Poppy didn’t know how to respond to the evident love in his eyes when he said that, so she changed the subject to the new shirt he was wearing.
‘I think that’s the first one you’ve bought for yourself since…’ She stopped. They’d got all the way through a five-course tasting menu until coffee without mentioning anything controversial, and now she was messing it up.
‘Since we met and we both realised that you like shopping a lot more than I do and have much better taste.’ He’d managed to un-mess the conversation.
Poppy smiled at him. She really wanted to reach out and run her fingers through his hair. ‘Your hair’s longer than normal, too.’
‘Do you like it?’ He sounded slightly flirtatious.
‘It does actually look very nice curling over your collar like that.’ She kind of wanted to flirt back.
He was smiling at her in a way that in the past would definitely have led to a very nice end to the evening for both of them.
On the way back to the car they walked very close to each other. They both had their arms by their sides and Poppy’s right hand and Declan’s left touched a few times. She moved her fingers a little against his after about the fifth time it happened. It felt like one of the most daring things she’d ever done. And then he moved his fingers against hers, took her hand and laced his fingers through hers. And they walked the rest of the way like that.
Poppy had never seen or read any porn in her life, but she was pretty sure that this hand-holding was one of the most erotic experiences anyone had ever had, ever.
When they got home, she wondered for a moment whether she was going to do her best to seduce him, but then instead said, ‘I’d love to do that again.’
‘Me too.’ Declan fixed her gaze with his gorgeous blue eyes for a long time.
He cleared his throat and moved towards her, and then stopped.
And after a drawn-out what’s-going-to-happen moment, Poppy concluded that nothing was, and said, ‘Goodnight, then. Thank you,’ and went inside, not sure whether she was hugely relieved or hugely disappointed by the nothing-happening but sure that she’d had a lovely evening and that it felt as though bridges were being mended.
25
GEORGIE
‘No way, no way, no way,’ Georgie screeched. She swished through her phone for Beth’s number and tapped. Please let her pick up. Theyhadto talk about the photos Ankita had just sent.
‘OH. EM. GEEEEEEEE,’ Beth screamed down the phone a second later. ‘I was just about to call you. I think it’s for real.’
‘I do too. I expanded the photos and you can definitely see rings on their wedding fingers.’
‘Same.’
‘Wow. Just wow. I meanmarried. In Vegas. They’re bloodymarried.’
‘I know. He’s gorgeous, isn’t he?’
‘Well, of course he is. You’d expect nothing less from Ankita. Where are you at the moment?’ Georgie knew that Beth had been spending a lot of time in Melting recently and she kind of didn’t want to talk if Raf or Poppy were in the background.
‘Having a cup of tea and doing some paperwork at the Duck. On my own, though.’
‘Okay, cool. So Ankita said in her message that they’re going to have a big wedding party soon and she wants to have a mini celebration nextSaturday. And she sent the message to you,me, Poppy and her mum.’ Georgie had felt a little twinge at the fact that Ankita had included her mum in the message group. If Georgie ever wanted to announce anything huge, she’d never include her own mother in the group. It would hurt too much when she didn’t get round to reading it for several days, if not weeks (if ever).
And she’d felt abigtwinge at the fact that Ankita wanted her and Poppy to come out together. How was that going to work? Ankita and Beth now knew about Declan and Max, and from what Ankita had told her recently Poppy had mellowed and understood now that of course a one-night stand twelve years ago had no bearing on her marriage, that Georgie had of course been planning to tell her immediately once she knew for certain if Declan was Max’s father, and that she’d acted with the best of intentions. But she and Poppy still weren’t communicating really. She’d sent a ‘Congratulations on your job!’ message (Beth had told her Poppy was now working one day a week) and had received a ‘Thank you!’ reply, and that had been it, really. Georgie didn’t dare to say anything else and Poppy hadn’t made any moves towards her.
‘And you’re wondering how you and Poppy are going to manage on Saturday evening?’ Beth asked.
‘Yes.’ It felt like it would be extremely awkward for them to see each other again properly for the first time with others there.
‘I honestly think it will be okay.’ Beth paused for a second and then said, ‘Okay, I don’t like sounding as though I’m gossiping about any of my best friends but… Poppy went out for dinner with Declan the other evening. Everyone in the village knows because she had to get a babysitter, and you know what the Melting grapevine is like.’
‘Oh, that’s wonderful. I hope.’ Georgie hoped so very much that Poppy and Declan would get back together. She’d love to get back together with Poppy herself but maybe that couldn’thappen. But anyway. This wasn’t about her. ‘So,Ankita. Married. I can’t wait to meet Alex.’ She was definitely going to go on Saturday. She couldn’t let Ankita down. And maybe it could be the start of a bit of a rapprochement with Poppy.
Georgie managed to arrive at the pub on Saturday a quarter of an hour early, to make sure she didn’t arrive at the same time as Poppy, who was unbelievably punctual, never a minute late – or a minute early – for anything, even with a baby, it turned out.
