Page 52 of Kiss Me Ever After
He visibly relaxed. “Ah, got it. Yeah, fine with me.” He ushered us into the living room, a bright, spacious area with two huge leather sofas and a large dining table. “Can I get you a drink?”
“Some water would be great, thank you.” Lennon hovered awkwardly in the centre of the room.
“Same, thanks, Lucas.”
“Ah, I think I like you already. Low maintenance. No soya milk, fat free, caffeine free coffee needed.” Lucas grinned. “Take a seat, I won’t be a moment.”
“This feels too good to be true,” Lennon whispered. “Look at the place. It’s almost the same as my old flat.” Her eyes misted over.
“Maybe not the same postcode though, hence why it’s heaps cheaper.” I sat down and pulled Lennon beside me. “He seems like a decent bloke.” Tiny pangs of jealousy as I thought about Lennon and Lucas sharing this place reared their head, and I struggled to quash them.
“The others couldn’t be here today to meet you, so I get final say apparently.” Lucas gestured to the table where there was a laptop and several notebooks laid out. “I can work from home.”
“What do you do?” asked Lennon.
“Software engineer for a finance company. I design all the fancy back end stuff for your payments to go through.” He grinned. “I’ll bore you with all the details one night if you can’t sleep.” Lucas placed our glasses on the low table in front of the sofa, then took a seat opposite us. “Tell me more about you. Your profile says you’re a student?” The friendly facade slipped, replaced by a more serious tone.
Lennon moved to the edge of the sofa. “That’s right. Final year at the London College of Fashion. I’m doing Fashion Marketing. But I went to uni two years later than I could have. I kind of took an extended gap year.”
I remembered those two long summers without seeing her after she’d passed her A Levels. She’d gone travelling both times and hadn’t visited her grandparents once. Back then I hadn’t properly realised what she meant to me.
As Lucas asked Lennon more questions, I tuned out until she poked me in the ribs. “Sorry, I was miles away.”
They both laughed.
“Clearly,” said Lucas. “I think we’re pretty much done with the questions. Would you like to see the room?”
“Please.” Lennon nodded; her eyes bright.
Lucas took us on the guided tour, pointing out his room and that of his current flatmates before stopping at the final door. “This would be you. It’s the smallest room in the apartment, though. And we’d have to share a bathroom, Lisa and Toby have the en suite.”
He flung open the door, and my jaw dropped. If this was the smallest room, I could only imagine how big the others were. A huge double bed dominated one corner of the room, there were windows on one side and a door out to a small Juliet balcony. The decor was muted, the only colour being from the patterned duvet set. A chest of drawers and a desk lined one wall, with a built-in wardrobe next to it.
Lennon squeezed my hand hard. I sensed she liked it.
“I’ll give you a couple of minutes.” Lucas edged out of the room, leaving us alone.
“Oh my God!” Her eyes shone. “It’s perfect.”
I fought against the lump forming in my throat. Seeing her so excited about this place brought home the reality that summer would soon be over, and she’d be gone.
I wasn’t sure I was ready for it.
24
Lennon
The euphoriaover finding the perfect flat diminished once we got on the train to head back to Ealynn Sands. Lucas wanted to talk it over with Lisa and Toby, so wouldn’t be getting back to me until later. My heart wasn’t in the next place we saw either. I pinned all my hopes on living with Lucas and the flatmates I hadn’t even met yet.
I stared out of the window as the train whizzed through the countryside. Being back in London brought back memories of the last year and how much everything had changed in such a short space of time.
There was no denying the summer had been amazing. Unexpected, but amazing.
When I arrived around two and a half months ago, the bitterness of all that had gone on with my parents and the disappointment of having to change my plans consumed me. I had been determined not to enjoy myself or have a good time. My only plan was to get through the months ahead until going back to uni.
Justin had changed all of those plans. I didn’t regret a minute of it.
I glanced over at him, snoozing quietly in the seat next to me, his head leaning against the window. The urge to reach over and stroke his face overwhelmed me. I knew better than to wake him, though.
