‘I’m considering it,’ Jessie said sternly, causing Jason’s heart to sink. ‘But actually, no,’ she added, her voice back to the light-hearted lilt he loved. ‘I like you. You’ve been honest with me, so I’m trusting you not to mess with my emotions. I wish you’d learn to trust me a little more, though, and share this deep, dark secret about your wife’s history. I feel kind of… shut out, I suppose.’
‘Christ, Jessie, I don’t mean to do that.’ Jason immediately felt bad. ‘It’s just… it’s not something Karla would want me to share.’ He stopped, realising that now he actually did sound like he didn’t trust her.
Jessie didn’t speak for a second, then, ‘Which I guess tells me my instincts are right. You’re obviously caring, so as you’re going through shit, I’ll stick with you. We’re not doing lifelong commitment here now, after all, are we? Just being friends – with possibilities.’
Jason breathed a considerable sigh of relief.
‘We can sit down and have a good talk when you come over,’ Jessie went on. ‘Hopefully, things won’t seem so complicated then. You are still coming, aren’t you?’
‘Wild horses couldn’t keep me away,’ Jason promised. And he meant it. Whatever did or didn’t happen between them, Jessie was a tonic he desperately needed.
‘Good,’ she said, sounding pleased. ‘Are you okay for the weekend we discussed?’
‘Should be,’ Jason confirmed. Jessie was coming to the UK to see her brother, and he’d made up his mind he was going back with her for a long weekend. He would need to talk to Karla’s mother before then. Christ, that was going to be a difficult conversation if Diana didn’t know what her delightful husband had told him.
‘Brilliant,’ Jessie said. ‘You are still coming to pick me up from airport when I land, aren’t you? It’s just my navigational skills are so shite, I’m likely never to be seen again if I use public transport.’
‘I am,’ Jason promised. He couldn’t wait to see her in person. Visualising the expanse of flesh he’d just seen, a definite thrill of anticipation ran through him.
‘Great. Well, I’d better go and get my beauty sleep.’ Jessie stifled a yawn. ‘Before I do, though, bucket lists.’
‘What?’ Jason asked bemusedly. He had a hard time keeping up with her sometimes. But then, he liked that about her, too: the fact that there were never any awkward silences between them.
‘Bucket lists,’ she repeated. ‘I want to get to know you a little better, so you tell me yours, and I’ll tell you mine. Rapid-fire. Go!’
‘Right.’ Jason shook his head. ‘Okay. Er, climb a mountain.’
‘The Andes, Peru,’ Jessie shot back. ‘A trek to Cusco, the soul of the Inca Empire,’ she added, as if she’d already half-planned it. ‘My turn. See the Wonders of the World.’
‘Ditto,’ Jason said, in the absence of anything else coming to mind.
‘No, you can’t have the same as mine,’ Jessie chided him. ‘That’s cheating.’
‘Ah, er…’ Jason furrowed his brow. He’d never really thought about all the things he’d like to do before he died. He’d thought he’d achieved one of his ambitions in life: to have a family, to belong. That hadn’t worked out too well. ‘I’m running out of ideas.’
‘Already?’ Jessie laughed. ‘What about… scuba diving?’
‘Been there,’ Jason answered.
‘Really? Oh, okay.’ Jessie paused to ponder. ‘Kayaking then.’
‘Yep, done that too.’
‘My, we are fit, aren’t we?’ Jessie sounded impressed. ‘Okay, well…’ She stopped to consider. ‘If you could change your career, what would you do?’
Now Jason was definitely bemused. Was she telepathic? ‘I am changing my career,’ he said. ‘Sort of. I’m looking at working in Ireland, as it happens. Nothing’s certain yet, but there’s an extreme sports company that might want me. I learned to microlight there, years ago now, but it’s a possibility.’
‘Well, I’ll be damned. A man after my own heart.’ Jessie laughed in amazement. ‘Oh my God, we have to book some microlighting lessons when you come over. Ireland’s coastal regions are a pure feast for the eyes. I don’t think I’ve ever done anything so exhilarating. Well, apart from when I flew a helicopter,’ she went on blithely, talking excitedly. ‘I’m not sure I’ll be getting my pilot’s licence any time soon, though. My navigational skills really are rubbish. I’d probably end up being fished out the Irish Sea or else off the top of a bus. To be fair, it was lashing out of the heavens once I got up there. I swear the fella with me was almost having a heart attack with me at the controls.’
Jason shook his head, astonished, and wondered whether his luck might be changing, after all.
‘Yikes, look at the time,’ Jessie yelped. ‘I have to go, or I’ll be useless at work. You too. You’ll get the sack before you’ve lined up your new job, at this rate.’
Jason hadn’t yet mentioned it was his own company he was selling. There was a lot she needed to know about him. A hell of a lot. Maybe, in time, he could explain to her what his ‘complications’ were without leaving her as shocked as he’d felt when he’d found out.
‘Speak soon,’ she said. ‘Keep your chin up, but watch what you’re doing with your other body bits.’
‘I will.’ Jason chuckled as she signed off, leaving him somewhat dazed. She’d blown into his life like a whirlwind just when he needed her. He only hoped she didn’t come to regret it.
