Scarlett didn’t know if she could ever be as confident or as fearless as her sisters but it was kind of nice to step out of her comfort zone for a change. But she knew the only reason she felt safe to do that was because there was a connection with Jake. She wasn’t thinking about the physical or chemical connection she felt but rather the safer, more reliable one that was their common friend, Candice. Scarlett knew that no matter how gorgeous and charming a man was, she would never let a complete stranger give her a lift home. She just didn’t do things like that.
‘Scarlett?’
She jumped as she felt Jake’s hand on her knee. She opened her eyes to find they had left Hindley Street behind. The little green car was on the bridge over the River Torrens as Jake headed up Montefiore Hill.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked, and she realised he must have been speaking to her while she was daydreaming.
‘Yes. I’m fine.’
Jake flicked the indicator on to turn at the lookout at the top of the hill. She tried not to notice the cars parked there, certain that the occupants were up to no good as they looked across the city lights. She had never fooled around in the backseat of a car but sitting here with Jake’s hand still resting on her knee she could almost imagine what it would be like. But he removed his hand to negotiate the corner, leaving a cold circle the size of his palm on her skin. He drove past the old cathedral and up towards O’Connell Street.
‘Are you hungry?’ he asked, as the car idled at the next set of traffic lights.
‘I am,’ she said, as she rubbed at the cold spot on her knee. She was a little surprised to find she was hungry but dinner seemed like hours ago.
‘My favourite late-night take-away is just up here. We can grab something to eat there, if you like?’
‘Sure.’ She thought it was probably a good idea to eat something else and soak up the rest of the alcohol she’d consumed but where they ate was another decision she was happy to let Jake make.
Jake slowed his sports car as they approached the café strip and he searched for a parking space. A car was pulling out from the kerb and he waited, taking the spot in front of a café with distinctive blue-and-white signage. She recognised the café; she’d walked past it plenty of times but had never been inside, but it seemed that Jake knew it well.
‘Jake, how’s it going?’ The guy behind the counter greeted him as they walked in. ‘What’ll you have, the usual?’
‘Sounds good,’ he said, before explaining to Scarlett, ‘You can’t go past George’s lamb yiros,’ he told her.
There was a huge selection of dishes written on the blackboard above the counter but Scarlett could see the lamb revolving slowly on the enormous spit, cooking as it turned, and the smell carried to her. It smelt fantastic. She’d never tried a yiros before but it was an easy decision. She nodded. ‘Make that two,’ she told George.
‘You want garlic sauce with that?’ George asked.
That sounded rather potent and Scarlett wasn’t at all familiar with yiros etiquette. Jake was watching her, his head tipped to one side, waiting for her answer. She didn’t want to be in close proximity to him if she had garlic sauce and he didn’t. Even in a convertible she suspected it could be unpleasant.
‘Is that how you usually have it?’ she asked Jake.
‘Yep.’
‘Okay, then.’ Scarlett watched as George expertly carved slices of lamb as it rotated on the spit and piled it onto flatbreads and garnished it with garlic sauce and salad before wrapping each yiros in wax paper and handing them over the counter. She followed Jake to a table tucked into the back corner of the café. All around them other patrons were devouring their yiros but from what she could see it was almost impossible to eat daintily. Worried about making a mess of Jake’s jacket, she slipped it off and hung it over the back of her chair.
‘Do you want to take your shoes off too?’ Jake was smiling at her.
She shook her head. ‘Not in here.’
‘You could take them off on the street, why not in here?’ he said, as he tore the wax paper to expose the top half of his yiros.
‘We’re in a restaurant. Earlier I couldn’t face the thought of standing any longer but I’m okay as long as I’m sitting down,’ Scarlett said, copying his actions.
‘I’ve never understood why women insist on buying uncomfortable shoes—although they do look great on you.’
‘Thank you.’ The compliment almost made the pain worthwhile. ‘But they’re not mine and I didn’t realise they were so uncomfortable. I borrowed them,’ she admitted. ‘Strip clubs aren’t really my scene and I don’t own anything suitable to wear to one.’ She took a bite of the warm flatbread. The lamb was tender and juicy, perfectly complemented by the sauce.
‘Going to the club doesn’t mean you need to dress like a stripper.’ He laughed.
She stuck one foot out from underneath the table, pointing her toes and swinging her foot from side to side. ‘You think these look like stripper shoes?’
Jake raised one eyebrow and grinned. ‘That wasn’t what I meant,’ he protested.
‘I wonder what my sister would have to say about that!’
Scarlett smiled back before taking another bite of her yiros, only to discover a fraction too late why she should have said no to the garlic sauce as it squirted out of the bread and ran down the side of her hand. She was holding the yiros with two hands, trying to stop it from falling apart, and there was nothing she could do about the sauce that was now running over her wrist and heading for her elbow.
Jake reached across and ran his finger along her forearm, wiping the sauce from her skin. He was watching her as he put his finger in his mouth and sucked the sauce from it and Scarlett felt as though he’d run his tongue along her bare skin. She could see the heat in his eyes and could still feel the heat from his finger as it sent a current shooting through her.
‘You’ve got sauce just here too,’ Jake said, and Scarlett held her breath as he stretched his hand out and wiped the side of her cheek. His thumb grazed the corner of her lip and Scarlett couldn’t help it—her lips parted under his touch and it was all she could do not to capture his thumb with her mouth. She inhaled deeply as Jake removed his hand and this time wiped his fingers on his serviette.
Despite the fact that they were sitting in a busy café, surrounded by other people, she was aware only of Jake. She ate the rest of her yiros in silence, acutely aware of him sitting opposite her, but somehow she managed to finish eating without any further mishap.
She felt the first wave of fatigue roll over her as she wiped a serviette over her lips and stifled a yawn.
‘Are you ready to go?’ Jake asked.
She was tired but in no hurry to get home. She was quite happy to sit for a bit longer in his company but she had no reason to delay. She stood as Jake picked his jacket up from her chair and slung it around her shoulders. He left his hand around her back, holding the jacket in place as he walked her to his car. Scarlett had to squeeze in close to him to manoeuvre between the tables and chairs and she could feel the length of his body where he pressed against her. The night air was cool on her skin when he released her to open the car door and she pulled his jacket more tightly around her to make up for the loss of warmth.
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