AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I said”—Polly’s grin spread across her face—“you. Look. Like. Shit.”
* * *
“Tea or coffee?” the fresh-faced young man behind the table asked.
“Um, tea, please.” When she took the cup from him, Alice noticed her hand shook slightly. But her fingernails glittered in a shade called Moon Shimmer, so she forced herself to focus on how pretty her hands looked instead.
She’d put on the ring her mum had given her for her eighteenth birthday, silver with a large moonstone that she always thought was too ostentatious—much more Rowena than her—but she had to admit it did look good with her ensemble: a silky white blouse tucked into a circular skirt with a wide waistband in a lovely shade of cherry red. She should feel pretty and sophisticated, but there remained this niggle she couldn’t quite let go of that she was a kid play-acting in a world full of grown-ups.
Maybe if she didn’t lose her nerve, like Polly said, the new Alice would superimpose itself over the old one. Emerge like a phoenix rising from the ashes to claim Aaron’s heart. Except judging by the way they were both circling each other like a couple of sharks with toothache, she wasn’t at all sure this was going to work out.
“Biscuit?”
“Oh, thank you.” Alice smiled at the young waiter.
“They’re Andrea Blake home-made,” he added.
“Oh, my!” Polly exclaimed at her side. “Andrea’s jam drops are to die for.” She promptly grabbed two.
Alice took a chocolate and almond biscotti and placed it neatly on the side of her saucer. She turned around to say something, but Polly was already off catching up with some colleagues she’d spied from work.
“Alice, is that you?”
She swung round to the sound of Carts’ voice, warm and friendly—perhaps a little warmer and friendlier than usual.
“Hello Carts.”
Carts’ eyes were on stalks. “Itisyou. I barely recognised you. Have you met my parents before?”
“I think so, at our university graduation, wasn’t it?” Alice looked up at their smiling faces. Carts’ dad was almost bald; hard to imagine Carts would ever go that way with his unkempt dark locks. “And this is my little sis, Avery.” Avery was definitely over six foot. But she looked petite compared to the rest of the Wells family. Everyone did the hand-shaking thing.
Carts couldn’t seem to stop staring at her. “Wow, you look”—he gave a nervous laugh—“gorgeous.” Followed by a blush. “Am I allowed to say that?”
Alice felt her cheeks heat in tandem. “Yes, of course, why not?”
“You have to be careful not to offend. We had a seminar on respecting female colleagues last week. You know—what I might think is a compliment may not be okay with you…”
“I am not offended, Carts. On the contrary. But thanks for checking. Did you enjoy Oliver’s talk?”
A figure flitted past Carts’ shoulder. Without even looking she knew it was Aaron. Since the awkward wave earlier he’d clearly been avoiding her, which was making her feel like she’d made the most humungous mistake in coming here.
Somehow she managed to keep up a polite exchange with Mr and Mrs Wells about investment, which would have been relevant if she’d ever earnt a decent salary. On paper it looked okay but more often than not Rowena funnelled a chunk of Alice’s wages back into the shop.
When the figure zigzagged past again, her jaw clenched. And suddenly, there was Aaron at Carts’ shoulder, flicking a strand of blond hair out of eyes that looked decidedly red around the edges.
“Didn’t expect to see you here.” Aaron thumped Carts’ arm with a playful fist. “You were in a worse state than me when I left.”
“I’ve got more critical mass to spread the alcohol over,” Carts retorted good-naturedly. He certainly did look better put together this morning than Aaron, in a smart jacket and neatly ironed striped navy and white shirt.
Aaron grunted, stuck his head around Carts and gave a salute to his parents. “Hello there, Carts’ parents.”
Alice could sense Avery preening. “Don’t forget to say hello to me, Aaron,” Avery squeaked. Despite her height, Alice guessed she was barely fourteen if she was a day. Obviously the Aaron effect struck young.
Aaron gave an easy grin. “Hi there, Avery.”
Alice stared into her teacup. She should acknowledge him. It would look weird if she didn’t.
“Hi Aaron,” she squeezed out of tight lips.
