Page 60 of Wish You Knew
What the hell was he doing here? And why had no-one told me?
My head spun around, trying to find Saff or Bas.
I spotted Saff chatting to a bunch of women near the stage and crept up to them. Plastering a fake smile on, I took Saff’s arm. “Sorry, do you mind if I steal her away?”
Once we were a safe distance from them, Saff breathed a sigh of relief. “God, thank you for saving me. If I got asked another time who designed my dress, I might have screamed. I’m not sure Top Shop was the answer they were looking for.”
Ignoring her apparent distress, I got right to the point. “What are you doing here? Why were you invited?”
“Bit harsh, Rosie. I am allowed to come to these posh events too. You don’t have the monopoly on them.” She sniffed.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.” I tucked a strand of hair which had come loose from its bun back behind my ear. “Scott’s here.”
Saff bit her lip. “Yeah, I know.” She picked at a piece of skin next to her thumbnail. “I’m not meant to tell you.”
“Tell me what?”
She pointed to the stage. “There’s entertainment after dinner.”
“Yeah, some comedian and a dance troupe who won one of those talent shows.” I could tell she was wrestling with herself as to whether to tell me the truth. Whoever had sworn her to secrecy had done a pretty good job for once.
“Plus a couple of musical acts.” She let out a hard breath. “Vivian will kill me.”
“Why will I kill you?” As if on cue, Vivian materialised beside us. She looked resplendent in pale pink Chanel, which floated around her body with effortless elegance.
“I’m trying not to let the cat out of the bag about the music.” Saff shifted from side to side, glancing over my shoulder.
Vivian placed a hand on my arm. “Patience, my dear. All will become clear later on.”
I turned my head to see Scott, Tris and Bas cutting a path through the crowd. All three of them were dressed in tuxes, looking like an upmarket version of the ‘Reservoir Dogs’cast. My breath caught. I’d never seen Scott dressed in anything so smart. He looked hot as hell.Damn.
“Ladies,” said Bas. “It’s time for us to take our seats for dinner.” He placed a hand at the base of my spine, his fingers grazing my bare skin. An involuntary shiver broke down my back, although I wasn’t entirely sure I could attribute it all to his touch.
We all sat down, and I found myself staring straight into Scott’s eyes. It was all I could do to tear my gaze away and engage in conversation with Tris.
“Andy said he’d tried to get hold of you a couple of times, but he keeps getting through to some chap who works in finance,” he said, pouring me a glass of water.
“Really?” I shook my head, pretending not to have any idea what he was talking about. “I was surprised not to hear from him after we had such a fun night.” I raised my voice to make sure it could be heard above the chatter, in particular making sure Scott could hear every word.
“Why don’t you try and give him a ring instead?” Tris reached into his pocket for his phone. “I can give you his number.”
“Sounds good.” I forced a smile. “Remind me later. It looks like they’re starting to serve dinner.” Thankfully, a plate of roasted lamb, dauphinoise potatoes and red cabbage was placed in front of me, deflecting the awkwardness of the situation. I didn’t want to see Andy again, and I definitely didn’t want to give him any false sense of hope.
Each forkful of the delicious lamb stuck in my throat. Any appetite I’d had disappeared at the sight of Scott. Bas provided good company, regaling me with stories of his nightclub adventures and tales of reality TV star public appearances. While we spoke, I could feel Scott’s gaze boring into me. A mixture of anger and regret fizzed through my bloodstream. Perhaps he needed to feel what I did. Making sure he could see what I was doing, I placed a hand on Bas’s arm and threw back my head with laughter.
“What? It’s not that funny.” Bas regarded me with a strange look.
“Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.” I giggled, shuffling a little closer to him. I grabbed my empty glass. “Could you get me some more champagne? I seem to have drunk this a little too quickly.”
“Sure.” He motioned to one of the waiting staff, who hovered nearby holding a full bottle. “You should probably eat something too, soak up a bit of the alcohol.”
Obediently, I shoved a forkful of the cabbage into my mouth, trying to pretend it didn’t taste like cardboard. Hopefully the dessert would consist of something which would liven up my taste buds. While I chewed Bas stood up, and Scott followed suit. The two of them made some excuse about going to the bar and walked away from the table. I let out a defeated breath.
When they were a safe distance away, Vivian shifted into the seat Bas vacated. “Are you okay, dear? You look a little pale.”
“I didn’t know Scott was going to be here,” I admitted. “I wasn’t prepared to see him.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, but if I had, I was worried you wouldn’t come.”
