Claire:What?
Killian:I’ve apologised. I bought you flowers and chocolate because that’s what you told me to do last time. What else do you want?
Ava:What’s he done?
Claire:Long story. But short version, he might’ve missed an appointment.
Payton:She’s good with flowers, chocolate and public humiliation, K. Go back to your computer games.
Killian:Too fucking right. I’ll make it up to you later, babes. 8=======>
Claire:We should have a criminal defence lawyer in our practice for when I kill him. Payton, put the poor man out of his misery. If he ever hurts you, we’ll be there to pick up the pieces like you’ve done for most of us at some time or another. Seph, stick your popcorn up your arse. Good night all.
Ava:I second what Claire’s said. Give things a chance, Payts. You deserve good sex.
Jackson:Anyone heard from Max this evening? I realise I’m changing the subject completely away from Payton’s sex life, because fuck knows, we’ve not heard enough about that over the years.
Seph:Trust me. I had a bedroom next to hers. I’ve heard more than you. You won’t hear from Max.
Jackson:Why’s that? Has he lost his phone again?
Seph:I had the bad timing to walk into the kitchen while they were ‘celebrating’. I’m scarred.
Claire: This really isn’t about you right now, Seph. Finally! Max put a ring on it! They can celebrate as much as they want!
Callum:If Vic said yes, then there’s hope for us all. Maybe not Seph…
Seph:Fucker.
Ava:Do you think she’s pregnant?
Payton:No. They’ll have a timeline of events to follow. Marriage will be first. Shall we turn our birthday into an engagement party as well? They haven’t had one.
Ava:Good plan. I’ll sort out the additional requirements.
“See,” Seph said, topping up his wine glass. “Everyone’s in agreement. Give it a proper go this time with Owen. If Max can get someone normal and intelligent to marry him, you should have no problem.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Owen
I stood backand looked at the setting. It had taken an hour and a half to get things right, which was a lot less than I would’ve given. She’d messaged me on Thursday, nothing in-depth, just a sentence to say she was looking forward to seeing me on Saturday and she hoped I’d still be there.
Of course I was still going to fucking be there.
I’d set up a table, some candles in a glass thing in the middle, every bunch of flowers I could get my hands on from the florist I knew and chocolate. Red wine. And books. Plus one very special book.
I wiped my hands on my trousers and cursed, causing Ava to turn around and laugh. “Stop it, Owen,” she said. “She’ll come. My sister can’t turn down the chance to come to my rescue. Do you know what you’re going to say to her?”
“Kind of.” It was pretty much all I’d thought about all day. And most of yesterday. Ava and Claire had offered to arrange it so that Payton had to speak to me, saying that she would just dodge having to make a decision until it was made for her. I’d gone along with it because I knew if I suggested meeting up, as I already had done a couple of times, she’d find excuses. What I was going to say and how I was going to explain to her the deception I wasn’t sure. In fact, I was fucking clueless, but I wasn’t going to admit that to Ava.
“It looks amazing,” Ava said, admiring what was mainly her handiwork. “She’ll love it. She’ll probably cry because no one’s ever made this much of an effort over her.”
“Why? She’s gorgeous and brilliant.”
Ava laughed. “Because she’s always gone out with dicks who are afraid of her and end up doing something stupid like cheating. Because she’s that amazing she scares men, and she chooses the ones she can scare because she knows they’ll fuck up before she can get too attached then she can’t get hurt.”
I looked at Ava. “I’m not going to hurt her.”
