Simon Riley, what an enigmatic man.. and a man who made your nethers flare in a way that kept you awake with shame each night. You'd been on a few sort-of-dates, shared a few chaste kisses, but mostly had just been getting to know each other slowly and letting things unfold organically. God how you want to hurry up and get to the good bit, though. It wasn't fair how he made you feel like a cat in heat with his chivalrous gestures and witty banter, how it made you want to throw all caution to the wind and misbehave in ways that would make you blush if you said them aloud.

Tonight was the first time he'd come over to your house. The tv was on, playing a forgotten film as you both sit on opposite ends of your small sofa, the coffee table littered with empty bottles and takeaway containers filled with half-eaten food. He was talking again, how you loved when he talked, his rumbling timbre that sent shivers through you. He was opening up, something which was hard for him, and it showed in the way he avoided your gaze as he spoke about his past, about joining the army, about losing his family. And for God's sake, even now, all you can think is, 'Oh, I'm going to hell for sure. Here he is, talking about his poor dead mother and I can't help wishing his hands were unbuttoning my dress..'