Chloe had never got this close to an Irishman before. He was genuinely funny, and there was a natural warmth in his voice like a crackling fire (and look — she was getting all poetic). In another life, he might have been the kind of man Chloe would keep checking her messages for.
     It was obvious how he found it so easy to cheat on his wife.
     While she waited for him to get back from the loo, Chloe scanned the pub innocently with her hand resting on the brim of his whiskey. She didn’t even glance at her fingertips as they dropped two pills into the rust-coloured liquid (the fizz as they dissolved always brought a smile to her lips).
     She withdrew her hand as the Irishman returned. She was looking forward to grinding her vadge on that face later.
     As he took his seat, he picked up his glass. Before he could sip, Chloe gently touched his forearm. “Can I ask you a question, Ronnie?”
     He shrugged lightly. “Course you can!”
     “Will you tell your wife about me?”
     He frowned. “What makes you ask that?”
     She looked down at his hands. “Well, your wedding ring mostly…”
     Ronnie glanced down too, then laughed. “OK, you caught me. I’m a married man. But still. What makes you ask if I’ll tell her about you?”
     Chloe put her hands together in her lap, leaned her shoulders towards him, and kept her eyes down. “I just… I wanted to see where this is going, is all.”
     She looked up just in time to see his gaze dart away from her cleavage. “Er, well, look…” He shifted back a little, and put the glass on the table. “You’re a very pretty young thing, and I’ve very much enjoyed spending this afternoon with you…”
     “Evening, you mean.” She nodded to the TV. “It’s gone six.”
     Ronnie smiled, and looked at the TV — and his expression suddenly went serious.
     Chloe looked around too. The news was on. No sound came from the TV, but the subtitles told her the bishop of London wanted the death penalty back. The screen itself displayed a graph with the results of a survey by Sky News, apparently revealing that 82% of viewers so far were supporting the bishop’s shout.
     Chloe smiled, and turned back to Ronnie. “Now that’s a father who knows what he’s talking about, right?”
     “Yeah,” replied Ronnie — though he began shaking his head. “Yeah, that’s just what we need. A country rallying to support the guy we’re tryin’ to nail.”
     Chloe puckered her lips. “Aw, leave him alone ‘til the death penalty comes back, won’t ya? Think — he’ll have further to fall if you let him be a hero first…”
     Ronnie made a grunt of acceptance, and began lifting his whiskey again.
     Chloe swiftly, though still gently, placed her hand over the top of the glass — meaning his lips very softly, and momentarily, touched her fingertips. They made eye contact, and lingered there (or rather, she held him captive there) for a few seconds before she said, “Anyway… You were saying?”
     “Ah… About the bishop?”
     “About your wife.”
     “Oh!” Ronnie put the glass down again. “Was I? I… What was I saying?”
     Chloe made circles with the base of her cocktail glass. “OK, look, I’ll make a deal with you. Leave now and go back to your wife, and I won’t think anymore of it. But stay and have that drink, and I’ll take it as a sign that you…”
     Ronan raised an eyebrow. “That I, what?”
     Chloe licked her upper lip (she really loved this part). “That you fancy keeping me warm tonight.”
     Ronan laughed, then suddenly leaned forward and tenderly kissed her forehead. “Chloe? You’re something else, I’ll give you that. You know how to make a man feel good about himself. And believe me, a big part of me does fancy keeping you warm tonight — and I mean a big part…”
     He winked as he sat back. Then, grabbing his whiskey, he added, “But hey — we both know that really can’t happen.”
     He downed the drink.
     Chloe pouted to one side of her face. “You want it though?”
     Ronnie wiped his lips and gasped. “Look. My wife and I aren’t in a good place right now, so she’s not expecting me home tonight, and I’m very much enjoying this evening we’re having. So… How about I buy you dinner tonight, hmm?”
     He placed the empty whiskey glass heavily on the table. Chloe looked at it for a moment, then smiled up at him.
     “Sounds like fun.”

Next Chapter: Lois