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‘The bit after you decide you like each other,’ Ashley corrected. ‘That’s never really gone anywhere for me. It feels like it’s going well and then suddenly, she’s trying to move in on the fifth date.’

Molly watched her quietly. ‘Right.’

‘Or she’s deciding we’re a creative partnership,’ Ashley continued, staring down at the plate. ‘We’d been seeing each other for a month, and she wanted to write a duet about our connection. Am I mad? Is it me? Is that all normal?’

‘I’d have run a mile,’ Molly assured her.

‘So we’re not moving too quickly?’

Molly took a moment to unpack that. ‘Are you worried I’m moving quickly?’

‘No. I’m…’ Ashley collected herself. ‘It’s just… I think when people jump into something, it’s just as easy to jump back out. Speed unnerves me. Mine as much as anyone else’s.’ She shook her head. ‘I’m saying too much.’

Molly smiled at her, liking her even more after her verbal cliff dive. ‘You’re not.’

Ashley smiled back. ‘It just feels like this has to go wrong.’

‘Yes, of course it does,’ Molly agreed.

They laughed together and then reached across the table and took each other’s hands.

For a moment they just sat there with their hands still joined, neither of them quite remembering to let go. The Mexican place hummed around them with its indifferent fluorescent confidence, a couple of chairs scraping somewhere behind them, a fryer hissing.

Eventually Ashley shifted first, not pulling away exactly, more like loosening her grip reluctantly.

‘So,’ Molly said after a pause. ‘This legit guy you’re meeting tomorrow.’

Ashley groaned.

‘It’s gonna go somewhere,’ Molly smiled. ‘Because you’re good. But I just want you to know…’ Molly considered saying something serious. But in the end, she went another way, like she always did. ‘When you do blow up, there’s gonna be a lot of people throwing themselves at you. I just want you to know… we’ve only slept together once. I haven’t even done half the stuff I know.’

Ashley gave a shocked laugh.

‘I’m serious. We’ve barely touched the sides of my repertoire. So don’t leave me for a hot groupie until you’re sure you’ve exhausted my skills.’

Ashley smiled at her. ‘Well, when you put it like that.’

And for a brief stretch of time, it really did feel simple. Talking about their attraction, the deeper pull that they were both sort of terrified by. It made it manageable.

Molly watched Ashley as she reached for another chip. ‘Do you want to come back to my place after this?’ Ashley asked abruptly, almost panicked, eating a chip directly afterwards.

‘You don’t want to get a good night’s rest before the gig tomorrow?’

‘No,’ Ashley grinned.

Molly grinned back. ‘Okay. I accept.’

‘Full disclosure, my dad might be in.’

Molly's smile dipped a bit.

Seventeen

Now

‘Absolutely not. No way. Out of the question.’

Ashley paced the length of Simon’s office, her boots clicking sharply against the polished floor. She stopped in front of his wide desk, slamming both hands down onto the glass surface. ‘I am trying to rebuild my reputation as a serious musician, Simon, not audition for a reality TV show about celebrity couples!’