‘I wish I had your confidence. Poppy thinks he’s “well dodge” at the moment.’
‘You need to arrange something to get everyone together. Maybe on neutral territory. Who knows, the kids might even hit it off and all get along?’
‘I think it’ll take some time to get them all to agree to that, but it sounds like a good idea eventually.’
‘Well, in the meantime, go off and spend the summer together. If you don’t, then you’ll never know what could have happened.’
I think about what Carol has said. Am I brave enough to take the plunge and spend the summer with a man I still don’t know that well? The old me most certainly wouldn’t dream of it. But where has staying close to home and letting my grown-up kids rule the roost got me so far? I am fifty, a grown woman who is letting my ex-husband and two daughters practically dictate my life. With a newfound confidence – or perhaps one too many pina coladas – I message Elias.
Hope everything was okay with Danny when you got back. About thatsummer in the French Riviera. I think we should do it xx
I hoped Elias would excitedly message me immediately, so I feel slightly forlorn when there is no response thirty minutes later. What if it was a flippant off-the-cuff remark? Perhaps he didn’t mean what he said after all. Maybe it was one of those things like when you say, ‘Let’s go on a cruise one day’, or years back when Michael dreamed of going on Concorde but only had the finances for a budget airline.
When I go to bed and there is still no response, I regret the text so badly that I decide to delete it. I am huddling under the duvet, regretting not accepting the offer earlier, when there is a knock on the door.
At first, I am nervous that someone is knocking so late, but I assume it’s Michael having got drunk on his Saturday night out with the boys and without having successfully ‘pulled’ as the girls would say. He has probably come around here to have his last word about the dating site. I wouldn’t normally answer at this hour, but the way Michael has been behaving recently, I suspect it’s him.
‘Michael, what do you want now?’ I say as I open the door.
But when I look at the man standing there, I quickly realise that it is definitely not my ex-husband.
Chapter Thirty
I stare in shock as my eyes focus on Elias and the overnight bag at his feet.
‘Were you expecting someone else?’ he asks. He looks tired and not too amused that I thought he was Michael.
‘I’m so sorry. I thought it was a drunk Michael. He can turn up sometimes… You know it’s over between us, right? It’s just he can be such a pain.’
I cringe as I make excuses about Michael. I am mortified at the greeting I have given him after he has travelled all this way.
‘Did you get my text message?’
‘No. In my haste to come here, I left my phone at home.’
‘Ah, no problem, we can talk about it again.’
I awkwardly pull myself closer and hug him tightly. I have said completely the wrong thing and stumble as I try to make things better.
‘Gosh, I wasn’t expecting you. What a shock. A nice shock, but…’
‘Yeah, I took the last train down and thought I’d surprise you. I hope it’s not inconvenient.’
‘Oh, my goodness. No. Of course it’s not. It’s amazing to see you. I just didn’t expect to see you so soon.’
‘Obviously,’ he says. He sounds sarcastic, and the atmosphere feels tense.
‘I mean. It’s great, though. Really great. I’m so happy to see you. It’s wonderful. Umm, absolutely wonderful.’
‘Yeah, well, Danny was out. James was locked in his room gaming, and I thought, what am I doing here sat in the living room alone? I should be spending the weekend with you. Like a naughty schoolboy, I decided to bunk off and run away. Well, for the night, anyway. I’ve got to be back by tomorrow evening.’
‘Wow, well… Thanks for coming down. It’s the most wonderful surprise.’
Even though I was ready for bed, I soon perk up and make us both a drink. With my glass in hand, Elias pulls me closer to him on the sofa. The feeling of having my head on his shoulder is always one of great comfort. As we finish our drinks, Elias looks at me with a concerned expression and lowers his voice as if he is scared of my response.
‘Tell me the truth, now, are you happy I showed up, or should I have checked first? I just grabbed a bag and jumped on the train. I didn’t think you might be busy or in bed. Was I being a bit too presumptuous?’
‘No, not at all. You’ve made me very happy.’ I grin and then remove the empty brandy glass from Elias’s hand.
