Page 89 of One Day Like This (Excess All Areas 1)

The segment wrapped up, the red lights on the top of the cameras turned off, and the band were ushered off the stools they’d been sat on at breathtaking speed. Matt didn’t wait for help taking off his microphone. He disconnected the cable, threaded it back through his shirt, and handed it to the technician.

“Where are you fucking off to so quick?” Jase asked.

“Meeting a friend in Wigan. Few beers. Some pool. Crashing at his place.” The lie tripped off his tongue too easily. An unease crept in as he said the words. He swallowed away the need to be truthful. He owed Jase fuck all.

It was ninety minutes later when he knocked on the door of their hotel room, anticipation flooding him as he heard Izabel’s footsteps and then the sound of the door being unlocked. Her hair was down, as he loved it. And the light pink sweater she wore slipped off one shoulder, revealing a hint of lace.

“So fucking pretty,” he said, cupping her face. “Hey.”

She smiled the smile he realised she saved for him. “Hey.”

Fuck.

He was dumbstruck.

Was that ... nerves? A skip of his heartbeat, tingling in his fingers like pins and needles.

“Are you going to come inside?”

“Shit. Yeah ... sorry.”

“Have you ever seen anything as beautiful?” she asked, waving her arm in the direction of the coastal suite he’d booked, but he was still looking at her.

“Nope. Nothing comes close.”

“Right? I mean, the hotel in Windermere was nice, but this is so lovely, and the bath is huge and there’s a walk-in shower which is just—”

His lips met hers, and while the whole drive up he’d been hard with the thought of stripping her naked and taking her seventeen ways to Sunday, now that he was here, he just wanted to kiss her softly, touch her, go for a walk outside and hold hands.

“I meant you. Want to go grab some lunch?” he asked.

“I would love to.”

Once disguised with a baseball cap and sunglasses, they walked the South Shore, past the Pleasure Beach where the periodic roar of a rollercoaster and the squeals of its occupants interrupted the shush of waves. Ahead of them, the South Pier jutted out into the sea.

“Amazing to think it’s over a hundred years old,” Izabel said.

“Yeah. Want to go play in the arcades with me later?”

“Yes,” she said, turning to face him as she walked. “I’m a sucker for those zombie shooting games.”

“What do you want for lunch?”

“Can we go whole hog Blackpool and get fish and chips?”

Matt laughed. “Babe. I was going to take you out for lunch. Somewhere you could have a glass of wine and not get sand on your dress.”

“What can I say? I’m a cheap date. We can go somewhere nice for dinner. But it’s unusual for it to be this mild in October, and it’s not even raining. Plus, every time I see you, it’s always inside. It’s nice to be outside with you.”

Matt slung his arm around her shoulders as they crossed from the South Promenade, across the tram tracks, to the opposite side of the street where the small gift stores and cafes were. “I’m sorry, Iz. You want me to talk to Luke?”

Izabel shook her head. “No. Well, yes, Sort of. But no.”

Matt shook his head. “Well, that was really clear of you.”

Izabel batted playfully at his stomach with the back of her hand. “You know what I mean. I’d love for this to all be out in the open. But telling him now would just mess everything up. He’s suspicious, I think, that I’m seeing someone. Has been since the whole love bite incident two weeks ago, which, thank you for that.”

“I’m sorry. Well, not really. Fucking you is spectacular. I get carried away, especially when you’re begging me to touch you.”

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