Page 40 of If I Never Met You

‘Itismad. And yet. It appeals,’ Laurie said, hesitantly.

Jamie broke into a broad smile. He had her.

‘You’d have to meet up with me every so often to create our dynamite content, but apart from that. We need to set terms and conditions for this showmance. Text me your personal email and I’ll message you over the weekend.’

They agreed they were both awash with drink and needed to head home to find food, and Jamie insisted he’d see Laurie into a taxi.

As they stood on the pavement, Laurie’s teeth chattering, her arms folded tightly across her body, she said, ‘I have a question.’

‘Yes?’

‘You were told that Eve was off limits. You want this major promotion. You still took her out to talk work. Why? I mean, the risk versus reward doesn’t seem to stack up.’

Laurie knew what she thought had happened, and nothing he was going to say would persuade her otherwise. She was curious at how he’d explain it away.

‘She asked me out, not the other way round, and so technically she took me out. Eve’s no wallflower.’

Laurie tilted her head. ‘Still …’

‘Ack, I got very annoyed with the idea her sixty-two-year-old uncle gets to choose who she’s allowed to socialise with. I can be like that sometimes. An obtuse little twat. Yes, it was a risk, but if I’d given in to their rubbish I couldn’t have lived with myself.’

‘You were, in fact, respecting her agency and autonomy?’

‘Precisely,’ Jamie said, grinning. ‘And, she’s going places. I was networking, if you want the unvarnished version. That was the incentive.’

‘With a twenty-four-year-old?’ Laurie raised a sceptical eyebrow.

‘I’m not kidding, she’s ferocious. Photographic memory, doesn’t miss a thing, would leave any of us for dead without checking for a pulse. She told me her nickname isEve of destruction. One day she’ll have her name above the door, of that I’m sure.’

‘Yet you didn’t close the deal?’

She could tease Jamie that Eve wasn’t into him, but Laurie remembered the body language from the night in question.

Laurie wouldn’t have dared be this personal and lairy if she wasn’t hammered. But this was her professional training. Pursuing something until you felt you understood it. You couldn’t advocate for someone without it.

‘I know it runs contrary to what you think of me, but I’m perfectly capable of enjoying female company without it having to end in bed.’

To be fair, Laurie had felt that herself, only hours previous.

‘Plus she was, as said, way too young for me.’

‘How old are you?”

‘Thirty-one.’

‘I thought you were younger!’

‘I’ll take that as a compliment, though I bet you meant immature. How old are you?’

‘Thirty-six.’

‘I thought you were younger,’ Jamie said, tip of his tongue in corner of his mouth.

‘Thanks!’ Laurie huffed.

‘I thought it was a compliment when you said it?’

Laurie rolled her eyes.

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