A/N: Hello there. I hope you like the next installment of this story. It's date night and we finally see what was in the mysterious parcel (it is a bit rubbish, so don't have too high expectations.)

I'm pretty tired so this note is going to be short and I'm also not 100% convinced about the ending but I think it's ok.

As ever, the alerts and reviews are both appreciated and loved in equal measure. So thank you to everyone who takes the time to read, alert or post your comments.

This is a bit of a filler chapter, but it does move things on a bit and there is some scene setting for later chapters.

Emily PoV

I locked the day's takings away in the safe and slowly got to my feet. I stretched with a yawn and looked over to the door where my clothes were hanging. Tonight was my date with Naomi and I was like a jumping bean. On the one hand I was nervous, so much so I'd found it hard to sleep last night. On the other I was excited and looking forward to finally be going out properly with her. I still didn't really know very much about her and tonight I'd get the opportunity to ask her all sorts of things I'd been itching to find out.

I put the kettle on and leafed through some paperwork but my mind wasn't really engaged. We'd had a really nice time in the pub earlier in the week but we both steered away from anything personal. It meant a lot to me that Naomi had been so honest when she told me how she was feeling and I could see it wasn't something she was very comfortable with so I thought it was best if we kept the conversation light. We'd chatted easily about things in the news or what we'd seen on TV and the time passed quickly. It was nice just being with her after the initial awkwardness had worn off.

I picked up a cup and put a tea bag into it as I heard the kettle click. Of course, if I'm being totally truthful, the flirting made the experience a whole lot better too. After I'd made Naomi practically spit her drink out I felt pretty smug, but to my surprise she'd rallied and definitely gave as good as she got. I think it came as a bit of a shock to her, to be openly flirting with a woman but she seemed to enjoy the teasing. The added bonus of course was that this was often accompanied by a broad smile which instantly made her eyes sparkle. Sometimes I couldn't help staring, thinking how gorgeous she was. It would have been more embarrassing if I hadn't caught Naomi doing the same to me a few times. Well, I don't know she was thinking I was gorgeous, but she was definitely thinking something nice about me.

We'd both been a bit disappointed when it was time to leave, but we'd been in the pub all afternoon and we had work the next day. As we were saying our goodbyes the awkwardness returned, neither of us knew what to do and I think we were both a bit wary after what had happened on Friday. In the end I'd smiled and said I'd see her on Thursday, the relief was evident on her face so I knew it was the right thing to do. She smiled back and nodded before she walked away.

I took a sip of my tea and smiled. I hadn't had to wait until today to see Naomi again, she came into the shop for lunch the next day, and yesterday. It'd been busy and she couldn't stay for long as she needed to get back to work so we didn't talk much. But it was nice knowing she was there and we still managed to flirt a bit more with each other.

I caught sight of my face in the mirror and my expression was what Katie would call my 'stupid soppy face'. It was soon replaced with a frown as I thought about my twin. Needless to say she wasn't a happy bunny at the moment; in fact we were barely speaking. Part of the reason I was tired was because Katie refused to help me in the shop so I'd been managing on my own. Apparently if I wanted to make a tit of myself with TBB then that was up to me but she wasn't going to stick around to watch. I wouldn't normally care but we'd just taken on a new client who seemed to want food for every bloody meeting they had, so I'd spent most of the early morning preparing their breakfasts and the remainder of the time before the shop opened preparing all of the corporate lunches. It didn't seem to bother Katie that her presence in the shop was one of the main reasons I'd taken on the extra work in the first place. I'd tried to reason with her but she wasn't backing down. She'd been really pissed off with me when I got home on Monday for 'abandoning her' but she went ballistic when I told her not only had I decided to forgive Naomi but that I was going on a date with her tonight. Katie's parting shot had been to snarl, 'don't blame me when this all ends in tears' before she flounced out of the house. Believe me nobody does dramatic exits quite like my sister. So anyway, we'd hardly spoken since then and when we did manage to be in the same room together I could feel her disapproving glare on me the whole time.

I sighed as I sat down on one of the sofas, I didn't want to jump the gun but if this did end up going somewhere with Naomi I'd have to tackle Katie's behaviour at some point.

"On that terrifying note I think I'll have a quick lie down." I said to the room.

I set the alarm on my phone for 5.30 and noticed the battery was low so I got up and plugged it in by the desk. It was probably safer to leave it somewhere I'd have to get up to switch it off anyway, I loved sleeping and it often took quite a lot to wake me.

I walked back to the sofa and lay down until my head came into contact with something hard underneath the cushion. I pulled it out and saw it was the parcel Naomi had been carrying the other day. She must have forgotten it when we were talking. I shrugged and placed it on the small table beside me before I lay back down.

I'll return it to her later was my last thought as I almost instantly fell asleep.

Naomi PoV

"Look Eff, I've really got to go. Mandy is in a foul mood and the last thing I need is her taking it out on me by making me work late. She's already got me doing something at six so I'm cutting it fine." I sighed into the phone.

"Can't you tell her you have a date?" Effy ventured.

I snorted, there was no fucking way I was going to tell Mandy anything about my private life. "You're kidding right? Firstly, she'll definitely screw it up by finding something for me to do and secondly, she'll want to know who with. If she finds out I'm going out with a woman my life will be over, the propositioning won't stop."

