Inescapable

What she did need to know was how they both were, because she cared so much it hurt. I’m in love with them. Admitting that to herself only seemed to make it worse, like she had a claim, which reinforced the nagging need to know if they were okay and happy. She couldn’t get them out of her mind, and often found herself replaying the outrageous things she’d found herself doing, things she had only ever fantasised about before she was thrown together with Adrian and Seth. Every night she slept in the sweatshirt she’d been wearing when the police arrived, the one that both men had worn. Stroking it over her body, she imagined it was them, imagined that they were clo

se against her and she could hold them and love them. Did they think about her at all?

“Are you okay?” It was Andrea, and she’d stuck her head into the storeroom where Lily was perched on a stool, deep in thought. The area at the back of the shop counter was where they took their coffee breaks and kept the stock, and several times since her return Lily had lost track of time in there when her thoughts and emotions had consumed her.

Lily looked wistfully at her friend, who’d been told most—but not all—of the story. “Sorry, I drifted. Are we getting busy?” She nodded out into the shop counter area while she folded the newspaper and shoved it into a drawer.

“We will be soon.”

Lily nodded, giving her friend a smile to reassure her. She put her apron back on and pulled her Sandwich Boutique baseball cap to a jaunty angle, and then headed out, taking over from Andrea at the orders end of the counter. They had a part-time worker on the till for when they were at the busiest, and the rush was already on for lunchtime take outs. Lily took a deep breath and got stuck in.

The work made it easier, because the time went more quickly as she wrote down each order and put it together. As usual she tried to chat briefly with each customer before she passed them down the line. Occasionally her mind would drift and she had to force herself to concentrate on getting the orders right. Towards the end of the lunch rush she messed up and toasted a wrap that was ordered straight up. Luckily it was a regular customer who didn’t complain too loudly. “I’m so sorry. Your lunch is on the house today.”

Picking up her pen, she scribbled on the pad and got ready for the next customer. “What can I get for you today?” she asked when the next customer arrived in front of her.

After a pause, the customer spoke. “Can I get a really basic cheese and pickle sandwich, the boring type?”

She knew that voice—that delicious accent—knew it in a way that stirred her senses and made her heart leap. Seth. Faltering, she dropped her pen and her fingers splayed as she steadied herself on the countertop.

“And can we get that with a side order of something a bit more exotic? Whatever you suggest, Lily.”

She knew that voice too. Adrian.

Staring at them in disbelief, she put her hand to her chest as she looked from one to the other and back again. Then Adrian smiled her way, and she noticed that he’d had a haircut. For court, she realised. They’d been to court already. It was over.

Relief flooded through her.

He’d lost weight too, but he looked happy. Seth, on the other hand, looked as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. His hair had grown and his eyes were dark with concern as he looked at her.

“You came to see me.” Staring at them both, she wanted to grab them in case they vanished again. “Is it all done, the case?” She directed the question to Adrian.

He nodded, blinking slowly, like a relaxed tomcat. There was a definite change in him, one for the better. That brought about such a rush of emotion that her eyes misted. Her hand went to her mouth. “Oh dear,” she said, on the verge of tears.

“Perhaps you’d better take this particular order into the backroom.” It was Andrea, and while she spoke she eyed the two men with curiosity. She’d obviously gathered these two were Lily’s mystery men.

When the words sank in Lily nodded, thanking her friend and waving the two of them along the counter and behind it, leading the way into the storeroom. There, in that small space, the two men stared at her, expectantly.

It was Adrian who spoke first. “You’re a sight for sore eyes, my lovely Laidbacklady.” He cupped her face in both hands and kissed her on the mouth.

Lily melted into him and rested a hand on his chest, her other hand instinctively reaching for Seth who still hovered by the door. There was tension in him and she silently begged him to touch her.

When she felt his fingers grasp hers and he moved closer, she turned her face towards him. “So good to see you both.”

“We couldn’t keep away,” Seth said, and he gave her that devastating smile of his, the one that she’d missed so badly, even though it had infuriated her so many times.

Adrian’s hand was on her back, stroking her, and when she hugged Seth, he held her ever so tightly for a moment and then released her, as if he wasn’t sure she wanted to be held. She sensed awkwardness in him and wanted to make it disappear, wanting him to look as relaxed with this reunion as Adrian did.

She wiped her eyes quickly, hoping they hadn’t noticed. “Thank you for coming. I’ve been so worried, and I’ve missed you both so much.”

“Hey, nothing to thank us for.” Seth meshed his fingers with hers, and when he did she held his hand tightly against her, afraid he was about to say goodbye and leave.

Adrian grinned, and then gave a quick sidelong glance at Seth, who nodded back at him. Seth cleared his throat. “We were talking, while we were waiting for the case to be heard, and we were kind of wondering,” he frowned, “that is, if you aren’t seeing anyone else at the moment?”

She shook her head emphatically.

His frown lifted somewhat. “Would you like to go out with one of us, for a proper date?”

Lily stared from one to the other of them, unsure what this meant. “With one of you? Is this like…an ultimatum?”