‘You don’t sound convinced. Is it my age that bothers you more than yours? Am I too young for you?’
‘No!’ He sat up suddenly on the sofa and gathered her in his arms, kissing her gently. When he pulled away he said, ‘It’s my age that bothers me. I’m nearly thirty and I don’t feel like I’ve achieved half of what I wanted to by this age.’
‘You’re a partner in a successful business — I’d say that’s quite an achievement.’
‘It still feels more like Liz’s business than mine, though. Well, let’s face it, itisher business, whatever my contribution.’
‘But it wouldn’t be as successful without you.’
‘Yes, I know that but...’ He paused. ‘Take today for instance. Lord Weatherton came into the kitchen and assumed I was Liz’s chef. An employee. It really gets to me. I want to develop my own reputation.’
‘Have you told Liz that?’
‘No. I don’t know how to approach her about it. Or what she could even do if I did.’
Emma was surprised by the look of sadness on his face. ‘If I know Liz, she’d want you to be upfront with her. She can’t deal with something she doesn’t know anything about and she wouldn’t want you to be unhappy. You’re friends as well as business partners.’
Jay sighed. ‘That’s what I’m worried about. I don’t want to lose our friendship.’
‘You’re more likely to do that if you keep things from her. So what are you saying? Do you want to wind up the partnership?’
‘Not exactly, no. Not yet, at least.’ He paused. ‘You know I’ve always wanted to own my own restaurant.’
‘Yes, you used to talk about that a lot.’
‘It just seems so unattainable so I’ve stopped talking about it.’
‘Because you haven’t got the money for it yet?’
‘Exactly!’
‘So you still need to work with Liz.’
‘I do. And I love working with her. I just need to be able to do something for myself too.’
‘Like what?’
‘I don’t know. I was thinking about entering some competitions.’
‘What, likeMasterChef?’ Emma said with a laugh. She remembered Jay’s old obsession with the television programme.
‘No! I don’t think I’m brave enough for that. Not sure I would want to be filmed either. But maybe get some experience in some smaller competitions?’
‘I think it’s a great idea,’ Emma said, cuddling up to him again.
‘You do? I’m worried I’ll need to take time out of the business and that Liz will have to take everything on herself. And what about us? It would mean spending even less time together.’
‘But if you’re happier, then maybe we will be too. And I’m sure you can work it out with Liz. If you do well, it will be a great advertisement for the business.’
‘I hadn’t thought about it like that.’
‘Then you should. We only have one chance at life. Speak to Liz and see what she says. You never know, she might even be able to help.’
‘I will. But what about you? You haven’t seemed very happy recently either. If it’s not us, what is it?’
Emma sighed. ‘It’s work too.’
‘Is Heather still giving you a hard time?’