"God Naomi, could you be any more melodramatic? I'm sure she's not that bad." Effy said in a disbelieving tone.

"Effy, I told you what she was like over lunch that time. I know she's a friend of your Mum's but she's practically stalking me and I'm definitely not giving her any reason to think an afternoon in a hotel is a possibility. Crappy as it is, I really need this job." I replied.

Effy paused, "Alright I get your point. Anyway I spoke to Matt earlier and they'll be ready for you at 8."

"Thanks Eff, I really appreciate it." The restaurant I was taking Emily to was owned by a friend of Effy's Dad which had meant I was able to get in at short notice and they'd pull out the stops, especially as Matt the son of the owner fancied the arse off her and would be looking for me to put in a good word for him.

"No problem, I hope you have a good time. I'll call you for a full report tomorrow." Effy finished as she hung up.

I put down the phone and checked to see if Mandy had noticed I'd been making a personal call, luckily for me she was shouting at someone over the phone in her office and seemed too busy to notice. She slammed down the receiver and came storming out of the office, clearly headed in my direction. I quickly made myself look busy and waited for the explosion.

"Naomi, have you done those notes yet?" She snarled at me.

I nodded, "I was just about to e-mail them to you."

Mandy snorted, "But I asked for them by five."

I checked my watch, I was heading into dangerous territory, "But it's only half past and you said you were going out tonight so I thought you wouldn't read them until tomorrow."

"Oh you thought did you? I don't pay you to think Naomi, I pay you to do as you're fucking told." Mandy said with a sneer, "Honestly, typical dumb blonde. It's a good job you're easy on the eye because you're totally useless otherwise."

I took a deep breath and counted to ten. Don't let her get to you Naomi, it's what she wants. If you rise to the bait she'll keep you here until 10 again and you'll miss your date with Emily. It was enough to calm me down.

"I really am sorry Mandy, I should remember you always ask for things for a reason. After all you're the boss and I'm just the dogsbody." I said in my best contrite voice.

Part of me expected her to see through my grovelling apology and suspect something was up, but I'd forgotten she was the perfect mix of personality to be fooled easily. Thick as shit enough not to work it out and self obsessed enough to believe the world revolved around her.

"Good, as long as you don't forget that we'll get along fine." She started, clearly placated, "Now e-mail me those notes and print me a copy so I can read them at home tonight."

Ah, so that's why she was in a bad mood. Whoever she had plans with tonight had blown her out. I knew it was playing with fire but I couldn't resist.

"Oh, so aren't you going out tonight?" I asked innocently, making sure my face betrayed nothing.

Mandy stared coldly at me for a moment before deciding I wasn't taking the piss, like I said, thick as shit.

"I was supposed to be meeting Shelly, but her husband has come back from a business trip early and is apparently whisking her off to Rome for the weekend." She said with a pout.

I smiled sympathetically, "Oh that's a shame."

Mandy shrugged, "It's not like I can't get other company if I need it."

I studied her carefully, there was something about her tone which made me take notice, it was disappointed. I might be totally dense but I suddenly realised why.

"God, you actually like Shelly don't you?" I said in surprise.

She shot a look at me and I could tell I'd touched a raw nerve. I almost started to feel sorry for her, well that was until her expression changed to one of derision again.

"Don't be so fucking ridiculous Naomi, I'm just pissed off I won't be getting a shag tonight. Seriously, just when I think the depth of your stupidity can't go any lower you come out with something like that." She tutted and made her way back across the office.

I sighed and turned back to my computer, I suppose it was too much to hope Mandy might actually be human. In any case it was probably more hassle than it was worth if she started to treat me nicely. I e-mailed the notes and printed off a copy. I walked into her office and placed them on her desk, glancing quickly at the clock. It was six and I should really start to get ready.

"Is that everything Mandy?" I asked trying not to appear too hopeful she'd forgotten about the other task she'd given me.

She looked up, "Have you done the photocopying I asked you for yet?"

"Err, no but I thought I could get in early and do it first thing." I started but she cut me off.

"See there you go again, thinking instead of following a simple order. Do the photocopying now Naomi, then you can go." She said exasperatedly.

I nodded, "Sure, I'll try not to think anymore."

She gave me a withering look so I quickly left and picked up the documents to be copied. My heart sank as I saw the instruction sheet on the front. She wanted 30 copies of each and they were both at least 10 pages long. I was probably going to be late so I picked up my phone and composed a text to Emily. I'd just pressed send when I heard Mandy hollering at me.

"Jesus Naomi, you don't have time to text people. Do the fucking photocopying. I'll see you tomorrow." She shook her head as she made her way towards the lifts.

I placed the documents in the tray and input I wanted 30 copies. It was now 6.15 and I was definitely going to be late. Suddenly a thought occurred to me, with Mandy gone there was nothing stopping me getting ready while the copier was working. I could come back just before I left and make sure they were collated. I smiled, maybe I could pick Emily up on time after all.

Emily PoV

I half opened my eyes and stretched with a yawn. Hmmm, that was a really nice nap and I obviously needed it. I lay on the sofa contentedly for a while as I woke up properly. I got up with another yawn and made my way over to the desk before I picked up my phone. I checked the time and nearly had a heart attack.

"Shit! 6.55, how the hell did I sleep for so long?" I exclaimed.

