Page 32 of Crying in the Rain
“And you must be Shaunna,” Ade said, moving in for a hug.
“I’ve heard so much about you,” they both said at the same time and giggled.
Shaunna hooked Ade’s arm and led him through to the kitchen. Kris followed in their wake. “It’s lovely to meet you. Here, let me take that…” Casper’s tea towel gift. She handed it off to Kris. “Sorry about the dog hair. If I’d known you were coming, I’d have thrown the hoover around.”
“Who cares about a bit of dog hair?” Ade said, picking a clump from his jeans. Shaunna took it from him and handed that to Kris too.
“Do you have a dog?” she asked.
“No, but we had them when I was young. My mum used to take in all the old stinky mutts no-one else wanted.”
Discarding the tea towel and dog fluff, Kris edged past to reach the kettle. He was feeling a little surplus to requirements, for which he had only himself to blame. Listening to them chattering away like they’d known each other for years, he was overwhelmed with affection for them both. This could’ve been an absolute disaster, and his relief was immense, but everything wasracing ahead of him, and his stomach was churning with nerves, with excitement, with possibilities for the future.
It was madness. He and Ade hadn’t even kissed yet. True, the attraction was undeniable and, from what Ade had said, mutual, but who was to say it wasn’t a short-lived infatuation? What if they kissed and discovered it did nothing for them? And if that happened, would Shaunna and Ade stay friends? In the few minutes they’d been acquainted, they’d bonded over the trials of being agingerand losing a parent—Kris now knew Ade’s dad had died the same week his ex had moved in with him—and already that bond seemed so much stronger and more permanent than the connection Kris and Ade had spent two days nurturing.
The trouble was, after Jack, Kris was wary of jumping without looking. Shaunna was right about him going ‘all in’, but in his previous relationships, it had taken him a long time to reach the point where he let go and allowed it to happen. He still had no idea how Jack had sneaked past his defences, and while intrinsically he knew Ade was a totally different and altogether better person, Kris felt the same loss of control now as he had two years ago. It was, honestly, terrifying.
“Kris?”
Shaunna was suddenly next to him, her voice hooking him out of his thoughts.
“Are you all right, hun?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Are you making tea?” She looked pointedly at the kettle, still in his hands and empty.
“I am!” He took it to the sink and filled it. “Tea or coffee, Ade?”
“Tea, please. Too late for coffee. So, Shaunna, do you work?” Ade was still looking at Kris as he asked and gave him a wink that saidI’ve got this.
“I do,” Shaunna answered. “I’m a hair stylist.”
“Oh, how glam!”
“Ha! Hardly.” She paused to drop teabags into the mugs Kris had set out, smirking at him because that was as far as he’d got. He made a quick getaway to the fridge for the milk.
“Well, it sounds glam to me,” Ade said.
“Standing on your feet all day, wearing latex gloves and inhaling chemicals and other people’s hair?”
“Ew!”
Shaunna snorted a laugh—not at Ade, who kept catching Kris unawares. The way he’d wrinkled his nose…it was cute and sexy and pressed all Kris’s buttons. He cleared his throat self-consciously and gave his full effort to finishing making the tea.
“And you’re a radio producer?” Shaunna said, still laughing.
“Yes, and it involves no chemicals or latex gloves, although if you saw the state of some of the engineers—honey!” He laid his hand dramatically on Shaunna’s arm.
“Some of the actors are a bit suspect too,” Shaunna said. The dog gave a woof as if joining in with the tormenting.
Red-faced but no longer caring that they were ganging up on him, Kris took over their tea but didn’t join them. He didn’t want to get in the way of them getting to know each other.
“May I use your loo?” Ade asked. “I’ve been bursting since dessert.”
“Of course. Top of the stairs, first door on the left.”
“Thanks.” Ade dashed off.
