"I used to go there when I was little. She does the best ice cream."
Alec nods. "That she does."
He's still looking at me when Jen and Carl get in the back seat. I glance back at him and look down.
I wish he'd stop looking at me.
"Are we going or what?" Jen smacks the back of Alec's seat.
"Sure thing." He gives her the finger over his shoulder and pulls away. I turn my attention to the view out the window.
Devon really is a beautiful place, when you look past the almost-always-there smell of cow poo, of course. But I guess, if you live in Devon you don't really notice it. Just like I don't notice the smell of exhaust fumes in London.
It's so quiet here, and while a part of me craves the hustle and bustle of the big city, the rest of me is strangely content. It had always been a second home to me, so coming back - even with how much I protested - is almost a relief.
Fields roll by as we leave the Bay and head into the county properly. I roll the window down, just a little, and breathe in the fresh air. The others are chatting casually as I admire the peace around me.
Half an hour later we arrive in Barnstaple, and Alec parks in the shopping centre car park. We take the lift down to the shopping level.
"Okay, River Island!" Jen claps and takes Carl's hand, dragging him alongside her. I laugh quietly at her enthusiasm.
Alec wraps an arm around my neck.
"Is the big city girl starting to like small country living?" he says in my ear in a low voice.
"Maybe she is, just a little," I reply, but don't shrug him off this time. I have no reason to - I walk around this way with my guy mates in London all the time.
He smiles at me and for some reason I half smile back at him. His smile is contagious, the kind that could charm the knickers off the wicked witch of the west.
The kind of charming that's dangerous.
We enter the shop, Alec still attached to my side. I spy Jen holding up two pairs of jeans, trying to decide between them.
"Baby, they look the same." Carl runs a hand through his hair.
"No, they're not." She turns to me, seemingly unfazed by Alec's arm around me. "Lexy, they're different, aren't they?"
I nod my agreement and point to the right pair. "They're a shade darker, and the stitching is different." I spin both pairs round. "Not to mention, the right ones have back pockets and the left ones don't."
"Then you should go for the right ones." Alec puts his opinion in.
"Why? What if she likes the left pair better?" I turn around.
"Because Carl likes resting his hands in the back pockets of her jeans. All guys do." He shrugs.
I look at Jen and she shrugs too.
"Right pair it is then," she decides, handing them to Carl and putting the left ones back.
I've always thought I knew a lot about guys and relationships, despite having been single for over two years, but clearly, I'm only just starting to learn.
But then again, who buys jeans based on whether or not their boyfriend likes to put his hands in the back pockets?
Jen, apparently.
"You should buy a pair like that," Alec whispers as I finger a white skirt.
"What, so you can put your hands in them?" I laugh.
"Ah, she learns quickly!" He winks. "Although, I do like these skirts and dresses you seem to like. You have good legs."
"If you're trying not to flirt, you're doing a bad job at it."
"Oh, I'm not trying not to flirt. I'm just being myself."
"Alec?" I look at him with my eyebrows raised.
"Yes, Princess?" He grins cheekily and puts his arm over my shoulders. Again.
"Shut up."
ALEC
The thought of putting my hands in the back pockets of jeans she's wearing isn't something I should entertain in public.
Her eyes flick up at me when I call her Princess and I put my arm over her shoulders. I have an irrational need to touch her, make sure she's not a figment of my imagination. Surely, someone as sexy as her can't be real.
''Shut up.'' The ends of her hair flick over my arm and I know she's real and she smells like strawberries.
Strawberries make me think of cream, and cream makes me think... Oh hell.
Licking strawberries and cream off her lightly tanned skin as she writhes beneath me...
I run my hand over my face. I need to get laid, and fast.
~
ALEXIS
My door opens and I know who it is without looking.
"Please, Bing, come on in. Make yourself at home," I say sarcastically. I look up from my Kindle when he drops himself on my bed.
Bing - my older brother. He's 20, and he's the biggest pain in the ass in the world. His real name is Samuel, but when he got to my age he already had a name in our area for the biggest man slut. Bing being Bing decided he'd live up to his name, and his friends said he could either be called 'Bing' or 'Tap' in honour of how many girls he'd slept with.
He said 'Bing' and its stuck for the last two years. Only my parents call him Sam. Even Grammy calls him Bing, the legend that she is.
"Hi to you too. You'd think after three months you'd miss your brother." He pinches my toe and I kick him.
"No. It's been lush without you." I smile sweetly.
"Such a rat." He looks around the room. "Nice crib."
I shake my head. "Thanks, gangsta wannabe."
"What?" He fixes his gaze on me.
"Never mind." I sigh.
He looks at me like I'm weird - rich, coming from him - and shakes his head.
"How's my favourite little sister then?"
I look at him like he's the most annoying person in the world.
Which he is.
"I'm your only sister, so I'm your favourite by default, idiot. But I'm fine."
"Good." Bing draws the word out and leans back, flexing his toes.
"Get comfy, Bing." I roll my eyes.
"Yeah, I will, thanks." He grins at me. "Who's that dude in the garden?"
"Oh. That's Alec." I turn my attention back to my Kindle.
"Who's Alec?"
"Grammy's help."
"Her help?"
"Yeah, she's getting old, Bing. Can't do everything she used to."
"Since when has that ever stopped her?"
I look at him over the top of the e-reader and tilt my head slightly.
He has a point. Even when I was ten and Grammy had her hip replacement she still insisted she could do everything. She's independent, strong, just like Mum. She'd never accept help from anyone..
"Maybe she's realised she needs to start taking it easy," I guess.