“I just got a text from Jessie. Apparently, the cougar turned out to have a husband who wanted a ménage a trois, and she needs rescuing. You want to come with me?”

“Uh, sure. I’ll just send Michelle a quick message to let her know we’re leaving.”

And, just like that, we’re out of there and on our way to get Jay’s car to pick up Jessie.

From the daggers she gives me, I get the feeling Charlene is none too pleased about it.

Eight

When we stop off at the house, I make a quick change into some jeans, a T-shirt, and plimsolls. Overall, the night was a bit of a bust, so there’s no point in holding onto the glamour. Jay honks his horn, and I hurry downstairs and out the door.

I sit in the passenger seat, and Jay manages to speed while keeping just below the actual speeding limit. We head out toward a quiet suburb, with Jay’s GPS giving us directions as we go. In the end we drive down a dark country lane toward a large grey house. It all seems quiet, with Jessie nowhere to be seen. However, the second we stop at the end of the stony driveway, the front door flies open and Jessie emerges, her tall form running toward us like a bat out of hell.

The cougar and a middle-aged man come after her, matching black silk robes on, shouting and waving their fists. If their anger didn’t have me so on edge, I’d probably laugh at what they’re wearing. I can’t hear what they’re saying, but when Jay rolls down his window, I catch the tail end of a tirade that ends with, “Little bitch!”

Jessie hops straight into the back seat, yelling, “Put your foot on it, Jay — we need to get the fuck out of Dodge.”

The couple are in front of Jay’s car now, and there isn’t enough space for him to get around them.

“What did you do, steal their wallets or something?” Jay asks, chuckling and reversing, trying to figure out a way past the fuming husband and wife.

“You were taking too long, and they kept trying to convince me to take part in a threesome. I let my temper get the better of me and smashed a tray of crystal glasses. Now they want me to pay for the damage. Pair of fucking nutjobs.”

“I hate to break it to you, but it sounds like you were the nut in this situation, Jess.”

“Hey, I’m allowed to be angry. It’s not my fault I’m offended by the idea of sucking a cock,” she jokes.

Sticking his head out the window, Jay calls to the couple, “Listen, you’re going to want to move out of the way before I run you both the fuck over.”

“That crystal was an anniversary gift!” the man shouts. “She owes us six hundred euros.”

“For a couple of glasses?” Jay asks. “Are you high?”

“They were Waterford crystal!” the wife wails.

“Well, since they were a gift, you haven’t really lost any money, now, have you?”

“They had sentimental value!”

“Call it payback for sexual harassment!” Jessie shouts from the back seat.

The wife marches toward the car now, and Jay reverses further. “You knew exactly what this was about, Jessie,” she says, gesticulating wildly. “So don’t go acting all innocent.”

“I didn’t know you had a fucking husband. No, you decided to spring that on me once you’d lured me into your lair.”

“You should be flattered that we invited you into our home, you little tramp.”

“I’d rather be a tramp than a dried-up old hag!”

At this the woman dives for the car, but Jay reverses just enough so she doesn’t collide with his bumper. He ends up on the lawn, and manages to swing around and head straight for the exit, leaving tire marks all through their flower beds. I turn in my seat to see the two chasing after the car. I hope they didn’t get the chance to memorise his licence plate.

Soon we’re well clear of the house and back on the road. I let out a long sigh and turn to Jessie, asking with concern, “Are you okay?”

“Oh, no way, Matilda,” says Jay, putting his hand on my thigh. “Don’t go giving her any sympathy. She got herself into this situation, so she only has herself to blame.”

“She didn’t know the woman had a husband,” I say, my voice quiet.

“Yeah, I didn’t know,” says Jessie pointedly. “And thank you for your concern, honey, but I’m fine.”

“You shouldn’t have caused a scene,” Jay mutters, eyeing Jessie sharply through his overhead mirror.

“But it’s what I do best,” Jessie replies, and sticks out her tongue.

I turn to look out the window, but Jay doesn’t move his hand from my thigh. His fingers are pretty close to a certain place, and I have a hard time breathing for a second. He gives a little squeeze, and God, it makes me want things I don’t want to want.

There’s a couple minutes of silence. Jay breaks it when he starts to mimic Jessie. “‘It’s not my fault I’m offended by the idea of sucking a cock.’”

Jessie snickers. “Shut up.”

Jay sighs. “We both knew that one was going to be trouble.”

“Trouble is fun, so long as there’s no husband involved.”

“Yeah, well, you’ve got to stop letting your temper get the better of you. One of these days it’ll get you into the wrong kind of trouble, Jess, the un-fun kind.”

“Okay, Dad. I won’t point out that you’re hardly a poster boy for self-control.”

“Yeah, you won’t, but you just did. Anyway, I’m not your dad, and thank fuck for that. You were a little hell-raiser.”

Jessie laughs and slumps back in her seat, folding her arms. “So, how did your night go?”

“It was going great until we had to leave to come rescue your ass.”

“Yes,” I put in, turning to wink at Jessie, “there was a very attractive redhead coming onto Jay. You totally cockblocked him.”

He squeezes my thigh again, his voice low when he says, “She didn’t cockblock anyone. I never planned on going there.”

I don’t know what to say now, so I say nothing. Jessie’s soft chuckling drifts from the back. A couple of minutes later, we arrive at her apartment and she hops out, tipping her imaginary hat to us.

“Thanks for the ride, you two,” she says, and then skips her way to the entrance.

“How do you know Jessie?” I ask as Jay pulls away from the curb.

“Known her since I was a kid. Before my parents died and I went to America to live with my uncle, we were best buds at school. When I moved back here, I looked her up. Turned out she was doing pretty badly. Her entire family had disowned her when they found out she was gay, so she turned to drugs. I got her into a clinic, helped her find a job. The rest, I guess, is history.”

“Wow. That was really nice of you.”

Jay shrugs. “It is what it is.”

The remainder of the drive home is quiet. In the house, Jay follows me upstairs. When I get to my bedroom door, I turn back to say good night, only to find he’s standing right behind me, a look in his eyes that makes me feel hot all over. There’s something dark in his gaze that I can’t translate. The air between us is thick, and as the seconds tick by, I grow nervous. I need to get away and I’m not even sure why, so when I find my voice to speak, I tell him good night before quickly hurrying inside my room.

And when I lay my head on my pillow, I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t broken the moment.

***

Saturday passes in a lazy fashion. I spend most of my time reading my Kindle out in the garden. We’re going through a sunny-weather patch. My book choice on this occasion veers toward the emotionally intense romantic kind, but I’m not going to analyse why that is. I suppose the way Jay was looking at me last night has me in need of a bit of lady porn.

Speaking of Jay, he’s currently camped out at the table by the glass sliding doors, a tonne of books and his laptop open in front of him as he researches God only knows what. Every once in a while I’ll let my eyes wander in his direction, and I’ll find him looking back at me pensively. Then he’ll smile and return his attention to his research. Other times he won’t be looking, and I’ll be unable to tear my eyes off him. He’s wearing a tight grey T-shirt that showcases his muscular arms perfectly, the toned lines of his shoulders.