When the reply pinged less than two minutes later, she nearly fell off the chair in her haste to pick up the phone from her desk.
Love to! Eleven work for you?
Carmen scanned her calendar. She had a one-to-one with Monica at ten thirty, but that could easily be moved to the afternoon. Other than that she was free all morning, for once. It’s a sign .
Perfect, see you then xx
It wasn’t until about thirty seconds after she’d sent it that she realised she’d ended the message with the two kisses. Her head hit the desk with a loud thud.
“You got our favourite spot,” Carmen said as she approached.
Ash grinned. “I did. Had to shove some old guy out of the way to make it happen, but, hey, what can you do?” She shrugged, then smiled when Carmen laughed. God, she loved it when Carmen laughed like that. As if she didn’t have a care in the world.
“Did you order?” Carmen asked.
“No, I waited for you.”
“Thank you.”
They stared at each other for a moment. Once again there was that charge in the air between them.
Stop it! You’re near the line, remember? Ash didn’t want to reach the line, didn’t want to have to pull back from seeing Carmen because she couldn’t trust her libido—or heart. But everything she’d told herself over the last couple of days since their wine bar date—about stepping back and remembering to stop herself from feeling things she shouldn’t—had flown out the window the minute Carmen arrived. And it wasn’t just Carmen’s beauty that turned Ash’s mind to mush. It was the thought of spending time with her again. Of talking to her, asking about her day, delving a little deeper into what made Carmen who she was.
Ash coughed and stood. “Your usual?”
Carmen nodded; her gaze, which had until that moment been locked on Ash’s eyes, flicked away. “Perfect, thanks.”
Ash hurried into the café, her heart racing. She ordered their coffees and two of the custard tarts but took a moment to breathe before she returned to their table. After setting down their drinks and plates, she pulled out her chair and finally looked at Carmen once more.
“So, how’s Sophie?” Carmen reached for her coffee.
“She’s great. Although there’s not a lot for her to do in the studio, she never complains of being bored. Mind you, partly that’s because she’s glued to her phone when it’s quiet.”
“Of course! That’s how teenagers spend their days, isn’t it? How old is she?”
“She’ll be fifteen in October.”
“Gosh, she seems so much more grown-up than that!”
“I know. I was only thinking that the other day.”
“You love her very much, don’t you?”
Ash smiled. “I do. And it’s not just because she’s my only niece or nephew. She’s just an amazing kid.”
“I think it’s wonderful that you’re supporting her. Given that her mum isn’t doing so well with it, it’s great that Sophie has someone she can talk to.”
“Yeah. It’s causing some friction between me and Courtney, but I’m sure we’ll work that out. And it never occurred to me not to support Sophie. Even in this day and age, it’s tough to come out. Especially when you’ve realised that young.”
Carmen choked a little on her coffee and placed the cup back on the table. She coughed a few times but waved away Ash’s offer to get her a glass of water. “Sorry, went down the wrong way.” Carmen blushed and looked away.
“Have some custard tart. They fix anything.”
Carmen looked back at her and smiled. “I’m sure they do.”
And there it was again. That…sizzle between them.
It’s there, isn’t it? I’m not just imagining it. She couldn’t help herself; the awareness excited her. Oh crap, now what do I do?
The sound of a phone ringing broke into their strained silence, the first truly awkward moment they’d shared since they met.
Ash’s relief nearly had her slumping in her chair.
“Sorry.” Carmen dropped her untouched pastry on its plate before fishing her phone from her handbag and answering it. “Yes, I’m just out at Alma’s. No, that’s tomorrow. What? Today? Oh my God.” She ran her free hand through her curls. “Okay, I can be back in ten minutes. Stall her, okay? Tell her I’m stuck in traffic on the way back from another meeting. Thank you, Monica. You’re a star.”
Carmen hung up and shoved the phone back into her bag. She jumped up. “I’m so sorry. I’ve apparently messed up my calendar. I have to get back.”
Ash stood too, worry for Carmen running like ice in her veins.
Carmen looked panicked. Distraught, almost. “This has never happened to me.” She stepped back from the table. Her hands twisted at the strap of her handbag. “I never miss meetings. Never!”
“Hey.” Ash laid a hand on Carmen’s arm. “It’s fine. Go. You’ve got this, okay?”
Carmen nodded, but her gaze was distant, her posture ramrod straight. “Thanks.” She whirled around and strode off.
Ash allowed herself one minute to watch that determined stride, then tore her gaze away from Carmen’s legs. If she was honest with herself, she had no small measure of relief at the abrupt ending to their time together. And now I probably won’t see her before I go away, because she’s bound to throw herself into her work again to make up for whatever this mistake is. She ran her hand through her hair. Maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. A few weeks apart would give Ash plenty of time to get her head back on straight. She almost groaned aloud at her inadvertent pun.
Carmen broke her vow with reference to always taking the stairs and rushed down the corridor towards the lift. This was an emergency, after all. The thing seemed to take an age to reach the top floor. All the while her left foot tapped out an erratic rhythm as her heart pounded far too fast.
How did I screw this up?
Her calendar app stated quite clearly that this meeting
