'Tis the Season to be Single

by Laura Ziepe

  As Amber cleansed, toned and moisturized the girl’s face, she also found herself admiring her flawless, creamy complexion. Was Amber’s skin once this wrinkle-free? She couldn’t remember. ‘So how did you hear about me?’ she wondered inquisitively. ‘Have I done someone you know’s make-up before?’

  ‘Not quite,’ she gave a little girlish giggle, ‘I believe you’re friends with my fiancé, Jack? He told me to come here. He said if anyone can do make-up and help me with tips that it’s you.’

  Amber was stunned and felt like she’d been electrocuted. She could feel her face becoming hot and felt ridiculous for it. ‘Oh my goodness. So you’re Natalya?’

  ‘Yes. So pleased to meet you,’ she replied in shrilly, excitable tones. ‘I’ve heard so much about you. I had a day off work and decided yesterday I should come in and introduce myself. I’ve asked Jack when I can meet you, but he seems too busy to arrange anything.’

  Amber swallowed hard, her mouth suddenly dry. She couldn’t believe that this was Natalya who she’d just been telling the others about. She was so young. So pretty. Amber felt taken aback by the surprise visit. She had wanted to be prepared when she met her, not caught off guard. Not that it mattered of course.

  ‘Glad to meet you too,’ Amber said finally. ‘I only found out about you yesterday. I was quite surprised to hear that Jack was engaged,’ she revealed honestly.

  ‘Oh, I know. He’s just so romantic. We’ve literally just fallen head over heels in love,’ she gushed in a sickly sweet voice.

  ‘So I hear,’ Amber replied in polite tones. It was unnerving her that this was Jack’s fiancée. She seemed so confident, energetic and nice. It was easy to see how Jack had fallen for her.

  ‘I can’t wait to spend Christmas with him. You’ll be there too, won’t you? I was wondering if you had any idea what I could buy him. I want it to be really special. Something he’ll love,’ she said hopefully.

  Amber felt her heart sink, dreading spending the day with this girl. This perfect, young, beautiful girl who was somehow making her feel old and dull. She felt like last year’s Chanel bag in comparison to this shiny, new, glossy one. Amber instantly disliked her. She knew she was being harsh and it was her own problem, but she couldn’t help the way she felt. She knew immediately that she had to make an effort for Jack’s sake. She didn’t want people thinking she was jealous because Natalya was going to marry her best friend. Jealousy was such an unattractive trait. Amber remembered when she was younger watching her friends’ fathers pick them up from school or attend assemblies and sports days. How she’d wished her father had been there to watch her or collect her from school! To remind her that she was loved and cherished. To show her she was worth it. There was this one girl called Jodie, whose father had been the perfect parent. Amber remembered during one assembly Jodie’s father attending and telling them all about his job as a policeman. Amber had sat there feeling envious. Her father had never had a proper job when he’d been at home. He hadn’t been a normal, loving dad like the man before her. Jodie’s father never missed a single thing Jodie participated in; right down to terrible choir performances they did. Amber had hated Jodie for it deep down. She’d never been unkind to Jodie, but she could never engage in any conversation or allow herself to be friends with her. It was too painful to watch the beautiful relationship she had with her father.

  ‘Don’t be jealous,’ Amber’s mother had told her crossly one day after Amber had mentioned it. ‘It makes people ugly.’

  ‘I’m not jealous,’ Amber replied indignantly. She didn’t really understand the meaning at the young age of 10.

  ‘Don’t be,’ her mother had repeated sternly. ‘Jodie’s father is ill, Amber. He has terminal cancer.’

  The words had astounded her and Amber had felt dreadful. Jodie’s father had died two years afterwards and Amber had become friends with her within those two years, feeling guilty for the ill thoughts she’d had previously. She could see how jealousy made you bitter and twisted and vowed to do her best to be happy for people in the future.

  Amber forced a smile and a merry voice, applying foundation to Natalya’s velvet, glowy skin. ‘I know just the thing to buy him and of course I’ll be there at Christmas. I can’t wait.’

  Chapter 9

  Grace walked into the hotel room pulling along her heavy vanity case. They hadn’t told her she’d have to carry it up two flights of stairs and it weighed a tonne. Trust the lifts not to be working the day she came, she thought wryly, wiping her brow.

  The room was chaos. Girls were everywhere, drinking prosecco, tapping away on their mobiles and gazing into any mirrored surface they could spot. The room was foggy with hairspray and perfume with flashes of bright white light coming from the photographer every few moments, and Grace smiled, loving every second. The build up to a wedding was like no other. She could almost feel the nerves in the air and it was her job to make the bride and bridesmaids feel more relaxed and confident. She couldn’t deny though, that today, she felt a little sad. It brought back memories of her own wedding day. It was the first wedding she’d done since her break up.

  ‘You look absolutely stunning,’ Simon had told her as soon as they got a moment alone on the day they’d married. His eyes had been twinkling with adoration and she could really tell he meant every word. She felt like the luckiest woman in the entire world and she recalled looking at him, unable to believe that now, she really had a husband. She felt so grown up. So mature.

  ‘You don’t look so bad yourself.’ She’d grinned back, all nerves from before the ceremony now just replaced with joy.

  ‘I’m so lucky,’ he’d told her sincerely. ‘I love you, Grace. More than you’ll ever know.’

  It had brought a tear to her eye and she’d playfully punched his arm. ‘Stop or you’ll ruin my make-up,’ she’d laughed before kissing him tenderly on the lips. Nothing could ever come between them, she had thought. They were legally bound together as man and wife and they were solid, strong and so very happy. Everything would be okay with Simon in her life, she’d been sure. She wasn’t entirely sure how long it was before he had changed, but things just seemed to go downhill and it was heartbreaking thinking back. Grace had to stop thinking about how they once had been. That Simon had long gone; nowadays he wouldn’t even notice if she had six inches cut off her hair. She felt invisible to him. Undesired. It was a horrible feeling that she never wanted to feel again.

