The Footballer's Girlfriend

Part One - Chapter Twenty-Four: Jennifer's Heartache

Eliana took a deep breath as she walked through Madrid airport, it had been a long flight and she was happy to be home; especially after the phone call that she had gotten from Cristiano about her mother.

Eliana had no idea what was going on and she feared that something had happened between her parents for her mother to walk away from her father without a warning.

Eliana smiled spotting Cristiano waiting to pick her up, she hadn't seen him in nearly a week and the separation had been a tough one; she was happy to be home for a few weeks now.

Cristiano walked towards her and pulled her into his arms, he held her close knowing that it had been a long while since they had seen one another; a week was far too long for him and he hoped that they wouldn't have to be parted again anytime soon.

"I missed you," Cristiano whispered softly into Eliana's ear, he held her close for a moment and closed his eyes knowing that Jennifer was back at the house waiting to speak with his girlfriend.

Jennifer had refused to tell Cristiano what was going on and it had made him a little nervous, he didn't want any more drama after what had happened with his brother; Hugo was due to head off to rehab soon and he was currently helping Lilian find a home in Madrid for her new job.

"I missed you too," Eliana murmured holding onto Cristiano for a moment, she had no idea what to expect when she met with her mother but she was hoping that it wouldn't be anything to serious.

Cristiano smiled pulling back from Eliana and taking her bag for her, he was sure that whatever was going on would be fine; he wanted nothing more than to spend some time relaxing with Eliana but that wouldn't happen straight away.

Eliana first had to deal with her mother, who had set up camp in one of the guest rooms; it was clear that they would be seeing a lot more of her.

***

"Mãe," Eliana murmured softly stepping into the guest bedroom that her mother had commandeered while she had been in New York, she frowned knowing that this wasn't going to be pleasant.

Jennifer looked up from what she was doing and smiled spotting her daughter, she was so happy that Eliana had come home especially since it had been awkward with just Cristiano around.

"Eliana," Jennifer greeted getting to her feet and moving to hug her daughter, no one knew that she was here in Madrid and she hoped to keep it that way; she wanted nothing more than to recuperate after what had happened and she would have to tell her daughter the truth.

"How was work?" Jennifer asked pulling Eliana to sit down on the bed, she was going to have to tell her sooner or later about what was going on but she wasn't in a hurry.

Eliana forced a smile, she could see that her mother was trying to avoid talking about what was going on; she had called her father but he was refusing to speak to her about what was happening.

"Work was fine," Eliana replied watching her mother closely, she couldn't figure out what had happened and she knew that this was going to change things.

Jennifer took a deep breath as she looked down at her hands, she knew that she wasn't fooling Eliana and her daughter didn't deserve to be kept in the dark about anything right now.

"Mãe... what is going on?" Eliana asked not wanting to be kept in the dark any longer, she wanted to know why her mother was here in Madrid instead of back home in Madeira.

Jennifer chewed on her lip as she thought for a moment on how to tell Eliana, she wouldn't blame her for being upset since it was a shocking move.

"I've left your pai," Jennifer replied carefully, she couldn't bring herself to look at her daughter instead opting to stare at her hands; she was ashamed that her marriage was coming to an end but she didn't know what else to do.

Eliana stared at her mother shocked at what she had been told, she hadn't been expecting it and she wished that she had seen this coming in some form or another.

"What happened?" Eliana asked after a few minutes, she couldn't believe that her parents were separated and she couldn't figure out what had happened; she knew things had been rough between them lately but she had never thought this would happen.

Jennifer was silent, she debated on whether she should tell Eliana the truth about what had happened; she didn't want to turn he daughter against her father even after what William had done.

"Mãe," Eliana pleaded wanting the truth, the bad feeling in her stomach made her want to be sick; she didn't know what to think right now and she needed to know what had happened.

Jennifer sniffled attempting to stop herself from breaking down, she felt so ashamed that this had happened and she hated to burden Eliana with her problems.

"I caught him with another woman," Jennifer revealed not looking to Eliana, she still couldn't believe that she had walked in on William with Sara Gonzalez; they had been together for thirty-one years and he had thrown it away for that woman.

Eliana felt sick at her mother's words, she had never thought her father would do something like that; she threw her arms around her mother as she started to sob, she would help Jennifer in any way that she could and she didn't know how she would react to her own father anymore.

***

"I just can't believe he would do that," Eliana whispered cuddling into Cristiano's arms, she had spent the day talking with her mother who was determined to get a divorce after what had happened.

Jennifer didn't want anything to do with William after she had caught him with Sara Gonzalez, she wanted to start anew and she would never be able to return to their home in Madeira after what had happened.

Eliana had offered her mother help with whatever she needed, including finding her an apartment in Madrid so that she had her own place and hiring a good divorce lawyer.

"It'll be okay," Cristiano murmured pressing a kiss to the top of his girlfriend's head, he had been shocked when Eliana had told him what had happened and he felt disgusted that anyone could do that to his wife.

Cristiano was always completely faithful to those he was with, he would never for a moment even consider cheating on Eliana when things were perfect for them.

Cristiano wanted to spend the rest of his life with the blonde and he had already begun to think about asking her to marry him; he wasn't sure when he would do it but he had started to look at engagement rings.

"I thought they were happy, sure they had their problems but I can't believe he'd do this to her," Eliana continued with a shake of her head, she had no idea what she was going to do; her father hadn't even given any hints when she had called him to ask what was going on.

Cristiano closed his eyes, he would never make that stupid move when he had Eliana in his life; she was the only woman that he wanted and he would help out in any way that he could with the divorce.

Eliana rested her head on his shoulder and closed her blue eyes, she was thankful that she had a man like him in her life.