Page 52 of The Romance Library

And of course after that he’d conveniently told us that there would be a talent show tonight and invited us along. He hadn’t bothered to turn up, but Jessica and I knew that he’d have spies watching our every move.

‘Maybe you could do a dance routine? Or a duet? That’d go down a treat. You two on stage, staring into each other’s eyes, singing sweet nothings. Awww.’

‘Definitely not!’ I said too quickly. ‘I mean, I’m not much of a dancer or a singer.’

‘That’s a shame.’ She finished pouring my wine and put the glass in front of me. I handed over my credit card. ‘Well, I’m sure you’ll think of something. Good luck!’

‘Thank you.’ I picked up the glasses and headed back to the table.

As I took in the sight of Jessica, I swallowed hard. She was always pretty, but she looked especially lovely today.

Jessica was wearing the same stonewashed jeans that she had on the first day we met and a fitted red top that had a cut-out shape just above her breasts, which I’d been trying (and failing) not to look at all night.

I wasn’t sure what was more painful: listening to that woman’s wailing masquerading as singing earlier or sitting next to Jessica and not being able to touch her.

After putting the drinks down, I slid on the banquette seat, leaving as much distance as possible between us.

Thankfully, not too long afterwards, the show ended and we breathed a sigh of relief. We might not agree on a lot of things, but I knew we were both happy that our eyes and ears wouldn’t be subjected to those terrible performances. At least until the show next week.

‘So, what talents do you have, then?’ Jessica turned to face me, and my breath caught in my throat just like it always seemed to do whenever she looked at me.

‘I’ve been told I’m very good with my hands and my mouth…’ I smirked.

‘Ugh.’ She slapped my arm. ‘Get your mind out of the gutter. I was referring to your talents for this show we have to do. Not your bedroom skills.’

‘Bedroom?’ I raised my eyebrow. ‘I was referring to my pottery and debating skills. What did you think I was talking about?’

Jessica’s eyes widened and she shuffled in her seat.

‘Oh… I… I thought…’

‘Yes, please do elaborate on these thoughts of yours. Interesting to know that when thinking about me, your mind went straight to the bedroom. What exactly were you imagining me doing with my hands and mouth?’

‘I didn’t… I wasn’t thinking about you in the bedroom,’ she stuttered, getting more flustered by the second, which was adorable.

‘Sure, sure,’ I teased, which only wound her up even more.

The truth was, she was absolutely right. I was hinting at what I’d been told about my bedroom skills. I wanted to see what her reaction was. Because no matter how many times I told myself that we’d never be able to do anything together, it didn’t lessen my desire for her.

‘Forget it!’ Jessica picked up her glass and took two large glugs. ‘Clearly the only thing you excel at is being a grade A arsehole!’

‘Ha-ha. Comedy isn’t your forte.’

‘It wasn’t supposed to be funny. It’s the truth.’

‘Well, I’d much rather be a grade A arsehole than a grade B one, so thanks for the compliment!’

‘Aaargghh!’ she huffed. ‘Why do you have to be so annoying?’

‘What can I say? It’s a gift. Whatever I put my mind to, I just excel.’

This time, Jessica folded her arms and scowled.

‘Right now, the only thing I think we could do on that stage together is pretend that we can get along for more than five minutes without being at each other’s throats. That’d be an Oscar-worthy performance on its own.’

‘That’s not strictly true. We lasted a whole day at Dreamland…’ My voice trailed off as I thought about our hands touching for the millionth time.

Jessica froze, and I wondered if she was thinking about it too.

---