Page 89 of A Dark Fall
The heat in my tummy fights against the nerves still lingering there. With a deep breath, I pop open the passenger door and step out into the slightly cooler evening air. I meet him around the front of the car and slip my hand into his. He looks down at them.
“You going to hold my hand the whole night?” he asks, amused.
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
“Might be if I have to use a fork.” He grins.
“Finally! The guests of blooming honor arrive!” Rob shouts from the back of the house as I close the front door. She comes out of the dining room, beaming, dressed in a gorgeous white cocktail dress and holding a margarita. Rob is the only woman I know who’d risk wearing a white dress while cooking a four-course meal.
I watch her reaction carefully as she looks at Jake. First, her eyes and mouth go a little wide, and then she glances at me, a question in her eyes almost, then back at him. She blinks dramatically.Beside me, I feel Jake stand up a little straighter before moving and stretching out his hand. He keeps a hold of mine with the other.
“You must be Robyn,” he says. “Great to meet you. Thanks for the invite. Nice place.” He casts his eye around briefly before looking back at her with a smile.
Rob preens. “Aw, thanks, Jake. It’s so good to finally meet you!” As she moves in to give him a peck on the cheek, she gives me a look and mouths what I think is the word “wow” silently. “Well, I don’t remember seeing you at the club that night. I’d definitely have remembered.” She laughs shamelessly before taking his arm to lead him through to the dining room.
I slip my hand out of his at this point, and he gives me an apologetic look.
“Well, everyone else is here. Dan will get you both some drinks while I introduce you to everyone, Jake.”
I’m all but forgotten. I don’t take it personally; Rob in hostess mode is different from Rob in friend mode.
As Rob steers Jake away, I make my way to Dan, who smiles brightly at me by the breakfast bar. Dan’sextremelygood-looking in an obvious pro footballer-type way. Except he’s not a pro footballer—he’s an ex-pro footballer who broke his leg in four places and is now an agent for pro footballers. He’s still athletic though, and an immaculate dresser.
Dan holds out a pre-poured cocktail to me as I come over. I hug and kiss him on the cheek before pulling back to give him a look.
“This is all your fault, you realize?” I gesture toward Jake and Rob.
He grimaces and holds his hands up. “Yep. Totally. Pretty big news though. Can you blame me?” He waggles his eyebrows. He means me snogging the face off some guy in the street is pretty big news. Which, given how completely and utterly single I was up until Jake walked into my life, is sort of understandable.
Standing next to Dan is his brother, Mark. Or “Sherlock,” as Rob and I call him. Mark hates the nickname, but it’s never made much difference to me or Rob—we still call him it.
“Mark, how are you?” I ask.
“Good, Alex, yeah. You?” He sips his red wine as he looks me over.
“Great, yes, all good. I’m starving.” I nod as I take a deep gulp of my wine.
“What’s ... Jake, is it, having?” Dan asks.
“He’s driving, so a soft drink is fine, thanks, Dan.”
As Dan pours a can of Coke into a glass, I glance at Sherlock. He’s staring out into the conservatory where Rob still has her arm around Jake.
“Everyone,” Robyn says loudly, cutting through the chatter, “this is Alex’s Jake.”
Jake glances over his shoulder at me and raises an eyebrow. I shake my head and mouth, “Sorry,” at him. When he confirms to the room that Alex’s Jake is his full name, there’s a bubble of easy laughter before Rob rushes through everyone’s names and how she knows them. Soon, he’s striding back toward me.
“Alex said you’re on the soft drinks, mate,” Dan says, handing him the Coke. I remember then about the time Matt called him “mate” and how he reacted. I hold my breath.
“Yeah, that’s great, thanks.” Jake takes the glass with a nod.
“Jake, this is Dan—Rob’s Dan,” I say with a smile. “And Mark is Dan’s brother.”
Jake moves his glass to his other hand and reaches out to Dan first, then Mark. Mark smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes, and I wonder if this is what Rob meant about how my bringing Jake tonight might not be perfect as far as Mark is concerned. I’ve sensed flirtations from Sherlock in the past, sure—most recently at Dan’s birthday a few months back—but I’ve never taken it too seriously.
“Alex’s Jake, huh?” he says, sliding an arm around me.His breath is warm against my neck.
I turn my head to face him. “Yes, and don’t you forget it.”