Page 43 of Three's a Crowd
They stared at each other, their faces only inches apart.
Daisy’s lips tingled in anticipation of what might come next – was he going to kiss her? – but Zach gently placed her back down on the floor and drew away from her.
‘Well, that was unexpected,’ he muttered, running his hand over his thick, dark hair. ‘Let’s go and collect our winnings.’
But Daisy, flushed with the excitement of winning and unwilling to break the amazing connection they’d forged between them in experiencing it together, paused before saying, ‘Wait. Let’s just have one more game.’ She looked at him beseechingly, desperate to keep this happy feeling alive.
‘Don’t be an idiot, Dizzy,’ he said, gently, cuffing her shoulder in a brotherly manner. ‘You have to quit while you’re ahead.’
Disappointment surged through her. She so badly wanted this feeling to go on and she was worried that the new closeness between them would be broken as soon as they left the table.
On the other hand, she was irked by his ability to make her feel like she was being a naïve kid, which brought back memories of all the times in their past when he’d derided her for her choices.
‘Just because you’ve not had a lucky streak tonight doesn’t mean I shouldn’t pursue mine,’ she said defensively.
‘Daisy,’ he said quietly, but with command in his voice, ‘come away with me now or I’m going to put you over my shoulder and carry you away kicking and screaming in front of all these lovely people. For your own good.’
The teasing humour in his voice brought her up short and she checked herself. Shewasbeing an idiot; he was quite right. She should be happy with what they’d achieved and take a break.
She wondered suddenly if she’d got him wrong when he’d teased her as kids. His manner had made her feel demeaned and berated, but perhaps it was just his misguided way of trying to find humour in a situation. Perhaps in her innocence, she’d misread his sarcastic, cutting comments and not recognised he was actually joking with her.
Well, from now on, she wasn’t going to take any of them seriously, she told herself, pleased by this epiphany.
‘O-kay,’ she sighed, in mock annoyance, slapping him gently on the arm. ‘But only because I don’t want you hurting your back before your big night.’
She grinned up at him and he snorted back, looking as if he wanted to say something else, but stopping himself.
‘Right,’ he said after a short pause, ‘where’s the bar?’ He looked around and spotted it, heading towards it before Daisy could ask him what was on his mind.
Zach had already reached the counter when she caught him up, and was ordering himself a soft drink.
‘What can I get you?’ he asked.
‘I’ll have a glass of champagne,’ she said confidently. Now she was on such a high, she wanted to keep buzzing. Zach ordered her drink and paid the tab when the bartender brought them over.
‘Let’s find a seat,’ he said, starting to move through the tables. Daisy watched him go, his statuesque figure causing a stir amongst the other customers in the bar. Women turned to stare at him as he passed by, appreciatively glancing up and down at his athletic physique. Daisy remembered the pub in Fowey and how much of an effect he’d had even then, before he’d become famous.And look at us now, she thought to herself.So much water under the bridge. So many tears in the shower.
She followed the path he’d taken, aware of the interested stares she was provoking from the seated women, who’d just watched Zach go by with such fascination. Luckily, he’d found a table in the corner and put his drink down on it and she joined him there a moment later, pulling out one of the chairs and flopping down onto it with a relieved sigh.
‘I’m just going to cash in our chips,’ he said, proffering his hand for hers.
She relinquished them unwillingly. She’d got used to their comforting weight in her hand.
Oh well, maybe one day I’ll come back and win some of my own money.
Her thoughts flicked to her disastrous holiday clothes, now wishing she’d had the guts to gamble with her own money. She would have been able to buy herself a whole new wardrobe with her winnings if she’d been brave enough. Sipping her drink pensively, she waited for Zach to return. He came striding back afew minutes later and without explanation handed her a wad of cash.
‘What’s this?’ she asked in confusion, noticing that he’d given her what must have amounted to thousands of euros.
‘Your cut of the winnings,’ he said nonchalantly.
‘But—’ she began, but he waved his hand, cutting off further speech from her.
‘You won it fair and square. It’s yours. Anyway, you just won me a cool hundred thousand euros. I can afford that DB9 now,’ he said with a wink. ‘Buy yourself something fun and frivolous,’ he added.
Her breath seemed to be caught in her chest. ‘Zach, I can’t take this. It’s yours,’ she protested.
But he shook his head and looked deliberately away, crossing his arms and closing the subject. Daisy thought about it for a second. He’d loaned her the money to play with. She’d won the proceeds off it with her own luck though, so why shouldn’t she keep it? He’d not lost anything. In fact, she’d won him back any money he’d lost – and then some – by picking number seventeen on the wheel.Yes, okay, she decided, a thrill of excitement rising through her, the hell with it, I will keep it. With a resolute nod in his direction, she put the cash into her bag.