I hadn't even heard the alarm, although thinking back there was a point in one of the dreams I was having where I could hear a weird sound that didn't seem to fit. And before you start it wasn't a dream like that ok? It was one of those nice floaty dreams which you can never really remember properly when you wake up but you feel all happy. How the hell was I going to get ready in time? I went to send a message to Naomi to let her know I was running late and noticed she'd already sent me one. I opened it and breathed a sigh of relief.

Hi Emily, this is just to let you know I might be a bit late. My bitch of a boss wants me to photocopy some things for her and I can't get away until it's done. Don't worry though; the table's booked for eight so we still have plenty of time. See you in a while. Naomi x

Phew, at least that bought me a bit of time. I quickly made my way downstairs and was just about to go into the shower room when I heard the bell of the shop go. I frowned, who was that? I went to the door and nearly had heart attack number two when I saw Naomi standing nervously in the doorway. Bollocks, what happened to her running late? She noticed me hovering and smiled. I didn't really have a choice so I opened the door with a look of embarrassment.

"Hi, these are for you." Naomi said holding out a bunch of flowers, "you look lovely."

I blushed, I always found it difficult to accept compliments, but especially when I'd been fast asleep five minutes ago and must look like a crumpled mess.

"Thank you and I thought you said you were going to be late?" I said as I took the flowers.

She smiled, "I managed to make up the time. Multi tasking is another one of my many talents. Is there a problem?"

I decided to come clean, "Actually Naomi, I'm not even ready yet. These are my work clothes, I've got some others to change into. I fell asleep on the sofa and I've only just woken up. I was hoping you'd be a bit late which would give me a chance to freshen up."

I saw her face fall, "Oh right, well we can always take a rain check if you'd prefer?"

I shook my head, "No way, the table's booked for eight right? Give me half an hour and I'll be done. I mean if you don't mind waiting."

The smile returned to her face, "Of course I don't mind, although I meant it when I said you looked lovely as you are."

"Are you always this charming on a date?" I teased.

She shrugged, "I don't know, I wasn't lying when I said I hadn't really been on many. You say I'm being charming, I just see it as telling the truth."

My stomach flipped, she really didn't have a clue how adorable she could be. We stood staring at each other for a while before I snapped out of it.

"Right, I'd better get on. There's a bottle of wine in the fridge upstairs so feel free to help yourself and I won't be long." I said as we made our way through the shop.

"Do you want me to put them in water for you?" Naomi said pointing to the flowers.

I smiled, "That would be great there's a vase under the sink over there."

I left her and hurried into the shower. I jumped under the water and washed as quickly as I could. I got out and towelled myself dry. I moisturised and quickly ran a comb through my hair. As I was reapplying my make-up I realised the fatal flaw in my plan. My change of clothes was upstairs. I had two choices neither of which was particularly palatable. I could put my work clothes back on and replace my freshly showered scent with eau du toasted cheese sandwich. Or I could wrap myself in a towel and go upstairs to quickly grab my clothes; the obvious flaw there being that Naomi might think it was all part of my master seduction plan.

Hmmm, do I make Naomi gag at the smell or make her think she's in a terrible Carry On/ soft porn film? I stood there pondering my options when I heard a gentle knock at the door. I wrapped the towel around me and opened the door a crack.

"I thought you might want your clothes down here, you know so you can get changed in peace?" Naomi said shyly.

I opened the door slightly more widely and went to take the hanger. "Thanks, you're a life saver."

Suddenly I felt the towel slip and I only just managed to grab it before it fell to the floor.

"Oops, that was close." I uttered as I took the clothes from the blonde, who hastily averted her eyes.

Great Emily, why don't you add an 'ooh err matron' in there for good measure. I really hoped she hadn't seen anything but feared the worst when Naomi began to blush and muttered something about leaving me to get dressed before she quickly climbed the staircase.

I closed the door with a sigh and finished my make up before I got dressed. I took one last look in the mirror before I followed Naomi upstairs.

She looked up from her phone as I entered and smiled at me, "If I thought you looked lovely before, now I think you look amazing."

I reddened as I motioned to my outfit "What these old things."

Naomi nodded, "Yeah, I almost didn't recognise you with your clothes on."

My colour deepened, so she had seen a bit more than I'd intended. I stared at her unsure of what to say but I could tell from the tone of her voice and the twinkle in her eye she was teasing me again and trying to make light of it. I sat down and playfully nudged her.

"You shouldn't have been looking." I said as I returned her smile.

She nudged me back, "I wasn't looking."

I took a sip of the wine she had poured for me, "Perv."

"That's rich coming from the woman who christened me Hottie McNicearse because she couldn't stop checking me out." Naomi said with a raised eyebrow.

I coughed and took another sip of wine as we lapsed into an embarrassed silence.

Naomi could clearly sense my discomfort, "If it makes you feel better, I didn't see anything, well a bit of your back but nothing else. You might want to rethink the position of that mirror though."

I raised my arm in the air "Thank you, I knew it wasn't just me. I keep telling Katie it's not appropriate but apparently it's feng shui."

Naomi snorted as she took another gulp of wine, "Is she into all that crap then?"

"Well she was for about five minutes when we got the shop. It's typical of Katie, she's got the attention span of a goldfish sometimes." I sighed.

"Actually that's an urban myth. Goldfish can remember things for up to three months..." Naomi trailed off. "Sorry, I just remember all sorts of useless rubbish like that."

