Amelia turned, her brows lifting with surprise. “Me? Why?”
“My way of saying thank you for being there for me.” Jo tried to sound casual and as though her heart wasn’t hammering in her chest. If this woman wasn’t basically her ex-mother-in-law, she may have tried her luck long ago. But she was, and Jo had to remember that. “If you’d rather not, that’s okay. But I wanted to offer anyway.”
“I’d love to go out for dinner with you. Just let me know which evening suits you, and I’ll make myself available.”
“Oh. Great. Yeah, that would be lovely.” Though Jo was shocked Amelia had agreed, she wouldn’t show it. “You’re not just doing this because you think you have to, are you?”
Amelia slowly sauntered across the kitchen and stopped in front of Jo. When she lifted a hand and brushed her fingertips across Jo’s cheek, it took everything within Jo not to lean into her touch. “Relax. Iwantto have dinner with you.”
Jo swallowed down whatever the fuck she was feeling, the touch burning her skin while Amelia’s perfume sent her dizzy. As Amelia drifted back into the living room without another word, Jo stood frozen for a moment, the kitchen suddenly holding a million memories. She’d spent so many hours in here, crying and feeling lost…certain she was unlovable. But something hadshifted. The air didn’t feel so miserable here anymore. No, it felt electric…maybe even hopeful. She didn’t want that to change. The softness of Amelia’s fingertips had felt too good against her skin. But most of all, they’d felt…familiar.
She’s never touched you like that before. It can’t possibly be familiar.
Chapter Five
Fixingher lingerie on her hips, Amelia stared back at herself in the mirror of the bathroom attached to the private room. For the last several years, she’d booked dark room two every Friday and Saturday night—and she’d booked them a week in advance. It was her way of unwinding without worrying about attachment. She was fed up with waiting for her dates to call back, and she was fed up with not knowing where she stood with people—at least, that was what she told herself and anyone else who asked—so when Evie had suggested Satin, Amelia had jumped at the prospect.
She would admit that it wasn’t the wisest idea in the world to be here tonight, but Jo had seemed so happy and full of life this afternoon when they’d had coffee. She’d seemed like the old Jo. The very Jo that Amelia had fallen for in the weeks and months after Callum had brought her home. Even if she was setting herself up to get hurt, she couldn’t let Jo down tonight.
But shecouldkeep her wits about her.
If there was one hint of Jo knowing Amelia was the woman in this room with her, Amelia would find a reason to excuse herself and leave.
She quickly lifted her phone and sent off a message to Evie.
Wish me luck! Jo is back at the club.
Amelia exhaled a slow, calming breath and lowered her phone with a shaking hand. While that idea of deception remained in her mind, she couldn’t stop whatever was about to happen. All she’d ever wanted once Callum foolishly cheated on Jo was for Jo to be happy. If this was where that happiness resided, then Amelia couldn’t change it. Of course she would prefer to take Jo out on a date, wine and dine her, ultimately falling into bed with one another after dancing the night away…but life never went that way.Amelia’slife never went that way. Even now, when she had the chance to tell Jo it was her who was making her happy, she just couldn’t do it. Because it wasn’t that simple, and it never would be.
Her phone buzzed on top of her belongings.
Forget about who she is and just have fun. That’s what the club is all about. Neither of you are doing anything wrong, I wish you could understand that.
Amelia frowned. Evie had been the one who told her she had to come clean to Jo. Why the sudden change of heart?
You wanted me to tell her the truth.
Amelia chewed her lip when Evie started to respond.
I did. But I’ve had time to think about it since I got home. Jo is there willingly, and so are you. If being alone together in that room gives you both the pleasure you’re looking for, it’s nobody’s business but your own. All I ask is that you keep it to that room and then you won’t get hurt. Call me tomorrow x
Amelia smiled when she reread the message. Evie was right, and she’d been doing this far longer than Amelia had. They were two consenting adults, and that’s where it ended.
The light above the changing room door flashed twice, reminding Amelia that Jo would be in the room within the next few minutes. She powered her phone off, fixed her hair—though she didn’t know why—and entered the darkness, eagerly anticipating Jo’s arrival.
After a couple of minutes, the heavy velvet curtain pulled back, and Jo’s familiar perfume filled the air around them. Amelia took a deep, inconspicuous breath, clenched and unclenched her hands, and stepped closer. “You came back…”
“I would have been a fool not to,” Jo said, stepping forward and placing her hand on Amelia’s stomach. When she did, the muscles contracted on contact. “I didn’t know if you’d be here or not.”
“If I hadn’t been?”
Jo’s breath washed over Amelia’s lips as she pulled her in close. “I would have left.”
A rush of blood went directly to Amelia’s head at that admission. Joonlywanted to see her. Nobody else.Fuck, you’re in trouble here. “I’m sure you could have found someone else instead of me.”
“The way you touch me?” Jo smiled against her lips, one arm now wrapped around her waist. “No. Just you.”
Amelia slipped Jo’s robe from her shoulders, wishing she could see her beautiful blue eyes in this moment. While she felt the sincerity in what Jo was saying, she knew Jo’s eyes would have cemented what she was feeling without the need for words. “Tell me, Jo…” Amelia waited a beat, hoping to sense what Jo was feeling at the use of her name. “Who are you in the dark?”
