Читать книгу The Sunshine and Biscotti Club - Jenny Oliver - Страница 15

Jessica arrived back at her room slightly sunburnt and annoyingly still replaying the meeting with the cocksure Italian at the bar. She had planned on having a shower and doing some work to rebalance, but when she opened the door she found Dex sitting at her dressing table working on his laptop.

‘What are you doing in here?’

‘Work,’ he said without turning round. ‘I thought we were working.’

‘We are, but why do we have to do it in my room?’

‘Because I’ve got no WiFi in mine. Yours is bad enough—it only works here,’ Dex said, pointing to the dressing table. ‘Come on,’ he said, ‘let’s get it done then we can be on holiday.’

Jessica frowned. She wasn’t used to sharing her personal space. She remembered the early days when Dex had shown her the plans for the new office—all inclusive and open plan—and she’d said, ‘No, this just won’t work. I need to be able to shut a door.’

He had prattled on about the merits of sitting together as a team, exchanging ideas, laughing together and building bonds.

‘My brain doesn’t work well as a collective force, Dex,’ she’d said. ‘It works well on its own. I am antisocial. I like to be on my own.’

Dex had stalked away with a shake of his head, rolling his eyes at the architect as they fudged a small office into the sleek design plans.

Now she wished she could portion off a section of her hotel room.

‘Come on, chop chop,’ said Dex, pulling over a spare chair so she could sit down next to him. ‘Get your laptop.’

‘OK, OK, hang on.’ Jessica took a minute, standing in the centre of the room, to get herself in the right mode. She went into the bathroom and splashed some water on her face—saw the extent to which her hair had frizzed and curled in the humidity and the pink tinge to her cheeks, and tried to channel First Day Holiday Jessica back into At Work Jessica.

She poured herself a glass of water then walked out of the bathroom, went over to her bag, pulled out her laptop, then set it up next to Dex.

‘You look very relaxed, by the way,’ said Dex as she booted up. ‘Very earthy.’

She glanced across at him with a raised brow.

‘What? That’s a good thing. It’s a good thing. I promise. Very …’ He looked her up and down.

‘Don’t go on.’

He laughed. ‘Very pretty.’

She shook her head. ‘No I don’t.’

‘You do, it’s a compliment. Take it as a compliment. You’re terrible at compliments.’

Jessica scoffed. ‘Because most of the time people say them to mask something else.’

Dex looked perplexed. ‘Like what?’

‘I don’t know.’ Jessica shook her head. ‘Like you think my hair looks bonkers but you can’t say that so you say something nice instead.’

Dex snorted a laugh. ‘You really are an idiot sometimes. Anyway, right, enough of this nonsense, there’s a sun out there just waiting for me.’

Jessica took a sip of her water and then started to work. Her laptop was taking longer than Dex’s to open the files.

Dex glanced over. ‘It’s so slow! Seriously, I’ve told you to get a new one.’

‘I don’t need a new one. This is fine.’

‘It can’t cope with the software update. It’s too old.’

‘It’s fine.’

He peered over. ‘Do you still have that bit of plastic film over the screen, Jessica?’ He turned to look at her, aghast. ‘You’re meant to take that off when you buy it.’

‘It keeps it protected.’

‘Oh my god.’ Dex smacked his forehead. ‘We need to get you out of that office. You are getting away with some ridiculous behaviour.’

She allowed herself a little laugh when she looked at the plastic film. ‘I just like to look after my things.’

‘Your laptop is ancient, Jessica. If you’re not going to buy a new one, I’ll buy you a new one, for the sake of the company.’

‘You aren’t buying me a new laptop.’

‘Well, you buy it then.’ He got his wallet out and handed her a platinum card. ‘Charge it to my dad.’

‘I didn’t think you used this any more?’ she said, taking the card and holding it tentatively between finger and thumb as though it might burn her.

‘I don’t. But you can.’

‘You should cut it up,’ she said.

He shook his head. ‘Then I’d want it.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘Like ex-smokers. Better to have a pack to hand just in case.’ Dex shrugged. ‘Makes me want it less knowing it’s there.’

Jessica narrowed her eyes. ‘I think you should have more faith in yourself, Dex. You can’t carry it around forever. I can’t actually believe you still have it. You’ve kept that really quiet.’

‘Well, you shouldn’t spend so much time in your office, should you?’

She sighed. ‘You don’t need his money, you know that. You’ve totally made it on your own now. Cut the card up.’

Dex shook his head.

‘Dex! Cut it up.’

