A Dangerous Affair

Stephanie grabbed one of the reporters as he walked past. “What’s wrong with Barker? He’s acting all funny!”

The officer swayed slightly and looked at her blankly before her arm was pulled again and she swung around to face Pippa.

“What was that all about?” she frowned.

“What?” Stephanie said in confusion.

“Tom keeps pulling you aside to talk to you and you keep running back here!” she exclaimed.

“No I don’t,” Stepahnie replied defensively. “He wanted to get another drink anyway.”

“Well you could at least pay attention to him when he’s talking to you. He looked positively miserable when you kept turning away from him and looking over here.”

“What?” She turned to glance at Tom at the bar. “Well it’s just that there’s something wrong with Barker. He’s gone weird,” she giggled.

“Never mind about Barker! Concentrate on Tom will you? And you might like to slow down on the wine too!”

Stephanie looked sheepish. “Do you think I was a bit offish?”

“Just a bit! Now be nice to him Steph. Here, he’s coming back,” she said, moving away from Stephanie.

Stephanie turned and smiled at Tom as he approached, handing her another glass of wine. She still had half a glass of wine in her hand so she drained it, put the glass down on a table and accepted the glass Tom was offering her.

“Thanks sweetie.”

Oh boy! Perhaps I shouldn’t have rushed that last glass!

“Stephie,” Tom began. She smiled at him, making an effort to seem approachable whilst waiting for a sudden dizzy spell to pass.

“Yes Tom.”

“Remember when I was going to drown in Carlton’s boat and you wouldn’t leave me, do you remember what was said?” he asked. On hearing this she wondered if he had actually overheard her conversation with Pippa and she took a gulp of wine from her fresh glass. “and well, I…” He stopped and looked at her with concern when she swayed alarmingly towards him. “Are you okay?”

She giggled. “Yep, this wine is good stuff!”

He looked at the glass in her hand and chuckled, taking it off her and placing it on the table before she spilt any more of it.

“Stephie, I was saying…”

She leant against him and looked up into his face dreamily. He looked down at her and grinned. She ran her hands over his chest and began to fiddle with the buttons.

“What were you saying Tom?” she purred.

“Err,” he watched her hands begin exploring. “Well, I was saying…”

One of her fingers slid between two buttons and began stroking the skin underneath. “Hmm?”

“Err…err, well.” He stopped and growled at her, grabbing her by the arm for the third time that night, but this time he dragged her right the way across the pub to the exit at the back.

As soon as they were out of sight of anyone his lips were on hers, his hands in her hair, over her shoulders, down her back. She held his head to her and moaned as she kissed him back. Then his hands were on her behind, pulling her into him and she dropped her head onto his chest, undoing buttons and kissing the exposed skin as she went.

“Oh lord!” Tom said in anguish. “Let’s go home.”

She pulled back suddenly in alarm. “No, no Tom, if we do that they’ll know!”

“Know what?” he frowned.

She grinned, slowly doing up his buttons again. “You know, all about the naughty things we’ve been doing.”

He grinned back. “I can get way naughtier.”

“I’m sure you can Tom, but not in here,” she said, taking him by the hand and dragging him back into the pub.

“That’s the whole point Stephie. That’s why we should go home now!” he said in desperation. She wasn’t listening though and minutes later they were back amongst the crowds.

Simon spotted Tom and pulled him to one side. “So? Did you tell her?”

“No,” he sulked. “Things aren’t going to plan.”

Simon looked sympathetic. “Well don’t give in, here have another one of these, it’ll give you some Dutch courage,” Simon said, passing Tom another whiskey.

Tom felt a little light-headed as it was but he took the glass and drank the contents all the same. Afterwards he looked down at the glass with surprise.

“Hmm, tastes different. This is a good one!” he smiled.

Barker passed them then and they watched as he continued down the bar, checking all the glasses and the bottles on the shelves behind.

Stephanie wobbled up to Tom, picked up his hand from off the bar and placed his arm around her waist.

“No more chatting without me you two,” she said, pointing a finger at them. “You two have been chatting all night long!”

“Us chatting!” they both said in unison.

“Yes,” she said, lacing her fingers through Tom’s. “And he’s my boyfriend, so stop monopolising him!” she said to Simon.

Simon laughed but Tom was still stunned by the fact that she had used the word ‘boyfriend’.

Barker made his way back down the bar again and stopped in front of Stephanie and Tom, momentarily glancing at their entwined fingers before speaking in a fluster.

“Look, Brick is getting bored, you have to entertain him and keep him here so that I can find his whiskey before he goes. Maybe he won’t notice that some of it has gone if I hand it back tonight. He seems to have had a few.”

Tom and Stephanie giggled and Barker looked annoyed. “Hey, I help you two out and you help me out in return. Understand?”

Stephanie looked at a loss but Tom nodded furiously.

“Right, so entertain him!” Barker said, rushing off again.

Tom looked at Simon. “Any idea how I can entertain him?”

Simon shrugged. “Tap dance, juggling, harmonica?”

They all chuckled.

Tom glanced behind the bar for inspiration and found some. “Got it!” He asked for the barman to pass him something and held it up in triumph. “Poker!” Turning to Brick, who was sitting at the end of the bar, he shouted, “Hey boss, you want to challenge me to a game of poker? I’m a mean player.”

Brick shook his head and Tom stood up suddenly, whispering to Stephanie. “You go and do your best to persuade him. I’ll grab us a table.”

Stephanie moved very slowly and carefully towards Brick.

Mustn’t let him know I’m tipsy.

She focused her eyes on her feet and used the bar as a support, walking one hand over the other across it.

Brick watched her with great amusement. She eventually reached him and stood for a few moments staring at her feet, waiting for the spinning to stop, before looking up at him. He was grinning at her.

“Hello sir.”

“Stephanie.”

“Sir, we cordially invite you to come and play a game of poker with us. Well Tom does anyway,” she smiled.

He shook his head in disbelief at her and stood up, offering her his arm. She grinned and linked arms with him, thanking god that she had some support to go back and glad that he hadn’t realised that she may have had one too many glasses of wine.