She blushed. ‘Sorry, I was just wondering how old you are .?.?. You just seem to have done so much.’ In truth, she was trying to cover her embarrassment.
‘Forty-one. I used to look younger.’ He smiled ruefully.
It struck Ally that once he’d hit trouble, his old cronies had melted into the background.
‘Is there anything I can do to help? My sister’s a lawyer. She’s in family law but she knows people.’
‘Ally, it’s OK, you already have helped me. Just being here with Patsy means the world.’
The little dog had curled up on the mat between them and was snoring peacefully.
‘So, tell me about you, miss Calvin Klein coat.’
So, he’d noticed that. What else had he noticed? Ally regaled him with the story of the fateful email and the disastrous firing – he laughed heartily, which kind of surprised her, since it hadn’t felt remotely funny at the time.
‘I love it,’ he muttered while standing up to tidy up. ‘Stingy wanker.’
He cleared away the glasses, and the now-empty wine bottle, and wiped down the counter. This was not a guy who was used to being waited on.
‘So .?.?. Pete, you promised to tell me later .?.?. which is now. What happened to your house?’ She was trying to sound nonchalant.
He paused and sighed, as though watching the scene on the inside of his head. ‘I’d put it in Tanya’s name, so she and the two boys would be OK.’
Tanya. OK.
‘Your sons?’
‘No, hers. But I’ve always thought of them as my own.’
Didn’t seem quite like it from where she was standing. Ally didn’t want to pry any further, but it looked like Petehad somehow ended up far worse off than anyone around him, despite the fact he’d earned everything and done nothing wrong. God, life really wasn’t fair. Did the mean people always come out on top? He seemed distracted, so she found herself idly contemplating his body. He wasn’t a gym-bunny type, just powerful in a natural way from a lifetime of being physically active.
There was a silence. It seemed as though Pete didn’t feel quite ready to tell her about his home – or rather, homeless – situation. Which of course was the bit she really wanted to hear about. In truth, she was exhausted. It had been a long day and she was starting to flag.
‘Look, this sofa wouldn’t fit a six-year-old. I’ll get you some cushions and you can put them on the floor.’
Suddenly, she began to feel self-conscious, which she tried to hide by rifling through the bedroom wardrobe, aware of the queen-sized bed that filled the poky space, leaving barely enough room to shuffle around it.
She emerged with a duvet and pillows and dumped them on the sofa.
‘Erm, I’ll give you a hand .?.?.’ She was painfully aware of behaving a bit strangely, then finally admitted the whole thing was ridiculous and gave up.
Pete was sitting on the sofa. They looked at each other and he grinned sheepishly. She felt the awkwardness of the weirdly intimate situation with someone she saw as a workmate and friend but .?.?. what would it be like to—?
‘Ally?’ She heard his voice. ‘Ally?’ he repeated.
‘What?’ She looked at him, furious with herself for blushing uncontrollably.
‘If this is awkward, I can go. Seriously, I get it. You’ve been really good, but I’d understand if .?.?.’
She realised right then that she didn’t want him to leave andthat, despite the harrowing story, talking with Pete had been the most relaxed, fun evening she could remember.
‘No, that’s not it .?.?.’
She found herself plonking down beside Pete, conscious of the muscular leg next to her own.
‘It feels weird. Nobody’s stayed here since I moved in.’
He leaned forward, with his elbows resting on his knees. ‘Do you want me to go?’