I shook my head, "Don't be sorry, I think it's cute you're a bit of a geek. So am I, if it's any consolation."

Naomi took a deep breath, "Speaking of being a geek, I got you something. I mean to give it to you the other day but I suppose other things happened. I noticed you'd put it on the table."

I looked down at the package, I was intrigued, "It's a present for me?"

Naomi nodded, "It's stupid really. I wanted to give you something to say sorry and my friend Effy suggested I based it on what I know about you, which isn't much really. I explained the only two things I could come up with were you owned a sandwich shop and you tell appalling jokes. So that's where this came from, it's not brilliant or anything."

I let her ramble on a bit, "So this is a gift that combines the two?"

"Yeah, like I said it's nothing really, but I hope you see the funny side." Naomi replied, clearly starting to regret bringing it up.

I set my wine glass down and picked up the parcel before I tore off the paper. Inside was a picture frame containing what I presume was a joke.

"I wrote it out myself." Naomi said unsurely.

I read the content.

The lost sandwich box

A man is taking a trip to Paris and he's signed up for a tour of all the churches and cathedrals.

He's currently on the Île de la Cité taking a tour of the gothic cathedral when he hears a thump beside him.

Slowly he turns round and sees a sandwich box lying on the floor. He quickly draws it to the attention of the tour guide.

"Oh don't worry that's always happening, it's Quasimodo's and he's always losing it" The guide says in an unconcerned way.

The man continues to look puzzled so the tour guide explains further.

"It's the lunch pack of Notre Dame."

I shook my head before beginning to laugh, "That's far worse than any jokes I've ever told you."

Naomi joined in and I could tell she was pleased I'd found it funny, "Hey in my defence there are very few jokes around to do with sandwiches. It was that or why don't you ever get hungry in the desert?"

I smiled, "Because of all the sand-which-is there. Thank God it wasn't that. So really, that was all you could think you knew about me?"

Naomi nodded and checked her watch, "Something I'm hoping to rectify tonight. Come on we'll be late."

We placed our glasses in the sink and I tucked the frame under my arm.

"You're not planning on carrying that everywhere are you?" Naomi asked incredulously.

I shook my head, "No, but I'm going to leave it in the shop so I don't forget to put it on the wall tomorrow."

"I'm glad you like it. Now shall we?" Naomi said with a grin as she took my hand.

Seriously fucking adorable, I repeated in my head as the quickening heartbeat and fluttering butterflies came back with a vengeance.

Naomi PoV

I held the door of the restaurant open and motioned for Emily to go inside, "After you."

She smiled at me, "And the charm offensive continues, I could get used to being treated this nicely."

I felt myself blush, I wasn't joking earlier when I said I hadn't been on many dates, and I certainly hadn't been the one taking someone out so I didn't have a clue what I was doing. I wasn't deliberately trying to be charming, but from the smiles Emily was giving me I was clearly doing something right. I watched her walk through the door and quickly followed her inside. The restaurant was busy but as soon as Matt saw me he came over.

"Hey Naomi, how are you?" He said warmly.

I nodded, "Good thanks Matt, I really appreciate you squeezing us in tonight."

He smiled, "It's no problem, I always try to help out my friends when I can."

Yeah, especially when you fancy them, I thought but I didn't say anything. I wondered how soon it would be before he brought Effy into the conversation. I didn't have to wait long.

"So..." he started, "how's Effy? Is she seeing anyone at the moment?"

I shook my head, "Nope, she's still young, free and single. You know Eff, doesn't really like being tied down."

Matt frowned, "Yeah she's always been a free spirit. But then again so have you, I nearly fell off my chair when Effy said you wanted to book a table for a date."

I glanced at Emily who was standing patiently beside me with a half smile playing around her lips.

"Shit, I'm sorry for being rude. Matt this is my date Emily, Em this is a friend of mine Matt, his Dad owns the restaurant." I stammered.

Matt's eyes widened as he took Emily's hand, "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Emily said as she shook hands.

We were interrupted by a voice from the back of the restaurant, "Matteo, please stop chatting and show our guests to their table. We're rushed off our feet out here."

Matt tutted, "Ok Dad, ladies please follow me."

Again I let Emily lead as Matt took us to one of the tables in a secluded spot near the back of the restaurant; it was perfect for a date, not too close to other tables so it felt intimate but you still got the atmosphere of the restaurant.

I waited until Emily was seated before I sat down. I smiled at her as Matt went to get the menus. "So what do you think?"

Emily looked around before nodding, "It seems really nice and the food looks delicious."

"It is, Matt's Mum does most of the cooking herself and it's simple but mouth watering." I explained.

"Here we go, that's the main menu and the specials are inside. I'll put the wine list down here as well. I'll give you a few minutes to decide." Matt said before leaving.

I opened the menu and pretended to study it but I wasn't really concentrating. I glanced over to where Emily was doing the same and found myself reddening again as my mind wandered. I hadn't been totally honest earlier when I said I didn't see anything when Emily dropped her towel. Yes, I'd seen her back, but I'd also caught a glimpse of the outline of her breast and had a pretty good view of the curve of her arse too. It was those images popping back into my mind that meant I was finding it difficult to concentrate. I wondered if I should say anything. I looked up to find her staring at me.

