Three Way (17 page)

‘It wasn’t this girl that gave you that shiner, was it?’ I chuckle and shake my head.

‘No. But it has happened before. I think I must have a very punchable face.’ She laughs her little snort laugh which, in turn, makes me laugh. Suddenly she leans in and kisses me. Carefully, she moves her hand to the back of my head, which I replicate by running my hand through her hair.

‘Oh jeez, you two! Get a room,’ James shouts from the barbeque. Our lips part and Lauren turns to James.

‘Just cook the meat, Kennedy. Less shouty shouty, more cooky cooky, yeah?’ she calls back. James smiles and turns back to the barbeque. She turns to me. ‘Let’s just be careful with each other’s hearts?’ She stares at me, a serious look on her face. I nod slowly, swallowing. Guilt rises through me, causing my heart to start pounding. ‘Another beer?’ she asks, looking at the empty bottle in my hand. I nod. She stands and heads off towards the kitchen, leaving me to ponder what the hell I’m getting myself into.

Afternoon soon becomes early evening. Lauren and I talk for what feels like hours. I find out all sorts of things. She’s incredibly driven, makes a lot of money and seems to have had her heart broken a few too many times. I detect a little high maintenance in some of her comments but then, who isn’t? I know I am sometimes. Eventually we split up when James and Mark corner her into a conversation about some banking stuff to which I can make no real contribution. I head towards the toilets. As I walk past the kitchen I see Sarah taking a tray of party food out of the oven.

‘Hi,’ I say.

‘Hey Ollie, how you doing?’

‘Good, thanks. This is a really great party.’

‘Thanks. It’s easy in a place like this, a lot of space.’

‘Yeah. It’s amazing,’ I say. She turns the pigs in blankets or whatever they are, then shakes the tin. ‘So how long have you and James been together?’

‘Over a year now.’

‘Cool. How did you meet?’ I ask. She smiles uncomfortably, her eyes thinking of her response.

‘We uh, at a club. A little bit of a rollercoaster to get where we are now. But he’s a great guy.’

‘Yeah,’ I reply. Maybe it was the way I said it but she picks up on my tone immediately.

‘I know. But, a lot of it is just bravado. Underneath it all, he’s actually a good guy.’

‘No sure. He seems nice.’

‘Sometimes he’s a cock. Especially to people he doesn’t know very well and if he’s a bit strange with you, there’s a bit of a past with Lauren.’

‘What?’ I say, unable to disguise the surprise in my voice.

‘Oh no, I only mean…they dated for a bit. It’s over now. She’s lovely.’ My heart is thumping again. James and Lauren...what on earth could she see in him?

‘Yeah, she is,’ I say.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have told you that.’

‘It’s cool. We’ve all had ex’s,’ I reply. She puts the tray back in the oven. ‘Don’t you find it weird, James and Lauren working together?’

‘No. I know I’m the one he wants. Don’t get me wrong, Lauren is beautiful and smart but I think we’re a better fit. At least I hope we are. I try not to stand next to Lauren too often. She puts us all in the shade a little,’ she says, chuckling. I smile politely. ‘So, you like your job?’

‘It’s okay. It’s different every day and I like the challenge of it,’ I reply. She looks at me and tilts her head.

‘Yeah?’ she replies. I frown.

‘Yeah. Why, you don’t believe me?’

‘Sorry, doing the psychologist thing. Must remember not to analyse my guests,’ she says, slapping her forehead. I chuckle. Suddenly my need for the toilet strengthens considerably.

‘Toilet’s over there,’ she says, pointing.

‘Wow, you’re good,’ I say. She smiles.

I walk back outside and sit down at the table, a new beer in my hand. I watch Lauren talking then laughing with James and Mark. I feel weird, not jealous exactly, just not part of the group. I look out towards the fading sunlight. Canary Wharf is already half lit. The river is at high tide and calm. I take a sip of beer and my thoughts start to wander to Svetla. I wonder what she’s doing right now. Maybe she’s found someone else? I didn’t detect that when I saw her but then, why would she tell me? I miss her. What am I doing here? I like Lauren but she’s trouble, I can feel it. And do I want anything more than just a casual thing? Is it wrong to even think that? She seems keen and I guess I should be grateful. It’s not like I’ve ever pulled anyone remotely that stunning in the past but something in me feels...what’s the word? Unexcited. Am I unexcited by the prospect of being with Lauren? Am I wasting not only my time but hers as well? I see Lauren turn and look for me, her eyes scanning the Superbalcony. She sees me. I take another sip of beer, watch her say something to James and Mark and step down from the higher level. She walks over to me and pulls up a chair.

‘Hey there, you okay?’

‘Yeah,’ I reply.

‘Sorry, I’m neglecting you. Just trying to sort out a deal we’re doing next week.’

‘No worries.’

‘Are you up for a little misbehaving?’ she asks, smiling. I raise an eyebrow.

‘What do you mean?’

‘It’s a big apartment. Maybe I could show you around?’ The moment she says that, my mind kicks in with ‘yeah there’s a reason you know every nook and cranny in this place.’

‘Sure,’ I say, my stomach doing backflips. What the hell is wrong with me? She takes my hand and we head back inside, through the living room and into the hallway.

‘This is the hallway,’ she says, giggling. I chuckle.

‘Yeah, I see that,’ I say, smiling. She pushes open a door to another room. Looks like a bedroom. It’s dark. She closes the door behind us and leans against it, bending one leg and putting her foot against it. Suddenly the atmosphere is charged and electric. She raises her arm above her head.

