Trace of Innocence | Sweet and Sour (Book 4)

Chapter 54

(No Control | Holding Me Ransom - 54 - Why Don't We Take Just A Little More Time)

We've almost arrived at Mum's when my phone rings - it's Karen. As it's rare that a phonecall from her brings glad tidings, I exchange a look of trepidation with Jess before I answer.

"Evening, Karen."

She doesn't bother with niceties. "There's a rumour flying around Twitter."

"No way!" I gasp theatrically, still giddy from the Subway incident earlier and wanting to show off in front of Jess. "About me? Well, this has never happened before."

Jess sniggers and claps her hands over her mouth to contain her laughter while I raise my eyebrows and open my eyes and mouth wide as silence fills the car.

After a beat Karen says stonily, "Sarcasm doesn't suit you, Harry. Am I to interpret from your tone that you know what the rumour may be?"

"Hmm," I muse, stroking my imaginary beard with the fingers of my right hand and raising one eyebrow for effect. "I don't suppose... I bought some petrol at a garage! I bought some chewing gum! Wait - I've got a new jacket!"

Beside me, Jess is shaking with muted laughter. I want to puff my chest out.

"You've got a new girlfriend and you're taking her home to meet your family," Karen replies, her tone flat and unamused.

This pulls us both up short.

"What?" 

"You have apparently been spotted at a service station on the M6 Northbound with a girl. Holding hands."

Jess is wearing the same awkward expression as me.

"Shit, really?" I mutter, our mirth evaporating quickly. "I didn't think we'd been seen. "

I really don't want anyone realising where I'm going, and fans hanging around this weekend. I just want time to relax.

"So you were at a service station with a girl - Jess, I presume?"

"Yeah, we're on our way to my mum's."

"Well, the good news is there are no pictures to confirm it," Karen says, back to her normal business-like tone. "It's just a series of hysterical tweets from a couple of accounts so far. It hasn't really got off the ground and is unlikely to without photographic evidence. You know how sceptical your fans are of hoaxes."

I can feel my stomach muscles relaxing slowly.

"You don't seem particularly bothered," Karen says, her tone adopting an accusatory note.

"Well, we have been talking about going public," I begin tentatively, aware that a cold and dark Friday night is not the ideal time to be dropping this bombshell on Karen. There is probably never a good time to drop it, to be fair. "The service area was quiet, and we didn't think anyone was around."

"You didn't think anyone was around," she repeats, painfully slowly as though to allow me to hear my own words and hammer home how ridiculous they sound. It works.

"Alright," I grumble, annoyed at  being admonished like this in front of Jess. "We'll be more careful in future."

"I just don't want you to rush into this before you're both ready," she says in a gentler tone that causes my eyebrows to pull together as I look over at Jess who, like me, is confused at this turn in approach. "And I would also appreciate being kept in the loop," she adds, the briskness back again.

"Yeah, sorry," I apologise. "Duly noted."

After a brief conversation with Karen about the pap at the petrol garage just north of London, and a discussion with Jess about the hysterical tweets mentioning Corley services, we finally pull into Mum's driveway. I pull the key out of the ignition as Jess turns to me, a concerned look on her face.