‘Should we …’ I began, just as Harry said: ‘I’ve got an idea.’
I laughed. ‘This is a little odd, isn’t it?’
Harry’s shoulders relaxed. ‘So odd. I feel like I’ve known you all my life and also that we’ve never met.’ He grinned at me and again I felt a pull towards him, wanting to feel his arms around me. ‘What were you going to say?’
‘Just that we could lock the door,’ I said, feeling my cheeks burning. ‘I don’t mean … well, you know? I just thought we don’t want anyone finding us in here.’
‘Good idea.’
I turned the key in the lock and feeling more comfortable turned back to Harry. ‘What were you saying?’
He looked at his feet. ‘I had an idea, but you might think it’s silly.’
‘What’s the idea?’ I liked the way he spoke, his northern accent making the words sound warm and loving. Or perhaps that was just how I was hearing them.
‘I thought that as we can’t get to know each other the normal way, going out to the pictures or having a drink and that, we could do it all now. Here.’
‘In the boiler room?’
‘Told you it was silly.’
‘No, it’s interesting. What do you mean?’
He looked up at me and smiled again. ‘Don’t laugh, but I thought about what we’d do if it was a normal night out. So, first up, I’d pick you up from your house and take you for a drink.’
‘All right.’
Harry gave me his arm, and I looped my hand through it, and feeling faintly ridiculous I walked alongside him as he strolled round the boiler room. It was so small it only took three strides to get across the whole room, and we had to steer round a table that was in the corner, but we walked up and down a few times.
‘Lovely weather we’re having,’ he said, looking up at the ceiling. ‘Glorious sunshine.’
I giggled. ‘Very unusual for the time of year.’
‘Ah here we are,’ Harry said.
‘Where are we?’
‘We’re in the Three Crowns.’ He looked at me and I beamed up at him, enjoying myself now. ‘It’s my favourite pub in Lytham. Right on the seafront, it is. You can hear the seagulls calling, and if the tide’s in …’ He tilted his head. ‘Yes, you can hear the waves.’
‘Do you miss it?’ I asked. ‘The sea?’
‘I do. I like being near water.’
‘I’ve only ever been to Hastings,’ I said. ‘Oh, and I went to Pevensey once with my brother. He was sick because he ate too much ice cream and then went on the carousel.’
‘I’ll take you to Blackpool,’ Harry said. ‘It’s really something. You can have a ride on a donkey.’
‘Well we’re here now,’ I said, sweeping my arm around the boiler room. ‘In the Three Crowns.’
Harry looked aghast. ‘We are not in Blackpool,’ he said firmly. ‘We are in Lytham St Anne’s, thank you very much.’
‘Sorry,’ I said. ‘Lytham.’
‘Have a seat.’
Harry showed me to the corner of the room where he’d arranged some tatty blankets into a neat pile for me to sit on.
Obediently, I plonked myself down and arranged my skirt around my legs.
