‘Oh. My. Goodness,’ she said. ‘Amazing.’
‘Iknewyou’d love it in the end.’
‘Love it? I hated it. There’s a reason that normal people don’t like horror movies.’
‘What? Normal peopledolike horror movies. Especially well-constructed ones like that.’
Cassie shook her head. ‘No. I’m never going to sleep again. I’ll dream about it tonight.’
‘I’m kind of feeling as though I should apologise. But also I’msureyou’ll look back on this evening and be grateful. You know, when you’re in the pub and someone refers to this film and now you’ll know what they’re talking about.’
She let go of his hand and turned within the circle of his arm to face him. ‘Firstly, I was very happy in my Hitchcock innocence and secondly, I’m thirty-seven years old and no-one has ever talked about the filmPsychoin front of me before.’
‘How is that even possible?’
‘Because my friends have great taste in films?’ She smiled up at him and it felt like his heart actually lurched inside him. Suddenly, his powers of speech were gone. His entire mind, and body, were focused now on where they were touching, his arm round her shoulders, their thighs pressed together.
Her expression got more serious and her lips parted slightly.
This time James was all out of willpower. He pulled her in closer with his right arm and his left hand found her face, while she put her hands on his chest. He cupped her cheek very gently and lowered his lips to hers.
She tasted of raspberry pavlova and peppermint tea and theweirdcocktail that they’d concocted at the end of the evening, and she also tasted perfect and right and like he washome, and he was lost.
James woke up before Cassie did. He raised himself on his elbow and lay watching her for a few moments. He really couldn’t remember ever waking up feeling more contented. Which was possibly a little stupid, because this felt complicated.
Cassie stirred and rolled. The duvet fell away from her bare shoulders and James nearly groaned out loud with lust.
Cassie opened her eyes and smiled at him. Maybe hehadin fact groaned out loud. Her smile was slow and then wide, and definitely inviting.
‘I don’t think I’m going to have time for brunch. I’ll miss my flight.’ Cassie scrabbled around next to the bed. ‘I can’t find my phone. Maybe I left it in the sitting room?’ She’d almost certainly left it in the sitting room. They’d left a lot of their clothes there. ‘What time is it?’
James checked his watch. Apparently he hadn’t had time to take that off. ‘Wow. Twelve fifteen.’
‘No way. Oh my goodness. Wow.’
They grinned at each other like complete idiots for a few moments and then James reached for Cassie again.
‘I really can’t,’ she said between kisses. ‘Those flights to Glasgow get really booked up. I can’t miss it.’
‘You could stay another night?’
‘Mmm. I would really like to but I’m having a family dinner this evening. And I really want to go to Glasgow again. You know. Facing my fears and all that.’
‘You haven’t told me what it is about Glasgow that’s so bad. Is it because of your ex?’ They’d spent the whole night having sex. He could ask that question.
‘Well.’ She’d taken a long time to start her answer. ‘Simonwasawful. Basically, he was rubbish when I was pregnant, he didn’t come to the scan where I found out that the baby had died, and when I told him, he seemed almost uninterested, certainly not particularly upset, and, within a few days, he said oh, by the way, could I move out because he wanted to move someone else in.’
‘Tosser.Tosser. Unbelievable.’ James wanted to punch something, or someone, but right now he had to hold Cassie. ‘Cassie, that’s so awful. You did so well to leave him.’ He wrapped his arms all the way round her, as though he could protect her like that.
‘Tosser’s right. After I left, he kept trying to get in touch with me through friends, a serious case of only wanting something when you can’t have it. And then I discovered this summer that the other woman – who he’s now married to and who presumably would not be happy if she knew he’d tried to get in touch with me – must also have been pregnant then, when I was.’
James held Cassie even more tightly. ‘I’m beyond furious with a man I’ve never met,’ he said. ‘I’m glad you’re now able to go back to Glasgow. One man’s terrible behaviour shouldn’t stop you from visiting your hometown.’
‘It wasn’t actually entirely because of him that I left or couldn’t go back. I got my book deal around the same time, and left my old job, so I could work anywhere, and I just had a big urge to go and live somewhere else. A lot of it was because I couldn’t bear being around my family and friends who were all grief-stricken for me, and there were just too many memories.’
‘I get that.’ James nodded. That was pretty much why he’d avoided Ella for so long. ‘And for what it’s worth I think you’ve been incredibly brave.’
‘Thank you.’ She smiled at him and then she reached up and kissed him again. ‘No, I shouldn’t have done that. Ihaveto go soon.’
