Page 61 of A Dark Fall

Jake pulls me into him and makes that soft growling noise as he nestles his mouth against my neck.“I’ll wait for your call then, Doctor,” he says as we exit the house. “Oh, and I don’t like this key in the pot thing. It’s not safe.” He’s frowning exactly as he did back in my office.

I roll my eyes. “It’s not London, Jake. It’s safe here.”

He cocks an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Anyway, only you and my neighbor know it’s in there, so ...”

“Yeah, well, I still don’t like it, Alex.”

I shake my head dismissively at him but still get a thrill at the fact he’s being overprotective. “I’ll call you later,” I say as I get in the car.

He gets into the Audi still shaking his head at my plant pot key. He follows behind me down my street and through the main part of the village before flashing his lights and taking a left.

I sigh girlishly as his car disappears out of sight, then I put my foot down to try and get back to work before 2:00 p.m. If meeting Jake for lunch is going to be a regular occurrence, I seriously need to time it a lot better.

I manage to coast my way through the rest of the afternoon in a somewhat professional manner. Even Mrs. Goldman fails to rattle me when she comes in at 4:45 p.m. Perhaps Jake is good for me. A calming, relaxing influence I should welcome with open arms.And open legs.

Before I head home, I check my phone to see a message from him from earlier.

Jake: I’m hard again thinking about you covered in me. Call me tonight.

My heart flutters in my chest as I quickly tap out the response because I don’t want him to think I’m being rude.

Me: Smelling of you isn’t so bad ... Thanks again for lunch. I’m starving again ... A x

I giggle at my saucy wit and shove my phone into my bag. Time to go home and tell Rob.

I manage a quick dinner of feta and olive salad before the doorbell goes.

“Hey.” I smile too wide as I stand back to let her in.

“Hey, babe. You okay?” She pulls me into a fruity one-armed hug and shrugs out of her jacket, which she hangs up on the hook by the door.

“I’m good. You want tea or coffee?”

“No, I can’t stay long. So ...? What the hell’s going on, babe?” she says as soon as we’re in the living room. No messing about from Robyn, ever. It’s one of the things I love about her.

I take a seat on the sofa. “Okay, well, first, I’m sorry you had to find out from Dan like that. I’d have been confused too, so I’m sorry.” I give her my most sincere look.

She nods, thoughtful. “Are you pissed off at me about something?”

“What? No, of course not. Why would you think that?” I shake my head, puzzled.

“I don’t know ... I feel like we’ve barely spoken this week, and now this. It’s like I don’t know what’s going on with you.”

I almost want to laugh at that because I don’t know what’s going on with me either. Jake is a bull in my china-shop life. I look away from her guiltily. Guilty I’ve hidden Jake from her. Guilty I’ve kept this new, exciting, terrifying thing from her when we always tell each other everything. I mean, she told me about how my brother went down on her in our parents’ conservatory once. She was the first person I told about Ben’s affair. The first person I call or text when something remotely funny or exciting happens. Nothing is hidden between us. Nothing until now, that is.

“I’m sorry. I did keep this from you, but it wasn’t because of anything you’ve done.” I shake my head. “It was just ... I don’t know.”

“So, who is he? Why all the secrecy? Is he married or something?”

I look at her in horror. “What? No. God, no. He’s not married. He’s ... no.”

“Then what’s the big deal? Who is he?”She gets up from Jake’s armchair and comes to sit beside me on the sofa, eyes wide with expectation.

I feel the stupid grin spread over my mouth though I try to stop it.

Finally, she loses patience and gives my knee a shake. “What? Bloody tell me!”

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