‘Why did I think it was a good idea to tell Suzie about Carol from Norwich?’ Tom groaned.
I watch him shove a spoonful of cornflakes into his mouth.
‘Sorry, mate,’ I say, massaging my aching forehead.
Tom gestures for me to shift up on the sofa. He sits down beside me with his cereal. ‘Neither of us are performing well on this challenge. I don’t understand why?’
Blowing the air out of my cheeks I sit back and place my hands behind my head. ‘It’s not easy sleeping with one other woman let alone ten.’
Tom shakes his head. ‘Why is it so difficult for us? I mean we are two thirty-something, handsome bachelors. I thought the women of Leeds would be throwing themselves at us.’
‘Your brother must have been lying about this secret challenge. Anyway, I’m not sure I want to sleep with ten women just to see whether your brother is right about his claim that after sleeping with ten women you’ll forget all about your ex-girlfriend. I have gone off the idea of this challenge.’
‘Rory, my brother was devastated when he split up with Marie from Huddersfield. He didn’t come out of his flat for weeks. Then he took up this challenge. After ten shags my brother is back on form and hasn’t thought about Marie from Huddersfield for weeks.’ He licks his spoon. ‘There’s still hope for you though. What time is Beth coming over?’
Beth. Shit. I had forgot she was coming. ‘Good job you reminded me. I think about midday.’
‘I’ll get out of the flat so you can have your wicked way and get our challenge started,’ he says, with a chuckle.
The thought of getting physical in my hungover state makes my stomach roll over. ‘Mate, I feel dog rough. I hope she’s happy with an afternoon watching Christmas films.’
Tom bursts out laughing. ‘Have you seen Facebook?’
I clamp my hand over my face. ‘What has she posted?’
Tom brings the bowl to his lips to drink the cereal-saturated milk. Once he’s stopped making his disgusting slurping noise he puts down his bowl. ‘I get the feeling she’s expectingFifty Shades of Grey, my friend.’
‘Mate, I’m a broken man,’ I groan.
Tom rises from the sofa. ‘This is your chance to get rid of the past. We both need to stop thinking about our ex-girlfriends and get this challenge underway. If I, was you, I’d be drinking a couple of cans of Red Bull from the fridge, taking a shower, dousing myself in aftershave and buying condoms.’
He walks out into the kitchen whistling.
Leaning back, I stare up at the ceiling. He’s right. It’s time to let Emily go. The chain and locket slips to the floor, breaking my train of thought. I bend down to pick it up and remember what Cassie said about giving it back to Emily. ‘Tom – when’s the last post?’
I can hear Tom laugh from the kitchen. ‘Mate, it’s Christmas Eve tomorrow. The last post was last week. You behind with your Christmas cards?’
Guilt wraps itself around my chest. This locket needs to be with the person it was intended for, it should not be with me. The thought of Emily opening a parcel and seeing the locket Vivi wanted her to have as a birthday gift makes my chest ache. She’d want to know what Vivi had bought her. The golden locket might even go some way to easing her pain. I think about how I would have felt if Lawrence, my brother, had got me a gift before he passed away. I feel like guilt is squeezing me so tightly I’m struggling to get a full breath. I would have treasured that gift although Lawrence only ever bought me daft gifts. My mind tries to take me back to that dreadful night all those years ago when he turned up to take me for a pint. I quickly block the memory out. Why the hell have I hung on to this chain and locket? I have missed the last post for Christmas, so how the hell do I get it to Emily in time?
Her face appears in my mind. I picture her face light up as she holds up the locket and that gorgeous smile sweeps across her face. My heart has broken into a wild gallop.
For a few fleeting seconds I’m whisked back to when we used to lie in bed together. She would gaze up at me and I would be lost in her beauty.
Her text from a few weeks ago brings me back to earth. The one where she said she didn’t love me anymore. That horrible sinking feeling returns, the one which took hold of me after I’d read her text. It had sent me on a fortnight of heavy drinking with Tom, the start of our challenge and had fuelled me to find someone else to fill the crater-sized hole inside my chest.
Her words; ‘Rory, I don’t love you anymore’, flash up inside my head. Surely if there was any chance of her loving me she would be here with me right now. It’s over. Rising to my feet I slip the locket into my shirt pocket. For the billionth time in six months, I remind myself that Emily and I are over. It’s time to move on.
I’ll send it to Emily after Christmas.
CHAPTER10
EMILY
Brighton train station is filled with the sound of a group of early morning carol singers who are singing their hearts out, tiny children dancing and laughing with excitement while holding onto the hands of their parents, and excited chatter.
Brushing snow off our coats Felix, Baxter and I head towards the ticket machines. Two couples who are engaged in a tearful embrace catch my attention. They look as though they are about to be separated for Christmas and are clinging onto each for dear life. One couple, two young women, are emotional and kissing each other frantically.
‘Felix, I have to get our tickets,’ I say, mesmerised by the romantic scenes while holding on to Baxter’s lead. The romance is making me remember when Rory lived in Clapham and I lived in Brighton. We’d almost sprint towards each other and I would fling myself against him.
