52 pages • 1 hour read
The Striker
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Chapters 16-28Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 16 Summary: “Scarlett”
Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses sexual content and violence.
Scarlett starts her first rehearsals for the showcase. Afterward, she and Carina go to the Angry Boar and discuss the show, Scarlett’s father’s condition, and her sessions with Asher. Scarlett finds herself admitting her feelings for Asher but insists she won’t date or sleep with him. She dated the footballer Rafael Pessoa five years ago and has sworn never to see another footballer again. Asher’s arrival at the pub interrupts their conversation. Carina dismisses herself to the restroom so they can talk. Scarlett gets upset and confronts another customer for bumping into Asher without apologizing. Carina returns. Before Asher leaves, he invites them to attend an exclusive party at club Neon.
Chapter 17 Summary: “Scarlett”
Scarlett lies awake reading. Distracted and anxious, she decides to go to Neon to see Asher after all. At the door, the bouncer won’t let her in until Asher appears and introduces her as his date. Inside, Scarlett meets a kind young woman named Brooklyn. Later, she meets Asher’s cousin, Clive Hart. Seeing them together, Asher interrupts and warns Scarlett not to get involved with Clive. Then they dance intimately, admitting that their relationship doesn’t feel platonic.
Chapter 18 Summary: “Scarlett”
Asher pushes Scarlett against the wall, and they share an intense kiss. Scarlett pulls away and flees the club, ashamed for kissing Asher in public. On the way home, Vincent calls, and Scarlett pretends she was out with Carina. Vincent informs her that he’ll be back in London for a few days soon. Scarlett worries he’ll discover the truth about her and Asher.
Chapter 19 Summary: “Asher”
Asher keeps thinking about his and Scarlett’s kiss for the next week. When she arrives for their session, he tries discussing the kiss, but Scarlett reminds him that they can’t be together. Asher agrees to keep things professional.
That evening, Asher drives to North London to race his friends. He’s irritated when he runs into Clive, who makes sexual comments about Scarlett. They challenge each other to a race. Asher wins, and Clive pays him $100,000. On his way home, Asher thinks about Clive, racing, and Scarlett.
Chapter 20 Summary: “Scarlett”
Scarlett and Vincent go to the movies at a small local theater. Scarlett is surprised when Clive appears at the theater. Vincent warns her about getting involved with him, but when they encounter each other outside the bathroom later, Scarlett agrees to go on a date with him.
During their next session, Scarlett tells Asher about her upcoming date with Clive. Asher suggests they double date and see who can secure a second date during the dinner. Scarlett reluctantly agrees.
Chapter 21 Summary: “Asher”
Asher asks his friend Ivy to double date with him. When they arrive at the restaurant, Asher is taken by Scarlett’s appearance. He feels upset when Clive joins, but he tries to control his emotions. He and Scarlett are surprised to learn that Clive and Ivy used to date. They excuse themselves to the restroom at the same time, and Scarlett and Asher speculate about their relationship. Then Ivy says she’s feeling sick, and Clive offers to drive her home. Scarlett and Asher close out their tab, and Asher drives her home. Asher feels sad as he drives away, wishing he “had someone to talk to” about his feelings (209). He turns around, knocks on Scarlett’s door, and kisses her as soon as she opens it.
Chapter 22 Summary: “Scarlett”
Scarlett and Asher share a passionate kiss. They engage in foreplay, and Asher leads her to the bedroom where they talk intimately and have sex. Scarlett is moved when Asher checks in with her throughout the encounter. Afterward, she lies awake reflecting on their relationship.
Chapter 23 Summary: “Scarlett”
Asher makes breakfast for Scarlett the next morning. They eat and chat, agreeing that they like seeing each other this way. Scarlett is surprised by how easy it feels to open up to Asher. They discuss Scarlett’s home life and her obsession with order. Asher understands, likening her cleanliness to his love for racing. Scarlett silently realizes that his pastime makes her nervous. A call about Asher’s dad interrupts them. Ron has had a heart attack.
Chapter 24 Summary: “Asher”
Asher and Scarlett drive to Holchester to see Ron. Asher reflects on his relationship with his dad along the way. At the hospital, they meet Pippa, who instantly likes Scarlett. She stays with Pippa in the waiting room while Asher visits Ron. Asher feels frustrated when Ron instantly starts badgering him about football. Asher confronts Ron for always putting football before his son. The nurse races in and scolds Asher for raising Ron’s blood pressure. Afterward, Pippa encourages Asher and Scarlett to rest up at the house.
Chapter 25 Summary: “Scarlett”
Scarlett and Asher go to Asher’s childhood home. She’s surprised by all the Donovans’ football paraphernalia. They lie in Asher’s bed and talk about their parents and professions. Asher tells her about the loss of his best friend Teddy. They were out celebrating together after Asher was signed to the Premier League. Asher left the bar early. Teddy walked home alone, drunk, and was mugged and stabbed to death. Asher has blamed himself ever since. Scarlett listens and comforts him. They lie facing each other, not talking.
Chapter 26 Summary: “Scarlett”
Scarlett and Asher visit the hospital again before checking into their hotel. The next day, they go to the museum and out for ice cream. They chat easily throughout. After Ron is discharged, they drive back to London. Sad to end the weekend, Scarlett suggests they go out for food before she heads home. Asher takes her to an Indian restaurant. Over dinner, they discuss football, the World Cup, Asher’s beef with Vincent, and their past relationships. They agree to date casually in secret until they work out their conflict with Vincent. Scarlett is privately worried Asher will turn out like her ex, but she dismisses the thoughts. Customers at the restaurant recognize Asher and beg for autographs. Later, Scarlett reflects on the evening, assuring herself everything will be fine despite the unwanted public attention.
