‘This is agreatlocation,’ Dan said as they rounded the corner of Evie’s road ten minutes later. When he’d dropped her off after the quiz, they hadn’t been chatting about things like locations. They’d been arguing and apologising and then they’d nearly kissed.
‘I know. There is aslightissue with Tube noise, and I have to keep my bedroom curtains closed at all times, because otherwise I’m literally eye-to-eye with passengers at a distance of only a few metres, but it’ssocool to be so close to the centre of Wimbledon, which I never thought I’d manage on my salary. So lucky that Josh had a spare room. Well, spare boxroom.’ She stopped outside the house. ‘So we’re here.’ Should she, shouldn’t she invite him in? ‘I’ve had a lovely evening.’
‘Me too.’ Dan was planted in front of her, his hands in his pockets again, smiling down at her.
Evie drew a deep breath and licked her lips.
And then he bent his head towards hers, very slowly, and gave her the most fleeting of kisses on the lips.
Evie’s heart was hammering against her ribs and she couldn’t have moved if you’d paid her.
Dan’s smile grew and then he leaned forwards again and Evie reached up to meet him and this time it was a proper kiss. They relaxed into each other, kissing, exploring, Evie’s arms around Dan’s neck, his around her and his hands wound gorgeously, sensuously in her hair.
‘Excuse me.’ Josh was doing an exaggerated cough right next to them. Fergus was holding his hand, trying to pull him away and shushing.
‘Whoops,’ Evie said.
‘Whoops yourself, ooh-er,’ Josh said, moving round them. He inserted his key in the door and pushed. ‘You coming in?’
Eek. Decision time right here, right now.
‘Um.’ Evie still had her arms round Dan. She let go of him and stepped backwards, and he let go of her too. ‘Yes, I am,’ she said.
‘We’ll leave you to yourgoodbyes,’ Josh said, with a lot of suggestive eyebrow waggling.
Evie waited until Josh had closed the door – with a bit ofhilarioushave-I-haven’t-I reopening and closing of it – and said, ‘So, goodnight, then.’
‘Goodnight.’ His voice was so deliciously gravelly. ‘Do you…?’ He cleared his throat. ‘Do you fancy dinner soon?’
‘I do, actually,’ Evie said.
‘Cool. Night.’
Evie let herself into the house and smiled all the way up the stairs to the flat.
Thirty-Four
Now – October 2022
Dan
Dan looked up at the – somewhat weird – orange, geometric clock on the far side of the café.
‘That clock must be fast,’ he said, pulling his phone out. ‘Nope. It’s right. I’d better get going.’
‘Me too,’ said his father. ‘I’ll get this.’
‘My turn.’ Dan put his wallet on the table.
‘But I’m your dad and I’d like to get it.’ His father raised his eyebrows. ‘If you’ll let me?’
Dan looked at him, and nodded, slowly. It felt symbolic. Like he waslettinghim be his dad again.
‘Thanks,’ he said. ‘This has been good.’ Domino effect. Evie had nagged him into talking to Max, and Max had nagged him into talking to his father.
‘I wondered,’ said his father, when he’d paid, and they were huddling in their coats in biting wind on the pavement outside, preparing to go their separate ways, ‘if you’d like to go to the rugby at Twickenham with me next month. The England–Italy match. I have four tickets. I thought I could ask Max and Greggy too.’ Right. Several hours together. Father/son bonding. It felt like a commitment.
It felt like it would be a great way of rebuilding their relationship.
