Page 22

No, no, no, no. This cannot be happening!
"Oh Elliot, get out of the way will you? It'll only take a moment, I'm sure he won't mind." Angie's heels clattered on the steps and my passion plummeted in an instant. I broke off the kiss and released a furious Alfie. I shoved at him and he backed off just enough for me to scramble down his body until my feet were on the ground again.
Alfie didn't seem to give a damn that any second we were going to be discovered, and he pushed me back against the tree to continue our kiss.
"Alfie, stop!" I shoved at him again, panicked, but he wouldn't budge. His fist pounded the bark above my head in frustration. He peered down at me in the darkness, Angie's footsteps getting closer, his erection straining so hard to get to me it felt like it might rip through his trousers.
"Don't go anywhere," he told me. I could see the tick in his jaw and I got the feeling that heads were about to roll. I really didn't want to be around when that happened.
I ducked out from under him but he grabbed my arm before I could get a step away.
"Don't run from me, O'Connell." The hardness in his voice unnerved me. I wrenched my arm away just as Angie and Elliot appeared. He straightened and I watched as he erased all emotion from his face, his Mr Tell mask slipping back into place.
"What is it?" he asked, his tone cold, completely unreadable. I looked between Angie and Elliot, unsure which of them was in more trouble. I hoped it wouldn't be Elliot.
I straightened my shirt, so embarrassed I could cry. My equilibrium was shot to hell and my body felt weak and wound up at the same time. I’d known this would go wrong.
What the hell was I thinking?
"I'm sorry, not interrupting you, am I?" Angie's sleek voice and sickly-sweet smile gave no impression that she'd done anything wrong.
"I was just leaving," I muttered and with each shred of dignity I had left, I made my escape.
"You'll stay." Mr Tell’s tone sent a quiver through me but I kept moving. I saw Angie wrap her spindly fingers around his arm and I had to fight the urge to turn around and scratch her eyes out. I walked away from both of them.
This was stupid. I shouldn't be here.
It was almost full dark now and I made my way carefully up to the house.
"Lola." The sound of my name on his lips sent a jolt through me, and I turned to find Mr Tell quickly gaining on me. I began to run. I couldn't deal with him again. I was afraid of what I would do if I stayed. I climbed the steps and ran into the house, hoping I wouldn't get lost in the rooms.
He shouted my name, his voice echoing as he followed me through the deserted house. I wanted to stop, I wanted to be in his arms again but my fear had won out now that the spell was broken. I kept moving until I made it out the front door.
The gravel crunched under my feet and I could hear him only a few yards behind me. I almost cried when I saw my reliable old van. I wrenched the keys out of my pocket and flung myself in just as he got to me. I slammed the locks on as he screeched to a halt outside my window.
"Open the door, O'Connell." His voice was unnervingly calm.
I shook my head and didn't miss how his brows twitched in surprise. I started my van and the engine spluttered to life.
"Lola," he warned a final time, but his voice was lost under the spurt of the engine and the squeal of the tires as I pulled away.
Ten
The drive gave me time to think and by the time I got home, I'd managed to regain a modicum of calm.
Tonight had been a stupid mistake. Why had I given into him like that? I was unable to answer my own question and that frightened me.
I opened the front door as quietly as possible so as not to wake Ryan. I tiptoed up the stairs and knocked lightly on Natalie's bedroom door. I went in without waiting for an answer and found her sitting up in bed, a book in her lap, duvet pulled up around her waist and hair up in a messy bun.
"Hey, how did it go?" she asked. I shut the door behind me, then flopped face down on her bed. "That good, huh?"
She shifted her book so I could lay my head in her lap. Her soft hands stroked my hair, soothing me. My gran had comforted me this way, in this very bedroom after my mum had died.
"I don't want to talk about it." I didn't want to burden her with my drama, but more than that, I was ashamed of what I'd done. "Tell me about your day."
"I got a date."
I shot up and swivelled to face her. "No! Really?"