‘I must be slipping in my old age,’ he said.
There was no way Pat was anything other than razor-sharp. ‘You must know him. He looks like a matinée idol.’
Patrick raised an eyebrow. ‘He sounds intriguing.’
I tried not to let my disappointment show. ‘Could you ask around? I want to know if I should trust him.’
‘Has he been slippery?’
‘It’s unclear,’ I said. ‘I’m not sure if his actions and words match up.’
‘Sounds like a typical music publicist, if you ask me. And nothing you can’t handle.’
I guess he was giving me the young Padawan speech fromStar Wars; telling me to trust myself instead of thinking other people had the answers.
‘Come on, then,’ I said. ‘Didn’t you want me to have a look at the cases before you chose one? Justin won’t thank you if you turn up with a suitcase covered in pink leopard print.’
‘It’s okay, my dear,’ he said. ‘You get going – I’m sure you’ve got more important things to be getting on with.’
‘It’s no bother, Patrick.’
He reached over and patted my hand. ‘How about I promise to stick to black?’
I left feeling a little out of sorts. Pat seemed a bit off. Maybe he was finding retirement less fun than he expected. My parents had been like that when they’d sold the restaurant. Membership of the National Trust had helped, but I doubted a gift subscription would go down so well with Pat. Still, he had Crete to look forward to.
I was disappointed that Pat had nothing concrete to tell me about Nick. But I supposed he was right – I couldn’t rely on him to keep giving me advice on everything. He wanted to step back from the business and I needed to stand on my own two feet.
My mood improved considerably when Simon rang. I’d been worried that he was still upset about the previous night. But he didn’t mention it and started telling me about a work trip he was having to take tomorrow.
‘I’ll be a few days,’ he said. ‘But the good news is that when I come back I’ll have a flat.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I signed a lease today. I pick up the keys tomorrow morning.’
‘That’s great, Si. Congratulations. Whereabouts?’
‘Just on the other side of the roundabout.’
I smiled. ‘Oh God, you’re going to be banging my door down at all hours, demanding cups of sugar.’
It was a shame he was going away for a few days, but at least things seemed okay between us.
‘I’m sorry about how last night ended, Simon.’
‘No, I’m sorry I lashed out at you. I was mad at Nick – for lots of reasons. But mainly because I didn’t like the way he was pawing at you.’
‘He wasn’t pawing at me,’ I said.
‘He obviously likes you.’
‘Don’t be daft, Si. You’ve got absolutely no reason to be...’ I stopped, unsure how to end that sentence. I’d been about to say ‘jealous’, but that would sound presumptuous. Though how else could I interpret Simon’s words? He’d been so upset on Jess’s behalf, convinced that Nick was out to get her, it was nice to be the object of his concern for once.
‘You don’t need to worry,’ I said. ‘I’ve got no interest in Nick.’
‘Good.’
The single syllable was delivered with feeling.
