Page 44 of Until You're Breathless

The fresh evening air seems to help her focus. As she draws in a couple of deep breaths, I place my arm over her shoulder. “You’re not cold, are you?”

“No, this is nice. Thanks for taking care of me, Jagger.”

“Hey, we take care of each other.” I correct. “If I was the one in there, you wouldn’t hesitate.”

“That’s true.”

I rub her arm with my hand. “You did well in there. Held it together well, even though you were falling apart on the inside.”

“Jagger, I have to tell you, I think the gods are looking out for me since leaving Boston.”

“That’s very valid. But it’s also got to do with making better choices.”

“Yeah, that too.” She takes another sip of water, and I watch the glassiness in her eyes start to dissipate a little. The air is crisp, and the moonlight illuminates the terrace perfectly. “It’s so beautiful here.”

“I won’t argue with you there.”

She turns to me. “You look so handsome tonight.”

I look at her and smirk. “You’re stealing the show in that dress, I have to tell you.”

Her eyes search mine. Her voice is soft. “You think you might ever kiss me?”

We’re not in a bathroom stall anymore. We’re alone. There is nothing here except the moonlight and the Thames River off in the distance. I lean in and give her a soft kiss on the mouth. My lips touch hers gently, semi-chastely, and I let the touch linger for a moment, before pulling back. Before I pull all the way back, I rub my nose on hers. “You still taste like licorice whips.”

“The wine is sugary.” She says, as her eyes still search mine.

“Quit looking at me like that, or we’ll never be able to stay out of trouble in the hotel later.”

“What if I don’t want to stay out of trouble.”

“Well, for the record, I don’t want to, either. But we’ve discussed this. We need to keep focus until we know that this deal is in the bag.”

That breaks the spell. “You’re right. All this wine made me lose my head.”

I slide a finger down her cheek. “That’s okay. You’re killing it tonight.”

She takes another sip of water. “We should get back in there. Wesley will think that we ditched him.”

“I think he’s probably too tanked to care, but you’re right.”

“One more kiss...for the road?” She asks, looking at me with puppy dog eyes.

I lean in and kiss her once more, making a playful, smacking noise.

“Let’s go.” She says, as if that’s all the motivation that she needed.

When we get back to the table, Wesley’s ordered a round of shots and a plate of bangers & nash. Bowie takes one look at the disgusting delicacy, and I know that she’s about to toss her cookies. “Oh, Wesley...” Bowie trails off. “I’m so sorry, but I’m terribly drunk.” She admits, not looking at the food.

“Not to worry, love. The car awaits you at the front. I’ll see you for breakfast?”

I look at Stephen and he winks at me. He’s a great guy. “Thanks, man.” I say to him under my breath.

“Not a problem, mate. I’ll catch you in the morning.”

The second that we get back to the hotel, I know we’re in trouble. Since all the tension has worn away with us departing from the restaurant, Bowie seems to let herself go, and she’s all over me in the car. She all but straddles me in the back seat. “Bowie, honey.” I chuckle. “Look, the driver can see us. Do you want Wesley to know what went on back here?”

That seems to calm her down. Until we get into the hotel and step inside the elevator. Thank God it’s the kind of elevator with a doorman, so at least she’s just trying to squeeze my ass from behind us. Once we get off the elevator and start walking down the hall, I lay into her. “Look, Bowie. I’m not going to fuck you when you’re like this. I want you to remember it. I don’t want it to be some drunken fuck that lasts all of two minutes.”

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