‘Are you bringing Jenna?’ He’d said he was at a friend’s house; I assumed it was hers.
‘Jenna? No.’ He sounded as confused as I was. ‘I’ll see you soon.’
He rang off just as the waiter approached with a man following him, and I realised I’d made a huge mistake. When I’d answered my phone, I’d incorrectly thought it was Sam who’d asked if he could join me, not a total stranger. I shook my head at the waiter and the smile faded from his lips.
‘I’m so sorry,’ I said as he neared my table. ‘I thought it was … a friend. Erm. This seat’s not vacant, after all. My friend is coming to join me.’
The waiter glared at me but the man behind him smiled and shrugged. He was actually rather good-looking.
‘Don’t worry,’ the stranger said in a pleasant manner. ‘These things happen. Enjoy your lunch with your friend.’ He turned to the waiter. ‘I can wait.’
The waiter threw me an irritated look and then that smile was back in place.
‘I apologise for the confusion, sir,’ he said to the man, completely ignoring me. ‘I’ll get you seated as soon as I can. Thank you for being so understanding.’
‘Sorry,’ I said again, as the pair of them went back towards the bar.
I caught the attention of my waitress and ordered another glass of wine. My third. But I needed it. I gulped down the last drops of my second glass and handed it to her when she brought the next one.
‘A friend is now joining me for lunch,’ I said. ‘Is there any chance you could ask the chef to hold my meal until he orders? He’ll be here in five minutes.’
She raised one brow, but the smile hardly faltered. ‘I’m sure that won’t be a problem.’ The look in her eyes, however, told me otherwise.
I wasn’t making any friends among the staff at Freddie’s Fish and Chips.
Eleven
Having kept my eyes trained on the front door of the restaurant, and having moved my chair again in order to do so, my heart gave a little leap each time someone came in. I checked my watch every minute or so but I think I can safely say those five minutes were the longest of my life. At least that’s how it felt. When Sam did eventually arrive and I watched him walk towards me, I wanted to run to him and throw myself into his arms.
Except that wouldn’t have been cool, and, to be honest, after three large glasses of white wine, I wasn’t sure I could walk properly, let alone run. I hadn’t eaten since around eight a.m. that morning, and I’d been so excited, and also slightly anxious about spending the week on my own, that I’d only had a banana … and several cups of coffee. The wine had gone straight to my head, and the remnants of the caffeine probably hadn’t helped.
I was having palpitations and it was as if Sam was walking in slow motion, his hair dancing around his shoulders with each step and his faded jeans and dark blue T-shirt hugging every muscle as he moved. The smile on his lips made my entire body go limp, and his eyes lit up as he finally reached my table,sending a surge of excitement from my head to my toes. I think I actually gasped.
‘Hi, again,’ he said, his voice soft and yet husky. He ran a hand through his hair and then he looked me in the eye as he gripped the back of the vacant chair. ‘I’d planned to play it cool.’ He laughed sardonically. ‘That lasted all of five minutes. Seeing you again was such a surprise. I felt … I feel … I didn’t want to wait till later. Does this sound crazy?’ He let go of the chair and took a step away, and then a step towards me and then he held up his arms as if he wasn’t sure what to do or say next. ‘It does, doesn’t it?’ He laughed again and shook his head. ‘I’ve imagined this so many times and yet, now you’re here, I’m behaving like a jerk. May I sit?’
‘Please do,’ was all I could say.
He sat opposite me and took a deep breath and then he stared at me for a second or two.
‘I still can’t believe it’s you. That you’re here. Especially after all these years.’
‘Neither can I.’
‘What made you come back? And why now?’
‘Erm.’ I wasn’t expecting so many questions, and after all the wine I’d drunk, together with the effect just looking at him was having on me, I couldn’t think clearly. ‘I booked a last-minute romantic break for me and Ted. My boyfriend. My ex-boyfriend, I mean.’ I shook my head in the hope that it would clear my thoughts. ‘Erm. I saw the cottage in Midwinter online, and I thought it looked nice.’
He furrowed his brows as he scanned my face. ‘Nothing to do with me then? With us?’
‘Erm.’ I must stop saying, ‘erm’. It really wasn’t helping. I met his intense gaze. ‘Us? I … I don’t think so. And yet...’ I shrugged. ‘Perhaps it was. I … I still think about that week … sometimes.’
‘Me too.’
‘Are you ready to order?’ the waitress asked Sam, startling us both, having appeared from nowhere. Or so it seemed.
‘What? Yes.’ He looked at me.
‘I’ve already ordered.’
