Juliette snorted and waved me off. “Still outrageous, Liam. Some things never change.”
A waiter passed with a tray of kir royale, and I grabbed one for Andrea and me. From the other side of the terrace, I could see Ben and Dex catching up with some girls from college. I placed an arm around Andrea’s shoulder. This time, she didn’t stiffen, just leaned into my side. It was oddly comforting.Pretending in front of my old friends was harder than I’d expected.
“So, Andrea.” Nick turned to focus his attention on the woman under my arm. “My dad said you’ve been together almost a year. Hasn’t he put you off yet?”
“Well, he’s certainly given it a good shot over the past nine months. You know what he’s like.” She looked up at me and put a hand on my chest. It felt good there. Too good. “The truth is, things just keep getting better.”
Incredible how convincing she was.
“You should have seen him at Oxford back in the day,” said Juliette. “He wouldn’t talk to a girl unless she came with a study guide.”
“Notstrictlytrue,” I said.
“Mate, you revised for dates,” Nick said. “We all saw it.”
Andrea looked up at me again and raised a brow. “Sounds like Liam.”
“And now look at you.” Nick gestured with his glass. “Used to hide in the dark at the back of the pub. Now you’re the one everyone’s watching.”
“Oh, he prefers dim lighting,” Andrea said. “It’s where he does his best work.” She nudged me playfully in the ribs.
Jesus. How could she be so casual, like we hadn’t spent hours together in the dim lighting of her flat? A one-off, but it was like she meant it.
Juliette’s head went back in a bark. “Did he tell you to say that?”
“Please. He’s not bold enough to script me.”
Nick and Juliette laughed.
With the top of her head almost completely under my chin despite the heels, I could smell her perfume again and wantedto pull her close. It felt like it should be natural, but both of us knew it wasn’t.
“And tell me, Andrea,” Juliette said, “what’s he like now? We used to tease him endlessly back at uni. Does he let you get away with that, or is he all serious now that he’s a big-shot CEO?”
Andrea laughed. “There’s a lot of teasing, but I think he enjoys it.”
“Ooh, what’s your nickname for him?” said Juliette. “We had a few at university. I’d love to hear yours.”
Andrea looked at me. Shit. We hadn’t planned for this.
“Oh, I don’t really have one.”
“C’mon,” said Nick. “Of course you do. Everyone ends up with one.”
I stiffened.Please,Andrea, don’t say Mr. von Hot. I will never live itdown.
She kept her eyes on me like she wasn’t quite sure what to do.
“Aha, that look means you do,” said Nick, folding his arms. “Well?”
“Um … it’s”—she hesitated—“L.”
What thefuck—
She glanced at me.
“Elle?” Juliette raised a brow. “Like El fromStranger Things, or Elle MacPherson?”
“Money’s on MacPherson,” said Nick. “Look how pretty he is.”