"Is everything ok? You seem a bit distracted. You don't feel uncomfortable being here with me do you? I think your friend was a bit surprised when he realised I was your date." Emily asked gently.

Shit, the last thing I wanted was for Emily to think I was embarrassed to be seen with her. It was exactly the opposite, it had made me feel great when I noticed the appreciative or envious stares we got from the other diners as we made our way to the table. I reached over the table and took her hand.

"Please don't think that, you look absolutely stunning tonight and I'm very glad you agreed to come out with me. Matt might have been a bit shocked at first but it's far more likely to be because I'm on a date in the first place, I told you it was a rarity." I replied.

Emily began to blush and she looked away, "I told you to stop saying things like that..."

I smiled as I released her hand, "Why? Would you prefer me to tell you you're ugly and you smell?"

She shrugged, "It might make me feel less awkward."

I held my hands out, "Fair enough. Emily, you aren't beautiful after all. You have a face like the back end of a bus, your eyes are all piggy and your body repulses me. Happy now?"

"That makes me feel a lot better thank you," Emily said with a giggle as she finally looked back at me.

We smiled at each other before turning our attention back to the menus. After a few seconds I heard Emily cough. I looked up to find her regarding me with an amused expression.

"So my body repulses you? Funny that because you didn't seem too put off when you were ogling it when my towel fell earlier." She said cheekily.

Now it was my turn to blush, I'd been caught out, I opened my mouth to reply but was interrupted by Matt returning to the table. I'd never been so happy to see another human being. We ordered our food and wine before we lapsed back into an awkward silence. Some date this was going to be if we sat there staring at the table all night. Oh fuck it, confession time.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare. I tried to look away immediately but your skin looked so soft and flawless. I was hoping you didn't notice." I stammered looking at the redhead unsurely.

Emily started to laugh as she helped herself to some bread, "I didn't, it was just a hunch."

"So you tricked me again?" I said indignantly.

She nodded, "Afraid so, like I said you're gullible and it makes it very easy."

I stared at her, she was smirking at me and looked totally smug. I started to pout but I remembered I'd promised I'd try not to sulk, there was no point in giving her any more ammunition. I smiled as a much better thought occurred to me, one where I could get my own back.

"I'm glad you decided against sulking." Emily said cockily.

I leaned forward slightly and stared her directly in the eye. I didn't say anything at first and I was pleased as Emily started to fidget under my scrutiny. Not quite so sure of yourself anymore, I thought as I continued to gaze at her.

She blinked a few times, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

I smiled, "I didn't mean it before when I said your eyes were piggy, I think they're possibly the most beautiful thing about you. I could stare into them all night."

Emily blinked again before turning away, "Please Naomi, I've told you compliments embarrass me."

"Emily, look at me." She turned back, "I'll stop complimenting you, when you stop being such a smart arse about tricking me into telling you I was looking at you naked earlier."

Suddenly she smiled, "Touché, alright I'm sorry I called you gullible and I shouldn't have tricked you."

"Apology accepted and I'm sorry if I'm making you feel self conscious with my outrageous statements about how lovely you are. Honestly, anyone would think we were on a date or something." I said with a grin.

Emily laughed and the tension was immediately broken, "I should have believed you when you said you were new to this dating malarkey."

I smiled, "I know, how could I have got it so wrong? Flowers, compliments, a nice restaurant, what was I thinking?"

"Yeah, well you'll know next time." Emily replied.

"So even though I've totally messed this up, there's going to be a next time?" I teased.

Emily pretended to look shocked, "Well not with me obviously, I'm not sure we can ever recover from this disaster. I meant with the next person you take on a date."

I knew she was only joking, well 90%, or maybe 75%, of me knew Emily wasn't serious, but I still couldn't stop a hurt look crossing my face. It was only fleeting but I could tell Emily had noticed because she grew serious. We were interrupted by Matt bringing the wine over. I quickly tasted it and said it was ok to pour. Once he had gone the awkward silence returned.

"Naomi," Emily said quietly as I finally looked at her, "I'm sorry for taking it too far. It's a bad habit of mine sometimes, I don't always know when to stop. I'm having a great time and it's not your fault I turn into a mushy mess every time you say something nice to me."

I gave her a half smile, "It's ok, deep down I knew you were only joking. It's not your fault I'm totally bricking it about getting this wrong."

"Well you haven't, it's been lovely up until now and food can only make things better as far as I'm concerned." Emily replied as the waiter brought us our starters.

"So does that mean you'll go on another date with me?" I asked unsurely.

Emily nodded as she swallowed a mouthful of melon and ham, "As long as I can keep my big gob shut for the rest of the night and don't put you off totally, I'd love to go out with you again."

She paused, "Of course it does depend on what you had in mind."

I tapped my finger against my lip as I thought, "Hmmm, well seeing as this was such a mistake, how about a trip to a sewage farm?"

Emily smiled at me with her eyes twinkling and once again I was lost as the brown pools drew me in. Finally I managed to look away.

"So how does that sound?" I asked as I looked back up.

"Sounds perfect." She replied with laugh. "Now let's stop teasing each other and get on with this date properly shall we?"

Emily PoV

I saw a look of confusion on Naomi's face and was worried I'd screwed up again.

"I didn't mean we weren't already on a proper date..." I started, oh bollocks why didn't I just shut up and eat my food.

