Page 41 of The Wedding Pact
‘Oh—’ August started, realising Flynn mistook Bel for a neighbour. She turned to face him, to explain, just as he turned to plant a kiss on the side of her head.
The result: Flynn kissed August. On the mouth. They both pulled their heads back instantly, surprised and unsure where to go from there, until August untangled herself, a blush on her face, and said, ‘Flynn, this is actually my friend Bel.’
‘Your friend?’
‘Not a neighbour. Bel. I told you about her. She knows we aren’t married.’
Flynn composed himself. ‘Yes, yes of course, I’ve heard lots about you, Bel, it’s nice to meet you … I’m sorry.’ He turned back to August, flustered. ‘I didn’t mean to just lunge at you. I was going for your head.’
‘That’s okay,’ said August.
‘He was going for your head, Aug,’ teased Bel, and August laughed it off but she could still feel the imprint of Flynn’s lips on hers. He’d felt soft, with a tiny whisper of end-of-day stubble and faded aftershave.
‘Right,’ Flynn said. ‘Well, I’m going to go and change out of this stuffy suit and hide my shame in the shower for a few minutes. Bel, will you stay for dinner so you can see I’m a perfectly normal guy and not someone who’s coercing your best friend into ill-timed kisses?’
‘I believe you,’ Bel said. ‘She speaks very highly of you. But maybe next time, because I need to get going. Nice to meet you, Flynn.’
‘And you, Bel,’ he waved a goodbye and went towards the bathroom, turning to mouth ‘I’m so sorry’ to August on the way past.
Once he’d closed the door, Bel gathered up her things, plus one custard cream for the road, and walked with August to the door.
‘You two are kissing already?’ Bel hissed.
‘Just that one time, and it was an accident,’ August proclaimed.
‘He’s gorgeous.’
‘He’s verynice.’
Bel nudged her towards the bathroom. ‘I think you should go and join him for that shower.’
August thwacked her friend and pushed her towards the door. ‘Would you shut up and leave? I’ll call you tomorrow.’
After she’d left, August leaned her back against the door and breathed out. She listened to the sound of the shower running inside the bathroom.
Stop it, she scolded herself.Stop trying to picture what’s behind that door.
Chapter 27
Flynn
Behind the door, Flynn was mortified. He’d kissed her. And he truly hadn’t meant to, but what if she thought he had? Why had he even done that anyway? Even if she was his real wife, there’s no law to say you have to plant one on her when you walk in the door from work, it wasn’t the fifties. He’d just had a spring in his step about coming home to his new house, that was all.
The last person he’d kissed had been Yui, when they were saying goodbye. His last kiss with Yui hadn’t felt right, it hadn’t felt like their other kisses over the years. He’d been expecting it to feel like their worlds were crashing together one final time, like all the sadness and longing and farewells were being shown to each other through that kiss, but it had felt cold. Like she’d already shut the door, and that this kiss was just a formality. Like returning a key.
It was one of the saddest memories he’d taken with him.
Now he couldn’t quite recall the feel of Yui’s lips. Only August’s.
Chapter 28
August
It was the kind of late-summer early morning that you see at the start of a movie. A montage of joggers and cyclists passing by, the first leaves tinged with red on the trees, the sun casting a warm pool of lemon light below.
August made her way down Elizabeth Street and curved through a few nearby lanes holding her brand new, lime green yoga mat.
Inspired by her neighbour Callie, who she’d met on move-in day, August had decided yoga would be a great addition to The New Her. The new House-on-Elizabeth-Street Her. Also, practising yoga would be a way to focus and get her creative juices flowing, just like all the real actresses did.
