Page 61 of Before You Say I Do
“Okay. Well let’s have lunch.” She leaned forward and kissed her. Lightly. Then more forcefully. Until Abby’s hands were tangled in Jordan’s hair, and she had to force herself to let go.
“I don’t want to let you go. I can’t let you go.”
Jordan closed her eyes. “You need to go.”
Abby nodded. “I know. But I want you to know this isn’t over.”
“It has to be, Abby. It can’t go anywhere.”
Abby shook her head. She refused to believe that. Her feelings were just too strong. “I’m falling for you. We can’t just sweep this aside. I know you feel it, too.”
Jordan stared at her. “I do,” she whispered.
“Only, when I’m just about to get married, that’s a problem, isn’t it?”
Jordan didn’t reply.
She didn’t need to.
Chapter 22
Abby walkedthrough the door of her first-floor flat, then shut it hard. The only sound was her breathing, along with her neighbour’s TV below. They were an old couple whose TV was always blaring. She was so used to it now, she tuned it out. However, she wasn’t going to miss it when she moved in with Marcus after they got married.
Her heart stuttered at the thought.
Not now.
Her flat had that not-lived-in smell about it, even though she’d only been gone four days. Her empty coffee cups from before she left were still on the side, as were two small plates. She walked over to her grey couch and grabbed the cushions, plumping them up. Then she arranged her three remote controls on the coffee table, and tidied her copies ofBBC Good Foodinto a pile next to them. Abby had taken out a subscription in the hope of following some of the recipes. That hadn’t quite happened yet, but the magazine made for great aspirational reading.
She strolled over to her kitchen at one end of the all-in-one room, wiping up a couple of stray crumbs from the side. She put the kettle on, then checked the fridge. No milk. She’d have to have a black coffee. Pretend she was from Italy. She could do that.
Ten minutes later, she was slumped on her sofa, her coffee going cold. She didn’t want it. She didn’t want anything. Well, apart from one particular thing. She put her head in her hands, then rubbed her face.
She could still smell Jordan faintly on her fingers. Still remembered what it felt like to be inside her.
Exciting. Sexy. Glorious.
She shook her head.
All the way home in the cab, she’d been wondering what to do next. She’d got her phone out a few times, stared at Jordan’s number, then put it away. What was she going to write? ‘Fantastic to fuck you on the plane. Now, about those flowers for my wedding…’ It didn’t really work, did it?
Nothing did, that was the problem.
Her mind kept shying away from calling Marcus and asking him to come round for a chat. Even the thought of calling him felt weird. They weresonot Taran and Ryan.
Perhaps they could postpone the wedding, give her some time to think. But he’d be hurt. He’d want to know why. She couldn’t possibly tell him. “Because I’m falling for my professional bridesmaid, the one you hired?”
No, it would kill him. It would kill her, too. Then she’d have to deal with Marjorie. And everyone else.
She blew out a long breath. What a mess. She was supposed to be meeting Jordan tomorrow about her speech. But could she? If they met, it’d have to be about business. But would that happen? Could she trust herself? She’d never considered herself an untrustworthy person. Somebody who couldn’t control her actions. But that’s what had happened.
It’s what Jordan did to her.
She’d made her see the world differently. This weekend, they’d bonded. She’d spoken about stuff she hadn’t spoken about in years. Things she’d forgotten she’d wanted in her busy life. Like working for a charity. Like making a difference. Like not being caught up in the corporate world. When had her life run away from her?
She picked up her work phone and checked her emails. She had 152. Not bad for four days away. One at the top in particular caught her notice. It was from her boss. When she clicked on it, she saw he was asking for a meeting about ‘something important’ tomorrow lunchtime. Maybe it was about the project she was hoping to take the lead on.
She sat up straight. Tomorrow? When she was meant to be meeting Jordan?
