‘Michelle,’ he replies.
‘Aah,’ Charlie says.
‘Seriously?’ I chip in.
He nods. ‘Yeah.’
‘It’s just that I need to hunt Beau down and he’s not on social media. I haven’t tried very hard, admittedly, but it would be great if I had a lead.’ There can’t be that many Beaus in Bude.
‘Why do you need to find him?’ Adam asks.
‘It’s for my blog.’
From his vacant expression I gather he doesn’t know anything about it, but, as he listens to my explanation, his features change from bemused to confused.
‘Does your boyfriend know about this?’
‘Of course!’ I spin out my usual line about how it was his idea and how he’s not the jealous type. I have a feeling I’m going to get bored of people asking me this question.
‘How long have you been together?’ he asks.
‘Just over a year and a half,’ I reply. ‘But I’ve been back in the UK since the end of last year.’
‘Are you going to move over there or will he come here?’
‘Not sure yet,’ I reply.
‘How’s the long-distance thing working out for you?’
‘He really is a nosy little shit, isn’t he?’ I say to Charlie, who laughs and nods.
We fall into a light-hearted silence that lasts all of fifteen seconds.
‘Hey, let’s go out next weekend,’ Adam says, leaning forward. ‘We’ll get Mum to babysit.’
‘Mmm,’ Charlie replies.
‘Come on!’ He clamps his hands on his brother’s shoulders and gives him a small shake.
‘Can you stop messing with me while I’m driving?’
‘I mean it,’ Adam states, letting him go. ‘You need a night out.’
‘Do I?’ Charlie asks. He doesn’t seem convinced.
‘Yes, you do,’ Adam says seriously. ‘It’s been too long. You can come, too, Bridget,’ he adds, his tone turning flippant. ‘Don’t want you to perish from loneliness.’
I laugh. ‘Gee, thanks.’
‘Are we on?’ he demands to know of us both.
‘Depends on my workload,’ I reply when Charlie doesn’t answer. I’m flattered that Adam asked me, but I’m not sure how reliable he is when it comes to seeing things through.
‘Bloody hell, no wonder you two get on,’ Adam mumbles.
Do we?
‘Here at last,’ Charlie says loudly as he pulls into a small car park outside a large, cream-brick apartment block.
