Best Laid Plans

Revelation

Perrie

"Jade!" Julia is ecstatic at her big sister's arrival, throwing her arms around her neck in an exuberant hug as she chatters nonstop. Jade returns Julia's embrace, patting her on the back and responding, but her eyes never leave mine.

If I had to describe Jade's expression, I'd call it controlled rage. Immediate recognition followed by disbelief before sliding into a look that makes me suspect she's never had someone lie about being her fiancée before. Shocking.

My stomach clenches with nerves while my heart races faster than I'd like it to, my traitorous heart happy to remember how it began between us and not how it ended.

We met in Manchester. On a day that would unknowingly change my life. I'd just finished leading a bus of tourists from Newcastle to Manchester and I had a couple of days before I was scheduled on my next tour – a reverse of the same trip, Manchester back to Newcastle. So I opted to stay in the city rather than fly home and back.

One tiny decision that set off a bombshell of life changes. What if I'd just gone home? What if I'd turned and run the opposite direction when I caught sight of her, instead of waiting long enough for her gaze to find mine? It made me dizzy, her eyes, her attention. Her. Have you ever met a person like that?

You know the feeling. The butterflies, the energy. The weird cosmic sense that she must be feeling the same, that the amount of energy swirling in your belly and the quickening of your heart can't be one-sided.

I was on my way to Etihad Stadium. I didn't have any particular interest in football, but it seemed like attending a Manchester City game was a life event worth experiencing and I had a summer day free for exploring. She was checking her watch when I caught sight of her, gorgeous and impatient standing on a sidewalk outside the coffee shop I'd just left. She was in a black T-shirt and ripped jeans, casual. The shirt looked soft and well-worn-in, the kind you'd steal from your girlfriend because the cotton would have the same effect as rubbing a kitten against your bare skin. She oozed confidence and sexiness.

Just my type.

When she caught me looking at her, she smiled, and I implored myself to walk away even as I stepped closer. I was a bit lost and it wouldn't hurt to ask her if she could point me in the right direction to the stadium, would it?

I didn't need a fling in a city that wasn't my own. I didn't need a fling at all. I was doing so well on the sabbatical, but this girl was the cover model to a novel called 'The Problem with Women Who Give Mind-Blowing Orgasms'.

I stepped closer.

I asked her if she knew how to get to the stadium.

"Miss Thirlwall," a voice beside me interrupted. "The car is ready."

"I'll give you a ride," she said, not taking her brown eyes off mine. "I'm headed there myself."

As if. I'd seen every serial killer special on Netflix and I didn't even know her name. I didn't need a ride in the back of a town car, I needed to be pointed in the right direction. Which was exactly what I told her. She smiled, a look of genuine surprise at my refusal crossing her face.

"Jade," she said, holding out her hand in formal introduction. A grin still tugged at the corner of her mouth, making her look absolutely gorgeous.

"Perrie," I replied and slipped my hand into hers.

By the time we reached the stadium I reminded myself that even the strictest of diets allow for a cheat day every once in a while.

"We just met Perrie," Julia says excitedly, pulling me away from my walk down the memory lane, stepping away from Jade and glancing in my direction with an excited smile. Oh, god. Don't say it, don't say- "I can't believe you didn't tell me you were engaged!"