That was why I’d learnt early on that humour was a good way to deflect your feelings. If you joked about things and acted like you didn’t care, it made life easier.
So I focused on my ‘strengths’ and played up to the ‘cute and funny’ labels. Women seemed to like that.
The buzzer rang and my pulse raced.
She’s here.
‘Yes?’ I said as I pressed the intercom button.
‘Delivery for Ben 10!’ Sarah said and I laughed. I liked that she’d used my nickname suggestion.
When I opened the door, the sound of Sarah’s footsteps made my heart thud against my chest. And as I caught sight of her, I swallowed hard.
Fuck, she looked good.
‘Hi,’ I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
‘Hi.’ She smiled and my pulse quickened again.
‘Welcome to my humble abode.’ I stepped aside to let her in, then reminded myself not to check out her arse in the fitted dress she was wearing.
‘Oooh,’ she said as her head swivelled from left to right. ‘It’s so cool! I love the whole exposed brick wall vibe and how open-plan it is.’
‘Glad you like it. How was the party? Hope it wasn’t too wild!’ I laughed and she rolled her eyes. That was the Sarah I’d missed. I loved how I got under her skin.
‘It was brilliant. You should come to the next one. See what it’s all about.’
‘Maybe,’ I said, holding her gaze. We just stared at each other for a few beats. God, she had beautiful eyes. I could tell she was tired because they didn’t have that same sparkle, but they still looked amazing. ‘Can I get you a drink? I have beer, beer or beer!’
‘Golly, how will I choose?’ she said, putting on a plummy accent.
‘Are you taking the piss, Jeffries?’
‘A little.’ She smirked.
‘And I don’t speak like that.’ The corner of my mouth twitched.
‘You do. It’s… different.’
‘Gooddifferent?’ I asked.
‘I don’t hate it.’ She smiled and our eyes locked again. The silence stretched for several seconds before she broke it. ‘So, we should get cracking. What do you need me to do?’
‘I don’t really have a system. I’ve just been opening the boxes and pulling everything out and putting them in different parts of the room. Bedroom stuff over there’—I pointed to the left—‘kitchen stuff obviously by the kitchen then the rest is just getting dumped by the sofa, which will be the living room area.’
‘Great. Do you have a pair of scissors or anything to break the tape?’
‘Somewhere…’ I paused. ‘I’ve just been using my hands. Let me see if I can find them.’
‘Don’t worry. I’ll use my keys.’ She reached in her bag and pulled them out. Then Sarah lined all of the boxes up against the wall and started ripping open each one. ‘If I open them all up first, I won’t have to keep stopping and starting to do it.’
‘Good idea.’
‘So…’ she said as she moved onto the next box. ‘About my family. I have a brother, called Adrian, who’s the one getting married to Debbie. They’ve been dating for about three years. She’s nice enough. They’re harmless. They’ll be too busy focusing on their big day to give you the Spanish Inquisition. Then there’s my parents…’ She let out a long sigh.
‘You don’t get on?’
‘We do… but they’re a little stuck in their ways. A bit old-fashioned. My mum still does everything for my dad like he’s incapable. Irons, does all the housework, cooks every day, including Jamaican pepper pot soup from scratch on Saturdays and rice and peas with either curried goat or jerk chicken on Sundays, whilst he just puts his feet up and watches the football or cricket.’
