Page 11 of Such A Filthy Girl

EIGHT

ESTELLA

Never had I been more thankful for the waft of heat that surrounded me as Mom elbowed open the front door. Giggles, abound, we tumbled into the hall, shopping bags denting our arms with their weight, breath still scented with champagne.

The shopping trip stoked my soul with some much needed mother-daughter time, solidifying my choice to come home for her party. Hanging out at my apartment or whichever hotel she stayed in when she came to visit never hit the same.

Tipping the bags onto the dining table and slipping off my coat, I headed into the kitchen and filled two glasses of water. With family dinner later, neither of us would benefit from a mid-afternoon hangover.

‘I had such a wonderful day,’ my mom said, leaning hard against the kitchen counter and chinking her water glass with mine.

‘Me too. I’ve missed this.’

‘You’re always welcome here, Estella. I love having my family under one roof.’ She hiccuped after taking a large glug, covering her mouth before bursting into another fit of tipsy laughter.

Her warmth seeped into me, filling all the empty cracks in my soul.

‘I wonder how Graham and Jack are getting on with their golf downstairs?’ I said, glancing at the corridor which led to the basement. To Jack’s midlife crisis fun-zone. He had every sporting gadget known to man down there.

‘They’ll be having a blast, I’m sure. Likely as knee deep in whisky as we are with champagne. Did you know Jack’s installed a full bar?’

He’d mentioned it ten times in the single day I’d been back.

‘Yeah,’ I said, revelling in the casual way she wrapped an arm around me, sending me right back to the hundreds of times we stood just like that in years gone by.

‘Sweetie, I’m going to have a little lay down before dinner.’ Mom let go of me after one final squeeze before wobbling her way to the staircase.

I downed the rest of my water before topping up and popping two pain-killers. The vague thumping at the read of my head told me I’d be thankful later.

‘Tipsy already?’ The deep timbre of Leo’s voice hit me like a hurtling truck.

‘I’m fine,’ I replied, taking anothersip of my water and ignoring the way my skin tingled when he came into the room.

He creeped me out.

Maybe.

Letting my mind wonder to what other emotions his presence could inflict upon me was an insurmountable zone in my mind.

‘Have you been up to anything exciting? Taken a little walk around the village perhaps?’ Leo’s eyes darkened at my words, the casual jibe not hitting like it used to. The familiarity that allowed for banter between us must have eroded with the chasm of time apart.

Leo stepped closer, forcing me to back up against the counter. His frame had grown far more intimidating in our time apart. His vein-threaded arms were solid and awash with tattoos. Not just tattoos, constellations. Stars mingle with planets and moons, a whole universe-scape covering his exposed arms. Even his fingers hadn’t escaped the ink-work.

‘Do you like them?’ He asked, looking like he genuinely cared what I thought.

I softened as a glimpse of the slender boy I’d known peeked below his granite exterior. ‘They are exquisite. How did you get them done?’

A lopsided grin lifted his lips. ‘When you have money people fall over themselves to bring their business to you. There’s very little that wealth can’t provide me. Only one thing, actually.’

My pulse skipped a beat under his heavy gaze, thosedarkly lashed eyes sparkling with danger. Prickles swept over my skin, turning it to a goose-pimpled canvas.

‘What?’ I whispered. Already suspecting the answer from the open hunger he displayed.

Leo took another step, his legs brushing mine as I leaned back against the counter, trying to gain space. His teeth caught his lower lip for a moment before he pressed closer. ‘You.’

The air in the kitchen dropped to a chill, stealing over me and making me tremble.

‘I’ve missed the way you fill our house, Estella.’ His fingers grazed my hip in the softest of touches. ‘The way you smell. It’s all wrong here without you.’

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