Page 52 of The Wedding Pact

‘Yeah, it was great. They’re a really friendly bunch.’

‘Oh, good,’ he says a little stiffly.

Is he regretting coming back here to work and missing the fun?

‘Danny introduced me to all his and Darian’s mates,’ I add, just to see what kind of reaction I’ll get to that. I know I’m playing with fire, but I can take a burn or two if it means I get closer to something real. This strategy has served me well in the past, especially when it comes to my show.

This admission does exactly what I expected it to do and Raffa’s expression darkens.

‘Oh yeah? I hope he didn’t talk shit about me. He’s been friends with Darian for years and we’ve never really got on.’

I shrug. ‘He mentioned that he didn’t think you liked him very much,’ I say.

‘Well, he’s got that right.’

‘He also told me you got into trouble with the police when you ran away from home.’ I tilt my head and smile. ‘You’re giving off some serious bad-boy vibes there, Raffa.’

He smiles, then folds his arms and leans against the doorjamb. ‘And that’s your thing, is it?’ he asks, his voice deepening.

‘One of them,’ I say, surprised by his flip into flirtation. I’m suddenly intensely aware of how my heart is thudding in my chest.

‘So you’ve been asking probing questions about me?’ His expression is teasing.

‘I might have,’ I admit. ‘I happen to find you very interesting. And I’m a dedicated student of human nature. It’s an inescapable instinct in me.’

The corner of his mouth lifts in a grin and he leans in closer, dipping his chin and gazing into my eyes.

My stomach drops in response and heat rushes between my thighs.

‘Well, maybe I’ll tell you all my secrets later,’ he murmurs. ‘If you play nice.’ Then he takes a deliberate step back and breaks the tension by saying, ‘We should probably get ready for the wedding meal. It’s starting in forty minutes.’

I’m thrown by this sudden change in tack. ‘S-sure. No problem,’ I say, clearing my throat and making a show of checking the time on my phone to give me a moment to pull myself together. I’m strung-out with lust. ‘I’ll take a quick shower and be ready to go in half an hour. Okay?’

‘Yep,’ he says, backing away from my door, his smile now back to the usual level of friendliness. ‘See you in thirty.’

9

IDA

We make it over to the reception meal a minute before everyone takes their seats to be served.

My hair is still a bit damp from the shower, so I’ve tucked it up in a loose bun, though I’m sure it’ll dry quickly in this heat. There’s a gentle breeze reaching us from the sea, which is keeping things cool enough to be bearable, but it’s still pretty steamy.

Speaking of which, my body is still humming from the sexually charged run-in with Raffa earlier and I’m hyper aware of every move he makes as he sits next to me at dinner, looking knockout gorgeous in a navy linen suit and a white open-necked shirt.

We’ve been put on a table adjacent to the bride and groom’s and I’m glad to find we’re sitting with Gio and Auntie Kay again, as well as some of Margot’s friends from Manchester.

They’re a lively bunch and keep the conversation flowing so we don’t need to do too much in the way of entertaining anyone near us.

The food is utterly delicious and, as I’m still a little spun from my afternoon nap and Raffa’s intoxicating presence next to me, I’m glad I get the chance to eat it without having to keep breaking off constantly to join in with the conversation.

Normally you can’t shut me up, but when I eat I like to concentrate on doing only that and really tasting my food, instead of just shovelling it into my mouth in between sentences.

Mindful eating, I guess you’d call it.

I glance at Raffa, who seems to be doing the same thing, concentrating on his plate of fillet steak whilst seemingly also listening to one of Margot’s friends sitting to the right of him.

She’s openly full-on flirting with him, talking about how impressive she finds it that he’s found such success so early in his life. With each hair flip she gets increasingly animated and I swear I can sense Raffa getting more and more tense.