Page 64 of The Gin Lover's Guide to Dating

She hands me the phone.

‘Seriously?’ I spend a minute or so scrolling through the twenty or so comments myself. ‘Oh, wow. Some of them have even tried my tomato and basil recommendation.’

‘You must answer,’ says Reyes. ‘If you want following, you must talk with them.’

‘You’re absolutely right.’ I continue to scroll up and down my page in amazement. ‘I wonder how many subscribers I have now.’

I quickly log into my blog admin page and navigate to the subscriber stats.

‘Bloody hell!’ I clamp my hand over my mouth. ‘I’ve got nearly a thousand subscribers. After one post? That’s crazy!’

‘This is amazing! How so many?’ Reyes asks.

‘Dylan, again. As well as setting me up with my site, he’s using his contacts at work and his Twitter following to help me get subscribers. Yesterday, someone I know actually retweeted the link to it, so then I did too! It was great – meant I could share it, without compromising my anonymity.’

‘He is good man.’ Reyes looks very impressed. ‘He has romancing in his life, Dylan?’

‘Unfortunately, not.’ I shake my head. ‘His ex really messed him up. I’ve just helped him set up an online dating profile on LoveMatch though, so fingers crossed.’

‘That is nice. A good man like Dylan needs to find love with good chica.’

‘Totally agree. Right, shall we head off?’

We pick up our stuff, head out of the storeroom, and across the bar. As we’re nearing the door to the main hotel, Aaron comes striding through it.

‘Evening.’ He nods awkwardly as he greets us. ‘Just checking all was well with the close-down.’

‘Everything is fine, Mister Gardiner,’ Reyes confirms. ‘I have completed the cash-up and will sign in the keys just now.’

‘Good.’ He smiles woodenly at Reyes and then turns to me, arms behind his back as he towers over me. ‘All well with you, Liv?’

‘Yes, great.’ I smile at him genuinely. ‘Everything is great. Thanks to you, guardian angel.’

‘Gardeen angel?’ Reyes looks confused. ‘What is this?’

‘Guardianangel.’ I emphasis the word to help Reyes understand. ‘It means he’s looking out for me. He helped me once before, when I was at university.’

‘Ah, OK.’ Reyes nods her understanding. ‘Yes, Mister Gardiner, you are good hombre. You are good to Liv, and you are good hotel manager. The best I know.’

Clearly uncomfortable with this level of positive personal attention, Aaron stiffens slightly. ‘Right, well, I’m not sure I would put it quite like that.’ He clears his throat. ‘But I’m glad I could be of assistance. Glad all is well. Have a good night.’

With that, he disappears straight back out the door. Reyes and I look at each other and stifle a giggle.

‘That didn’t go down so well. I think he prefers to be the one in control.’ I bite my bottom lip, feeling a little guilty for making Aaron uncomfortable. ‘Oh well, he’s just going to have to get used to it. ’Cause, like it or not, I’m not going to stop being grateful.’

‘I agree.’ Reyes nods firmly. ‘A good man needs to know he is good man. Do you know ifhehas romancing in his life?’

‘Don’t even go there.’ I give her a warning look. ‘Aaron’s married with a kid.’

Reyes and I wander through the staff corridor and out into the dark night. It’s cool, but calm and refreshing after a long night in a hot bar. We chat lightly for a few minutes longer, then say our goodbyes and head in opposite directions.

As I walk along Newington Road towards the bus stop, I pull out my phone and see that Josh has replied. Letting out another involuntarily peep of delight at his flirty text, I immediately put my phone away again. He may have me hooked, but I can still pretend I’m not: by making him wait for a response. There’s no way I’m letting him hold all the power.

Chapter 18

The next morning, I wake groggily around ten. Feeling more tired than usual, I pull the duvet up to my chin, making the most of the cosy warmth. I decide I’ll just relax and enjoy the comfort of my bed for a while longer.

As I’m enjoying the indulgent feeling of not having to be anywhere, I allow myself to drift through the memories of the evening before last: my night with Josh still providing just as much enjoyment as it did at the time. Unfortunately, after reliving it couple of times – his scent, the lingering taste of gin on his lips, his firm but tender touch – my mind loses focus and wanders to less welcome thoughts, and soon I’m immersed in a full-scale assessment of my current predicament.

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