“Look, I need to shower and get ready for work. I’ll see you later.”
They said their goodbyes and Ian ended the call.
Taking his dinner into the living room, he settled down on the sofa and flicked on the TV. Date or not, the thought of seeing Jesse again made his pulse quicken and his stomach flutter.
Would he bring Jesse back to his flat again?
The answer to that was an emphatic yes. He glanced around the room, noting a few things that should probably be tidied away before he had guests. Not that Jesse would be looking around his flat and checking for cleanliness. Not if Ian was doing things right, he wouldn’t anyway.
AT 9.40PM, THE PUB was full when Ian arrived, but not heaving. He could still walk over to the bar without knocking into someone every few steps. Cate was in the middle of serving a group of about six lads, so Ian took a stool at the end of the bar and waited. A quick glance around didn’t reveal Jesse anywhere, and it struck Ian they hadn’t arranged where specifically to meet. There were two bars and a small upstairs bit.
He sent Jesse a quick message.I’m here. Sat at the back bar, near the toilets.
Cate finished uncapping the last bottle, took their money, and made her way over to him. “Hey.” She grinned and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Hey.” He returned her smile. “You okay?”
Leaning closer to him over the bar, she lowered her voice. “Yeah. I am now. I spent most of the first hour looking around the pub and wondering if any of them were in here, you know?”
“I can imagine.” He’d been doing much the same on his walk over here. Couldn’t help jumping at every small sound.
“Now it’s busy though, I don’t have time to think let alone stop and have a look around at everyone. Talking of which.” Her gaze flicked to her left as a new group approached the bar. “What can I get you?”
“Bottle of Heineken, please.”
She got him his beer, glancing over his shoulder as she set it on the bar. “Lover boy not here yet?”
“No.” Ian took a quick sip before setting the bottle back down, the liquid cool on his tongue. “I said about ten.”
Cate took his ten-pound note and gave him change. “You don’t have to walk me to my car you know.” She sighed. “I’m probably just overreacting like usual.” She left to serve the group before Ian could respond.
Ian watched her chat and smile as she handed drinks to the four blokes at the bar, while another barman worked the other end. He didn’t think she was overreacting at all. Despite his initial excitement, finding out that vampires existed was fucking terrifying. But they’d been living amongst them for years, hundreds of years for all he knew. If the general public hadn’t spotted them by now, then neither he nor Cate probably would either. And they were in no more or less danger today than they’d been yesterday.
Like Blake said, the best thing they could do was to carry on as normal.
But that was easier said than done.
“Hey.” Ian beckoned her over when she’d finished serving. “I’m gonna hang out here with Jesse until the end of your shift, then we’ll both walk you to your car. Okay?”
“Thank you.” She flashed a bright smile at him. Her gaze wandered for a second before returning to Ian, her smile morphing into a smirk. “You’re pretty confident that he’ll be going home with you later then?”
“Yeah.” Ian shrugged a shoulder, trying not to show how the thought of taking Jesse home affected him. “If he plays his cards right.”
A soft laugh sounded behind him. “And what does that entail?”
Ian jumped, spilling some of his beer. “Fuck.” Turning round, he came face-to-face with an amused-looking Jesse. “Hey.” Bright blue eyes bored into his, crinkling at the corners as Jesse’s smile grew.
“So...” Leaning an elbow on the bar, he trailed a finger along the inside of Ian’s wrist. “What do I have to do to get in your good books?”
Ian glanced down at the lone finger burning a trail over his skin. That simple touch alone set his pulse racing. “I think you’ll manage without any help from me.” Their eyes met again, and Ian was lost, caught up in the intensity of Jesse’s gaze. It suggested a world-weariness that belied his age. So much so, the question bubbled to the surface. “How old are you exactly?” It hadn’t come up the weekend before, and Ian hadn’t bothered asking. Jesse looked younger than him, but that didn’t mean much these days. If he had to hazard a guess, he’d put him in his twenties.
A flash of something—Ian couldn’t place it—flashed in Jesse’s eyes before he smiled. “Old enough.”
“Well thank God for that, but come on, indulge me. I’m curious now.” Ian gave him a slow once over. Black skinny jeans, boots, heather-grey T-shirt, and a leather jacket. Jesse knew how to dress, how to look good without it seeming like he’d tried too hard. Effortlessly hot. Not for the first time Ian wondered how he’d got so lucky last weekend, but he wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Biting his lip, Jesse stared back at him, considering. “Twenty-five.”
Older than Ian had pegged him for going on looks alone, but he had an experience about him that made him seem older. Maybe he’d had a shit start in life— that’d age you easily enough.
