Christina

The crowd at the Winchester Wyvern's stadium was incredible. There were jerseys with the Scott name on the back everywhere. Apparently, Dex and Liam were two of the most popular players. Men and women were wearing the silver and red colors with the Wyvern logo on it. Little kids had rugby balls and hoped to get them signed by any willing player. Sitting with Imogen, Bella and Jude in the family box gave them a bird's eye view. During the game, Imogen was a sideline coach. She yelled at Dex, Liam and the other players on the field. When her language got to be a bit intense, Jude covered Bella's ears. Each play and player were explained by Jude. By the time the game was over, Christina's head swam with rugby facts, positions and scores.

After the game, the four of them walked down to the locker rooms. The players were still working their way back to the locker room to get changed after signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. All of a sudden, Christina felt strong sweaty arms around her picking her off her feet and swinging her around. Christina pushed off Dex and looked down at the now sweaty jersey she was wearing.

"Ew! Dex that was so gross!"

"So...did you love it. Hold on! Stupid question, of course you loved it. How much did you love it and am I your favorite player or what?"

Before Christina could answer, another set of sweaty arms encircled her and picked her up again. This time Liam dropped her a little too quick and she lost her balance landing on her butt.

"Way to go idiot. You definitely aren't her favorite now." Dex said reaching down to help her up.

Christina pushed his hand away and got up. "You are both idiots." Christina proceeded to brush the dirt off her butt and the sweat off her shirt only now it looked like smeared chocolate on the jersey.

"Well which one of us is your favorite?" Dex pressed.

Christina glared at her two idiot cousins. "Neither of you was my favorite. He's my favorite." She pointed to the player walking by.

When she pointed at him he turned and looked at her. His dark hair was slicked with sweat and his blue eyes sparked when they met hers. She let her eyes wonder down to his mud and grass stained jersey that clung to the muscles in his shoulders and arms. His shorts were tight on his muscled thighs and ass. Though she was just picking someone randomly, she picked perfectly.

"Seriously Christina? You picked our captain. Do you even know his name?" Dex whined.

Christina flushed when Dex interrupted her unabashed checking out of his team captain. "I don't need to know his name to know he's an awesome player." The player in question smiled a smile that promised pleasure and winked at her.

"Scott 1 and 2 let's go. Team meeting after hitting the showers." Sexy winked at Christina again and went into the locker room.

"You guys going to the pub with us? It's going to be fun, Christina. You can meet some of the team." Liam shouted walking toward the locker room.

"We will be there. I have a babysitter tonight." Imogen said.

"Sounds fun. I'm there." She smiled.

***

Three Rings was what any American would think an English pub would look like. It was dark and had a lot of booths that led to dark corners. What Christina didn't expect was the theme of the pub. Though it had the traditional pub look at first when looking closer it looked more like a hobbit house from Lord of the Rings. It had posters of the movies, a lego replica of Mordor and murals of middle earth. Clearly, the owner was a Tolkien fan.

"Wow. I didn't expect this." Christina said to Imogen and Dex.

"Ollie is a huge Tolkien fan. He claims that the original pub that was here was frequented by Tolkien and part of The Hobbit was written here." Imogen said loudly to be heard over the din of the crowd.

"There's a table. You two go sit, and I will get us some pints." Dex said strolling over to the bar.

"Now that Dex is gone I need to ask. Where is your husband, Gen?" Christina said pointedly.

Imogen looked down at her hands resting on the table. "Honestly, I am not sure. He says he has to travel a lot for work, but I just have this feeling there is more to it. We haven't had a good marriage since Bella was born. He's never gotten along with the family but I loved him, so I let it go. Now, Bella is starting to notice. I'm not happy, Chris. I don't know what to do because I don't want Bella to come from a broken home and his family has some powerful friends that could make a divorce really hard." The last came out on a choked sob.

"I'm so sorry, Gen. Can I do anything to help?" Christina held onto Imogen's hand.

"What's going on?" Dex asked setting the beer down.

"Nothing. Just girl talk." Imogen wiped away a tear and shook her head at Christina.

"Hmm...I'm not buying it but I'm not butting into girl talk."

"Dex! We were great today! Your tackles were cracking today. I knew those bloody Aussies wouldn't win." A guy with shaggy blonde hair, shorter than Dex but just as big pushed through the crowd to stand next to their table. "Oh. Hey Imogen. How is Bella?" He said after noticing there were more people at the table.