‘No.’ Dex stared at the card with a longing fondness. ‘I don’t think I can.’

Jessica widened her eyes at him. ‘Cut it up.’

Dex shook his head.

‘You cut it up and you can peel the protective film off my laptop.’

He raised a brow. ‘That sounds like some kind of kinky computer geek fetish.’

‘OK, you can’t do it any more.’

Dex laughed. ‘Oh please.’

‘No. You’ve made it too sexual.’ He snorted.

Jessica turned to her screen and started to do some work. Dex did the same, leaning over every now and then to see what she was doing.

The sun was streaming in the window. Dex kept yawning. Every time the WiFi dropped out he sat back on his stool and peered round the room.

‘What are you looking at?’ Jessica said in the end, unable to hold it in any longer.

‘Nothing. It’s just funny, that’s all.’

‘What’s funny.’

‘That we’ve been here mere hours and you’ve managed to make your room exactly the same as your office. Like, exactly the same. The books, the scarf, the make-up bag, that hand cream, the way the glass is on the coaster.’

Jessica looked around and realised he was right. It was pretty much the same as her bedroom at home as well. She hadn’t realised she needed such familiarity and structure around her to feel comfortable. It was as if she had become so self-sufficient it was to the point of robotic. Carrying her life around like a snail. She frowned. ‘Well, that can’t be good, can it?’

Dex shrugged. ‘I think it’s sweet. A bit anal, but sweet. But that’s what you’re like, isn’t it?’

Jessica made a face. ‘Don’t say it like it’s a given.’

Dex looked confused. ‘Well it is, isn’t it?’

‘No it’s not. Anal but sweet? That’s not how someone wants to be described.’

‘Why not? It’s what you are.’

‘It’s not a fact.’

Dex shrugged. ‘It kind of is.’

‘Well, I don’t want it to be.’

He half grinned. ‘Well do something about it then.’

Jessica shook her head and, ignoring the challenge in his eyes, went back to her computer.

They worked again in silence.

After a couple of minutes she said, ‘Oh, and what’s this about Miles coming? Is Miles coming? Have you invited Miles?’

Dex smirked, keeping his eyes on the screen. ‘Maybe.’

She saw the delight on his face reflected in his laptop screen and kicked herself for asking. She looked back at her own without saying anything more, refusing to give him the satisfaction of asking again.

After a couple more minutes Dex said, ‘It’s fun working next to you. I like it. We should do it more often.’

‘No we shouldn’t.’ She shook her head. ‘You breathe too loudly.’

He snorted a laugh. ‘I do not breathe loudly. I breathe. I have to stay alive.’

‘It’s distracting.’

‘Remember that whole anal but sweet thing?’ he said.

Jessica turned to look at him, one brow raised.

‘Perfect example.’

She scoffed.

‘I’m just telling it like it is,’ Dex said with a grin, then he leant forward and peeled the film straight off her laptop screen before she could stop him.

Jessica gasped. Dex laughed, waving the sheet of plastic triumphantly. So she reached over and, grabbing his dad’s credit card from the table next to him, she chopped it up with the scissors from her makeshift pen pot and chucked the four little bits into her waste bin.

Dex jumped up from his seat and stared down at the bin, his hand on his chest. ‘I can’t believe you just did that.’

‘You’re much better without it, Dex.’

He looked forlornly at the quarters of credit card.

Jessica patted him on the shoulder. ‘You’re much less vacuous without the money.’

He glanced up at her, then laughed. ‘It’s all coming out today, isn’t it?’

‘Let’s finish this work,’ she said.

When they’d wrapped it all up and sent it off, Jessica turned to Dex and said, ‘I don’t really think you’re vacuous. You used to be, but you’re not any more. You’re probably the most solid person I know. Like, inside,’ she said, ‘you’re good.’

He looked at her, surprised.

She shrugged. ‘I just, you know, thought I should say that.’

Dex nodded. ‘Thank you, Jessica.’

‘You’re welcome,’ she said, closing her laptop. ‘You’re now welcome to say that I’m not anal and sweet. If you wanted.’

Dex thought about it for a bit, studying her with narrowed eyes. ‘No,’ he said. ‘No, I don’t need to say that.’

‘Oh for god’s sake,’ she huffed, bashing him on the arm. ‘Take it back.’

He laughed. ‘But then I’d be lying.’

‘That’s fine.’

‘OK, Jessica, you are not anal and sweet.’

‘Thank you.’

‘You’re welcome,’ he said, picking up his laptop and standing up. ‘Although really you absolutely are,’ he added, before jogging out of the door with a grin.