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‘I’m just glad I was there.’ He glanced at the door to the restroom. ‘I can wait outside if you like.’
This time his cheeks reddened. ‘God, that sounded so creepy. I just meant, I can wait in case that idiot didn’t get the message the first time.’
The shock of being manhandled faded away. ‘It’s okay, I understood what you meant.’
He was so hot. Should she even be thinking that?
‘I’m Alex, by the way.’ He held out his hand across the table.
‘Sarah.’ She reached her own hand across.
The moment they touched, everything around her fell away, as if they were the only two people in the world. The way Alex was looking at her, she could have sworn he felt the same.
Eventually, he let go of her hand and the spell was broken.
‘Um, I was actually about to get going.’ Sarah dropped her gaze to the table. Who was she kidding? Guys like this weren’t interested in girls like her.
‘Did you drive here?’ asked Alex.
‘No, I’ll just call an Uber.’ The thought of standing out on the street waiting for her ride was not enticing.
‘I could give you a ride.’
Sarah’s head snapped up. Had she heard him correctly?
‘I mean, if you don’t mind riding on the back of a motorbike?’ He dropped his eyes to the table.
Sarah had never ridden on the back of a motorbike. And leaving a pub with a complete stranger on the back of his motorbike sounded ludicrous. She opened her mouth to say as much.
‘I don’t mind, thanks. That would be really great,’ was what came out.
The phoneon the table trilled, pulling Sarah back to the present.
‘Hiya, honey.’ Heather pulled an apologetic face, mouthing ‘It’s Matt.’
Sarah nodded. Heather had been seeing Matt for the last six months and things were starting to get serious between them.
‘Oh my God, you didn’t,’ squealed Heather, bouncing in her seat.
They spoke for another minute and Sarah quickly surmised Matt had planned some kind of romantic getaway surprise that involved Heather needing to get home and pack a bag as soon as possible. Her flatmate ended the call and immediately looked remorseful.
Sarah held up her hand. ‘Do not feel guilty.’
‘But I’m deserting you, and after I think I made you feel bad.’
‘No, you didn’t. It’s fine.’
Sarah slugged the last of her wine back and stood up. Truthfully, she was feeling a little exhausted after a full week of work, finding out she had a permanent position at Universal, and now haunted by memories she’d wanted to keep buried. It was Friday evening which meant the lads would be out. A night in front of the television and some take out sounded perfect.
‘Come on.’ Sarah collected her coat and handbag and held her hand out for Heather. ‘Let’s get you home to your man.’
Alex leantagainst the metal fence, turning his Swiss army knife over in his hands. He shouldn’t be here. He’d checked out the area,again. He’d been going to leave but when Sarah hadn’t returned home by six, he decided he really should wait until he knew she was safe inside her flat.
London was a hell of a lot colder than Australia, and the nights were absolutely freezing. To keep the cold at bay, he’d walked around the block every fifteen minutes, telling himself he was triple checking the neighborhood. And now he stood in the shadows, between streetlights, out of sight.
Alex shivered, he slipped the knife into his jeans, then stuffed his hands inside the pockets of his hoodie.She’ll be home soon, then I’ll go.
A familiar laugh set off a flutter in his gut. His heart skipped a beat, then quickened as if trying to make up for its momentary lapse. Sarah was walking towards her flat, arms linked with another woman he recognized as her flatmate, having seen her come and go over the last couple of days.
