‘Yeah, but you’re my best friend.’ She gives me an innocent smile and I lean down to her. We kiss, laughing at the same time. At least until Tori freezes.
‘Wait, what’s the time?’
I just about manage to get out of the way in time as she straightens again and grabs my phone. I know we’ve slept longer than an hour when she breathes a quiet ‘Fuck.’
Looks like that’s that for rehearsals today, then. When I take my phone, I see that it’s long past five.
‘Why didn’t you wake me?’ There’s a hint of panic in her eyes as she looks at me.
‘I didn’t set an alarm.’
‘Hold it, so you fell asleep too?’
I give an apologetic shrug. ‘It was so peaceful . . .’
‘Great.’
‘I’m sure Mr Acevedo won’t be expecting you back this week.’
Tori sighs deeply. ‘Even so. And we didn’t do any French either.’
‘Such a shame,’ I murmur.
‘Watch it, Charles.’
‘I always do, Victoria.’
‘Don’t you have to see to Jubilee?’ she asks.
I shrug. ‘No. I’ll go to her tomorrow.’
‘Can I come too?’ she asks, to my surprise.
‘Sure. If you feel up to it.’
‘I’m perfectly fine, Charlie.’
‘Yeah, cos just falling asleep in the middle of the afternoon is absolutely perfectly fine, isn’t it?’
She gives me a gentle punch on the forearm, which means I have to catch her hands and pull them to my chest. Her quiet laugh as I hold her tight and sink back down to the mattress with her is everything.
‘Let me go, Mr Falls-Asleep-Himself.’ She puts her head on my chest – the best feeling in the world. ‘Can we go out for a ride again?’
‘If you like,’ I say. It must be a good six months since we last rode out together.
‘I do like,’ she says, lifting her hand. I immediately get goosebumps as she draws mysterious patterns on my chest with her index finger. Oh, Tori. She hasn’t the least idea what she does to me. Or that this way, it can be just a matter of seconds before the tension in my trousers builds up again, and this time she’s lying half on top of me . . .
‘I’d like something else too.’ She falls silent, then lifts her head. Puppy dog eyes. Great.
‘Tori,’ I say quietly.
‘Please.’
‘No.’
‘You don’t even know what I’m going to say.’
‘I know I won’t like it.’
