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‘Erm yeah that would work. Thanks for helping me with this, Paige.’ Melanie looked up, her eyes catching on Paige’s lips and on that piercing. The piercing that was starting to keep her awake at night. She wanted to kiss Paige and find out if she could feel it against her own lips, and other places. It led to a whole host of imaginings.
‘Mel, I’m home,’ Emily shouted as the sound of the door, and a person with lots of bags, came from the hallway.
‘In the kitchen,’ Melanie called in response.
They both watched as Emily finally made it into the kitchen carrying five bags full of groceries in each hand.
‘Here,’ Paige said and before Melanie had even realised, she was up taking the bags off Emily and putting them on the countertop. Emily raised her eyebrows at Melanie and Melanie shrugged in response.
‘You must be Paige,’ Emily said in that way.
‘I am, and I should get going. So sorry, but it was nice to briefly meet you.’
Moving back to the kitchen island towards Melanie, Paige reached across for her phone and keys. ‘See you Tuesday yeah?’ Paige’s hand reached up and held oh so softly onto her chin, as she deftly moved Melanie’s face slightly to the side. In a blink and you’d miss it type situation that Melanie absolutely did not blink and miss because she wasn’t sure her eyelids remembered how, Paige gently pressed her lips to Melanie’s cheek. She could still feel their heat and impression as the sound of the front door closing landed in her ears.
Melanie looked around the room, her eyelids still malfunctioning. But then she saw Emily all but melt into the barstool next to her.
‘Oh my days, Paige is hot. I mean, like wow. I’m trying to be straight over here and yeah.’
Melanie nodded. ‘Yeah, she is.’
Emily came to her senses first and sat up on the barstool. ‘Please tell me you’re going to do something about that?’
Since when was a kiss on the cheek that freaking sexy? Why hadn’t her heart stopped racing yet and when were her eyelids going to get with the programme? What on earth would happen if they did more than that? Melanie wasn’t sure, but she suddenly felt like she desperately wanted to find out.
Chapter Fourteen
Paige
Paige had not been counting down until Tuesday because that would be really uncool. But she was very reliably informed that today was Tuesday and therefore she would be seeing Melanie again, any minute. Which was fine, and she wasn’t sure why she kept replaying the kiss on the cheek. Paige absolutely was not the sort of person to do a kiss on the cheek by way of saying goodbye. And while on the one hand that really shouldn’t be noteworthy as it was very far removed from the full-on making out that Paige had wanted to do, it had been hot in its own way and Paige hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. She couldn’t help but wonder if the second date would be hot too? Or maybe even more so?
Paige just narrowly avoided smashing several glasses as she misjudged the bar top. The same bar top she had stood at every day for the past four years, and she realised she really needed to focus. She felt bad not working tonight as it was; the least she could do was make sure she didn’t cause more work in the meantime. Luckily as the manager/owner Paige made sure there was enough staff to cover and she would dip in and out when she could. As much fun as owning and managing a bar was, she preferred the serving customers than the stocktaking, rota scribbling and endless planning. Which reminded her she needed to make sure everything was ready for the psychic night next month. She’d gotten the psychic, it was the rest of the night she needed to prepare for.
‘Hey boss, all right?’ Belle asked.
‘Yes thanks,’ Paige muttered back.
‘I’m fine too, thanks for asking.’ Belle was smiling.
Paige stopped what she was doing and studied Belle. Paige knew she could be short, and some people found her obnoxious, usually the people she didn’t need around her but still. She liked her team and chose them with care. ‘Are you though?’
‘Yes boss, I’m fine, promise,’ Belle said with a grin.
‘How’s the new starters going?’
Paige watched as Belle stood taller, her smile wider, and knew she’d made the right choice giving Belle some additional responsibilities.
‘Great, they’re all settling in and I’ve buddied all three of them up. I might need to come back to you with some signposting queries, but we’re OK for now. Don’t worry boss, I’ll keep an eye on them.’
Paige nodded before smiling softly. ‘I know you will, Belle.’
‘But you don’t look right, what’s going on?’
‘I might be a little distracted is all,’ Paige said, turning back to put away the clean glasses.
‘Oh right ’cos of Melanie.’ The way Belle said Melanie reminded Paige of playground taunts.
‘No. I just have a lot on what with psychic night and this art thing.’ Paige was studying the glasses very carefully.
