Jessie Slaymaker's Rules of Engagement (The Jessie Slaymaker Series Book 2) (6 page)

‘Take it easy, will ya,’ the sleazebag replied in a thick London accent. He raised his hands up to signify he wasn’t looking for confrontation.

‘Jack. Leave it,’ Jessie said, trying to lead a fuming Jack away. She’d never seen him like this before. So riled. So fired up. All about little old her. Maybe it should have been flattering, and Jessie was sure that there were some women out there who would have enjoyed his display in defence of her virtue, but Jessie could fight her own battles.

‘If you don’t want people to look, you shouldn’t let your girlfriend walk around like that,’ the sleazebag said over his shoulder. Jessie had to restrain Jack from turning around and punching the guy’s lights out.

‘Wait here,’ she said, catching Jack’s eyes to stop him from doing anything stupid. She turned and took a few steps toward the man, hoping Jack would behave himself and stay put.

‘Excuse me mate,’ she called. The sleazebag turned and leered at her. Jessie focused on scrutinising all her attention on the sleazebag’s crotch area in the most degrading way she could possibly conjure up. ‘I don’t know what century you’re from, but you can talk directly to
me,
you know. I’m a woman. I’ve got breasts,’ she said, clutching at her chest. ‘And today I chose not to wear a bra. Does that mean I should have to put up with the likes of you copping a downright salacious look, when really you should be interested in me for the intelligence of my mind?’ Jessie moved her thumb and forefinger up and down, signifying she was estimating the sleazebag’s size of manhood. She was deliberately unkind in her estimation.

‘Okay, okay,’ Sleazebag said, holding his hands up again in defeat. ‘Just stop looking at me like that. It’s weird.’

‘Exactly. So keep those eyes up and don’t look at
me
like that.’

‘Making friends?’ Jack asked, smiling at her, as Jessie caught up with him. She never failed to impress him.

‘You need to calm down,’ Jessie said seriously, a note of warning in her voice. She deliberately stood close to him, looking him squarely in the eye. ‘That’s twice today you’ve totally overreacted.’

‘I just can’t stand the way they look at you,’ Jack replied defensively, running a hand through his hair in frustration, his smile dissipating.

‘You can’t stop people looking, Jack,’ Jessie said, shaking her head slightly. ‘This is the world we live in. But remember…’ she trailed off with a cheeky sideways smile.

‘What?’ Jack asked, keen to know the end of her sentence.

‘Only
you
can touch,’ Jessie finished, lowering her eyelashes at him, then she grabbed his hand and pulled him along the street.

Jack found himself soothed by her words. And as they sank in, he couldn’t help smiling to himself. She was right. She was absolutely right. Jessie was all his, and he truly believed that now they were together, she would never let another man touch her. The only nagging seed of doubt was his brother Charlie, who he knew Jessie had had strong feelings for in the past. But Charlie was out of the picture. He hadn’t been seen by any of the family for months, and according to their mother, he was in hiding, although reportedly still somehow living the life of Riley in South America somewhere.

As they walked on to the restaurant in companionable silence, Jessie was unable to hide her awe at the new bright sights and sounds. She couldn’t seem to shake the look of a gobsmacked tourist off her face. Meanwhile Jack found himself wondering why he was suddenly feeling slightly on the insecure side. It was alien territory for him, feeling insecure. Of course he trusted Jessie, and he’d seen other men look at her before. But he’d never jumped off the deep end in such a way as to result in physical contact. It wasn’t like him to start a fight.

He blamed his uncharacteristic behaviour on being unsettled about what he was going to do. Jessie had her job, but what did Jack have going on in that moment? He’d followed her halfway around the world so she could fulfill her dream of travel and adventure, but what of his dreams? He’d accomplished a lot when he’d lived in Shanghai, made enough money to ensure he’d be comfortable for awhile, but going back to his old business held no appeal for him now. In the past he’d always been sure of his career, and his personal life had just bumbled along from short-term girlfriend to one-night-stand to the next short-term girlfriend. Now his personal life was stable for the first time in years, and he was with a woman he envisaged being with for the foreseeable future, yet his career was practically non-existent.

