He remembered her turning up at the match, slipping into one of the first rows and watching every move against that irritating French Idiot. Having her there had made him step up his game another gear or two and he'd beaten out the Frenchman without much worry. On his own home turf and oh how they'd hated that, and the papers had paid for every bit of that hate. It had been the first time he'd really seen what controversy could do and just how much it would pay. He'd taken the title from a Frenchman in France and from then on the chess world and its fans were what paid. And if he could do that while playing the game he loved and gaining a gorgeous intelligent girlfriend into the bargain then why would he not? From that match onwards he'd had her even if she hadn't known it, she'd joined up with him soon after when Walter had offered her a deal and then she'd been with him. Throughout, and he should never have let her go. He knew that now.
"See that's why we work. You and me, we take what we want when we want it. You wanted me and you got me and I'm pretty sure you knew just how mutual that was." Her comments about rising above his home. He didn't know what to say to the compliment, if he was honest his home tended to embarrass him. He didn't like to think about his mother, the father that left, the countless men that filled his mothers bed. Freddie had shut all that out and focused on the game. And he'd risen above it. But their arguments, was it so different to those his parents had thrown at each other. So he didn't say anything about the compliment, choosing only to squeeze her hand slightly as he let her slide in the car ahead of him.
He wasn't going to lose her again. Not because of a temper he was trying to control. He wouldn't lose her.
So thinking about other things than his parents were the way to go. "Ever so cultured." he said, affecting a cheesy Brit accent ala Brent. Her mother would have loved someone like Brent and Freddie got why if that was who she wanted her to be. The cultured lady, finding a good husband and living a good life, not running around the world with an American Champion famed for controversy. "If she could see us now huh?" he joked. Freddie was never particularly fond of parents or people trying to control what he did. He slid in the taxi next to her and gave the address to the driver before leaning back slipping an arm over her shoulder.
"We can do this." he told her sticking a metaphorical finger to his parents and to her mom. The arguments could be gotten past. Her infidelities forgotten. He'd started to accept they'd both made mistakes and that was a start. And they were good. When they were on top of things, without the arguing. They were very very good. Freddie leaned into Florence and gave her another light kiss as the car continued on its way to the restaurant. He was going to show her just how good they could be.