Page 88 of The Wedding Pact
‘I hope we aren’t being too noisy for your mum?’
‘Not at all. It’s funny, she was quite a social butterfly once but prefers quiet now; that’s why she won’t have come down. She’ll have liked that you were all getting together though.’
‘I can believe that, actually.’
Abe smiled. ‘She’s not the battleaxe she appears to be. At least not all the time.’
He waved goodbye and went off down the stairs, and August found herself watching him as he went. And hoping he came back.
‘Wahey, look what I’ve got!’ Callie shrieked. She’d legged it from the flat about five minutes ago and August pulled Flynn aside to seriously suggest locking the door behind her. She felt awful; this was supposed to be a stress-free, fun night for him and it had turned into a game of cat-and-mouse with the neighbours.
It simply shouldn’t be this hard. Living a normal life in your own homeshouldn’t be this hard.
Then Callie had reappeared, throwing open August and Flynn’s front door again, and swinging a massive bunch of mistletoe over her head.
‘Yes,’ cried Kenny, and August caught him shooting a thrilled look between her and Flynn.
Callie kicked off her heels and stood up on the sofa, attaching it to the light fixture hanging from their ceiling. As soon as it was secure, she pointed across the room at Joe and said, ‘You. Me. Under the mistletoe.’
Expecting Joe to run a mile, August saw Flynn’s eyes widen when instead Joe strode over and said, ‘Why not, eh? It’s Christmas!’ and planted a wet one right on Callie’s mouth.
‘Callie … ’ Callie’s mum shook her head and drank Prosecco straight from the bottle.
Bel and Steve hopped up and had a sweet smooch, where Steve dipped her like aStrictly Come Dancingfinalist. This then prompted Allen to go one better with Maud, and lead her across the room in a tango before their own kiss.
There was so much cheering, August was almost able to pretend she didn’t hear Callie’s shout of, ‘Now for the local newlyweds, come on Aug and Flynn!’
August laughed, acting like she was oblivious and racing towards the kitchen where she collided with Abe, and—
‘Mrs Haverley!’ She looked from her landlady back to Abe, untangling herself from his arms, their hands lingering together a moment longer than necessary. ‘Abe! You both came! Howlovely.’
‘It’s a very nice party,’ Mrs Haverley said, holding onto her son’s arm. ‘I should have warned you about Callie’s mistletoe obsession though. It was hung all over the building last year.’
The landlady looked tired, paler and more fragile than she had when August had been up in her apartment, though she’d made an effort in a long, beaded skirt and pearl-scattered blouse. Her hair contained a jewelled candy cane slide and there was red lipstick on her mouth. Her hips swayed to the music.
Abe looked into August’s eyes for a moment and August could have sworn something passed between them.
But perhaps … perhaps it was just those snowball cocktails.
All of a sudden Callie was beside her, dragging her away with a quick, ‘Merry Chrimbo!’ to Abe and Mrs Haverley. On Callie’s other hand was Flynn, and she dragged the two of them into the centre of the room.
‘Come on,’ Callie slurred. ‘Prove to me that love still exists; that you’re still happily married.’
August jolted, meeting Callie’s eye, and wondering if she imagined the millisecond of determination in her friend’s face. She shook it off. Callie was tipsy, and already she was hungrily looking back over at Joe.
August tried to hide her sigh and tilted her cheek to Flynn for him to peck, and the crowd went wild … with frustration.
‘Oh, give her a real kiss,’ shouted Callie. ‘She’s not your mum!’ Then she turned to her own mum and said, ‘Sorry, Mum.’
Flynn murmured to her, ‘Well, who knew? There really is such a thing as an emergency kissing display.’
But this wasn’t right. None of this felt right. The room seemed to spin with the lies and the pretence and there was Flynn in front of her – her Flynn, no attachments, waiting to kiss her. And across the room was Abe, who she barely knew but somehow felt she wanted to know more, and she couldn’t stop herself thinking of him watching her. Like he would be able to tell somehow. Like she didn’t want to kiss Flynn in front of him.
August felt dizzy and exposed under the mistletoe.
Chapter 63
Flynn
