The Girl in Cleats

⚽️Chapter 44⚽️

{Asher POV}
"This is the handsome young man you've been talking about?" A short and plump woman asks.

"The one and only" Lauren says with a bright smile.

"Oh, Asher it's such a pleasure to meet you!" She embraces me in a very unexpected hug.

"Hey hey hey." A man's voice appears from the back.

"Honey! This is Asher!" Says the woman, whose name I still do not know.

"Ah, nice to meet you, Asher." He extends out his arm and I grip it firmly, giving a good shake.

"Oh! Sorry Asher, I never told you their names." Laura says, smacking her forehead.

"This is Annie, and this is Daniel."

Annie seems like that grandmotherly figure, but she doesn't look old, she just acts like it. She has long blonde hair that reaches her waist, and her eyes are a soft green.

Daniel is a really tall guy with brown hair and striking blue eyes. When he walks, it's as if a t-Rex is coming. He's just starting to get the "laugh wrinkles", as Kiera would say, near his eyes and in the corners of his smile.

This pair looks like they never should've worked but somehow did and it ended up for the better. They look younger than Lauren, but I think it's only because she's been through so much in a short time.

"Well? Where's Catrina?" Annie asks with a huge grin.

"Oh no! She's still in the car!" Lauren gasps but I tap her shoulder and point down to the little girl holding my hand, who's been hiding behind me.

"Oh thank goodness, Asher. What would I do without you?"

I shrug, "You would've remembered if you weren't excited for me to meet Annie and Daniel." I smile at them.

"Well yes, I suppose. Oh well, whatever." She takes the small toddler in her arms and hands her to Daniel who immediately begins holding her in the air and making airplane noises.

"Well, I hope you two are hungry?" Annie asks with a loving smile.

"Ohhhh yes," Lauren says with a giggle.

"I sure am!" I smile.

"Excellent! We're eating chicken and mashed potatoes" She lowers her voice, "and some blueberry pie afterwards." Annie winks, but hushes us before we can say anything.

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{Kiera POV}
"There's gotta be something..." I whisper to myself quietly, rummaging through my brother's boxes once again.

"Kiera?" Cameron walks up behind me and rests his chin on my shoulder.

"Yeah?" I say, brushing messy hair behind my ears.

"What if you can't find anything else?" His voice is solemn and sad, as if it's hurting him too.

"I... I don't know. But what I do know is that my brother wouldn't stop if our places were switched. I miss him." A tear rolls down my face and Cameron spins me around, gently wiping it off before it can spill off my cheek.

"Ok. Well," He starts to close up the boxes, "Let's give this a rest for a few days, yeah? Then, you can come back to it fresh and new."

"Ok." I smile at him.

Cameron plugs his phone into my speaker and starts playing music, "Miss Kiera Ashton, will you dance with me?" He bows, keeping eye contact and then reaching his hand out as if he's asking permission.

"I would be honored, Prince Charming." I curtsy and he takes my hand in his.

We laugh because we can't dance, but that's ok because two negatives make a positive, right? We slow dance for a while, barely moving. My head is cradled into his chest, with his chin resting on my head again. He pulls away for a second, and holds his arm up, allowing me to twirl and then he brings me back into him again, kissing my head.

"Thank you." I whisper, smiling and closing my eyes.

"Anything for my princess." He mutters, I can hear the smile in his voice.

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*preparing for the angry comments*

I'M SORRY. OK? YES I KNOW I DO THIS A LOT BUT I AM A BUSY WOMAN... kind of, lol.

I don't even know if there are many readers out there anymore, or if you guys even enjoy this book any more. Do I have any loyal readers out there still? The book is coming to an end, but don't worry, I'll tie up all the loose ends. : )

Again, thank you for being so patient with me! You guys are great!

-KD Montague