Page 28 of Gold Digger
“You was kissin’,” the toddler said accusingly, his stubby finger pointed at us and a deep scowl on his face.
“Hi,” Lottie said softly. “Yes, we were kissing.”
“Molly Henderson wants to kiss me, but I runs away,” he told Lottie, then turned to me. “You should try running away. I had to climb up a tree. There’s one there what’s good for climbing.”
“Thanks, mate,” I said seriously. “I’ll remember that if she tries to kiss me again.”
“Tarquin!” the harassed-looking mum had made it over and grabbed Tarquin’s hand. “So sorry,” she said to both of us, her face now pink with embarrassment. “Carry on.” She pulled Tarquin away with her, but as he was leaving, he turned back and mouthed, “Run away,” to me, tilting his head toward the tree he had identified as good climbing potential earlier. I snorted a laugh, then turned back to Lottie. She was smiling after Tarquin but her eyes had clouded over.
“You should, you know,” she said softly. Although her smile was still in place, her voice seemed somehow sad.
“I should what?”
“Run away.” She laughed again. “Tarquin’s given you some solid advice there.”
“Why would I want to do that?” I muttered against her temple before pressing my lips there in a kiss. She took a deep breath in and let it out slowly.
“Apart from the fact that I don’t fit in your world filled with Tarquins and mums in activewear that probably cost as much as my rent for a month?”
“Of course you fit in my world.”
She snorted. “Well, apart from that, I’m complicated. I’ve got all sorts of baggage, Ollie.”
“I don’t care about your baggage. There’s nothing that would put me off. You can be as complicated as you like.” She smiled up at me, and I thought I’d settled it.
But just before she took another bite out of her bagel, I heard her mutter in a barely-there whisper. “We’ll see.”
Chapter 13
My life is… complicated
Ollie
“Hey, lovebug,” Lottie said, and I froze outside the bathroom. Lovebug? Who would Lottie calllovebug? “That’s really great. I’m so proud of you. We’ll celebrate tonight, okay? We could go out?” She laughed softly. “Okay, okay, I’ll cook for you, sweetie. Whatever you want. Okay, I’ll see you later. I love you.”
I frowned and took a step back. Maybe there was a good explanation? She might have been talking to a friend. But, would you call a friend lovebug? Unwanted memories were struggling to surface. I’d been burned by secret phone calls and sneaking around before. I shook my head to clear it. Lottie wasn’t like that. If she had a boyfriend, she would have said. I just needed to ask her. I looked down at the flowers in my hand and winced. Making a split-second decision, I threw them into the empty laundry basket and shut the lid. Rubbing a hand down my face, I took a deep breath before pushing open the door to the bathroom.
“Hey,” I said, and Lottie shrieked, spinning around, with her hand on her chest.
“Ollie, you scared shi—take mushrooms out of me,” she said, giving her phone a nervous look where it sat on the counterbefore focusing back on me. I shoved my hands into my pockets to stop myself doing my usual of reaching for her to kiss her and nuzzle her neck hello. Lottie’s clumsiness wasn’t seeming quite so adorable at the moment. I took a deep breath in and let it out slowly.
“You still keen for tomorrow night?” I asked. After waiting almost two weeks after our bagels in the park, Lottie had finally agreed to a proper date. I wasn’t sure why she was putting me off, but after hearing that phone call, I was beginning to have my suspicions.
“Yes, of course,” she said. Her smile was like a punch in the gut, and I couldn’t bring myself to return it.
“Are you sure?”
Lottie’s smile dimmed, and she tilted her head to the side. Over the last two weeks, I’d been coming home for lunch with Lottie as often as I could, and I could feel her shields gradually coming down. I kept our interactions kitchen-based, not wanting to go further with her physically in case she thought I was just wanting to have a bit on the side with a member of staff. I did let myself kiss her, hold her hand, and put my hand on her lower back to lead her where I wanted her to go – all of which gave her a slightly dazed, almost reverent look on her face, like she couldn’t quite believe this was happening.
The more time I spent with her, the deeper I fell for her. She had a bizarre way of sensing my mood – almost as if she could read me. I was talking to her about a housing project the other day, and she’d cut me off: “But you don’t want to invest in it,” she told me.
“What makes you say that?” I asked in complete surprise.
“I just know that you don’t,” she said simply. “If I had to guess, I’d say you don’t agree with their green space plan.”
I blinked. Yes, I had some reservations about the amount of green space planned for the project, which was about half what I considered to be sufficient.
“How on earth do you know that?”
