Page 30 of Unstitch

It really fucking rankles.

Don’t get me started on the thought of him throwing money at her to ensnare her, because that’s morally repugnant, no question about it.

It seems Rafe feels the same way. He leans forward, knees wide, elbows resting on them and hands steepled. ‘He paid you to fuck him? Gen is going to fucking garrote him when she gets back.’

‘No!’ Darcy slaps my thigh, and I flinch. ‘He paid me to dance for him. I fucked him for free, and I said no to the money afterwards, because even if some people around here have a hooker kink’—she glares at Maddy—‘I’m not going to take his money if I’ve slept with him.’

I spot the dark look Rafe shoots Belle, and her ensuing blush, and decide that if my little sister has a hooker kink, I categorically don’t want to know anything about it.

‘So you fucked him,’ Maddy says, shimmying excitedly on my other side. I meet Zach’s gaze and see the quiet sympathy there.

Yeah, mate.

Being pinned in the vortex of a gossip session like this is a nightmare of epic proportions.

Maddy leans forward, resting her glass of champagne on my knee. Jesus Christ, what is it with these women and personal space? They’re talking in low voices now, but, trapped where I am between them, I’m unfortunately privy to every word.

‘Mmm-hmm,’ Darcy says coyly. ‘And it was fucking amazing.’

Of course it was. I’m sure Max Hunter lives up to his name and possesses a giant cock to go with the size his bank balance will be once Wolff floats on the London Stock Exchange. And of course he knows how to use it. I close my eyes in despair.

Maddy makes a little noise of happiness and pokes me. I open my eyes.

‘So Gen fucked Max once, on Anton’s orders,’ she tells me, ‘and she said it was amazing, but she thinks he’s a total man whore. He’s been sniffing around Darcy, so Gen warned him off, but clearly he got you while your sister was off shagging her hot new husband. Right?’ she asks Darcy.

I would classify absolutely all of that as Too Much Information, but I suspect Mads doesn’t care. I groan, and the girls giggle.

‘We’re traumatising Dex, I think,’ Darcy says with an overly-familiar pat of my thigh.

My smile is polite but strained. ‘Not at all. But I don’t want to get in the way. Why don’t I switch places with you, Mads, and you guys can catch up?’

‘Not so fast, Mister,’ Darcy says. ‘Maddy, Zach looks lonely. I want to interrogate this one.’

Maddy winks at me, no doubt catching the trepidation on my face. ‘Don’t worry, babes. She doesn’t bite. She prefers getting bitten, right, Darce?’

Darcy giggles.

I grimace.

It’s going to be a long night.

‘So.’ Darcy twists her body towards me and finally releases my thigh, giving me that dazzling smile instead. ‘How does it feel to be back in London?’

‘Tiring,’ I admit. ‘It’s actually been harder to adjust to working for a new company than being in a different timezone. It’s honestly been a blur this week, between client stuff and trying to meet as many people internally as possible. I’m pretty shattered.’

She hums sympathetically. ‘I can imagine. Where are you living?’

‘I’ve rented a place on Poultry.’

‘That’s the City, right?’ She screws up her sweet little nose. ‘God, that’s boring.’

‘Yeah.’ I give her a sheepish smile. I’m so fucking exhausted, and she’s so fucking beautiful. I wish I could sit here and not talk and just stare at her. ‘But it’s a five-minute walk from the office, and I think I’ll be pretty boring for the next few months while I get up to speed properly.’

‘That’s a shame,’ she says seductively. It takes every ounce of self-control not to look down at her breasts. I wish I could lay my weary head on them. ‘Do you have many friends here still?’ she asks, and I tell myself to snap out of it.

‘I’ve got all my uni mates, yeah. Fuck, more people I have to catch up with, and a lot more weddings to go to.’ I give a little laugh and tug on the back of my neck with my hand. It’s so stiff. ‘Everyone’s dropping like flies. But that’s something you wouldn’t know anything about—you’re far too young.’

‘I’m twenty-five, and, unlike your sister, I have no intention of getting married anytime soon.’

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