Excerpt of London Broil by Linnet Moss

Cutting her pizza with a knife and fork, and taking a tentative taste, she said, "Oh, this is good. The wood-fired oven gave it lots of charred spots."

"I think I can feel the heat from here," he said.

"Since you're so handy," she continued, "I want you to check the showerhead in my bath too. The... passage inside it seems partly blocked. It needs to be thoroughly reamed out. I'm sure you'll have the right tool."

He shook his head at her, but then added, as though he couldn't help himself, "Any other jobs around the flat in urgent need of attention?" He took a long pull off his Bethnal ale, without removing his eyes from her.

"Just one more. There's a little nail sticking out of the wall, only a little one, you understand, but it's been bothering me night and day. It needs to be pounded hard, and I know you have a big hammer." She took another bite of pizza margherita and looked across at him, smiling as she chewed. Was he actually blushing?

"Laura," he began in an ominous voice, but she got up suddenly and excused herself. In the restroom she checked her makeup, combed her fingers through her hair, and going into a stall, removed her panties. She folded them into a small square and palmed them. As she squeezed back past him, she slipped her hand into his jacket pocket and left them there. Settling herself on the banquette, she watched as he pulled them out of his pocket and then hastily shoved them back in, looking up at her with a priceless expression. And then, he sat up straighter and pretended to be eating while he fingered the panties. She noted the exact moment when he felt how damp they were.