‘Oh, please!’ Chloe swats her hand in front of her face. ‘You’ve been pining over each other since he left. I don’t doubt it was explosive.’
‘And as much as I’m sure she’d like to share all the gory details with you, I haven’t quite finished with her just yet.’ I drop the phone onto Sasha’s chest, slide downwards ready to worship her in my favourite way.
‘FYI, I’m not the only one who wants the gory details. You guys made front-page news this morning. That London mistletoe kiss caused a media frenzy. The only difference is, I would recognise my sister’s head from behind, wherever she is in the continent. The world wants to know who Ryan Cooper’s new woman is.’
‘I’d shout it from the fucking rooftops, but we’re kind of busy right now.’ My tone rings with impatience.
‘Call you later, sis.’ Sasha hangs up and flings the phone across the room in a rebellious motion.
‘Now, I’ll show you mind-blowing.’
Her pelvis squirms as my tongue gets to work.
***
Sasha leaves before ten to check on Victoria and sort some castle business. Even though her absence from my immediate proximity kills me, I suppose she does have an entire estate to run.
I manage to bang out another song. It’s far from perfect, but the bones are solid. Maybe, if I play my cards right, Sasha might help me improve on them later. She always did have an ear for a compelling lyric. Perhaps I’ll even convince her to pick up her guitar again.
Just as I set my own down, my phone rings. It’s Jayden. He’s up early this morning.
‘Jayden, what’s up, man?’
‘Well, if it isn’t fucking Romeo himself. Tell me, the brunette you’re pictured sucking the face off in London, is it Sasha Sexton, by any chance?’
A tut clicks from my tongue. There’s nothing sacred in my life.
‘And what if it is?’
‘Please tell me you gave her a filthy final goodbye shag and that you’re on the next flight home.’
There it is again. That word. Home.
The only place I truly feel at home is between Sasha’s legs.
‘You may be my brother and my agent, but my love life is none of your business.’
‘Oh fucking hell, dude! Did you just drop the L bomb? Things are worse than I thought.’ He fakes disgust but I know him well enough to detect his underlying surprise.
I sigh, desperate to talk about what happened. He’s probably not the right person to listen, given his feelings on long-term relationships but there’s no one else.
‘There’s just something about her, Jay. It’s always been her.’
‘It’s probably just an infatuation that you need to get out your system. Stay until Vegas, see how you feel after that. When you’re back under the bright lights you’ll see things clearly again.’
It’s more than infatuation, I know it is. Wrapped in my Sasha-infused Irish bubble, I’d miraculously forgotten about Vegas. The thought of leaving her, even for a few days, causes my stomach to churn.
‘I don’t think so, Jay. I think I want to marry her.’
Actually, I don’t think. I know.
‘Holy fuck, dude. Have you been drinking moonshine? Because you are coming out with some seriously crazy shit right now. You barely know the woman. You haven’t seen her in ten years.’
‘I know enough.’ I’m adamant. ‘But don’t worry, I’m not going to tell her that. She’d probably run a fucking a mile.’
‘Yeah, right. You’re the world’s most eligible bachelor, for fuck’s sake. Apart from me, of course, only I prefer to keep a lower profile.’ He snorts.
‘Hmmm. Is that what you were doing cruising round LA in my Ferrari? Keeping a low profile? How is it by the way? Still in one piece, I hope?’