Jack knew he wanted to do something. He just didn’t know what. It was hard to admit to himself, that maybe his recent tetchiness was because the stakes were higher now. He had something to prove to Jessie. He wanted to show her that he could be successful and driven. She’d only really known him so far as a lazy playboy-type character. Sure, she knew about his entrepreneurial days, but they weren’t something she’d ever actually witnessed. And now his vacation period was coming to an end, and he knew he couldn’t continue playing the gentleman of leisure for much longer. Not whilst he waved Jessie off on her way to work every day.

‘I’m starving,’ Jessie announced as she stopped outside a small, lively-looking restaurant and scanned the menu. ‘How about this place?’

‘Sure,’ Jack answered, still deep in thought, his appetite not that huge anymore. The more he thought about his lack of options, the more it weighed on him.

‘Come on,’ Jessie said, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze and flashing him that natural megawatt smile that came so easily to her.

Her enthusiasm was infectious. Jack decided he could work on his master plan tomorrow. Tonight was about celebrating. It was a celebration of Jessie and Jack being together. Together in Hong Kong—fresh and new.

Dinner that night had been in a cool little pizza place in the lively district of Soho, where they’d sat at the bar and chowed down on thick slices of cheesy pizza, washed down with copious amounts of red wine. Not exactly an authentic Hong Kong cuisine experience, but it was what they’d both needed.

Jack had been in an extra buoyant mood for some reason, and had continually topped up her glass all evening. Jessie knew he was just trying to show her a good time, take her mind off her lack of clothes and her disappointment in their living arrangements. And she also knew it would hurt in the morning, given her poor state of hydration after the flight. But she didn’t care. It never even crossed her mind to say that she’d had enough booze. She was just so thrilled to be in Hong Kong with the love of her life, albeit without her luggage. Jack had even let her use his toothbrush, which she’d considered to be the most romantic gesture ever, in her inebriated state.

Surprisingly, the morning after, Jessie didn’t feel too bad. She couldn’t remember precisely how they’d gotten home, but judging by the empty water bottles that littered her side of the bed, she must have done something right.

She crept out of bed, leaving Sleeping Beauty snoring away lightly. It was alright for him to stay in bed for as long as he wanted. He
had
his bloody luggage. But Jessie had other plans. She still had a couple of weeks before she started work in the Hong Kong office of her bank, and her luggage was bound to materialise before then—well, probably—and hopefully in the next day or two. But that didn’t do anything to remedy her lack of clean underwear today, or solve her wardrobe dilemma in the interim.

‘I don’t feel so good,’ Jack groaned into his pillow.

‘I’m not surprised. We both fried quite a few brain cells last night,’ Jessie laughed as she wiggled into her jeans. Again. If she wore them much longer, they’d be able to walk themselves back to England.

‘How can you be so cheerful? You always have rotten hangovers,’ Jack pointed out as he slowly opened his eyes to look at her.

‘True. I must have drunk plenty of water when we got in,’ Jessie said, and finished off the rest of another bottle.

‘This isn’t just a hangover. I’m really sick,’ Jack moaned, putting a hand to his head.

‘Yeah, right,’ Jessie laughed unsympathetically as she jumped onto the bed beside him. Jack winced as the bed moved under him. ‘If this is your way of getting out of coming shopping with me, then it’s worked. I can’t have you traipsing around after me all day if all you’re going to do is moan.’ She planted a gentle kiss on his cheek.

‘You’ll probably be quicker without me anyway,’ Jack reasoned, a thin smile appearing on his lips. ‘But I really don’t feel well,’ he added as he twisted a tendril of her damp hair around his finger.

‘Probably,’ Jessie replied, and she leaped up off the bed and slipped on her shoes. Jack winced again, kicked a foot out of the bed, and planted it on the floor. Presumably to stop the world from spinning.

‘Take it easy and I hope you feel better soon. Maybe we could do something later?’ Jessie ventured, placing a packet of painkillers and a new bottle of water on his bedside.

‘Maybe,’ Jack replied as he rolled into a more comfortable position and closed his eyes.

If truth be told, Jessie didn’t mind too much that Jack had bailed on her. She loved spending time with him, but she’d lived on her own for a long time and wasn’t afraid of her own company.

