‘Oh well, I’ll still do that too,’ I said, knowing my conscience wouldn’t allow me to withdraw my custom from Beth and her flower shop. ‘I just thought this could be a really nice addition.’
‘It would be,’ he agreed.
‘And you’d be okay with it? I mean, you’d have to tell me what a fair price would be for your work.’ My nose crinkled as I wondered if my suggestion was going to alter the dynamic of our relationship in any way.
But it’s a really great way of keeping him in your life, isn’t it? Ellie of old chose to point out. To be fair, this time at least, she wasn’t wrong.
‘So,’ Rhys said, drawing out the word with clear amusement. ‘Does this mean you’d be my boss?’
‘No. I mean, not really. Well, kind of. Maybe just a little bit.’
His grin lit up his face, the room, and a place in my heart where it really had no business setting up home. ‘I think we could give it a try.’
Chapter Sixteen
I blinked like a mole as I descended the short flight of steps and left the dwindling light of early evening to slip into an interior that felt like midnight in contrast. I paused by the doorway to allow my eyes to adjust and wished my pulse would do the same. I was nervous, and I had no idea why.
I’d spent countless evenings in bars, pubs, and clubs with Jackson, although admittedly Mel had usually been present too. Tonight, it would be just Jackson and me, a fact he’d been very clear about when he’d messaged to invite me out for a drink. I could only assume Mel had filled him in on my unexpected visit to her home two weeks ago and that she still didn’t want to see me socially. Even though I’d heard from her several times in the interim, it had only been in connection with the Florrie’s project, when she’d needed a question answered or more information about something.
‘Mel’s definitely not coming?’ I’d asked Jackson, hoping the wistful note in my voice wasn’t as noticeable to him as it was to me.
‘No, Ells. It’ll just be you and me. That’s okay, isn’t it?’
‘Absolutely fine,’ I’d assured him. At least fifty per cent of my friends were willing to forgive me for ignoring them. I was just going to have to work harder to win the other half over. All I could do was hope I’d banked enough good friend credits in the years before I checked out of the group.
I straightened my spine and stole a quick glance in the enormous smoked glass mirror by the doorway. My hair was loosely styled in beachy waves and my make-up freshly applied after work. The jeans I was wearing were so new they still crunched when I sat down, but they went well with the black halter top I’d teamed them with. I drew in a steadying breath and headed into the main bar.
One of the servers directed me towards the booth at the back of the bar which Jackson had reserved.
‘The other member of your party is already there,’ the waitress told me with a wave of her hand.
I zigzagged through tables to reach the booth, a smile and a greeting already on my lips. Both froze as the shadowy shape waiting for me in the booth looked up at my approach. It’s hard to say which one of us looked the most surprised.
‘Jackson,’ Mel said, her voice practically a growl.
I was just as quick to put the pieces together. ‘He’s not here, is he?’ Though it wasn’t really a question.
‘Of course he isn’t,’ Mel said, squeezing out the words through lips pursed tight in irritation.
I held up my hands in defence. ‘I knew nothing about this, Mel. He told me it was just going to be him and me.’
‘Ditto,’ Mel said. If she was a cartoon drawing, there would be steam coming out of her ears right now.
I was still wondering what to say next when both of our phones pinged simultaneously.
‘Don’t be mad.’ Mel read the words on her screen out loud, even though the exact same message was on mine.
‘It was the only way I could think of to get you both on neutral territory,’ I completed.
Our eyes met and locked.
‘Interfering, meddling little busybody,’ Mel muttered furiously, setting her phone down on the table.
‘I couldn’t agree more,’ I said, unthinkingly sliding into the seat opposite her.
Both our mobiles chimed again. Mel glared at hers as I read our incoming message.
‘So now you can both bitch about what a pain in the backside I am, and then, when you’re done with that, for fuck’s sake get over yourselves and kiss and make up. This nonsense has gone on for long enough.’