Joe reached the front door and exhaled sharply, unsure whether he was glad of the interruption or infuriated by it. He wanted Skye, very much. He knew that much but wasn’t sure how to read the undercurrent between them. He was going to have to say something.
Discovering Skye had paid for their food over the phone, he withdrew a tip from his back pocket and opened the door to greet the delivery person.
Thanking the delivery guy, Joe took the bag from him and handed him a tip before closing the door again and taking the food to the kitchen. Skye had her back to him and was busying herself setting up two trays.
‘I thought we could serve ourselves in here,’ she said. ‘Then take this through to the living room and watch something on TV.’
Amused, Joe laughed. ‘I thought you weren’t hungry?’
She pulled a face at him. ‘I’ve changed my mind. It smells delicious and far too tempting for me to be able to resist eating some of it.’
Happy to have the distraction of food and television, Joe agreed. ‘I’m not sure what’s on, but there’s bound to be something.’ He placed the bag of food on the worktop and stepped back to let her choose what she fancied to eat.
‘Did you know there were only three channels when my parents were younger?’
Skye stopped taking packets from the bags and looked over her shoulder at him. ‘Sorry, what did you say?’
Assuming she must have been focusing on the food, Joe shook his head. ‘Nothing. I was only talking nonsense. Found anything you fancy pinching from the food you ordered for me?’
He watched as she sorted out the boxes and removed two of the lids. Pointing at them, she grinned. ‘I thought I’d have the boiled rice and this.’
Joe laughed and walked to stand next to her. He peered down. ‘Ah, the Kung Pao chicken.’
‘You can have it if you want? I really don’t mind.’
He shook his head. ‘No, it’s fine. I’m happy with whatever’s left.’
‘The, er, chow mein?’
He nodded, amused. ‘Or the dumplings.’
‘Well, it all looks delicious,’ she said, looking him in the eyes for the first time since they had kissed. ‘You’re being very generous with your food. I should really have ordered something for myself too.’
‘It’s fine. Anyway, I feel happier with us both eating.’
‘That’s sweet of you.’ She served her food and, picking up her tray, turned to him. ‘I, um…’
Seeing how awkward Skye seemed and that she was struggling to put something into words, he said, ‘Why don’t you carry yours through to the living room and get started eating? You don’t want your food to get cold and it’s never as hot as it is in the restaurant when it’s been delivered. I’ll join you in a couple of minutes.’
She stared at him briefly then nodded. ‘OK.’
He watched her walk out the kitchen, his heart racing. Never mind Skye feeling awkward, he was behaving as if this was his first encounter with someone from the opposite sex. Why was he acting so oddly? Why was she?
Forcing himself to focus on his food and not wishing to make the atmosphere between them any more uncomfortable than it already seemed, he began serving chow mein and dumplings onto his plate. Then placing a couple of boxes of the other food she had ordered onto the side of his tray, he carried them through to join Skye once more.
‘Good?’ he asked, happy to see her tucking into her food.
She finished chewing her mouthful and nodded. ‘Delicious.’
He rested his tray on the edge of the coffee table, moved the boxes from the tray to the table and sat down next to her, pulling his tray onto his lap. He breathed in the smell of the tasty meal in front of him. ‘It certainly smells good.’
They ate in silence for a while and he wondered if Skye was as relieved as he was to have something to focus on to escape the awkwardness that had fallen over them.
He wondered what was going to happen next though, because as much as he would like things to continue this way, there seemed to be something on Skye’s mind.
He noticed she wasn’t eating much and was playing with her food, seemingly lost in thought. Unable to stand it a moment longer, Joe turned to her. ‘What’s the matter, Skye? You seem troubled by something, or am I imagining it?’
She stared at him, looking sad. When she didn’t speak he tried to work out what might be wrong. He watched as she placed her tray on the coffee table and waited for him to do the same. A sense of dread coursed through him.
