Page 4 of The Happy Hour
Jess rolled her eyes. ‘Try it in an American accent. Then youmightget it.’
‘No Vase Like Home.Vase.Vase? I see. Sort of.’
Jess laughed. ‘It’s one of my bugbears, that Wendy – my boss – thought it would work as a pun. But it’s a talking point, I guess. Are you just here for the morning, or...?’
‘I’m killing time,’ he told her. ‘The market’s an interesting place to be, as this has proved.’
‘You can lose hours to it,’ she agreed. ‘And it’s a great place if you’re waiting for an appointment, or to meet someone.’
‘It’s my third Sunday,’ he said darkly, as if he was admitting to attending some kind of support group – and maybe he was; maybe that’s what he was killing time until. He exhaled and glanced at Braden. ‘I hope he figures it out.’
‘Roger will do all he can,’ Jess said with confidence. He wouldn’t send a teenager like Braden back into the wild, free to steal another day – potentially from someone a lot less tolerant. He’d get in touch with his contacts on the force, social services, see what could be done. ‘Braden might have a bright future ahead of him.’ She smiled. ‘I should be getting back.’
‘You’re here every Sunday?’ Ash asked.
‘Of course. Sunday’s one of the market’s busiest days, and the best for home sales.’ He gave her a questioning look. ‘People laze around at home on Sunday mornings,’ she explained, ‘and they think “I could clear out the spare room”, or “we could do something different with the kitchen”, or “wouldn’t a creepy hare ornament look amazing next to the picture of little Billy on the mantelpiece?”’
Ash laughed, and even though it wasn’t as loud as Olga’s cackle, the earthquake was back, rumbling low in Jess’s belly. She felt stupidly proud that she’d made him laugh. ‘You sell creepy hare ornaments?’ he asked. ‘I’ll have to come and have a look. Do you get a lunch break?’
She did, but she rarely took it. ‘Sometimes.’
Ash glanced at his watch. ‘I’ve got an hour now, if you’re free? I need to be gone by one, but...’
Jess’s pulse sped up. ‘You’re just killing time until then?’
‘Exactly. We could do it together if you fancied. I could buy you a coffee?’
Jess was already shaking her head. ‘I don’t think so.’
‘Why not?’ Ash asked, a half-smile on his face.
‘I just... why would we?’ Why did two strangers ever get coffee together? His voice made her insides fizz. His face was open and friendly, and he was undeniably handsome, but they didn’t know each other – at all. And she had to get back to the shop.
‘You came to help,’ he said, gesturing at Braden. The teenager was nodding at whatever Roger was saying, his sulking demeanour replaced by a spark of intrigue. Something warmed inside Jess’s chest. Roger was a good person – and Ash, too; hehadn’t tackled the boy to the ground or shouted to alert a mob, and that might partly have been indecision, awhat the hell do I do now?moment, but some had been instinct: that the boy deserved a chance.
‘You helped more,’ she told him. ‘If it wasn’t for you, Braden would have been long gone by now, and who knows who he might have tried to steal from next? I should buyyoua coffee.’
‘Excellent,’ Ash said quickly. ‘Let’s do that then. Know anywhere good?’
Jess narrowed her eyes at him, and his smile widened.
‘You clearly want to, deep down,’ he said.
Jess pressed her lips together. ‘I don’t—’
‘I’ll let Wendy know,’ Roger called, somehow managing to counsel Braden while also listening to their conversation. ‘You hardly ever take a lunch break, Jess.’
‘See?’ Ash said. ‘I’m doing you a favour. Breaks are important.’
Jess huffed, fighting against a traitorous smile. ‘There’s a café just round the corner. It’s not fancy, but that means it’s more likely to have a free table.’
‘Lead the way.’ Ash swept his arm wide, then looked over to Roger and Braden. ‘Will you be OK?’
‘We’ll be grand.’ Roger’s smile was triumphant. ‘I’m going to take Braden and introduce him to Wendy.’
‘Oooh you’re in for a treat, Braden,’ Jess said.
‘Fuck’s sake,’ Braden muttered.
