Page 18

Chapter Seventeen

Dinner tomorrow night?

S top unlocking your phone to see if she has read your message, you desperate twat.

Six hours seemed a lengthy amount of time not to reply – maybe she doesn’t know how to say no.

What if I call Andy and see if I can hear her in the background?

Oh Jesus. I was losing the fucking plot over an unopened dinner invitation.

I'd wanted to message her last night once I got home from the club, unable to think about anything other than our time in my office, but it was so late, I didn't want to wake her. But now I was worrying she would be upset that I hadn't and maybe that was why she wasn't replying. Before I did something ridiculously erratic, I put my phone on charge and did my best to go to sleep. Hopefully she would have replied by the morning.

Marlee

Sorry about the late reply.

I fell asleep.

Hence my 2am reply.

Depends.

What are we eating?

My answer seems crucial now. I was planning on cooking. Would that work for you? If not, I take it back.

Marlee

Is there anything you can’t do?

That sounds great.

What can I bring?

Also, why are you awake at this time?

I’ll let you know when I find something haha. Just yourself. I’ll pick you up at 7pm?

Your message woke me up actually.

Marlee

OMG.

I’m so sorry. Go back to sleep. We can chat in the morning.

7pm is perfect.

Please tell me you aren't one of those people who never puts their phone on silent?

Haha. It’s all good. I never put it on silent – most of the people who contact me are asleep at 2am.

Do you have any allergies?

Marlee

People who don’t drink coffee.

And sleeping apparently.

And people who don’t put their phones on silent.

Good first impressions.

The list is endless.

It was the middle of the night and normally I was stringent on getting at least eight hours sleep a night, yet I was wide awake and grinning over her unexpected responses. Always separated and in quick succession. The more time I spent with her, the more I smiled. She was so abruptly honest and her unfiltered nature was refreshing. As it was, I was chuckling into the dark as I thought back to the night I first met her.

The way she appeared both appalled at her fist gut-punching my stomach and also on the verge of laughing. It was that moment which started my infatuation.

Damn. What symptoms should I be looking out for in case of a reaction?

And now, I was flirting with her via text messages. So much for hating phone communication.

Marlee

Large and uncontrollable limb movements.

My croaky laugh broke free in my empty room. Who was this woman?

You are definitely memorable.

I watched the dots dance across my screen, but it took a little while for her reply to come and when it did, it wasn’t what I was expecting.

Marlee

I’ll take that over forgettable.

But I could say the same about you.

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the other night in your office which makes you just as memorable…

Ha. Me too, Marlee. Me too.

If only she knew just how often I’d remembered the way my fingers felt inside of her or the lust in her eyes before I kissed her. Memorable was an understatement for the mileage she was tracking in the confines of my mind.