Page 107 of Only Ever You

Faye’s rocketing pulse responded without her consent. “I. Am. Not.Jealous.”

She wasn’t.She didn’t know what she was right then. Pardon a woman for being annoyed that the man who’d kissed her like he hadn’t eaten in weeks not even twenty-four hours ago was now completely unaffected by her. Since he didn’t do or say anything to tell her otherwise. An hour ago, he’d evaded her questioning about that kiss to spare her feelings, instead of outright stating it hadn’t meant anything to him at all.

It took ten minutes of sitting at Mrs Papplewick’s dinner table before Faye clocked on to what Bash was doing; leaning towards her when he looked at her. Brushing his hand over hers on the table. Smiling.All. Of. The. Time.

She’d lost count of how many times he’d called her by the nickname he’d given her eleven years ago which she had no idea of the reason for;Peanut.She wasn’t allergic, and she didn’t think she looked like a peanut (also, should she be offended if that turned out to be the reason?).

Maybe she was extra irritable today –it was just a kiss, my ass– but Bash’s blatant, weird flirtatiousness, plus his refusal to acknowledge that there was something more between them now, wound her up.

“Stop doing that,” Faye hissed after Mrs Papplewick left for the kitchen.

“Doing what, Peanut?” Leaning into her with folded arms on the table, Bash gave her a wolfish look that knew exactly what she’d meant.

“Pretending we’re together! What if Mrs P tells my dad that we’re dating?” The corner of his mouth danced and her eyes slid there before Faye forced them elsewhere.

“So what if she does?”

This. Man. Was. Infuriating.His mixed signals were all over the place and it drove Faye crazy as much as the weight of his shoulder pressing against her own did.

She scoffed good-heartedly. “You’re an idiot.”

“I’myouridiot, Peanut.”

Faye’s irritation scattered in an instant. Her heart stopped and restarted, Bash’s undivided attention making her skin feel too hot.

No …He didn’t get to say that after acting like their kiss was meaningless when she knew that it wasn’t. Bash felt something for her, he definitely did.

“Apple crumble, anybody?” Mrs Papplewick poked her head around the doorframe.

Fine.If Bash wanted to play this unnamed game, then Faye would play it too.

She cupped her hand around the back of his neck, and before his eyes could fully lock onto hers, leaned over and pressed her lips to his.

Bash’s inhaled gasp caught in his throat, but he did the opposite of pulling away like he should have if she was just a friend to him. Swaying towards her, he returned the pressure of her mouth upon his, the bristles of his unshaven face tickling her chin.

So her strategy might have backfired, but Faye closed her eyes and poured out more meaning into kissing Bash than she meant to, all the while her heart decided to take off into a sprint. Her fingers curled inthe hair at the nape of his neck and she felt the shiver that licked in turn down Bash’s spine.

As if“just friends”kissed each other like this.

She pressed a second quicker kiss to his soft lips before she drew back and acted as unaffected as he had been since last night, satisfied she’d made her move in his game. Though that didn’t stop the sensitive, aching feeling between her thighs and how she clenched them together under the table to ward it off.

It didn’t work, but only made her want it more. Leaving Faye with a trail of heat circling through her body.

Bash’s eyes were crystal clear as they widened then pinched and focused on her, but there didn’t look to be a single thought behind them – or maybe too many to dwindle down to just one. His pulse was fast and hard in his neck beneath her palm and her own wasn’t much better.

Something was going to give soon.Somethingwould shift. Faye just wished that she knew what it was.

“Yes.” She smiled across at Mrs Papplewick, taking reverie in the woman’s scandalised look. “Crumble would be lovely.”

* Yes madam

33

FAYE

I’m your idiot,Peanut.

Four words that hadn’t left Faye’s mind since they’d returned to her father’s house, between groaning curses at the television. Why wouldn’t any of the channels work? Now they were stuck here all night without anything to do.

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