Naomi was still looking puzzled, "It's ok, I know that. I just panicked a bit, in case I was doing something wrong, but that's my paranoia resurfacing."

We finished our starters and paused as the waiter cleared the table.

Eventually I sighed, "I'm sorry, all I meant was as fun as the teasing is we've still not really found anything out about each other."

The smile returned to her face, "So what do you want to know?"

"How old are you? What's your job like? Have you always lived in Bristol?" I shot a few questions at her.

Naomi paused, "Right that's as good a place to start I suppose. So in turn, I'm 22 and I'll be 23 in December, four days after Christmas to be precise, thank you very much parents."

I smiled sympathetically, "I'm guessing it always gets a bit lost amongst the festivities?"

She nodded, "Everyone does family stuff at Christmas and they want to go out at New Year, so my birthday is always when they want to have a rest and recharge their batteries. Usually it just gets wrapped up with New Year's Eve, but everyone else is celebrating then so it doesn't feel that special."

"Well, I promise I'll make a fuss of you..." I started before realising what I had implied, "I mean if we're still together then."

I inwardly groaned and told myself off, what happened to taking a casual approach and not scaring her off by coming on too strong? I cautiously looked at Naomi to see if my words had alarmed her but she was smiling at me.

"It would be nice to be made a fuss of for a change," she replied "if we're still seeing each other of course."

I coughed and quickly changed the subject, "In case you're interested, I've just turned 24."

I saw the surprise register on her face, "Oh, I thought you were younger than me."

"Is that what you honestly thought or is it another attempt to flatter me?" I asked with a smile.

"Honestly, you don't look 24, I really thought you were about 20." Naomi replied earnestly.

I laughed, "In that case, thank you very much."

She frowned, "I suppose I should have worked it out really, running your own business at 20 would have been some feat."

I shook my head, "I was running the business at 20, I started catering for parties and events when I was 19. At first it wasn't much more than a hobby really, something I did in my spare time to bring in a bit of extra cash. When Katie came back from Uni we borrowed some money from our parents and the bank and bought the shop. It's built up from there really. Now we cater for most of the big offices nearby and obviously there's the passing trade, as you well know."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive. So you built it all up from scratch?" Naomi questioned.

I couldn't help puffing my chest out a bit when I realised that I'd managed to impress the blonde, I was always prone to be modest about what an achievement it was but mostly because Katie was always boasting about what a fantastic business woman she was.

"Yeah, pretty much. It's taken a lot of hard work to get established, especially with all of the big chains moving in, but we make a decent living now." I explained.

Naomi sighed, "God I wish I could say the same thing. Seriously, being treated like crap for the minimum wage sucks."

"I guess that's answered my question about your job?" I ventured.

Naomi rolled her eyes, "Part of me wants to forget about it, I already waste too much precious time on my bitch of a boss."

"But another part of you wants to have a really good moan?" I suggested.

Naomi grinned at me, "Are you sure you don't mind, I don't want to bore you or come across as a whinger."

I shook my head, "Go for your life. I know I'm one of the lucky ones who gets to be their own boss and I love what I do. But I overhear enough conversations in the shop to know lots of people hate their jobs and the people they work for."

"Thanks, I'll try not to spend too long on it, but honestly Em, if you knew what my bitch of a boss was like you'd be tearing your hair out as well." Naomi began.

"We can't keep calling her that, it's far too long winded." I said with a thoughtful look.

"Well Boab, doesn't exactly roll off the tongue either." Naomi said with a smile.

I frowned, "No but we could call her Bob."

Naomi laughed, "I like it, from now she can be referred to as Bob. I can even use it in work when I'm talking about her and she'll never know."

The waiter came over with our food and I listened as Naomi filled me in on some of the things Bob had instructed her to do. I nearly choked when she told me about being asked for a threesome at lunch.

"So her friend just came right out and propositioned you?" I asked incredulously.

She nodded, "Yep, bold as brass as I was finishing my dessert, my reaction was similar to yours. Especially when she mentioned that she'd been looking forward to dipping her fingers into a new honey pot."

I scoffed, "Ewww, gross. How did you manage to keep your lunch down?"

There was a pause and when I looked over I could see Naomi was uncomfortable, God were we both destined to be varying shades of red throughout this whole date?

She took a deep breath, "Actually, I thought about you, well the fact that I was coming to see you. I didn't think I'd look very attractive if I'd spent the last half an hour throwing up."

I smiled, "I'm glad I provided a good antidote to the nausea, because I can assure you, you looked very attractive when you arrived, some might even say gorgeous."

She turned an even deeper shade of crimson and stared at her plate.

"I'm sorry, I have no idea why I said that. After having a go at you earlier, I really didn't mean to embarrass you." I said apologetically.

Naomi looked back at me with a shy smile, "Do you really think I'm gorgeous?"

I couldn't help the look of astonishment appearing on my face, she normally seemed so confident so I found it hard to believe Naomi didn't know how stunning she was. I obviously paused too long.

"Sorry, that was a stupid thing to ask. Obviously, I'm not exactly a minger but I'm not gorgeous either." Naomi said with a rueful smile.

I snapped out of my daze, "Naomi, you are gorgeous. In fact I think you're one of the most attractive women I've ever seen."

The blush returned, "Stop it, now look who's making stuff up."

