The Art Guy (18+) COMPLETE, FREE to READ

Know Every Little Bit of Me

"Where did you come from?"

To her astonishment, Alfie was leaning on the railings outside the front of the hospital when she finally emerged, white-faced and shaking. They had assured her repeatedly that Kippy was going to be okay, but it was the first time she'd ever seen someone she knew hooked up to machinery and drips, and the sight had shocked her.

"London. You?"

The smart-arse reply made her smile. "Flew up here, did you? Like Superman?"

Alfie was looking good these days. His hair had grown a little and it gleamed in the late afternoon sunshine, the bottom of it brushing his shoulders. He wore his usual—a white tee shirt, a pair of black skinny jeans and cowboy boots. She could see the goose bumps on his arms. London, she'd discovered long ago, was much warmer than anywhere in Scotland, and Alfie would certainly notice the difference, July or not.

"Nope. Me mate Darren's never been to Scotland, so we thought we should do a road trip. 'E's in the car wiv Tony, chatting about Daisy. Darren really likes her."

Katrina nodded. Darren made perfect sense for Daisy. It was about time her best friend experienced true, proper love, instead of picking unavailable men like Kippy or horrible bullies like Graham.

"I'll push her in his direction," she said. "How's Cheryl? Did she come along on this little trip to Scotland too?"

Alfie shook his head, ducking his head slightly. She thought he did it to hide a smile.

"Me and her lasted about two months."

Katrina's heart soared. Oh, she was used to the extremes of emotions, of a heart that suddenly pitched from the bottom of her to the top, exploding her head with light, fizzing possibilities. All those years fantasising about Mick had done that for her. But this felt different. The soar was spectacular, but this time she knew it wasn't accompanied by the feeling she'd always had that warned her to watch out. The high would soon be replaced by a low. This time, the warning started up automatically and then fizzled out itself. It wasn't needed.

"Those highlights were shocking," she said, her feet moving almost unconsciously, taking her closer to Alfie.

"They was pretty bad," he nodded, that smile still there, widening as he awaited her approach.

"Heard you abandoned the Marquis of Queensferry rules when you dumped Mick." He was grinning, now. "Wish I'd seen that. 'E's a total wanker."

And a lying, rotten bastard who allowed his friends to die. Still, Mick wasn't going to spoil her evening. Not now when it had become three hundred percent than it had been only a few minutes ago.

"Why did you come?" She was ninety-nine percent certain she knew the answer, but it would be good to hear it out loud.

"Told you. Darren fancied seeing a bit of Scotland." Then, he relented. "And I thought if I showed up wiv him, you might finally take me seriously. Kippy means a lot to you, and I thought you might be upset."

Funny kind of place to be having this sort of conversation, Katrina supposed. It was summer, and the sun was still high in the skies, its slow sinking picking out the gorgeous reds and dark greens of the trees in the park beyond the hospital. Now, that might have made a better venue for romantic declarations.

"I liked you the first time I saw you," Alfie ventured. "Even though you was as rude as fuck to me."

"Treat 'em mean," she smirked. They were face to face now, separated only by inches. She could feel his breath on her skin, and smell smoke. He'd probably gone through a whole packet of Marlboros on the way up.

She thought of the shuffling figures she'd seen in the hospital corridors, pushing drips ahead of them as they made their way to the smoking room, and vowed to give up herself. She'd persuade Alfie to do it with her—their first challenge as a couple.

A couple, eh?

The feel of his hair wasn't totally unfamiliar to her. She'd styled it for him a few times, but touching it now felt different somehow. She used the excuse to pull his face even closer, so their noses gently bumped together. He angled his face to let his lips landed on hers, keeping his eyes on her the whole time.

Once upon a time, Katrina had loathed eye-open kissers. It was THE most uncomfortable feeling, as if your eyes were about to offer up every single secret you kept about yourself, and not the glamourous ones either. Now, she met the intense stare with that challenge.

Know me. Know every little bit of me.