Page 36 of The Rest is History
She’s so predictable. I roll my eyes. ‘No.’
‘Oh.’ She collapses back in her chair, slightly deflated, before perking up again. ‘Any groping? How long did it last?’
I consider. ‘No actualgroping, exactly, but he brushed my cheek with his knuckles and stroked my collarbone, and then he kind of grabbed the back of my neck very firmly and kissed me.’
‘Holy shit,’ she says faintly. I think I’ve managed to impress the salacious Zara. ‘That neck thing sounds very Mafia of him.’
‘I thought so too.’ It certainlyfeltvery Mafia. Like I was his, and his alone, and he knew it. Fuck, it was hot. A flush rises up my neck as I relive it.
‘Maybe I should leave a couple of my dark romances on his desk,’ she muses. ‘Give him some more ideas to work with.’
‘He’d shrivel up and die.’
‘So tell meexactlywhat happened. Don’t leave anything out.’
Between mouthfuls, I talk her through Grace and Olive’s visit, my unfortunate solo foray into one of the most haunted parts of the palace, my mini meltdown, Charlie finding me, and the kiss. While she seems disappointed that the kiss itself was relatively parent-friendly, the overall romance of the encounter cheers her up.
‘He definitely nailed the setup,’ she muses. ‘You know, damsel in distress, almighty leader sweeps in to her rescue, engages in seriously intense eye contact and some meaningful touching. I mean, it’s the tiniest leap to imagine that he actually uttered the immortal words,who did this to you?’
I snigger. ‘You definitely need to lay off the romance books. But yeah, he did sort of growlI thought you were fucking hurtbefore he made a beeline for my lips.’
‘Jesus!’ She full-body shivers with pleasure. ‘So fucking good! Who knew he could deliver a line so well? That definitely makes up for the lack of tongue in my book. But today—he’s back to being Churlish Charlie?’
‘Churlish Charlie on steroids.’
‘He must be so mortified. I mean—shock, horror—he lost control there for a minute.’ She smiles smugly and jabs a finger in my direction. ‘You, my little friend, all dressed up as his favourite woman of all time, made Charlie Vaughan lose control.’
‘Only for a few seconds.’ I jab at my salmon with unnecessary aggression. ‘And only because I was dressed up as his beloved Anne, as you say. I think he was just living out a fantasy there for a moment.’
‘Bollocks. I’ve told you before, he has the serious hots for you. He eye-fucks you all day long.’
‘You’re delusional, because I’ve never, ever seen that. He avoids me like the plague. Speaks to me like I’m dirt. He’s only ever shown any interest when we’re both in character.’
She leans forward. ‘I’m telling you, he does it to your back all day long. Maybe buy one of those little head cameras cyclists have, but wear it backwards. All you’ll see on the footage is Charlie Vaughan’s creepy little eyeballs following your arse around the room like a sad puppy.’
She’s being ridiculous. I know she is. Zara has an over-active imagination. But something about her words light a flare of hope in my heart. I don’t know why.
Because I don’t want a man who ignores me and belittles me only to pounce when he’s feeling bored or horny or fulfilling a fantasy.
Actually, I don’t want a man full-stop. I have enough on my plate.
CHAPTER 15
Elodie
After a few days of painful silence between me and Charlie, I wake up Friday morningto an actual WhatsApp message from him.
That is correct.
I should be embarrassed by the intensity of the flutter that wings its way around my stomach at the sight of his name on my lock screen.
Charlie Vaughan.
Such a delicious surprise. We’ve never contacted each other except via school email and messaging systems. I tap on the message, willing myself not to get my hopes up that it’s some kind of acknowledgement of what happened between us. He’s certainly not a talker. Maybe he finds it easier to express himself in writing?
Oh.
I have food poisoning. Can you cover my A Level class this morning? Think you have a free period.
