‘I got you this, although it’s probably cold.’ I plucked the other styrofoam cup from the tray and held it out to her. She turned her head towards me and eyed it dubiously.
Honestly, did this woman react to anything normally?
‘It’s coffee.’ I rolled my eyes.
‘How do you know how I take it?’
‘I don’t, which is why it’s black. I figured you could add whatever you wanted to it.’
Trepidatiously she reached out a hand to take the cup. Our fingers grazed with the motion. She jerked back quicklyas if I’d electrocuted her. ‘Uh, thanks,’ she mumbled, going to the fridge and pulling out a milk carton.
‘You’re welcome.’ I turned around to inspect her flat.
It was open-plan, so the kitchen bled into the dining room, which connected to the living room. One door sat on the right side of the room, and another on the left. One for the bathroom and bedroom, I assumed. It was small, but Fallon had let her personality explode everywhere. I could see pieces of her in every corner. In the scatter cushions that didn’t match in any way—one was bright yellow and the other a dark blue with a wave pattern on it. A basket hung from the ceiling—I sauntered towards it—with what I was sure was probably once a living plant. Right now, it was nothing more than a shrivelled brown carcass.
‘Poor guy,’ I flicked a dead leaf that all but disintegrated under my touch and floated to the floor. Fallon, who had been doing God knows what to her coffee, looked over her shoulder at me.
‘In my defence, he was half dead when I bought him.’
‘Why would you buy a half-dead plant?’ I inquired, draining the last of my coffee and putting it on the coffee table. I shoved my hands into my pockets and continued my perusal of her flat.
‘I thought I could save him. He was sitting there, half price and looking sorry for himself, so I bought him.’
‘You felt sorry for a plant?’ I stared slightly bewildered at her, noticing her face shone bright red before she turned around to finish fixing her coffee.
‘It’s a weakness of mine.’
‘Caring for dead plants?’
‘Caring for lost causes.’
Her back was to me, thankfully, because those words hit me square in the chest. I knew she wasn’t talking about me. We didn’t know each other well enough, and I could hardlybe called a lost cause. I had enough money to set me up thrice over for life. And yet, her words tugged at something inside me.
I edged around the living room. I glanced over my shoulder to see her still busy in the kitchen, so I took the opportunity to look around. Everyone wanted to know about my life. They wanted to poke their noses in my business; I never got the opportunity to return the favour. I poked my head through one room which turned out to be a small bathroom. A small clawfoot tub sat against the wall with a shower head attached. All the countertops were covered in different skincare products and makeup. On the floor were countless items of clothing scattered everywhere, including a bra hung over the town rail. She wasn’t a neat freak.
For some reason, that made me want to smile. I pushed open the other door off the living room.
A mash of multiple colours assaulted my vision. The walls were a pale purple, the carpet a deep green. Neither went with the other, yet I was overcome with a sense of rightness.Everything suited her.I wasn’t sure why the colours alone kept the stupid grin on my face. The queen-sized bed was ruffled as if she’d just scrambled out of it, and a pile of clothes were heaped at the base of the bed. But the crowning glory of the entire room sat on top of the duvet.
I inched closer.
Crumpled, like she’d spent the night holding it close, was a large grey stuffed donkey. I knew enough from my childhood books that it was the one from Winnie the Pooh. I couldn’t remember its name, but its sad eyes stared back at me. I was about to lift the stuffed donkey when my gaze caught on something in her bedside table. My grin stretched impossibly wide when I pulled open the top draw and wasmet with several sex toys of all shapes and sizes.Damn. This woman was getting more and more interesting.
‘Oliver?’ Fallon’s voice called from the kitchen. Her soft footfalls padded across the living room, inching closer.
I quickly shut the draw, picked up the donkey and flopped on the bed, kicking my feet up. I leaned back against the headboard, resting it on my chest—one arm flung casually behind my head, as Fallon’s head rounded the corner and her eyes widened in shock.
Keeping my tone casual, ‘You know, I personally had more of an affinity with Piglet.’
21
OLIVER
Her mouth gaped open. I wasn’t sure why I was enjoying her frustration, but the flush on her cheeks that highlighted the few freckles she had dotted on her nose gave me a rush.
Finally returning to herself, she marched towards me and swiped the donkey from my chest.‘Boundaries.’Her chest heaved. ‘Has fame really desensitised you to normal human propriety?’
I pretended to think about this for a moment. My gaze snagged on the tiny sliver of skin that peeked out from under her pyjama top. I tore my eyes away, ignoring the thickness growing in my trousers.
