, right in the center of the room. Jack and Macy were stuck at a table all the way in the corner, which irked Audrey a little, but she wasn’t about to make a scene.
She’d watched Liam and Jack both at practice earlier in the week, and it was readily apparent that there was a reason why Liam was so highly regarded by Atlanta Unified.
He was crazy good at the game, and he worked his ass off. He deserved to be the center of attention, in this context.
During dinner Liam had another player sitting to his left, with whom he promptly struck up a conversation, something about penalty kicks. Audrey understood roughly a quarter of what they said, and soon lost interest.
To Audrey’s left was the wife of one of the team owners, a beautiful young socialite named Emily. To Audrey’s surprise, the other woman turned out to be extremely smart and funny, and her banter about local politics carried Audrey through the whole meal.
A couple drinks later, the tables were cleared away and people started to migrate to the dance floor. Audrey saw that Jack and Macy were some of the first to cut loose, and boy did they ever. They were both drunk as skunks, but they seemed to be behaving and having a good time.
Audrey headed for the bar, then smiled at herself. It was hardly fair to pick on Jack and his new girlfriend for having a few drinks when Audrey herself was making a beeline for the booze.
Could she really blame anybody for knocking back a couple too many? So far, this gala event had proven to be fairly boring.
“You don’t have to babysit him, you know,” Liam whispered, suddenly just behind her.
Audrey stiffened and turned her head an inch, giving him a smirk.
“I know,” she said, turning back to accept her cocktail from the bartender.
“I hear you saying the words, but I don’t think you mean them,” Liam said.
“I do! I just… I
“Not in this condition, no,” Jack said mildly. “Macy, honey, you’re spilling that stuff on your dress.”
Macy was pouring champagne into her glass, letting it overflow. Macy looked a little dazed, and Audrey wondered if Macy hadn’t already been drinking quite a bit before getting into the limo.
Everyone was quiet for the last few minutes of the ride. The gala was hosted at The Fox Theatre downtown, and when the limo pulled up Audrey stepped out onto an actual red carpet.
Fancy, she thought. Liam climbed out and offered Audrey his arm, then escorted her down the carpet through a wall of photo flashes and chattering reporters.
“Wow, I had no idea that there was going to be press,” Audrey said.
“Football’s finally gaining traction here,” Liam said, giving her a hawkish smile that she couldn’t help but return. “Real football, I mean, not that American nonsense.”
“I wouldn’t let anyone hear you say that,” Audrey said as they swept in through the Theatre’s front doors.
The whole place was done in a 1920s jazz theme for the event, with champagne in coupe glasses and a jazz band playing at one end of the ballroom.
“Put your best smile on, because it’s all press interviews from now till supper,” Liam said, once they had drinks. “Only four big names on the whole team, so I’m bound to be popular tonight.”
He sipped from his tumbler of whiskey and winked at her. Audrey rolled her eyes, but Liam wasn’t the least bit wrong about it. The next hour and a half were nothing but Atlanta Unified’s PR team bringing up reporters for introductions, stepping back for a few minutes, then bringing up a fresh face with the same questions.
How are you enjoying Atlanta after playing in London so long?
Is it true you were bounced from the England Nationals team?
Will you stay in Atlanta for longer than this season?
Liam played along, giving the same answers over and over. He’d clearly been coached at some point prior, and he stuck to the script perfectly.
At last, food was served. An attendant showed them to their table, right in the center of the room. Jack and Macy were stuck at a table all the way in the corner, which irked Audrey a little, but she wasn’t about to make a scene.
She’d watched Liam and Jack both at practice earlier in the week, and it was readily apparent that there was a reason why Liam was so highly regarded by Atlanta Unified.
He was crazy good at the game, and he worked his ass off. He deserved to be the center of attention, in this context.
During dinner Liam had another player sitting to his left, with whom he promptly struck up a conversation, something about penalty kicks. Audrey understood roughly a quarter of what they said, and soon lost interest.
To Audrey’s left was the wife of one of the team owners, a beautiful young socialite named Emily. To Audrey’s surprise, the other woman turned out to be extremely smart and funny, and her banter about local politics carried Audrey through the whole meal.
A couple drinks later, the tables were cleared away and people started to migrate to the dance floor. Audrey saw that Jack and Macy were some of the first to cut loose, and boy did they ever. They were both drunk as skunks, but they seemed to be behaving and having a good time.
Audrey headed for the bar, then smiled at herself. It was hardly fair to pick on Jack and his new girlfriend for having a few drinks when Audrey herself was making a beeline for the booze.
Could she really blame anybody for knocking back a couple too many? So far, this gala event had proven to be fairly boring.
“You don’t have to babysit him, you know,” Liam whispered, suddenly just behind her.
Audrey stiffened and turned her head an inch, giving him a smirk.
“I know,” she said, turning back to accept her cocktail from the bartender.
“I hear you saying the words, but I don’t think you mean them,” Liam said.
“I do! I just… I
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