‘Can Alice come again?’ Fran asks, eyes mournful.
‘She is more than welcome any time,’ Ellie grins as she finally shepherds the girls indoors.
It’s just Alice and I sitting in the garden now, solar-panelled lights draped along walls. I have loved seeing how easily she’s fallen into step with my noisy, nuts family but it’s nice to have some one-to-one time too. I listen as she breathes a contented sigh.
‘They’ve really taken to you,’ I tell her.
‘The feeling is mutual. Raff and Ellie are raising some strong girls there.’
I nod. ‘I’m proud of them.’
‘You should be. They obviously adore their Uncle Zach.’
‘Ah well, being an uncle is great because I get all of the fun and none of the shit.’ I’m interrupted by a bellow coming from an open bedroom window upstairs.
‘THAT’SMYTELESCOPE SIENNAAAAARRRRRGGGHHH.’
‘Right on cue,’ laughs Alice.
‘They can be a handful. Like earlier, when they dropped a certain G word as soon as you arrived?’ I say tentatively, wondering if she picked up on it.
Alice catches my eye.
‘You mean when they called me your girlfriend?’
I clear my throat. ‘Yup. I was wondering, um, how it made you feel?’
She’s doing that thing where she falls silent again, lost in thought.
‘Because we’ve been seeing each other for a while now and I was hoping …’ I pause, still haunted by her three-date rule and the constant fear that she might grow tired of me soon. But fear isn’t going to get me anywhere, is it? And now that I’ve started, there’s no way I can stop. ‘I was hoping to ask if you’d like to have me as your boyfriend?’
It’s out. There’s no going back. I can’t even look at her. She’s going to panic that I’ve pushed her too far and run for the hills, right?
I feel her hand reach out to hold mine and I chance a look at her.
‘Zach, I would very much like to be your girlfriend,’ she says, a huge smile reaching across her face.
Lucky doesn’t cover it. I wrap my arms around her, pulling her in close and feeling the warmth of her body next to mine as I let it sink in. Alice leans up to kiss me and I’m not sure today could get any better.
‘There I was thinking my nieces might have thrown me under a bus and it turns out they did me a huge favour,’ I laugh after a while.
‘Ha, I bet it’s not the first time they’ve done something like that.’
‘They’ve been a handful since day one,’ I say, still high on the fact that Alice is my girlfriend now. I can’t believe it! ‘Apparently twins run in the family. Ellie and Raff hadn’t expected it and I know they’ve found it challenging, especially when Fran and Sienna were babies.’
‘I bet. Kids must be the ultimate test of any relationship.’
Would Alice like kids one day? My brain is shouting the question so loud I’m surprised she can’t hear it.
Mate. Chill out.
Just enjoy this moment and for fuck’s sake do not ask that question.
Ellie bustles out through the French windows, saving me from diving in way too deep. ‘I’ve left Raff in charge. The girls turn into monsters at bedtime. Sorry, did I interrupt?’
‘We were just talking about how tough it must be when you have kids, but you and Raff seem to be doing an amazing job,’ Alice says.
‘That’s down to a mixture of love, patience and a fully stocked wine cupboard,’ Ellie grins.
