‘I’m not trying to be a bitch and undermine you or anything,’ she said. ‘I just don’t want you to get hurt.’
She tucked a wayward piece of hair into my ponytail. ‘You’re the last person I would ever want to get hurt,’ she said.
‘I doubt it’ll get that far,’ I croaked, using every ounce of my energy to sound reasonably normal while her hands weretouching my hair.‘He probably won’t like me that much anyway.’
‘Shut up, of course he will,’ she said. ‘You’re Jane Bennet, babe. You’re hot and sweet and generous.’
‘Stop.’
‘Absolutely not. You’re amazing. You’re the most organised person on the planet. You remember exactly what kind of milk everyone takes in their tea, even if it’s a kind of milk I haven’t heard of. You let me complain and cry on your shoulder all the time. You—’
‘No, really, please, stop!’
I wiped furiously at the tears starting to fall down my cheeks. ‘I need you to stop,’ I said.
‘Oh God, Mandie, I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘I didn’t mean to make you cry.’
‘I know I’m a crybaby,’ I said. ‘I’m sorry.’
She bit her lip, clearly biting back words with it.
‘I know you’re just trying to be kind,’ I said. ‘But I can’t hear this right now, Dylan. Please.’
She looked at me for a second that felt like an hour.
The air in the room felt all hot and thick. It was hard to breathe, let alone speak.
‘Of course, babe,’ she said. ‘Whatever you need.’
It took me longer than the fifteen minutes of getting ready time I’d been allotted to calm myself down, fix my mascara, and deliver several long lectures to myself about how I wasn’t doing this anymore, I wasn’t going to be this person anymore, and Iwasgoing to get myself under control.
This meant we started out the date with Murray annoyed at me. He only got more annoyed when it took us eight takes to shoot my entrance into the date (i.e. me walking down the stairs to Romeo-Dylan). ‘Go back, do it again!’ he barked. ‘Slower, Amanda! This is your girl-coming-down-the-stairs-after-a-makeover-in-a-teen-movie moment!’
‘Sorry about him,’ Romeo-Dylan murmured to me, when I had finally descended the stairs to Murray’s satisfaction. ‘He’s definitely not getting enough sleep.’
‘It’s okay,’ I whispered back. ‘It was my fault.’
‘Moving outside!’ the director called.
We turned to walk out the front door, Romeo-Dylan’s hand feathering over the small of my back.
‘Not like that!’ Murray said. ‘She’s not your elderly aunt! Hold her hand!’
Sorry,Romeo-Dylan mouthed to me again, as he complied.
His fingers felt strange, twined through mine. His hands were warm. His palms weren’t sweaty. He didn’t hold too tightly or too loosely. As far as hand-holds went, it was perfectly pleasant.
But it wasn’t like sitting under that pink and silver sunrise sky. Her taking my hand. Our eyes meeting. Her licking her lips, and—
Then Romeo-Dylan and I walked outside, and one of the greatest things that had ever happened to me took place.
Maybe I really could make this work with Romeo-Dylan. Maybe he and I could be perfectly happy together after all, if it meant I could keepher.
‘Oh my God,’ I breathed.
‘I thought you might appreciate it,’ Romeo-Dylan said.
‘Can I touch her?’
