Continuation of the story 'The Start of the Affair,' with Jess and Sam.
*
"Fucking chuggers." Sam mumbled under his breath as he waded his way down Princes Street on a busy March afternoon. He had managed to avoid most of the charity workers he came across but they seemed to appear from every hiding place today. It wasn't really them he was in a mood with anyway. This was the seventh time he had come on a trip for work in as many weeks and was getting pissed off with all the travelling and Travelodges. This time he had insisted on being put up in a nice hotel, and they were true to their word.
The Tigerlily on George Street was a great hotel, not that he spent much time in it; between meetings with clients and then the dinners and lunches with them, he didn't get much down time. He had asked work to send him on assignments throughout the UK for the money, well he had told himself this; really though he wanted to do it because he was bored. Bored with life, bored with the mediocrity of it all, bored with Sarah. He had proposed to Sarah and of course she had said yes but now she was insisting they start for a family as soon as they were married. To him, having kids meant his life was over -- no more long business trips or nights out with the boys, it would probably be the end of any sex for a while too. Maybe it was just kids with her that put him off, although he didn't really think about it for long enough to decide.
He continued down Princes Street and ducked into the Debenhams to avoid the crowds. He was looking for a gift for Sarah, something Scottish, something...just then he recognised a face in the crowd. He couldn't be sure, her hair was dyed with blonde sections framing her face and she had a tan now too which he found hard to believe in this cold and bitterly windy place, but then she laughed with her head back and mouth wide open and he knew it was her, it was Jess. An incredible thrill shivered down his back as he relived that time in the car park and for a moment he was stuck on the spot, staring at her until he came to his senses.
Just then Jess looked up and saw him looking at her. Sam realised then that she was wearing a Debenhams uniform and was obviously working there. He walked over to her and waited while she served an elderly customer. Jess looked at him and smiled as the customer was talking about something they were looking for as a gift for their granddaughter.
"Excuse me Madam, do you mind if my colleague helps you with this, he's much more knowledgeable about children's' rucksacks. James, do you mind if I go on my break?" Jess said to the tall, young and handsome chap behind the counter. At first he looked quizzical at her but then she indicated towards Sam and he immediately understood.
"Oh of course Jess, and yes I know a great deal about Children's rucksacks." James said to the old lady and led her off.
Jess went back over to Sam and immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. He breathed in her sweet perfume for a brief moment before she let go; he had almost forgotten how good she smelt, almost.
"Wow, what are you doing here, in Edinburgh." Jess asked Sam with a big smile on her face, she was walking towards the back of the store and Sam followed.
"I could ask you the same thing, are you living here now?" Asked Sam.
"Yeah, I've been here for a couple of months now, I want to work in the festival but while that isn't on then shop work is the next best thing. I've got a 15 minute break, lets go have a coffee." Jess said and led Sam to the store cafΓ©, which at that time of the day was full of elderly customers like the one downstairs. She ordered them two coffees and they found a table in the corner.
"So, what's been happening with you? How's life?" Jess asked. She was so pleased to see him and her happiness was infectious. Sam had already forgotten all of his annoyances and was awestruck at how Jess looked now; she was even more beautiful then he remembered and it wasn't just the new hair or slimmer figure, she seemed more open and comfortable with herself now. He answered her question with a few details of the past few months, although not much had really happened to him so there wasn't much to tell. Jess on the other hand had been travelling; to Australia and America, then she had come back to England and dumped Michael. He 'didn't excite her anymore,' was the way she had put it. As Jess talked, Sam was completely absorbed in all her stories and suddenly that night in the car park flashed in his mind.
Sam had thought about that night after it happened, of course he did, it was an incredibly hot night of raw sex and they both got out of it exactly what they had wanted. At the time it was a one-time thing, nothing more would happen, but after he went back to his girlfriend he had tried to recreate that passion with her and it just wasn't the same. He proposed to his girlfriend Sarah later that month, like he said he would but he had to push all those niggly doubts to one side. He told himself it would get better and that the passion between them would grow. Now though here he was, sitting opposite Jess, and all he could think about was getting her into his classy hotel room and having his way with her.
"Are you listening?" Jess said, giggling.
"Yes, sorry, I was miles away, it's been a long day." Sam replied.
"Well, I need to get back to work now, it's been really lovely seeing you." Jess said to him, hopefully. "How long are you in Edinburgh, maybe we could meet up again before you go?"
Yes, he wanted to meet up with her too but was that such a good idea? Would they really be able to just catch up, probably not. Right now though his heart was talking louder then his head and he heard himself saying:
"Well, I'm going back to London tomorrow so how about a drink tonight? I'm staying at the Tigerlilly and it has a nice hotel bar." Did he really just say that? He's just invited her to his hotel; he could've met her in town somewhere, but instead he's invited her to within walking distance of his bed! Jess thought for a moment and considered this before agreeing. They arranged a time and then Jess went back to work. Sam stayed to finish his coffee and thought about how the hell he was going to be able to keep his hands off her that evening.
On her way back to her counter Jess' heart was pounding hard in her chest. It had taken all her energy to act normally in front of Sam and had a hundred thoughts running through her head about that evening. Jess was single now, she could do what she liked with whomever she liked but Sam was still with Sarah, he was now engaged to Sarah; did she really want to be the sort of person that caused a problem between a couple? Unlike Sam, Jess had no illusion that the evening would lead to going to his bedroom. The shock of seeing him had subsided now and instead she looked forward to seeing him later that night.
"Are you alright? You look all flushed." James had said to Jess when she got back to work.