Chapter 27 Summary: “Asher”
Asher texts with Adil and Noah.
Chapter 28 Summary: “Scarlett”
Over the next two weeks, Scarlett and Asher keep their relationship hidden from everyone but Carina and Brooklyn. At RAB one day, Lavinia calls Scarlett into a rehearsal because Yvette is out. Scarlett dances well until she remembers the accident and stumbles. She overhears her colleagues talking about her afterward. When Asher appears at RAB, she runs into his arms and starts crying. Asher encourages her, suggesting they incorporate her practices into their training sessions at his house. Then he reveals that he’s taking her on an official date that weekend.
Chapters 16-28 Analysis
As Asher and Scarlett spend time together, they begin to support one another and discover Romantic Love as a Catalyst for Self-Discovery. Throughout the novel thus far, Asher and Scarlett have primarily spent time together in Asher’s private ballet studio. This secluded setting embodies the genre trope of forced proximity, as they have been forced to retreat here to escape media attention. While training together in this private space, they have discovered the power of Emotional Intimacy as a Means of Overcoming Trauma, sharing their fears and working through their past traumas—Scarlett’s accident and Asher’s difficult relationship with his father—together.
In Chapters 16-28, however, they begin to branch out of this insular, comforting realm. Once they leave the studio, they learn to connect authentically in a range of other settings. Their various outings throughout this section show how their relationship buoys them no matter where they are. For example, they run into each other at the Angry Boar, attend the party at the Neon club, spend a night at Scarlett’s apartment, visit Asher’s family in Holchester, and go out for dinner together at the Indian restaurant. Although they’re both under constant public scrutiny because of Asher’s fame, Asher and Scarlett feel safe when they’re together. Their burgeoning friendship and romantic connection ushers them along their personal growth journeys and teaches them how to balance The Tension Between Personal Desires and Communal Expectations.
The author uses detailed descriptions of Asher’s and Scarlett’s body language and physiological experiences when they’re together to illustrate their deepening connection and growing trust in each other. Despite their mutual desire, they are constrained by the expectations of their family members and colleagues, and Scarlett’s expressions of desire are often tempered by an acknowledgement that their relationship must remain hidden. For example, when they run into each other at the Angry Boar in Chapter 16, Scarlett feels “the banked heat [she and Asher] shouldn’t acknowledge thrumm[ing] across the tiny high-top table” (144). The characters are situated in close proximity in this public setting. Their attention to one another’s well-being—particularly Scarlett’s defensiveness of Asher when the other customer bumps him—conveys their attraction to and care for each other. Then in Chapter 17, Scarlett admits that she can’t think, move, or breathe as Asher’s “hand trail[s] up [her] arm and over the bare curve of [her] shoulder” when they’re dancing (164). Her muscles feel “tighter than a bowstring” (164)—figurative language that enacts her intense physical and emotional response to being close to Asher. The genre trope of forbidden love is at play here, with the clandestine quality of their relationship serving to intensify their desire for each other. The characters experience similarly heated feelings when they’re on the double date, driving in the car, kissing and having sex at Scarlett’s apartment, or lying side by side in Asher’s childhood bed. These settings foster intimacy between the characters and show how their relationship is evolving. They’re keeping their relationship quiet, but they’re also learning that they can balance their familial, professional, and personal lives when they’re together—no matter where they are.
Asher and Scarlett’s trip back to Holchester offers another secluded setting for Emotional Intimacy as a Means of Overcoming Trauma. Asher’s childhood home symbolizes the past that continues to influence his identity in the present. However, with Scarlett by his side in his childhood bedroom, Asher is better able to articulate his complex internal experiences and thus to ask Scarlett for help. The bed and bedroom are representative of innocence and vulnerability. These settings and symbols inspire Asher to talk about his conflicting familial, professional, and personal desires, and how these conflicts have kept him from making peace with his past. He talks openly about football, his father, and his friend Teddy’s death. Asher is thus letting Scarlett see Asher Donovan, the person, instead of Asher Donovan, the football brand. “The last time [the characters] shared a bed, [they’d] had sex,” but in this scene, they share “a different type of intimacy” that’s built upon honesty and trust (252). This moment marks a turning point in Asher and Scarlett’s relationship. It also captures how loving, trusting, and equitable relationships can help individuals confront trauma and embrace personal growth.
For Scarlett, personal growth means confronting her fears. In these chapters, Scarlett tries to overcome her trepidations and hardships by rehearsing for the staff showcase with her colleagues and agreeing to a relationship with Asher. In the context of the showcase, Scarlett feels as if everyone is “waiting for [her] to mess up” because they all know about the accident and her past (272). By dancing with her colleagues, she’s actively trying to dispel her fears and others’ doubts about her. Agreeing to date Asher shows Scarlett’s active work to overcome her heartbreak over Rafael. She knows that Asher isn’t her ex, but her “last relationship had ended in disaster” and thus clouds her experience in the present (259). Just as she’s afraid that her physical injuries will preclude her from dancing again, Scarlett worries that her emotional wounds will impede her ability to love again. The novel uses these complex facets of Scarlett’s internal experience to show how the past can prevent people from engaging fully in the present and stunt their personal growth. With the help and encouragement of loved ones, however, Scarlett can face her fears with confidence and prove herself resilient.
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