“Congratulations on your call up to the England team,” Carl said. Countless people had already said those words to me tonight, but none had made it sound so vile.

“What do you want?” I asked. “You have your money.”

“Yes, about that... “

“I’m not paying you any more. You get 20% for doing jack shit. You should count yourself lucky.”

“I’m a realistic man, Mr. Cornish. I know what I am; I’m a criminal. The thing with criminals is they’re never satisfied. They always want more.”

“You’re not getting any.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to take any more of your salary. I have much bigger plans in mind. It strikes me that you may have quite a big role to play in the upcoming World Cup. From what I’ve heard, you’re going straight into the team as fly-half.”

“So what if I am? I don’t get paid for playing for England, so there’s no more money for you to take.”

“True, true. But the English are optimistic about their chances at this World Cup, and you know what the English do when they get excited about something? They gamble on it. Nasty habit really, but who am I to judge?”

“Is there a point to all this?”

“You’re a man who likes to get straight to the point. Okay, fair enough. During the World Cup, I am going to give you instructions about what to do during certain games and you’re going to follow through. Nothing too major. Just miss a difficult kick now and again. No one will even notice.”

“I’ve already told you, you can’t blackmail me. You can threaten me all you like; I’m not going to do your bidding.”

“Gary used to say that. Then I reminded him of all the nasty things that could happen to him and his family. Do you know how easy it is sabotage a car so that it breaks down at high speed? Scary stuff.”

“I don’t have a family,” I replied. “And you can do what you want to me. I’m not going along with it. Now, if there’s nothing else...” I stood up and started to walk away. Wayne went to block my path, but he must have received a signal from Carl because he moved out of the way again.

“Don’t make any rash decisions, Mr. Cornish. I’ll be in touch.”

I walked off and didn’t look back. I had no idea what I was going to do, but I knew one thing for certain; I wasn’t about to betray my country by taking a bribe during the World Cup. Nothing could make me do that. Nothing.

-*-

I woke up from a nap to a banging at my door. My first thought was that I had a visitor from Carl, but then I heard Gary’s voice.

“Olly, you home? Olly?”

I threw on some shorts and ran downstairs to find a panicked looking Gary at the bottom of the stairs with his son Shaun standing by his side.

“Sorry, I was asleep,” I said through a yawn. “What’s up?”

“Can you look after Shaun for a few hours tonight?”

“Sure, no problem. You doing anything exciting?”

“You could say that.” Gary leaned closer to speak to me without Shaun overhearing. “I’m going to the police. I’m going to report what’s been going on. I’ve had enough, Olly. I know I might end up in prison over this, but it can’t go on forever.”

I nodded and motioned for Shaun to come inside. “Good luck, mate,” I said, shaking his hand. “It’s the right thing to do.”

I couldn’t deny feeling a touch relieved. If Gary reported Carl, then he wouldn’t be able to threaten me any longer. Shaun had brought a Nintendo DS with him, so we took turns playing on that. He loved watching me play, although I suspected that was largely because I was terrible at the game, and he found it amusing.

When Shaun fell asleep on the sofa, I looked at the time and realized how late it was. Gary must have been giving the police all the details. There was a chance they would want to hold him overnight, but it seemed unlikely. He wasn’t exactly a flight risk.

I saw lights in the driveway, followed shortly after by a knock at the door. I didn’t wake Shaun in case Gary wanted to carry him out to the car while he was still asleep.

“How did it go?” I asked as I opened the door. It wasn’t Gary. Two police officers stood in front of me.

“Mr. Cornish, my name is Officer Brett and this is Officer Thompson. May we come in?”

“Listen, I’m happy to give my side of the story, but how about I come to the station tomorrow morning. I have a kid to look after right now.”

The officer frowned. “I’m not sure what you mean, sir. Are you looking after Shaun Williams?’

“Yes. Why?”

“Sir, we need to speak to Shaun. I’m afraid his dad has been involved in a car accident.”

A week passed before Oliver and I finally got the opportunity to tell Maisie and Shaun about our relationship. We probably could have told them sooner, but there was some fun to be had in sneaking around, at least until it got in the way of us having sex.

One evening we took them both to an American restaurant chain for dinner because Maisie was complaining about the lack of melted cheese and bacon which usually formed part of her meals back home.

We agreed that I would take the lead in telling them, because Maisie was the bigger risk. I honestly had no idea how she would react. She could be pleased for us, but it was more likely she would be a bit freaked out. Her brother and her sister were dating; that wasn’t something every teenager went through, but Maisie had coped with worse.

I waited until we’d finished eating and were waiting for our desserts before breaking the news. “Maisie, I don’t want you to be freaked out, but I have some news for you.”

“Okay,” she said, stretching out the word in a way that only teenage girls could. “Good news or bad news?”

“I think it’s good news,” I said.

“So do I,” Oliver added.

“You see, Oliver and I have become close over the past few weeks, and well, we’re dating.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Shaun look briefly surprised, but then he smiled at Oliver and went back to drinking his soda. Maisie’s face didn’t give anything away. She let the pause drag on uncomfortably long before finally speaking.

“Oh my God,” she said loudly. “That is completely new information. I am so surprised.”

Oliver snickered, and I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re being sarcastic aren’t you?”

“Not at all. I had no idea you two had been sneaking around having sex for the past week while Shaun and I played rugby. No idea at all.”

“Alright, missy, no need to show off.”

“Congratulations,” she said, being serious this time. “I’m very pleased for both of you.”

“You don’t find it… weird?” Oliver asked. “We weren’t sure how you’d take the news.”

“Nah, you’re cool and just what Michelle needed.” Maisie leaned towards Oliver as if she were going to whisper a secret, but she spoke loud enough for us all to hear. “She’s been walking around with a spring in her step for the past week, and she’s much happier now that she’s had a good—”

“Who ordered the banana split?” our waiter asked, standing by the table with no idea how much I appreciated his timing. He’d be getting a good tip tonight.

After the meal, the four of us took a walk, with Oliver donning a San Diego Chargers cap to avoid getting recognized. I wouldn’t usually be seen dead with someone in a Chargers cap, but Oliver had never seen a game of football in his life, and likely had no idea who the Chargers were, so I let him off.

No one recognized Oliver, although it probably helped that we were walking around with two teenagers—hardly the glamorous life you’d expect of the rich and famous.

“What’s going on over there?” I asked, as we approached a bookstore with a line coming out the front door.