"I'm not making it up, I'm telling the truth. Are you lying when you tell me you think I'm beautiful?" I queried.

She hastily shook her head, "No of course not, you are beautiful."

I smiled, "Well then, I suppose you'd better believe me when I say I think you're gorgeous."

Finally she took a deep breath and made eye contact again, "Thank you."

The waiter came to clear away our plates and asked if we wanted to see the dessert menu, I was pretty full but I didn't want the date to end so I immediately said yes, much to Naomi's surprise.

"How do you eat so much and stay so tiny?" the blonde asked.

I shrugged, "Fast metabolism and I rush around a lot at work."

I ordered a pudding and a coffee, and Naomi ordered a coffee cognac.

She looked at me, "In answer to your third question, yes I've lived in Bristol all my life apart from when I was in London at Uni."

"What did you study?" I asked curiously, I hadn't been to Uni and the whole idea fascinated me, I always felt like I was missing out in some way.

"I was at Kings, studying for a Law degree." She replied shyly.

I looked puzzled, "Did you finish your course?"

She nodded, "Yes, I got a first."

I continued to frown, "But you couldn't find anywhere to do your post graduate thingy, what do you call it?"

"The LPC? Actually I was in the top 1% of law graduates in the country, so I had plenty of offers from some of the top law firms." She stated modestly.

Our coffees and my pudding arrived but I was still too confused to notice, "Naomi, why on earth are you letting Bob treat you like shit and tell you how stupid you are the whole time when you could be training to be a lawyer?"

She stared at me and sighed, "I know it sounds odd, but I've been on an exam treadmill for years, always pushing myself harder and harder, never accepting anything other than perfection. I've put a lot of pressure on myself over the years and so I decided after Uni that I wanted to take a year off and see the world. If I don't do it now I'll get sucked into being ambitious at work and I'll never get the chance. So I took this job, which is clearly crappy but easy, to save some money for my trip."

I began eating, "But when Bob is having a go don't you wish you could just tell her the truth?"

Naomi grinned as she poured her cognac into her coffee, "Don't worry Em, one of the things I'm most looking forward to when I finally save enough money is telling her exactly where she can stick her job."

"Not that you're planning it or anything." I raised my eyebrow.

"Not at all and I definitely don't spend at least half of my day running through that scenario. Anyway let's talk about something else. You've hardly said anything." She said with a slight frown.

I placed my spoon down, "I've told you about the shop but maybe we can focus on me on our next date."

"At the sewage factory." Naomi said smiling.

I nodded "At the sewage factory. But for now there is one question I'm really dying to know the answer to."

Naomi raised her eyebrow, "Oh yeah? What might that be?"

I smiled, "What's your surname?"

Naomi PoV

The question sent me into a total panic, not only had I not been expecting it, I really didn't want to tell her either. We'd been getting along so well and I couldn't stand the thought of her taking the piss. I always got seriously defensive when people laughed at me and once again I didn't want Emily to see me being so childish. I opened my mouth a few times and my eyes darted back and forth as I frantically thought of a way to get out of this.

"Err, I thought I said that information was classified." I managed to mumble.

Emily nodded, "You did. Not to be revealed until date three."

I paused, "And this is date one, so there's two more to go yet."

She shook her head, "By my reckoning, last Friday in the shop was date one, not that it ended that well. Date two, the pub on Monday. So here we are date three and it's time to fess up."

I tried to buy myself some time, technically she had a point. I knew I was probably making it worse by making such a big deal out of it. So I shared a name with a slightly bonkers supermodel, big deal.

"Come on, out with it. It's not something like Focker or Crapbag is it?" Emily coaxed.

I laughed as I shook my head, "No it's nothing rude."

"So then, what is it and why are you so embarrassed?" She questioned.

I shrugged, "I don't like people laughing at me, it's the one time when my sense of humour fails miserably."

Emily smiled, "I'll try not to laugh. I mean it's only fair you tell me, after all you know mine. Fitch is hardly without its problems, believe me."

"Fitch?" I said in a puzzled tone.

"Yeah, that's my surname. I thought you'd have known from the name of the shop." She replied also confused.

I gave her a blank stare.

Emily frowned slightly, "You know SandFitches? Because we make sandwiches and Katie and I are called Fitch?"

The realisation dawned on me, "Oh finally I get it, I did wonder."

Emily shook her head, "You're very strange. So anyway, the fact it helpfully rhymes with bitch made it an absolute pleasure when we were growing up. Naturally it's the family connections these days that make it a pain in the arse."

"Family connections?" again I was confused.

The redhead nodded, "The fact that my parents are Rob and Jenna Fitch?"

I tried not to but couldn't help blankly staring at her again.

"Don't get fit, get Fitch? Dad's a fitness expert and Mum's a life coach. They're on early evening TV and have been dubbed 'The West Country's answer to Richard and Judy'?" Emily explained.

I held my hands up, "Sorry, I don't watch that much TV and I've been in London for ages. I might recognise them if I saw them."

Emily tilted her head to one side, "You really have no idea who they are do you?"

"Not a clue, sorry." I said with a shrug.

"Don't be sorry, at least that's answered one of Katie's fears." Emily replied.

I raised my eyebrow, I didn't need to be a genius to work out that Katie hadn't been joking when she'd said she didn't like me. "Which is?"

