At What Cost? - H.S.

Chapter 2

Jessica's P.O.V.

That dinner date went surprisingly well, that's probably the best blind-date Charlotte has set me up on by a long shot. Charlotte, Cameron, Harry and I talked gleefully the whole time. There was not a single second of silence, except for when we were eating of course. Harry and I got along famously, which I'm sure Charlotte was happy about. I couldn't really tell though. She seemed to be really hung up on Cameron despite only meeting him tonight, or whenever she did actually meet him.

"I'm so glad that I agreed to come out, tonight was fun!" I said to Harry as him and Cameron walk Charlotte and I to the car. Gosh, he's got such long bloody legs. I struggle to keep up with him and his long strides as we get closer to the car park.

"Me too, I had a great time. You seem like a kind and genuine person." He says, turning his head to smile at me. He's got such a nice smile, I think to myself. We slow down our pace as we finally reach the car, I feel slightly saddened that this evening has come to an end.

"This might sound a bit forward, but I was wondering if I could get your number? I'd like to spend more time with you." He asks once we stopped walking. I hesitate for a second, he is married after all. It feels a bit wrong to give him my number seeing as he's got a family waiting for him at home, I wonder how his wife would feel about this?

I push all my hesitance aside and nod at him, smiling widely. "Of course, I like the sound of that." I reply and he pulls out his phone, then hands it to me . He smiles even wider as he watches me type away on his fancy looking mobile. By the time I hand it back to him, Charlotte and Cameron have caught up with us.

"Ready to go?" I ask Charlotte. She slightly pouts, but agrees that it's time to head to our homes. She turns to Cameron to say goodbye, just as I do the same to Harry. "Thank you for making this night bearable." I say with a light laugh. He looks down at me from his seemingly enormous but actually pretty average height and smirks a little.

"My pleasure Jessica, message me anytime." He replies. "Please, Jessica is far too formal. Call me Jess." I say nudging him slightly. It already feels like I've known him forever, he chuckles and grabs my hand.

"Alright, Jess. Goodnight darling." He says. Then in a bold move, he swiftly leans down and kisses my hand that is ever so gently grasped in his. My eyes widen as my heart flutters at the feel of his soft lips against my knuckles, I think I'm going to fall over. A heavy blush rises to my cheeks and I shyly smile down at him, hoping he doesn't take notice of how sweaty my hand has become.

He looks up at me and smiles, a beautiful glint dances in his eyes as he straightens up. He then turns and walks away, Cameron following soon after.

"I told you tonight would be great, look at you two!" Charlotte squeals in my ear, lightly swatting me with her purse. I playfully shove her away, the blush still evident on my cheeks. She laughs at me and for the whole drive back to my flat, she pesters me for every detail. She asks things as if she wasn't even there, which causes me to roll my eyes.

"So, what do you think of him?" She asks, concentrating on the road as she drives. I smile as I recall the events of the night. "He's so charming, quite the flirt too. He's so friendly and funny, a real gentleman just like you said. Oh Lottie, why the fuck would you set me up with a married man? You know that I'm destined to fail either way now, right? You dumbass!" I scold her with a annoyed sigh. She's not the sort of person to try and come between someone's relationship, so what the hell was she thinking?

"I'm sorry Jess, I really am. But as soon as I first met him I knew he would be just perfect for you!" She exclaims, drying to defend her silly reasoning. "That doesn't mean shit Lottie, he's already committed. He's got a child with her for goodness sake!" I say slumping into my seat.

"Look, Harry and I have known each other for a little while now. I tried to brush off that 'perfect for you' thought, but I just couldn't! You would make each other so happy Jess!" She again tries to defend herself. I sit in silence for a few seconds.

"It doesn't matter anyways. He's got a family and that is that. I'm not going to try and ruin his life just because he smiles at me. Or just because he makes my heart flutter a little bit, or because he kissed my hand..." I trail off, realizing what I'd just said. Charlotte giggles at me and slightly shakes her head.

She pulls up to my apartment complex and turns to me after she parks the car. "I really didn't mean anything bad by setting you and Harry up. To be honest, I forgot he was even married. He doesn't talk about her much, that might be why it slipped my mind in the first place." Charlotte says and honestly, I believe her. Other than when he told me about Jacqueline and Lana, he didn't mention them again for the whole night. It seemed a bit odd, but I brushed it off.

"It's okay Lottie, I had fun either way. Goodnight." I say and shut her car door after hearing her reply. The walk up to my apartment was quick and uneventful, thank goodness. I unlock my door and swing it open to reveal the small place that I call home. It's definitely not the best, but it's livable. After changing into my pajamas and putting my clothes away, I put my phone on charge and climb into bed.  

For some reason, it takes me forever to actually fall asleep. I'm still feeling slightly giddy at how well tonight went, so I toss and turn to try to get comfortable. It reaches about 11:30 pm until I finally doze off. Until my phone bleeps, scaring the absolute shit out of me. I jolt up and gasp at the loud noise, wondering who the bloody hell would be messaging me at this hour. I snatch up my phone and go to send an angry response to whoever thought it was a good idea to text me at this time of the night, until I realize that it's an unknown number.

Unknown: Sweet dreams darling, thank you for tonight. x