"Hey Rory. Bella is great. She keeps me on my toes. I wouldn't want her any other way. Let me introduce you to our American cousin, Christina Scott. Christina this is Rory Rodgers. He is a half back on the Wyverns."

"Nice to meet you, Rory. You guys played great."

"Don't ask if you are her favorite. Apparently, she only has eyes for Wilson." Dex said

"Oh. Well he is aces or he wouldn't be our captain, Dex." Rory said diplomatically.

"Yeah but he's still a tosser. Bloody arrogant too." Dex said throwing back the rest of his pint.

"I'm surprised to see you out tonight, Imogen. Do you have a sitter?"

Imogen blushed at Rory's attention. "Jude offered to watch her, so I could go out with Christina. She's only here for a short time."

Rory nodded not taking his eyes off Imogen. "You look dishy tonight. I'm really glad to see you out. I've missed seeing you."

"Rory come with me to the bar to get another pint. I see some wenches that may need our attention." Dex said pulling Rory with him.

"Whoa! I thought I was going to have to make an excuse to go to the bathroom." Christina said.

"What do you mean?" Imogen said.

"You know exactly what I mean. There is some tangible sexual tension between the two of you. Do you two have a history or something?"

"NO! We have only ever been friends. He is so sweet though. I was hoping the two of you would hit it off."

"Let me tell you, Gen, he has absolutely no interest in me. I don't even think he knows what I look like. He's still watching you now." The two of them looked over and saw Rory staring at their table while a busty brunette talked at him.

"Chris, I am still married. There can never be anything between the two of us." Imogen said sadly.

"I know, Gen. It doesn't mean you can't appreciate a little male attention even if nothing comes of it." Imogen's phone started vibrating on the table.

"I have to take this its Jude. I will be right back."

While Christina sat alone at the table she looked around to see the crowd had almost doubled in size. Many were players she recognized from the game earlier. Most had a girl or two hanging on them. Rugby groupies were clearly a hazard of the sport. The only one she saw ignoring the groupie was Rory who watched Imogen talking on her phone by the bathrooms. She was clearly upset. After ending the call, she walked over to the table. Dex and Rory were walking with their refreshed beers and groupies trailing behind.

"What's wrong?" Rory asked.

"Jude called. Bella has a fever and threw up. He told me to not come home and that he had it under control. I need to go. My little girl is sick, and I need to be the one taking care of her." Imogen said while getting her purse.

"Ok. I will go with you." Christina said.

"No, you stay Chris. I can get a taxi." Imogen insisted.

"I will take you home. My car is right down the street." Rory said insistently.

"If you're sure its no trouble. That would be great, Rory. Thank you so much." Imogen squeezed his arm. "Have fun tonight, Chris. Keep an eye on her, Dex. We already lost Liam to the wenches. Love you." Imogen hugged Christina and Dex then left with Rory.

"They need to be careful." Dex said to Christina then walked back to the bar.

"Finally, he left." A tall man with a swath of red hair stood next to Christina. He wasn't as wide as Dex and Liam but he was definitely one of their team mates. He had stunning green eyes that twinkled with something Christina couldn't put her finger on.

"Excuse me?"

"Dex. He finally left you a lone so that I could come over to you, lass. You are one of the prettiest lasses in this pub. I had to ken ya." His Scottish brogue was so strong she could barely understand him.

"That is sweet of you but I'm just here to spend time with my cousins."

"Dex and Liam are busy with wenches. You can spend time with me, lass. I could have you moaning my name in no time." His thumb rubbed the top of her hand.

Pulling her hand back, Christina crossed her arms. "No thank you. If that is what you are looking for I am not one of the "wenches". You will want to move on."

"Oh come on, lass. Don't you want to see what is under my kilt?"

"Simon, I believe the lady has told you no. You need to go find entertainment somewhere else." The sexy player from outside the locker room had placed a huge hand on the Scotsman's shoulder.

"Oh..uhm...hiya Wilson. I will be goin. Sorry, lass." Simon left so fast you would have thought he was being chased by a wild animal.

"Sorry about him. Scots are known for being relentless when a pretty woman is around. I'm Finley Wilson and apparently, I am your favorite player." He smiled.

Christina laughed, "I'm Christina Scott. Honestly, you're my favorite player because you happened to walk by. I was just giving my annoying cousins shit. Thank you for your help with your teammate."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Christina. I can't say I blame Simon. I was hoping you were going to be here tonight. So, clearly you are American. Are you here visiting?" Finley leaned closer as he spoke.