Plus, she
would
be quicker without him, and it would give her time to get her bearings in her new neighbourhood. She was going to have to start going places by herself soon enough anyway, so she may as well bite the bullet and explore while she could do so at her leisure, rather than wait until she was in a rush to get to the office.

She stopped at a little coffee shop for breakfast whilst she compiled her list of bare essentials and where to get them. Jessie had a reasonably good idea of the layout of her new home city and where she needed to go, and her handy smartphone did the rest. One thing she knew for sure was that her first stop was going to be to her mother’s mother ship. As her mum always said, ‘If in doubt, go to Marks and Spencer.’ Underwear was very much the first order of the day, and good old M&S would have that covered.

A few hours later, laden down with the basics, which turned out to be more than she’d initially thought, Jessie trudged back through the door of the serviced apartment. She expected to see Jack up and about, maybe watching TV, or on his computer. But there was no Jack in sight. He must have gone out in search of food, Jessie concluded as she began opening shopping bags and surveying her purchases in the living room. She’d done well. She’d been to a pharmacy and picked up enough toiletries to keep her going until her own things decided to make a reappearance, and she’d also picked up a couple of light summer dresses, some shorts, a couple of t-shirts, and some flip-flops. She was loath to fork out again for any work gear, as she’d only just bought some new things back in England, but she had scoped out a couple of options which she could go and get if her bags didn’t turn up before she started work. And yes, she’d bought plenty of underwear.

She collapsed on the sofa and watched two old reruns of
Friends
on the TV before realising there was still no sign of Jack. She checked her phone. Nothing.

‘Where the bloody hell is he?’ she asked aloud as she began typing him a text of words to that effect, only more polite. She was just about to press send when she heard muffled noises from the bedroom. ‘He can’t
still
be in bed, can he?’ Jessie asked, getting irritated at the thought of his laziness, whilst she’d been up and about for ages.

‘Jack, is that you?’ she asked, tentatively. In case it wasn’t Jack, she made sure she had a clear exit to the door.

‘Who else would it be?’ Jack said as he opened the door and scratched his head. He was dressed only in his boxers, and his hair was sticking up in all directions, as was its usual tendency.

‘How’re you feeling?’ Jessie asked, relaxing back into the sofa.

‘Rubbish,’ Jack replied as he stomped to the kitchenette and began rummaging around the cupboards in search of sustenance.

‘What do you fancy doing?’ Jessie asked hopefully.

‘Not much. Jessie, I’m sorry, but I feel downright awful. Do you mind if we have a quiet one today?’

‘Of course not,’ Jessie replied brightly, although having a quiet one was the last thing she really wanted to do. She desperately wanted to explore, and the thought of being cooped up for the rest of the day in their serviced apartment held very little appeal. ‘There’s a supermarket just down the road. I might pop over there and get some supplies in.’

‘That’d be great, if you don’t mind,’ Jack replied. He was realising there was absolutely nothing in the kitchen for him to consume. ‘We can watch movies for the rest of the day and then get a takeaway for dinner. McDonald’s even deliver in Hong Kong.’

‘Sure. I won’t be long,’ Jessie said, grabbing her bag. She knew Jack was joking, but there was no way she was eating McDonald’s on her second night in Hong Kong. What would be the point in that when she could very well do that back at home?

As Jessie toddled off to the supermarket, she felt a sense of relief that she was doing something practical and productive, rather than just sitting on her bum back at the flat. In the run-up to moving, things had been incredibly hectic, and there was constantly something to do or someone to see. Now, things were at the opposite extreme: not much for her to do and no one aside from Jack to go and see. Jessie hated being idle, and she especially hated wasting her days off like this. But she still had plenty of time off before she officially started work, she reassured herself. One day of minimal activity was hardly going to kill her.

Upon her return, she noticed Jack had progressed to the sofa and had managed to find a t-shirt to wear. He was flicking aimlessly through television channels as seemed to be the habit of most men. Jessie settled herself next to him for a low-key afternoon of hangover recovery, all the while trying to look on the bright side of life. Vegging out on the sofa may not have been her first choice of activity, but she was doing it with Jack, who, she had to admit,
did
look rather cute and vulnerable in his fuzzy state.