Nora was glad she had asked them over, mainly because they were good company of course, but also because it forced her to think about something other than Henrik Eklund for a few hours. The strange, warm feeling she had felt ever since that night with him had lingered.It was as if those amazing orgasms were still in her body. Or was her body preparing for more?
“Can I put on a playlist?” Maryam said when Nora’s Spotify list ended.
“Absolutely. My phone’s over there.” Nora picked up the bottle of wine and refilled her glass. Took another sip, let the warm, spicy flavors roll around her mouth.
“You’ve got a message,” Maryam said, waving Nora’s phone in the air.
“Who from? We’re all here.”
“Someone who’s wondering what you’re doing.” Maryam handed her the phone.
What are you doing?
When Nora saw that it was from Henrik, her heart started pounding.
What are you doing?She read the message several times. Who would have thought that four little words could start a mini-tornado swirling around in her belly?
Having dinner with some friends. How about you?
Elnaz has dragged me and the production team out to check out the town. Can’t you come and join us?
“Who’s it from?” Bea was staring at her. Jesus, why did Bea have to be so nosy?
“Henrik. He’s out on the town and wants me to join him.”
“So you know each other well enough to exchange texts?”
“Apparently.”
“Hang on, has something happened between you two?” Bea’s eyes widened.
Nora didn’t answer. She didn’t know why she hadn’t told her friends about what had happened. But for some reason she wanted to keep it to herself.
Bea slapped her on the arm. “Spill!”
“Okay, so that night we made Lucia buns, we ended up having sex.”
“Like you do! It’s a well-known fact that making Lucia buns always ends with sex,” Bea said, looking shocked. Then she grinned. “Details, please! How did it happen? I thought you hated him!”
“Yes, I know, but ... it just happened. I mean, we’ve been getting along better recently—much better. We’ve talked a lot, and the filming began to go better. Once his arrogant TV persona disappeared, everything changed.”
“So where is he now?” Maryam asked.
“Let me find out.” She tapped out a quick message and received a reply within seconds. “Guldkant.”
“So let’s go!” Tess said.
Maryam clapped her hands. “Let’s do it—it’s been a long time since we had a proper night out!”
“Fine by me,” Nora said, trying to keep her cool. She didn’t want to give her friends any false hope. They always hoped that her next relationship would be The One, but they had to realize that she and Henrik Eklund weren’t ever going to be a real thing.
“I’ll just . . . get changed.”
She went into her bedroom and grabbed the black, high-waisted jeans that showed off her butt to its best advantage. She kept her wine-red blouse on; it was very Christmassy.
“Oh, you’ve gone for your butt-hugging jeans,” Bea said when Nora emerged. “Someone has plans for tonight.”
“Shut up.”