"Its complicated on why I am here but visiting is the easiest way to describe it."

"Hmmm...that sounds like there is quite the story. I'd love to hear it some time." Finley said.

"Maybe if you're lucky you will get to know my secrets." Christina said mysteriously. What was she doing? She didn't have time for things like this.

Finley laughed a deep laugh that shot electricity straight to her core. "Well, I'd really be up for discovering your secrets."

Leaning even closer and putting his hand along the back of the high backed stool, Christina could feel his warm breath on her face. He smelled like pine, mint and whiskey mixed together. Good thing she was seated because she could feel her knees getting weaker by the minute.

"Wilson! What the bloody hell are you doing with my cousin?" Dex yelled as he walked toward their table.

"Dex. I'm just having a chat with Christina." The way he said her name made her shiver.

"Why don't you go over to one of the wenches. They are more your style." Dex said standing next to Christina now.

Finley looked down at Christina with an unreadable look on his face. "I'm going to get a pint. Would you like another, Christina?"

Christina nodded and watched Finley walk over to the bar. "What are you doing, Dex?"

"What am I doing? What the bloody hell are you doing? Wilson isn't some bloke you just have a chat with in a bar. He's a tosser that uses women as frequently as I wipe my arse."

"Ew! Really, Dex. Was that analogy really necessary?" Christina chastised while watching Finley at the bar. As he stood at the bar talking to the bartender, a fake looking Barbie doll walked up. Rubbing herself against him she drew his attention. He smiled down at her with the same look he'd given her.

"See. I told you. He is not the man for you. In my opinion, none of these tossers are worthy of you, Chris." Dex smiled at her and walked toward the back of the pub. Some of the other players were playing darts.

Christina looked back toward the bar and didn't see Finley any more. Christina sighed. Men were the last thing she needed to focus on. Especially men who had the tendency to have sexy women clinging to them. She really needed to keep her eye on the prize. Go home to apply for some jobs back in America for when her visit was done. Jumping down from her stool, she walked over to where the bathrooms were located. Weaving through couples giggling and flirting, touching and kissing, Christina felt out of place. Finally, she managed to make it without getting accosted by one of Dex's teammates or the women they were with. When Christina approached the door to the ladies room she heard a noise coming from a door a few feet down. Shrugging she continued about her business. It was time for her to call it a night. Finding Dex to tell him she was leaving was going to be her next problem. The door next to the bathroom swings open. Fake Barbie stumbled out fixing her skirt and hair. Right behind her was Finley. When their eyes connect he freezes with an Oh Shit look on his face.

The shock of what she was seeing froze her in place. When her brain finally kicks in she turns on her heel striding away from the bathrooms. Dammit! Dex had been right. He would never know he was right. However, she needed to get out of that pub now. Finley shouted her name behind her as she shoved her way through the even more crowded pub. Christina flew out of the door almost landing on her face after missing the step. Stepping up to the curb she searched for an available taxi.

"It wasn't what it looked like." She heard the deep voice behind her.

Christina ignored him and continued to try to wave down a taxi.

"Will you let me explain?" Finley asked stepping closer.

Christina could no longer ignore him and spun on her heel to look at him. "Leave me the fuck alone. Frankly, I don't care what the hell you were doing with that slutbag. I'm just glad that I saw you for what you are before making a mistake."

"Christina...please give me a chance. I'm so-"

"Finney baby! Come back in so we can finish our fun." Slutbag said while coming and plastering herself onto Finley.

"Just stop it, Jillian. I'm trying to talk here. Christina please don't go."

"Why do you want her to stay? If you want another girl with us my friend, Felicia, is here. She's more like me. I don't know what you'd see in that." Slutbag kept talking even though no one wanted to hear her.

Just then Christina's taxi pulled up. Without another word Christina got into the taxi and told the driver where to drop her. She couldn't bring herself to watch as the taxi pulled away. Dex's warning played on repeat in her head. How was it that even as she hated seeing Finley with that girl, she couldn't help finding her thoughts drawn to him.? Letting her head drop back against the seat her mind wandered. The dates and boyfriends she'd had in Chicago never had her feeling even a drop of the way Finley made her feel with just a look. How depressing was that? Christina's body had to be attracted to the one guy that was guaranteed to chew her up and spit her out.