I grin at him as he rakes his hand through his hair.
‘Mine needs a cut,’ he mumbles, trying to keep it back from his face.
‘I like it long.’
Er, excuse me? NowI’mthe one giving himmyopinion about his looks?
‘Do you?’ he asks inquisitively.
I shrug. ‘Yeah.’
‘I’ve been using Nicki’s old headbands to keep it out of my eyes.’
‘I know,’ I say. He gives me a questioning look. ‘The little photo of her above her computer log-in,’ I explain. ‘She’s wearing the yellow one.’
‘Oh, yeah,’ he remembers.
‘Very Harry Styles,circa2013,’ I say.
He throws his burger down in disgust.
‘Sorry, was it 2014?’ I ask. ‘I might have my dates wrong.’
‘Right, that’s it, I’m getting a haircut.’
‘No, don’t,’ I beg, and then immediately wonder why I’m bothered either way. ‘Do you want me to take her for a bit?’ I nod at April. These burgers are delicious but a bit sloppy – it must be a struggle to eat one-handed.
‘Have you finished?’ he checks.
‘Pretty much.’ I take one more bite and go around to take her from him.
‘You sure?’ he asks hesitantly, noticing I still have a third of my burger left.
I can’t speak, so I nod and make assertive-sounding noises with my mouth full until he smiles and hands his daughter over.
I return to my side of the table and straddle the bench, so April can stand up in the space between my legs.
‘Not a baby person,’ Charlie mutters after a while, shaking his head at me.
‘What?’
‘You. Saying you’re not a baby person. What a load of rubbish.’
‘This one’s different,’ I reply, returning my gaze to April. She’s holding my hands, bending her knees and bouncing up and down while making gurgling noises as if earnestly trying to communicate with me.
‘Does Elliot want kids?’
I stiffen at his question. Only last night he asked if Elliot and I wanted children, but he meant us together as a couple and I managed to avoid answering. Now he’s getting down to the nitty-gritty and I don’t know what to say.
I decide honesty is the best policy.
‘No,’ I reply flatly.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see him freeze. ‘No?’ he checks.
‘No.’ And then I add, ‘He’s not a baby person, either.’
‘Soyoudon’t want kids?’ he asks me, stunned.
