“What’s written on your knuckles?” she decides next.
Well, that’s the perfect follow-up. I align my hands, one above the other, thumbs facing up, to show her. The letters there are blurry because it’s old and on a part that doesn’t heal well, but close like she is, she can readEVERandGAIN—an incentive to keep moving forward and bettering myself. Then, once she has read them, I show her my thumbs along with them, which transforms the meaning intoNEVER AGAIN.
There’s something genuine, an understanding in the smile she offers me when she looks up. “Is the phoenix also a symbol of this?” she cleverly wonders.
“It is. It might be a bit tacky, but I was young and wanted something big to remind me that I was on a better path.”
We get lost in one another’s eyes, and for a second, there, we’re having a moment. I’ve made a small breach in her walls and am a step closer to getting past them.
Until someone barges in, displaying his usual lack of tact and sense of timing. “There you are!” Eli says. “Kill wants to know if—” he notices Gen, and whatever he was about to say dies then and there. “Oh, hello.”
Given Gen’s expression, I reckon she remembers who he is—from his profile on the dating app. He, however, can’t place her since he’s never seen her face. “Why are you somehow familiar?” he asks after a few seconds, intently focused on her features.
“This is Jessica,” I explain.
His expression lightens up as if struck by an epiphany. “Oh my God, of course!” He then turns to me and slaps my shoulder. “Did you finally grow some balls and text her?”
“Go away,” I order.
He ignores me, turning to Gen instead. “He’s been a bit of a mess since you two—”
“Elijah, I will smother you in your sleep. Go. Away.”
“Alright, alright.” He turns around but remembers he needs something, doing a full spin instead. “Killian sent you the program for next month, and he wanted to know if you’ll have enough time to make us a poster.”
“I will. Now, sod off.”
He does, slowly backing up while his eyes travel between Gen and me, a stupid grin plastered on his face. Once he’s gone, she looks up at me with an expression I can’t quite read.
“Were you really a mess?” she asks.Fucking Eli…
“You’re out of questions, love.”
Again, that doesn’t buy me much time, as she promptly scores another ball. “Were you really a mess?” she repeats.
“A mess might be a big word for it. But I was agitated.”
“Why?”
“Because I had a great time with you, and it was hard to accept there wouldn’t be any more of it.”
She’s wholly unimpressed by my explanation, her auburn eyebrow lifting high. “So, the sex was nice, and you wanted more of it?”
I chuckle, entertained by the fire within her, like always. “Greatsex is a motivator, for sure. But you were uniquely intriguing. You were as much a part of my agitation as the fantastic sex.”
For a moment, there’s only the sound of the rock band in the other room. Then, another melody rises. She reacts to it, walking up to her purse to retrieve her phone. Her screen is lit up, and the music stops when she slides a finger on it.
“It’s been half an hour,” she tells me.
“You set a timer?”
“It felt necessary.”
As much as I hope she’ll want to stay, I’m not convinced I did such a great job selling myself. “So, what do you want to do, red?”
When she looks around, I’m convinced I failed. Her blue irises scan the room, appraising her options. Since a deal is a deal, I look along with her. “Alan, right here, is a nice bloke. He does charity work around here, and I’ve never seen him bother a lady. Jared, over there, is pretty decent, too. Dylan though, that one with the red cap, you don’t want to go near him.”
“Maybe we should finish first,” she suggests.
