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“Do you like my shirt?” he asks Missie. “It’s made out of boyfriend material.”
Juliette giggles. “Not bad. Missie?”
“Um… My partner asked to play doctor, so I kept him waiting outside the room for an hour.”
That makes us all laugh.
“Aroha?” Juliette prompts.
“Relationships are a lot like algebra,” Aroha says. “You look at your X and wonder Y.”
My lips twist. “Yeah.”
She elbows me. “I wasn’t referring to you.”
“No, it’s okay. I don’t mind being the butt of everyone’s humor.”
“Well, you did say Cassie called you an arsehole.”
Everyone laughs, and I meet Aroha’s eyes again, and a tingle runs down my spine at her mischievous smile. Feeling naughty, and holding her gaze, I say, “Hey, let me wipe your seat for you.” I pick up a serviette and wipe my face, then grin.
“James!” she scolds as everyone whoops. “You wicked man.”
“It was a joke!” I protest. I wink at her and stretch out my arm along the back of the seat. It’s not around her… but she takes the hint and moves an inch closer to me. Mmm, that’s nice. She’s warm, and I can smell her perfume, something exotic, like jasmine on a warm summer night. She’s so easy after the prickly Cassie, like aloe vera for my soul.
“Henry?” Juliette asks. “Come on, you haven’t given me a joke yet.”
He studies her, his lips curving up, and gradually an attractive blush blooms in her cheeks. “What’s orange and sounds like a parrot?”
She blinks. “Huh?”
“A carrot.”
She stares at him for a second, then dissolves into peals of laughter. “I thought you were going to tell me a rude joke,” she manages to get out between giggles.
“Why?” he says, amused, his eyes warm. “I’m a gentleman.”
“I know, that’s what made it so funny!” Her laughter is so contagious that eventually we all start chuckling.
The bar delivers a plate of mince pies to each table, and we all take one. Aroha is just about to take a bite of hers when she suddenly sneezes, sending a shower of icing sugar in my direction.
I cough and dust it off as she looks at me with mortification and says, “Oh my God…”
“I should put you over my knee for that,” I tell her, giving her an amused look, and she blushes scarlet. She likes me, I can tell. She’s giving me all the signs—twirling a strand of her hair, laughing at my jokes, leaning against me…
James, I warn myself silently. We’ve both had a lot to drink, and I’m severely on the rebound. The last thing I should do is flirt with someone new. But she’s so gorgeous, and she’s staring at me with that look in her eyes. What’s a guy to do?
Alex has gone off to the Gents, and when someone bangs into Gaby’s chair for the umpteenth time, she makes an exasperated noise, gets up, and slips in beside Juliette. This means that when Alex returns, there’s no space for him to sit.
Unperturbed, he tells Missie to stand up, climbs over the back of the seat, and slides in behind her.
She laughs. “Where am I going to—”
In answer, he pulls her onto his lap, and she squeals, but turns and puts an arm around his neck. He’d never normally do anything like that in public, so I know the Christmas spirit is affecting him too.
“Jesus, how many whiskies have you had?” I ask, amused.
He just smirks and murmurs something in Missie’s ear, making her laugh.
