“It was, but you were brilliant in stalling her.”
I gasp, and my hand flies to my chest. Behind me, Liz is sitting at the kitchen island, munching on a granola bar. She appraises me with interest.
“How long have you been here?”
“Long enough to hear your mum tell me she said hi and for her to ask about your non-existent love life.”
“And you didn’t think to wave to me when you entered the flat so I wouldn’t have a heart attack?” My eyelids flutter.
“Ididwave to you, but you were too engrossed in picking your invisible split ends to notice.” Liz shrugs. “That’s not my fault. I was hungry. I figured you’d be a while, so it made the most sense if I helped myself to a snack while you finishedup.”
That’s Liz for you. She’s always thinking about her next meal hours before it’s time to eat. Food is always her number-one priority. It’s made our friendship interesting. If it were up to me, I’d stick to making the same old rice and noodle dishes. But with Liz around, I’m pushed outside my comfort zone to try new things at different places she discovers on food blogs.
“If you ask me, shedoeshave a point. It wouldn’t hurt to put yourself out there.”
“Not you too. If I agree toconsidergoing out on a date sometime in thedistantfuture, will that get you off my back?”
“That depends.”
“On?”
“How distant is distant? A week? A month? A year?”
“For now, we’ll say within the next six months.”
“Brilliant, I’ll add a calendar reminder now.”
“You would.”
Liz stands, tosses her wrapper into the rubbish bin, and glances at her watch. “How much time do you need to get ready? Our tickets are for two twenty. We should probably leave here in the next ten or fifteen minutes.”
I was fibbing earlier to Mom when I said we needed to get going to get her off the phone. I wasn’t on with them that long, was I? I frown. “What time is it now?”
“Two.”
“I was talking to them for an hour and a half?” I face-palm and glance down at my clothing. I’m wearing a light-pink blouse with sheer lace sleeves and a pair of black trousers. These clothes will have to do. There isn’t any time to waste. “Give me two minutes.” I rush to my bedroom to collect my coat, my black clutch, and an umbrella.
“We have a thirty-minute window.” Liz laughs. “We’ll be fine.”
That may be true, but as a rule, I can’t stand being late. We had a saying at LABT. If you’re on time, you’re late. The last thing I need is to hear Artem’s nasty voice reverberating in my mind. I shiver involuntarily.
“You okay?”
“Fine.” I pull the lapels of my coat tighter around my body. “Just a chill.”
We take the lift down to the ground floor. As we approach the building’s front door, there is the sound of a heavy downpour thundering against the pavement. We glance at one another. “Make a run to the Tube station?” Liz asks.
I nod. “Let’s do it.”
“Pinch me,”I whisper to Liz, gripping her forearm. “Is this real?” My eyes don’t know where to go. Straight ahead, there is a wall-to-wall display of mannequins dressed in pastel-colored tweed suits. Lining the staircase to my right are mannequins in vintage evening gowns. Finally, as I spin around, there are two frocks from Chanel’s latest cruise collection in a plexiglass case.
“This is indeed real. You’re not dreaming.” Liz squeezes my hand to reassure me. “There are ten rooms for us to explore. We have plenty of time to see everything, don’t worry. We have all day. Breathe in and out.” I take a breath. “That’s it. Just like that.”
I don’t know what I would do without her level head.
“If I let go, are you going to be okay? You promise not to runoff?”
I nod.
