‘Seriously.’ His lips brush against mine, while his eyes roam searchingly over me, like he’s scrutinising my sincerity or something.
‘What’s the plan for the day?’ I change the subject.
‘First on the list is ravish my girlfriend.’ He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively at me.
‘Girlfriend, hey?’ My cheeks glow and the warmth spreads inside of me. We’ve never outwardly labelled ourselves. We’ve never had to because it’s only ever us. For obvious reasons we don’t leave the house together. We don’t go out on dates in the traditional sense. We’ve skipped to practically cohabiting, one of us is in the other’s bed every single night of the week. It’s a miracle we haven’t been caught. One I’m truly grateful for.
‘Sorry, do you prefer the term fiancée?’ His teeth nip my neck as he tickles my waist, nudging me onto my back.
‘Girlfriend is good, for now.’ The giggles won’t stop.
‘Funny, is it?’ He tickles me further, before snaking his strong hands downwards to grip my bum.
All of a sudden, it’s not funny. It’s sexy as hell.
ChapterTwenty-Two
OLLIE
It’s another long day without Amy. The weekends she trains, or is with her family, are hard to fill. The boys tend to be with their families because we are away so much during the week. I used to go to Westport most weekends, but I still haven’t been back since Luke and Anita’s announcement. That’s not what’s stopping me though, I just don’t feel the need. Not when everything I want is right here.
There’s something not quite right about my own family set-up, but until I started messing with Amy about getting married, I never fully acknowledged it. I wouldn’t say I come from a happy family. We were never unhappy, and we were certainly never mistreated in any way. We were raised with privileges, but there was never a lot of love. Mam is quite hard. Dad is softer. Luke is Luke. From the outside, we look like we have it all, and that is exactly Mam’s intention.
I don’t think there is a lot of love lost between my parents. They’re simply of the generation that married young and stay together purely because it is what people do.
I’m beginning to realise I want to get married because I’m madly in love, not because I found a good match on paper, or because my girlfriend is my best friend.
Knowing Amy is with her family for another big Sunday lunch where there will be laughter, love, kids playing and adults catching up on each other’s lives makes me a tad envious. Amy complains that they treat her like a child, but they adore her. It’s obvious to anyone in their company. I want to be part of it – to have a family like that. Not one that looks polished and crisp from the outside, but is cold on the inside.
The urge to tell Eddie everything is overwhelming. I’m in love with his sister and I want to shout it from the rooftops. But out of respect for her wishes, I just can’t. Amy says she’s worried about her job more so than her brother, but I’m beginning to wonder if there’s more to it than meets the eye.
To pass the time I go to Arnott’s, a huge fancy department store in Dublin city. The carcass that is my apartment is in serious need of some TLC, especially now I have a girlfriend staying over more often than not. I want her to love waking up at my place; I want it to feel more homely. I’d love to bring her with me to pick some stuff herself but sadly that’s not an option right now. If we’re seen together it would raise more than a few eyebrows. It would be just my luck for some idiot paparazzi to get a picture of us shopping for bedding. A sliver of irritation whips through me. Why does it have to be so complicated?
My phone rings in my pocket as I’m fingering a mint-coloured Egyptian-cotton bed spread. A glimmer of hope flickers through me, maybe Amy got finished earlier than she thought.
To my surprise, Anita’s name flashes up on the screen. I stare at it for a full ten seconds before I accept the call.
‘Hello?’ The surprise in my tone is blatant.
‘Ollie, it’s Anita.’
Duh. Even if I didn’t have her contact details saved in my phone, I’d recognise her number anywhere. I dialled it enough times over the last ten years.
‘Anita, what can I do for you?’ My voice is clipped, I don’t mean to be hard on her but she shouldn’t be calling me. It’s inappropriate now on so many levels. Unless she’s calling to ask what size shirt to buy my brother, her fiancé, for his birthday next week.
‘Ollie, I…’ She exhales a heavy sigh, weighted with despair. A few months ago the very same sigh would have had me running from anywhere in the world to my car, racing down the road to Westport to take whatever was worrying her from her shoulders. Today, it stirs nothing in me. Absolutely nothing.
‘What’s up, Anita? Are you ok? Is the baby ok?’ My voice is neutral as I glance around at my fellow shoppers to check no one is looking at me, no one has recognised me. The baseball cap works wonders, most of the time.
‘I’m fine. The baby’s fine. It’s Luke.’ She sighs again.
‘What’s wrong with Luke?’ It’s an effort to keep the irritation from my voice. Surely there must be someone else in the world she could phone to discuss her relationship with.
‘He didn’t come home last night. I’m worried about him. I thought he might be with you.’ Her voice is meek and apologetic.
‘Why on earth would he be with me? I’m in Dublin. Besides, you know better than anyone, we’ve never been close.’
‘I know, it’s just I didn’t know who else to call…’ She trails off as a door bangs in the background.