"That you were only interested in me because my parents were famous and you were after my money." Emily said apologetically.

I swallowed, "Boy, I knew she wasn't a fan after the other day, but I wasn't expecting that."

Emily shrugged, "We've both had experience of people asking us out because they wanted to meet our parents. That's why I try to wait before I take anyone home. Well that and the fact that they're both as mad as a box of frogs."

"Emily, I really didn't know, I'd never be interested in someone because of who their family was and certainly not because they had money." I began.

She reached over and took my hand, "I know that. Katie may be a cynical bitch, but I like to think I'm a much better judge of character."

I smiled "Good, because I'm only interested in getting to know you."

She held my gaze for a while, which sent my heartbeat into overdrive. Her next words made it worse, but for entirely different reasons.

"Now stop changing the subject and tell me your surname." She demanded with a laugh.

I took a deep breath, I might as well get it over with. So what if she laughed, nothing was going to bring me down from my high.

"It's Campbell." I said sheepishly.

"Oh." She said quietly as she pursed her lips.

I could see the corners of her mouth twitching and I could tell she was trying not to smile. She took a deep breath and gulped. I narrowed my eyes.

"So," she continued, "we're you named after the supermodel or is it a coincidence?"

"Of course it wasn't deliberate, my Mum might be a pain in the neck sometimes but she's not totally cruel." I said incredulously

I stared at her as her eyes began to water slightly as she continued to struggle to contain her laughter. Eventually she started to giggle and I found myself laughing too.

"Sorry, I'm not laughing at you..." Emily said as her shoulders shook.

"Of course not, you're laughing with me." I responded sarcastically.

Finally she stopped and only a few titters escaped, "It's not as bad as I thought, I probably wouldn't have even laughed if you hadn't made such a big deal of it."

I raised my eyebrow, "Oh so it's my fault? It's a good job you look so cute when you giggle, otherwise I might not forgive you."

She looked at me shyly, "So does this mean you still want to take me on another date?"

Oh God, the puppy dog eyes were out in force, but I didn't care if I was being manipulated, Emily could stare at me like that as often as she wanted.

I nodded, "Actually, I'd like to take you out this weekend if that's ok?"

I watched a slight frown appear on her face and I was worried in case I'd appeared too eager. "If it's too soon we can leave it a while..."

"No it's not that honestly. It's just I often have family things to do at the weekends so I might need a bit more notice. Let me think about it ok? But I really want to, if I can rearrange some things." She replied finally smiling at me.

"I don't want to cause you any difficulties; we can go out another time..." I said tentatively.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Naomi, I said I'd try to swap things around. I've had a great time tonight and really want to go on another date with you."

I smiled as I motioned for the bill, "Ok I'll leave it with you."

Matt brought the bill to the table and I quickly grabbed it before Emily could see. I placed some notes into the wallet and told him to keep the change. He showed us out and we said our goodbyes. I took Emily's hand and we walked towards the taxi rank.

"I wish you'd let me pay for some of the meal." Emily stated as we walked.

I shook my head, "I asked you out, so I paid."

Emily scowled, "Well next time it's definitely on me ok?"

I grinned, "So my master plan to get another date worked then?"

Emily tutted, "Oh, you're an evil genius. I'd already said I wanted to go out with you again."

"I know, but it never hurts to have a backup plan." I responded.

We got to the rank and stood awkwardly for a few moments. I wasn't sure what to do, I know Emily had noticed my relief earlier in the week when we'd arranged our date. It wasn't that I didn't want to kiss her again, I was just nervous and that was making me feel pressured. I didn't think I'd freak out again, but then I hadn't planned to last Friday either.

"So you'll be ok getting a taxi home?" I asked.

She nodded, "Yeah I'll be fine, unless you want to share?"

I paused, I didn't want to let Emily know that I'd used virtually all of my money on the meal and only had enough for my bus fare.

"Actually, the bus goes really near my house so it's easier if I get that." I said in what I hoped was a convincing voice.

Emily smiled at me, "If you're sure?"

I nodded "Honestly, it's much simpler. So I'll try to pop into the shop tomorrow and maybe you can let me know about the weekend?"

"I'd like that." Emily replied.

We stood gazing at each other, both of us smiling inanely; in fact, we probably looked a bit mad.

I coughed and pointed in the direction of the bus stop, "So I'd better go, my bus will be here soon."

I leaned over and kissed her softly on the cheek, "Thank you, I had a great time. Goodnight Emily Fitch."

Emily smiled at me and gently brushed my lips with her own, it was a peck really and didn't last long but it still sent my pulse sky high. "Me too. Goodnight Naomi Campbell."

I walked to the bus stop and couldn't help punching the air, "Yes!"

I quickly looked around to see if Emily had noticed and found her staring at me with her arms folded. She was shaking her head but she was smiling. "I saw that."

I started to go red but then thought fuck it, who cares if she saw me? I was on cloud nine and I didn't mind everyone knowing.

"What? I can't help it if I'm happy because I've been on a near perfect date with a beautiful woman." I called back.

Even from this distance I could tell she was blushing, "Night Naomi, I'll see you tomorrow."

I winked at her, "You can count on it."

I watched as she got into the taxi and it drove off, before she was out of sight she turned around and blew me a kiss.

Looks like I was wrong I thought with a grin as I got on the bus, make that a perfect date.