The Final Note (DJ Series Book 1) by Helen J. Barnes

movie.”
    “You’re not into those sloppy rom-coms are you?” He looks hesitant and I nod with a grin. “I better win this race then.”
    We start our final lap and we both up the speed substantially. My heart is racing, my lungs heaving but I match him stride for stride until the last few hundred meters. He ups his speed again until we are both in a flat sprint. He edges the lead and I really dig deep, running for all I’m worth but I cannot make up the few strides of ground he has on me. We shoot past the benches, both of us smiling because this time it was a fair race and he piped me at the post.
    “Fair enough for you?” he pants, taking his ribble out and sipping from it.
    I double over, my hands on my knees, my chest heaving as I suck in lungfuls of much needed air. Dayton sits, catching his breath and drinking.
    “Okay, I’ll give you that one,” I pant, a satisfied smirk plastered over his face. “What time do we hit the Trafford Centre?”
     
    The next day we pull into the car park of the Trafford Centre at bang on 10am. Dayton has been filling me in on his sister, Chloe, and what kinds of gifts he thinks she will like. I find she is the same age as me, a bookworm, used to love riding and is a full blown girly-girl who loves fashion, designers and anything blingtastic. Not a huge fan of shopping for others and definitely not a girly-girl, I admit I don’t think I’ll be much of a help to him.
    We grab a quick coffee from Starbucks before we start the gift hunt and while we are sat in the busy coffee shop Dayton is approached by a pair of young girls.
    “Hey, Dayton. How are you?” Little-Miss-Sunshine asks, batting her eyelashes.
    He offers her a small smile, not seeming overly impressed that she has just interrupted our conversation about cats vs dogs as pets.
    “I’m fine, thanks.” He is polite but is obviously disinterested.
    “Are you playing at Lexis tonight?” Little-Miss-Adorable asks and I look from the girls to Dayton again who closes his eyes for a second before pasting a smile on his face.
    “Yeah, course. I’ll see you there if you’re out tonight.” He turns his attention back to me but before he can speak blonde number one starts to clap and bounce on the spot like a demented seal crossed with a bunny on acid.
    “Great, it’s always a fab night when you’re on the decks. We’ll see you there!” She almost hyperventilates as she grabs her friend’s arm and exits the shop. “Did you hear that? He said he’ll see us there, that’s like an agreement to meet us. Wait until Jenna hears about this.”
    I can’t help but smile and Dayton rolls his eyes. “What were we talking about?”
    “Erm, cat litter versus poop bags?” I laugh and he frowns for a second before realising we were talking pet ownership.
    “Oh, yeah. Of course. Maybe a change of subject then? What are you doing tonight?” He looks hopeful and I secretly press my hands together in my lap, in prayer that he’s going to ask me out.
    “Nothing as of yet. Why? What did you have in mind?”
    “I don’t imagine that by the time I take you back home I would have had my fill of you, so, do you fancy coming to Lexis and meeting up for a drink?”
    I send up a silent prayer of thanks and try not to sound too eager. “I’d love to, thanks.”
    He looks relieved and leans over the table to lay a light kiss on my cheek. “No, thank you, Alannah.”
    We make our first stop at HMV where we browse, talking about films we love and our favourite comedians. He loves Russell Howard and I love Peter Kay. He is just taking the latest Celebrity Juice DVD to the checkout when he is stopped again. This time by a couple who asks him the same question as the girls at Starbucks.
    “How are you? Are you playing tonight?” Dayton gives them the practiced answers distractedly whilst paying for his DVD. We make a quick exit and when we get out of the shop he puts his arm around me.
    “You know, there’s a reason I don’t