Down London Road (On Dublin Street 2)

Cole grinned at him. ‘Good. You?’

‘Yeah, not bad.’ He trailed me into the kitchen.

‘What do you take?’

‘Milk, no sugar.’

I set about making it, fully aware of his eyes on my every movement. My cheeks felt incredibly warm under his perusal, and I hurried to get his drink ready. ‘You’re working tonight, aren’t you?’ I said, handing him the mug.

‘I am. But I wanted to drop something off first.’ He took a sip of his drink. ‘Mmm, good coffee.’

I laughed softly. ‘The way to a man’s heart.’

His grin was wicked. ‘Only an easily pleased man,’ he retorted, suggesting he was anything but easy to please.

‘Yeah, I can guess what it takes to please you, Cam, and this is a PG-rated household.’

He threw back his head and laughed, causing another flutter in my chest and my own smile to widen. ‘Good thing the flat downstairs is open to X-rated situations.’

I flushed and shook my head. ‘Moving on …’

‘What? Punters in the bar say worse than that to you and your comebacks are always good.’

He had been paying attention. I shrugged. ‘They’re not my friends.’

His eyes softened. ‘I’m still your friend, then? You haven’t changed your mind?’

‘No, I haven’t changed my mind.’

‘Good.’ He pulled something out of his back pocket. ‘Because I want you to trust me enough to give this to Cole.’ Cam held out a key. I raised an eyebrow at it. ‘A spare key to my flat. I want him to use my place when you’re not around. It’s a safe place for him to be so you’re not worrying every second of every minute that you’re not with him.’

That key was the best present anyone had ever given me.

Ever.

‘Cam’ – I looked from the key up to him – ‘are you sure? I mean, it’s not too much of an imposition?’

‘Not if it helps you out.’

I reached for the key, but instead of just taking it, I curled my hand around it and his fingers. He tensed with awareness and I poured my gratitude into my eyes. ‘This is the best present I’ve ever had.’

Cam’s eyes roamed my face, his mouth curled up at the corners. ‘A key: the way to a woman’s heart.’

‘Only an easily pleased one.’

He laughed again.

‘What’s so funny?’ Cole’s voice snapped us out of our little bubble. I pulled my hand back from Cam’s and held up the key to Cole.

‘Present.’

‘Oh?’

‘I’ll explain in a minute.’ I turned to Cam. ‘Would you like to stay for dinner? Macaroni cheese.’

‘How can I say no to that?’

‘You can’t. I won’t let you.’ I handed the key to Cole. ‘Take Cam into the sitting room – he’ll explain. Dinner will be ready soon.’

They left me to it and for a moment I could only stare at the cupboard, my insides all trembling and fluttering from my interaction with Cam. He was thoughtful and considerate and trying to prove what a good friend he could be, and that just made his hotness even hotter. I wondered, not for the first time, what he’d be like in bed. His grin alone made me tingle – imagine what his tongue could do.

My phone buzzed, snapping me out of my sensual haze.

Malcolm.

Guilt immediately washed over me as I pressed the ANSWER button. ‘Hey, Malcolm.’

‘Sweetheart. How are you?’

‘Just about to put out dinner for me and Cole.’ I winced at the omission of our guest. ‘Can I call you back?’

‘Of course. Talk to you soon.’

I hung up and shoved my phone in my back pocket with shaking fingers.

Seriously. What was I playing at?

Cam stopped by early before work the next day and walked me to the bar. I found that now we understood each other Cam was pretty easy to talk to. He tried once more to persuade me to go to judo with him, but I put him off, still not keen on the idea of having someone slam me into a mat or whatever it was judo involved.

‘Can you imagine me?’ I scoffed as we neared the bar. ‘I’d be screaming about breaking a nail within five seconds.’

Cam gave me a look as he held the wrought-iron gate to the basement stairs open for me. ‘See, that’s the kind of bullshit other people believe. I know better.’

‘Oh, you do, do you?’

‘You were sitting chewing a nail last night after dinner.’

‘Yeah, but I filed it and repainted it for work this morning.’

He flashed his teeth at me. ‘Whatever, Walker. I know the truth.’

‘Evenin’, Jo, Cam,’ Brian greeted us as we came down the stairs. He stood beside Phil, who was grinning at me like always.

‘Hi, guys.’

‘Brian, Phil.’ Cam nodded at them.

As I made to pass them, Phil stopped me with a hand on my arm. He ran his eyes down my body. ‘Still with Malcolm?’

‘Persistent Philip, I am still with Malcolm.’

He winked at me. ‘Persistence will win in the end.’

‘And so will an STD,’ Cam put in drolly, gently pushing me forward with his hands on my back so that Phil had to let me go. ‘But you already know that, right, Phil?’

I tried to stifle my giggle as we walked into the bar to the sounds of Brian howling with laughter and Phil swearing at him. ‘It was only that one time. Fuck! I’m never telling you anything again, Bri.’

‘Euch,’ I whispered to Cam. ‘That was more than I needed to know.’