Page 83 of Take a Moment

‘It actually felt that way too.’ I grin at her, still buzzing from the gig.

Sasha melts into the background as Matt steps forward and pulls me in for a stomach-swirling kiss. ‘You were incredible, Alex.’

‘I second that.’ Sammy appears at our side, undeterred by the fact that we’re locked in a passionate embrace. ‘Matt, mate, you’re a lucky bastard. So many blokes would kill to go out with a hot rock chick.’

As he says these words, a familiar feeling of guilt intrudes on my consciousness and I untangle myself from Matt.

‘Not sure how I feel about being called a “chick”, Sammy, but I know the intention is good.’ I give him a little wink.

‘Where are the post-gig drinks tonight?’ Matt asks.

‘Got us some VIP passes for a place round the corner,’ says Sammy.

‘I hope you have an extra one.’ I grab Sasha by the hand and pull her forward. ‘Everyone, this is my best friend, Sasha. She’ll being joining us.’

‘Ah, this is a surprise,’ says Matt. ‘Great to meet you, Sasha. I’ve heard a lot about you.’

‘Right back at you.’ Sasha grins at him.

Sammy takes in Sasha’s tousled red hair and bright blue eyes and lets out a low whistle. ‘Dang, she’s cute. This why you were asking me about redheads, Alex? All I can say is, I think red Afro hair is the coolest thing around.’

I bite my lip to stifle a laugh as Sasha looks at us, confused.

‘He’s suggesting he’d like to have babies with you,’ I whisper in her ear and she turns scarlet, but at the same time looks elated by this comment.

‘Enchanté.’ Sammy steps towards Sasha and kisses her hand. ‘May I escort you to the next venue?’

‘Hello. Of course.’ Sasha giggles as he leads her off towards the exit.

‘Nice bit of matchmaking.’ Matt snakes his arm round my waist.

We follow the rest of the band out of the building and onto New Street, where there are plenty of lively Saturday night revellers in transit, probably moving from one bar to the next. ‘You ready for a drink?’

‘Definitely. You go ahead. I need to make a quick call.’

‘No probs.’

Matt catches up with the others and as soon as he’s out of earshot, I look up Dom in my contacts and hit the call button. He answers on the fourth ring.

‘Lex, hi. Sorry, give me a moment. I’m just out with the guys.’

I hear garbled voices and distorted music for a few moments until his voice comes back down the line clearly.

‘How are you? Everything OK? You’re not unwell, are you?’

‘No, I’m fine, Dom. I’m just out with Sasha and a few others.’

‘Didn’t realise Sasha was with you, that’s nice. Who are the others?’

I hesitate, unsure what to say.

‘I see.’ Dom’s voice loses a bit of its enthusiasm. ‘So that’s not fizzled out then. I was hoping you might be calling to say it was all over and you’re ready for me to hit the button on moving down.’

‘I… erm…’ I cringe, annoyed at myself as I realise I’m about to ruin Dom’s night out with his friends. ‘Actually, maybe it can wait.’

‘Hey, only joking, kitten. You know that. It’s been so great chatting with you the last couple of weeks. Can’t blame a guy for being a bit impatient, eh?’

‘No, I guess not.’ I kick lightly at a bollard in discomfort, suddenly feeling the chill in the air. ‘Look, Dom. Iamphoning about us, but I’m afraid it’s not to tell you what you want to hear.’

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