‘Yes, but she’s such a pain in the arse.’ They laughed.
‘Luca’s lovely. But he’d run a mile if he knew I wanted to be his girlfriend.’
‘Christ! What a pair. Are yousurewe can’t make this work?’ He grinned, waving his hand between them.
‘Hmm, maybe I was a bit hasty,’ she joked.
‘Seriously, Claire,’ he said, sobering up. ‘I think we could have had something.’
‘Yeah,’ she said sadly. ‘I think you’re probably right.’ Maybe if she hadn’t known Luca, if he didn’t have Sophie… She took a sip of her tea. ‘Um, Mark… can I ask you something?’
‘Yes?’
‘Are you still going to publish my book?’
He threw back his head and laughed. ‘Of course I’m still going to publish your book. And I’m still waiting to read your novel too.’
‘Right. Great.’
‘Well, good luck with your chap,’ he said, raising his teacup to hers.
‘Good luck to both of us!’ She clinked her cup against his. ‘I think we’re going to need it.’
A week later, Claire still hadn’t seen or heard from Luca, and with every day that passed she became more anxious. She didn’t want to race around and tell him she had broken up with Mark in case it freaked him out. But shewas terrified he’d be off banging some other girl if she left it too long.
On Monday she was only half listening to Yvonne recounting her weekend’s activities as they unpacked boxes when Luca’s name brought her up with a jolt.
‘Sorry, what did you say?’
‘I said I almost felt sorry for Luca, with that cow Aisling crawling all over him. I don’t know if you remember her – she was at Ivan’s bar that night.’
‘She can do the splits,’ Claire said, feeling queasy.
Yvonne laughed. ‘Fancy you remembering that! Anyway, she’s been trying to get her claws into Luca for ages, and I think she senses his weakness now and she’s closing in for the kill.’
‘Weakness? What weakness?’
Yvonne shrugged. ‘I don’t know exactly, but there’s something wrong with Luca. He’s off his game. He’s not his usual cocky self.’ She sighed. ‘I know I shouldn’t feel sorry for him – that boy’s brought it all on himself – but I can’t help it. He doesn’t deserve Aisling Wilson.’
‘So, did he…’ Claire gulped ‘…did he go off with her?’
‘No.’ Yvonne laughed. ‘He went home on his own to paint and sulk, so he lives to fight another day. You should have seen Aisling’s face…’
Claire spent the rest of the day trying to come up with an excuse for calling over to Luca’s after work. She knew she shouldn’t need an alibi – they were supposed to be friends, and he hadn’t given her any indication that he had changed his mind about that. But, nevertheless, she thought it would seem more casual if she had a reason for calling. Unfortunately he hadn’t left any of his stuff in her car after their trip to Brittas – she had done a thoroughsearch. There wasn’t even anything she could pretend shethoughtwas his. If only she could offer him another five hundred for an advanced course of lessons, she thought desperately.
Finally she came up with something. It was spurious at best, but it would have to do. So, after work that evening she made her way to his place. She didn’t call in advance, not wanting to give him the chance to put her off.
When she got to his building, the door was open and two pale blonde girls were sunning themselves on the steps. They said ‘hi’ to Claire as she passed. Her heart was hammering as she climbed the stairs. Maybe she should have rung the bell, even though the front door was open. Luca might not even be in. And what if he wasn’t alone? Maybe Aisling Wilson would be there, doing the splits – on his face. This was probably a really bad idea…
She tried to steady her nerves as she knocked on his door.
‘Claire! Hi.’ He looked surprised to see her, but she couldn’t tell if he was pleased or not as he stood blinking at her in the doorway.
‘Hi. Um… can I come in?’
‘Yeah,’ he said. He stepped back, holding the door.
She was relieved that he seemed to be alone.
