‘It’ll be wonderful hearing Emma sing,’ sighed Perry with pride.
‘Absolutely,’ agreed Bunty, again considering the turn of events. If she hadn’t decided to sell her house, there wouldn’t have been an open house day and no piano in the hall. For it had been the estate agent’s idea to decorate the huge, marbled entrance with a grand piano. Emma had sung and played the instrument, looking every bit the part. Felix Paschal had clearly been taken with both her and the house, declaring he’d buy the place after hearing her sing, providing the piano was part of the sale. And the rest was history. Bunty smiled affectionately. She was so glad her childhood home was in such good hands – and that she still had connections to it.
Jack, on reading his invite, raised an eyebrow.Hmm, very interesting, he thought, seeing it as an ideal opportunity to involve Tara. Who wouldn’t want to meet the rich and famous? He could picture it now; him, looking suave and sophisticated, introducing her to his friends, well, a couple of them anyway, milling around the impressive rooms, rubbing shoulders with the stars, sipping champagne… Oh yes, she couldn’t help but be impressed. Yes, he’d invite her at their date at The Smugglers.
His thoughts then turned to tomorrow night, when he was meeting Tara. They had exchanged mobile numbers the day she’d been at his house, after he’d asked her out. Tara had explained that being a single parent could often involve a change of plan. ‘It should be fine, but just in case,’ she’d told him. ‘Calum is due to be at his dad’s that evening.’
Jack checked his phone again, making sure there were no messages and all was on track. Good, there wasn’t one. Everything was still on.
For once, Jack had decided in advance on what to wear for his date. Usually, he’d just open his wardrobe and pull out the first thing to hand. In fact, he’d even bought a new outfit. The pale grey shirt highlighted his eyes perfectly.
The invite to the party had come at just the right time. It would make great conversation, thought Jack. Actually watching the first episode of the TV drama would be exciting too, especially amongst all the cast. Yeah, it was definitely going to be a good night, and for once, he wouldn’t feel like a gooseberry with Robin and Jasmine, he’d have a partner too.
