‘That was fun,’ Sam said, plonking down beside Sive and grabbing a cup of hot chocolate. His face was flushed and glowing from the cold, and Sive had an almost overwhelming urge to burrow into his side and lay her head on his shoulder. He looked so solid and strong.
‘That’s one word for it,’ Jonathan said dryly.
‘You’re not a convert?’ Aoife asked, her lips twitching.
‘I don’t think I’ll be making it a regular thing.’
‘You’re very good,’ Sive told Sam.
‘Thank you.’ He grinned. ‘We should come back another time, when your ankle’s better, and you can show me some tricks.’
‘Yeah,’ Sive said faintly. ‘We must do that.’
They chatted happily as they warmed up over hot drinks, then they went to an Italian restaurant for lunch. It was already busy with shoppers and families out for the day, but they managed to get a booth at the back. It was blissfully warm and cosy inside.
A waitress led them to their table and asked if any of them had allergies as she handed them menus. Everyone said no, andSive automatically did too, but then she did a double take. ‘Oh, hang on – I’m not sure. I think I might be allergic to … cheese?’ She looked to Aoife, who shrugged.
‘You don’t know if you’re allergic?’ Sam asked, with a bemused smile.
‘I … can’t remember. I think maybe certain types,’ she said distractedly as she grabbed her phone and held it in her lap underneath the table while she quickly googled foods that you shouldn’t eat when you were pregnant. ‘No, I’m all good,’ she said, looking up at the waitress. ‘No allergies here.’
She caught Rocco looking at her quizzically.
‘None for me, thanks,’ she said, covering her glass as Jonathan went to pour her some wine. ‘Day drinking doesn’t really agree with me.’
Once again she found Rocco giving her a puzzled look. Could he guess? But he didn’t say anything, and they all chatted easily as they warmed up over delicious pizzas with charred bubbled crusts.
When they’d finished, Mimi and Rocco left to hit the shops.
‘Do you want to do any shopping?’ Jonathan asked Aoife.
‘I probably should, but I really don’t feel like it.’
‘Good.’ He smiled. ‘Me either.’
‘Do you want to come home with us?’ Aoife asked Sive.
Sive looked to Sam. ‘What do you think? We could go shopping, or there’s the cinema.’ She really should let Jonathan drive her home, but she wanted to prolong her time with Sam. And sitting side by side in a cinema wasn’t a romantically charged activity.
‘I fancy seeing a movie,’ Sam said with a smile.
‘Great! Me too.’ She pulled her phone from her pocket. ‘Let’s see what’s on.’
They talked through the options and settled on a romantic comedy with Sandra Bullock. ‘Are you sure?’ Sive asked. ‘I’m happy to see something else if you’d prefer.’
‘No, I love Sandra Bullock. And I have a secret addiction to romcoms.’
‘Not so secret,’ Jonathan said teasingly. ‘He’s been perving over Sandra Bullock since he was knee-high to a grasshopper.’
‘Please!’ Sam said, hand on heart. ‘My feelings for Sandra are pure.’
‘Like a knight of old,’ Sive said, laughing.
‘She was my first great unrequited love.’
‘Well, you have excellent taste.’ Though Sive was almost starting to feel jealous of Sandra Bullock.
Sam booked the tickets on his phone, and they said goodbye to Aoife and Jonathan outside the restaurant. Darkness had fallen while they were having lunch and the large illuminated fountain was putting on a spectacular display, jets of rainbow-hued water shooting into the air like fireworks before falling to earth again. A fine mist from the spray hung in the air.
