I could have done without this extra detail; it’s information Mark would probably have kept to himself if Theo wasn’t goading him.
Instead, his satisfied grin only winds up Theo further. ‘There’s more to love than sex.’
‘I didn’t say there wasn’t,’ Mark replies evenly.
‘I’m with Theo,’ I say. ‘Instant sexual attraction gets in the way of love. If the sex istoogood, you’re more likely to stay in the wrong relationship.’
‘Great sex countsagainst?’ asks Mark, incredulous.
‘That’s my professional opinion, yes.’
‘So, let me get this straight,’ he says. ‘The thing that makes me a bad boyfriend is showing you a good time, not coming home with another woman’s lipstick on my dick?’
‘That’s a different thing entirely,’ I say primly, ignoring the implied swipe at Rich. ‘All I’m saying is sex is a terrible foundation to build a lasting relationship on.’
‘That’s because you think sex is just “nerve endings and friction”.’
‘When did Nella say that?’ asks Theo.
Mark ignores him and focuses on me. ‘No one’s talking about building a lasting relationshippurelyon physical attraction. But if you were designing the perfect partner, yes, you’d want him to be kind and honest and generous and funny but wouldn’t you also want a man who, whenever he walked through the door, made you think: bend me over the sofa right fucking now.’
I blink, startled by the feeling in his voice.
‘You always take it too far,’ says Theo, shaking his head.
‘I’m sorry,’ says Mark, holding up his hands. ‘I just …’ He pauses and turns fractionally towards me. ‘I don’t understand why you’re so scared of a bit of passion.’
My pulse jitters and I suddenly feel hot.
You know why, I want to say. It blew up my life when I was a teenager.
We talked about what happened, and against all odds, I was feeling better. But now it’s like he’s found a fresh bruise and is pressing it just to rattle me.
Yan steps in. ‘It might seem alien to you and me, Mark, but that stuff isn’t important to some people.’
‘I wasn’t talking aboutsome people, I was talking about Nella.’
‘And what makes you an authority?’ asks Theo, a warning in his voice.
Mark laughs condescendingly. ‘Unlike you, mate, I’ve known Nella most of her life.’
Why isn’t Mark letting this go? All this to needle Theo?
Tig puts her hand on Theo’s arm. ‘I’m not siding with him, babe, but don’t forget Nell was with Leo,’ she says, unwittingly making it worse. ‘Walls are thin and all that.’
‘Walls are thin and phantom cats go missing,’ Theo shoots back.
Mark’s cocky smile falters.
Theo nods, like he’s got his answer. ‘Come on, Tig. Let’s go to bed.’
Chapter 44
Unsurprisingly, Mark’s prediction about hangovers and early flights mixing badly is spot on. My head is pounding as we board.
We’re all on the same flight this time, but our seats are spread out. I sit next to Pen to keep an eye on how she’s feeling about going home. She puts on a brave face, but I can tell how upset she is. I still haven’t had a reply from Rich, but it’s barely been twelve hours, so I can’t be too annoyed about it.
I haven’t spoken to Mark since the drinking game last night. After Tig and Theo went to bed, I made my excuses, too. This morning, we drove to the airport in different cars and while we waited to board I’ve either had my nose in a book or been pretending to sleep.
