“Tell Rayah you won’t be moving back into her house. Stay here with me, if you want.” Alex knew that if Jake or Scott or Zack could hear him now they would demand his man card and burn it.
He didn’t care.
“I want. Let’s give it another couple of months. When this stuff with the cult is over. When we know what happened to Tilly. Just in case this is because you like me because you can protect me.” She brushed a hand through his hair.
It was a touch that made him want to drop to his knees.
“Okay.” His hands dropped to her waist then slipped to her bottom, pulling her closer to him. “This is more than that though, Abby. I’ve not been like this over anyone before.”
“I don’t think I have either.”
The kiss that began was neither tender nor soft and quite easily would’ve led elsewhere – hopefully indoors – if Alex’s phone hadn’t started to ring.
He pulled away, cursing whoever it was and then saw Jake’s name flash on the screen.
“If it’s rogue alpacas I’m not helping.”
“That’s a lovely way to greet your best friend.” Jake sounded chipper, which meant it wasn’t alpacas, so they weren’t about to be torn a new one by Zack. “There’s a friend of yours just moving into the First Class area.”
Jake had decided that as well as a festival, he was going to create a yurt village, with yurts of a variety of sizes and facilities, to accommodate guests who wanted a different sort of festival experience. Zack had already speculated that the yurt village would be staying on the chosen field, since was used for neither grazing or crops, and become another steady income stream. No one had disagreed.
“Who is it?”
“Drew O’Malley and he mentioned he knew you well. I recognise his name. Haven’t googled it yet…”
“Don’t. I’ll be round in ten.”
Alex looked at Abby. “Fancy a trip to Festival Central?”
It waslike someone had moved a crazy village to a field in Severton and added an extra dash of colour. Large yurts, ones with more than one room, were dotted about the field, a few with hot tubs and some with inflatable swimming pools. There were several food stalls already up and running as some of the festival goers had arrived early to settle in.
Including Drew O’Malley.
“He’s over there.” Jake pointed to the far corner of the field.
“The biggest tent.” Unsurprisingly.
“It isn’t a tent, it’s a yurt. Don’t hurt its feelings.” Jake sounded mellow.
Alex wondered how much the festival experience was getting to him. “Please don’t tell me that you now think inanimate objects have souls.”
Jake shrugged.
“I’ll leave you to whatever you need to be getting on with. Maybe get yourself a coffee or a tea. As in with a tea bag and not something you might buy from one of the people round here.”
Jake laughed and meandered in the direction of a striking blonde with thick waist length hair.
Alex shook his head. “There are some days where I’m just not sure how we’re related.”
Abby laughed, the sound low and soft. “Jake’s a good man.”
“He is. There are just times when he’s, well, very Jake.” Alex stepped up their pace, spotting Drew outside his yurt, his daughter dancing around in what looked like a pink puffy dress.
He’d met Drew O’Malley over a dozen times, gleaning information overtly and even spending time having a drink together or watching a football match. Drew was a decent guy after fifteen years wrapped up in gang warfare. The birth of his now six-year-old daughter, Helene, had been his exit ticket and although he still walked through shadows of the underworld, it was the lighter side that he sought. His little girl was the centre of everything, according to Drew, and there was no way that he would place her in jeopardy, not beyond his control, which was still immense.
“Evening.” Drew looked up as Alex became closer, his eyes landing on Abby. “And good to see you’re keeping better looking company than yourself.”
Alex chuckled and ignored the comment, seeing it for exactly what it was – a goad. Drew’s favourite sport was getting a reaction out of other people and he was yet to get one out of Alex.
