Half an hour later Pete appeared, dressed in a leather aviatorjacket against the November night, holding a bottle of wine in one hand and Patsy tucked under his arm.
‘I don’t think any of your neighbours saw me,’ he confided, glancing around.
Ally couldn’t wait to get a cuddle from Patsy. She lifted the ball of fluff out of Pete’s arms and kissed the little snub nose before leading them into the sitting room.
‘Pizza?’
‘I wouldn’t say no.’ He grinned. ‘I didn’t have time to think of food with that crowd.’
She suddenly felt self-conscious, watching him glancing around her little flat.
‘Nice,’ he observed. ‘And I’m finally getting to meet your fish.’
‘You’re the first new people they’ve met, to be honest,’ she said, introducing Patsy to the tank, which he sniffed at happily, before struggling to be put down on the floor, where he began to explore, corner by corner.
‘I hate to ask, Pete, but is he house-trained?’
‘Not really, he’s a bit small .?.?.’
He took a doggie trainer-mat from his backpack and unfolded it on the kitchen floor. Of course, she reminded herself, he’s a practical guy. She’d been used to Francis immediately phoning ‘a man’ if there was a leak, or a door was wonky on its hinges. Pete would set to it without thinking .?.?. hewas‘a man’. He flopped down on the sofa with a sigh of relief and looked at her. It struck Ally that she’d never actually been completely alone with him before.
‘Thank you. I really can’t tell you. I knew staying there wasn’t an option long term, but this has really brought it home to me.’
Ally handed him a glass of wine and half of the pizza.
‘Seriously, Pete, it sounds really dangerous. I don’t know how you stuck it out this long.’
‘Me neither. I suppose I didn’t know which end of me wasup for a while. Really nice place, by the way,’ he said through a mouthful of pizza. ‘Cosy.’
‘You mean cramped. And the giant fish tank doesn’t help.’
She explained to him about the flat down in Grand Canal Dock where she used to live, about the sky-high rent and the balcony with the vista of hundreds of other exorbitantly priced apartments. And at the end of five years with Francis, what had she to show for it?
‘The rent or the relationship?’ He smiled ruefully.
‘Both, I suppose. Actually, that’s the first time I’ve put it all into words. So, what about you? I don’t want to be nosy, and you can tell me to mind my own business, but .?.?. what happened with your house?’
‘Later. So .?.?.’ He smiled shyly at her. ‘That was the ex. You know what? I wouldn’t have put the two of you together.’
That was interesting, coming from a complete stranger.
‘Really? You wouldn’t? How come?’
‘You’re a bit too .?.?. cool for him, I’d have thought.’
‘Me? Cool?’ She burst out laughing. ‘Are you kidding? I’m a massive klutz. Remember my jogging outfit and me being run over by .?.?. OK, I might as well admit it: my crush .?.?. on his racing bike?’
‘Ah jeez, yeah, I was wondering about that .?.?.’
‘Were you? Why?’
‘Something about the way you said “a guy I know”.’
Not much got by Pete, she realised.
‘I don’t reallyknowhim,’ she found herself blurting, rather too quickly, but Pete seemed to have moved on.
‘Still, you looked pretty good that day .?.?.’ He chuckled. ‘No, I stand by what I said. I think you’re cool.’