‘Kiss me,’ she says. I move up to her and kiss her neck. Her skin is warm and soft. I move slowly, kissing her cheek then her lips. Excitement hurtles through me, the kiss becoming more passionate, more urgent. My tongue touches hers as I run my hands along her hips and up to her breasts. A moan escapes her, then hushed uneven breathing in my ear as my hand moves under her dress. The door bangs slightly as we move against it but neither of us cares. I feel her fingers move to my groin and then tug at my jeans. The cold air hits my skin then I feel the warmth of her hand. Jolts of pleasure ripple through me. I want her, right now. I grab her waist and turn her around, pulling up her dress and her G-string to one side. We’re away. It’s raw, animal and fervent. She slams her hands against the door which makes an almighty bang.

‘Oh,’ she whispers. I hold her shoulders, moving in and out. Then I grab her hair and pull hard. She lets out a tiny yelp. I consider the possibility I’ve yanked a little too hard and quickly loosen my grip. ‘No, pull harder,’ she whispers. I do as instructed.

The feeling is coming, either I slow down or this is coming to an end. I don’t care, not about lasting forever. I just want her. I move faster, harder. Driving almost to hurt. She reacts by dropping her head, her hair swaying to the movement. I come. And suddenly everything stops for the slightest of moments. We are one. I hold onto her as the moment peaks and slowly begins to melt away. All that’s left are the two of us, panting. I move away allowing her to stand and turn around.

‘Jesus,’ she says, adjusting her dress.

‘Yeah. Not sure what came over me there,’ I say, pulling up my jeans and buttoning them.

‘Whatever it was, we definitely need to explore that some more.’

‘Yeah. Definitely.’

‘Phew,’ she says suddenly laughing, ‘that was hard core.’

‘I’m not normally like that.’

‘Really? I don’t believe it for a second,’ she says, smiling.

We get dressed, sort ourselves out and sneak back, red-faced and looking like we’ve just run a Nike 10K. If anyone heard us, no one says–

‘Where have you two been?’ Mark says as we walk into the kitchen. Shit.

‘Lauren was just giving me a tour,’ I say quickly. Mark raises an eyebrow.

‘Oh yeah? Of James’ bedroom?’

‘Mark,’ Lauren says with a scolding tone. He smiles.

‘I’m just pulling your chain. I’m on beer duty, anyone?’ Mark says. I glance at Lauren.

‘Sure,’ I say.

‘That would be nice,’ she says. He wanders off, chuckling. I watch her, watching him with a look in her eye that says ‘don’t mess with me.’ She turns to face me.

‘I bet you’re well scary as a boss.’

‘Nah, it’s all show,’ she says. We stand looking at each other.

‘Well. That was…interesting,’ I say.

‘Yes it was. We should do it again sometime,’ she replies, smiling.

‘Yeah,’ I reply. We head back to the Superbalcony and find a spot to sit. We talk until the early hours, getting to know each other. She still asks me about my job but then delves more into my parents and how my dad died. We talk a lot about him. Do I miss him? Do I wish he was still around? What’s my relationship like with my mum? Eventually we move on to questions like what I do for fun which I deftly sidestep. Can’t exactly say, ‘I love playing Portal on the Playstation,’ to a babe like Lauren. Before long, my head is swimming with alcohol and it’s time to head home. Although secretly I’m waiting for Lauren to ask me back to hers, she doesn’t. We say our goodbyes to James, Sarah and Mark and walk outside together.

‘Maybe you could come round mine for dinner or something?’ I ask. She smiles and nods.

‘I’d like that,’ she says.

‘Cool. So, I’ll see you soon?’

‘Yes,’ she replies. I lean in and kiss her, she closes her eyes. Energy races between us, I pull her to me, breathing her in. Then, carefully our lips part.

‘Until next time,’ I say.

‘Until next time, Mr Hayward,’ she replies.

In the taxi back to my flat, thoughts whizz around my head. That was a strange, yet rewarding evening. Lauren’s incredibly hot and the bonus is she wants to see me again. Which is good. I find myself surprised by how I feel. I want to see her again. In fact, I want to see her very, very soon. I text her to say, ‘Loved seeing you tonight, let’s do it again soon, Ollie xx.’ I don’t get a text back, which I try not to misinterpret. Probably just went to bed. The taxi dumps me outside my flat around half two. I’m drunk but not paralytic.

As I reach my flat, I spot Tristan’s light is on and I hear the faint tones of Bob Marley coming from his place. That guy is a walking (or no doubt at this time of night, lying) cliché. I turn the key in the lock, open the door and go inside. It’s dark. Everyone must be asleep. As I creep towards my room, I suddenly hear Parker playing his piano in a way I’ve never heard before. I move cautiously toward his room. The sound is stunning. A slow, melancholy song. Then it gets faster, still holding the sad theme. More and more dramatic. I lean against the bathroom door in the darkness, mesmerised. Parker is an amazing piano player. Except…suddenly I hear a voice singing along to the theme and quickly realise it’s not Parker playing, it’s Ashley. Parker must be staying at Nicola’s.

And it’s a lonely heart.

A lonely heart in my soul.

Tears and rain

Cannot keep you from me

But it’s jealousy

Jealousy that beats inside

Now she slows the rhythm right down. She hums along, her soft voice echoing around the flat. It’s achingly beautiful.

And I kiss you

I kiss you

She finishes the song with a final few sad notes and the music ceases. I wait transfixed, hoping she will play something else. Suddenly the door opens, the light hitting me from inside.

‘OO! Jesus!’ she says, jumping. ‘Fuck Ollie, what are you doing out here?’

‘I was listening to you,’ I reply. ‘Where did you learn to play like that?’

‘Nowhere,’ she says, walking towards the living room.

‘Ash. Ash…’ I say, moving to stop her. She turns. ‘I’m not kidding around, that was amazing. You should be doing that sort of thing professionally.’

‘No I shouldn’t. I didn’t know you were listening. Are you high?’ she asks. I frown, confused for a moment.