Jack stretched his long legs out in front of him and sighed.
‘Perhaps I might just rent a place for a couple of weeks, to see if it really is as good as it seems. A place like that one we passed near the convent, the one that had the sign in the window, with a view over the sea and a tiny little garden. All I would need would be a few books and all these cafés and wonderful places to eat just a few steps away.’
‘And some clothes, otherwise—’ I said. And then I laughed nervously because of course that made me think of him without clothes, and the whole thing was getting a bit too surprising.
He laughed too. ‘And some spare socks. I can’t rely on Mickey Mouse forever.’
I thought about that too and tried to imagine myself living with just a few chosen possessions instead of a house filled with things. A simple, uncomplicated life, without a vegetable spiraliser, a fully programmable bread maker or the hugely problematic and expensive coffee machine that Fred had bought me for our last Christmas together and never used because it took too long. And then of course there was the chef’s mandolin languishing in the back of a drawer which he had bought having seen one at a trade show, used only once and lost the tips of two fingers in the process.
I brought myself back into the real world and away from Fred and his disasters.
‘I wonder where people get their groceries, or petrol?’
‘Perhaps you wouldn’t need a car?’ he said.
‘That’s almost unimaginable these days, isn’t it?’
He nodded.
‘But wouldn’t Harriet miss her friends and family?’ he said.
‘Probably. Wouldn’t you for that matter?’
‘I think they would very quickly come and visit me,’ he said, ‘with their various boyfriends, or in Ivy’s case one of her chums who would be mesmerised by all the sparkly T-shirts and bracelets I’ve seen in the shops.’
‘I bet they would,’ I said, ‘and no traffic to worry about. The closest we have come to that was the toddler on his trike.’
‘Would you?’
I was confused. ‘Would I what? Ride a trike?’
‘Would you come and visit me?’
I turned to look at him and he gave me a funny, lop-side smile.
‘Yes,’ I said, ‘I would. Though how I would get here is anyone’s guess.’
‘You’d have to take a flight to Zagreb, and I could probably get a rental car, so I could come and pick you up.’
‘Wow, would you?’
‘Of course.’
He shrugged as though it was obvious and for a moment I tried to think how that scenario would work out. Did I like the idea or was it all a bit too soon? After all, we hardly knew each other. Not really. There was still the possibility that he had been cleverly concealing unpleasant habits or that he snored like a walrus.
Why would I be worrying about that? It wasn’t as though I was expecting to find out if he snored, was I?
‘It’s an interesting prospect,’ I said at last.
He chuckled. ‘That sounds like a polite no. Or at least a play for time.’
‘I suppose it’s the latter,’ I said. ‘After all, we hardly know each other. You might find me awful company after a few days.’
‘No, I don’t think I would,’ he said. ‘Anyway, it’s just a thought. Let’s find some lunch. Hopefully Craig and Dawn will have made up their row by now.’
‘What did she say?Why not you’re more than qualified.Honestly, I had to bite my lip.’
Jack sputtered with laughter and I joined in, and after a while we were a little bit hysterical.