  ‘Are you the make-up artist?’ A bridesmaid walked over to her, interrupting her thoughts.

  ‘Yes,’ Grace replied cheerily. ‘Where do you want me?’

  Time seemed to fly as Grace applied make-up to the wedding party. She now just had the bride left to do as soon as the hairdresser had finished her hair. She thought about going out that night to Jack’s work Christmas party and felt a little nervous about it. She really wasn’t used to going on nights out and she hadn’t bought a new outfit like Rachel had. She’d left it too late and was just planning to wear something she already had – not that she could think of anything.

  It had really surprised Amber when Jack’s fiancée had turned up at Tidemans the day before. Grace could tell that Amber seemed a little taken aback about it and she wondered why. Amber and Jack were close family friends, exceptionally close, but every time she or Rachel had quizzed Amber if their relationship was more than friendship, Amber had laughed it off. So what was she bothered about? She guessed Amber felt quite protective over him; as though he was her younger brother or something. Grace was sure she’d come round to Natalya eventually.

  The bridesmaids had a gift for the bride and they all went to another room next door. ‘We won’t be long,’ the bride, Sally, informed Grace. ‘They just want to give me a gift before my make-up gets done. In case I cry,’ she chuckled.

  ‘No problem,’ Grace told her warmly. She only had an empty house to go back to so she was in no rush. Rachel had planned to move in the following week and she couldn’t wait for some company. After l
iving with Simon for so long, however unhappy she’d been, she missed the presence of someone else being in the house and knowing she wasn’t alone.

  ‘Wow, it’s awfully quiet in here,’ came a man’s voice behind her.

  Grace pivoted round to be greeted by a tall man in a smart, black suit carrying a gift. He had short dark auburn hair, a protruding Adam’s apple and a kind face. He looked confused to see her standing in the room alone.

  ‘I’m the make-up artist,’ she informed him. ‘They’ve just gone next door to give Sally a gift.’

  ‘Oh right,’ he smiled at her, ‘I’ll just wait here then. I’m Sally’s brother, Steve. I have a present from the groom,’ he explained, holding it up to show her as proof.

  ‘That’s nice,’ Grace returned his smile. She’d normally feel a little awkward being stuck with a stranger, but there was something about Steve which made her feel at ease. She could see the similarity now between Steve and Sally as she glanced at him. They both had bright blue eyes and a petite, straight nose.

  ‘Is she still nervous?’ Steve enquired.

  Grace nodded. ‘A little, yes. To be expected.’

  His eyes trailed down to Grace’s wedding ring, which she still hadn’t taken off. Her hand felt bare without it. Like she was naked. ‘I see you’ve done this before. You must know the feeling.’

  Grace immediately felt her diamond ring self-consciously. It symbolized another lifetime. Another Grace and Simon. ‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘though I’m probably not the best person to talk to about marriage.’

  He looked intrigued. ‘Oh?’

  ‘We’ve just separated,’ Grace said reluctantly, feeling a little embarrassed for no apparent reason. Should she have told a complete stranger such personal news? It was most unlike her.

  ‘Oh, sorry to hear that,’ Steve replied looking genuine. ‘Were you married long?’

  ‘Four years,’ she told him, tucking her hair behind her ear.

  They stood in an awkward silence.

  ‘So, make-up,’ Steve started in light tones, clearly attempting to change the subject, which Grace was grateful for. ‘How long have you done that for?’

  ‘Since I was about two,’ Grace said with a little giggle. ‘I used to steal it from my mother’s make-up case. My lipstick skills have improved a great deal since then though. I now manage to get all the lipstick inside the lip line.’

  He laughed good-humouredly. ‘I expect they have. Especially if Sally picked you. I know how she’s been after the perfect everything for the wedding. That includes make-up artist.’

  ‘I’m glad,’ Grace replied, smiling. She wondered how long the others were going to be, but realized she was quite enjoying their chat. There was something incredibly warm about Steve she hadn’t felt in a while. ‘What do you do?’

  ‘Teacher,’ he replied looking rather guilty.

  ‘What do you teach?’ Grace asked interestedly.

  ‘What would you guess?’ he asked, looking curious.

  ‘Maths?’ Grace answered after staring at him intently.

  ‘You got it,’ he grinned, as though he’d been caught out. ‘What gives it away?’

  ‘I can just imagine you as a maths teacher, I don’t know,’ Grace said, narrowing her eyes, unsure why she’d thought it. She guessed it was because he looked smart. Intelligent. He didn’t look the creative or arty type. ‘Do you enjoy it?’

  ‘I do,’ he nodded. ‘A great deal. Some of the teenage students give me a hard time, but hey, I’ve got used to it,’ he said, just before the sound of chatting and laughter came from the corridor outside the hotel room. He looked serious suddenly. ‘Do you have a card or anything on you?’

  ‘Erm, yes I do,’ Grace replied, her heart thumping furiously in her chest as she fished around in her bag for her business card.

  ‘My friend has recently become engaged,’ Steve explained, as she handed it over, ‘I’ll pass this on to his fiancée.’ He flashed her a pleasant smile.

  ‘Thanks,’ Grace said, feeling a little flustered, wondering if it was more than that, or if she had misread the signs. She felt so out of touch in the dating game. It felt alien to her to be talking to a strange man and questioning whether he liked her or was just being polite and friendly. She’d felt safe being Simon’s wife. She hadn’t had to worry about things like this because she was married. Taken. Completely off limits. She’d never envied her single friends or longed for the days when she’d flown solo. She was a ‘couple’ person. Much happier in a relationship than traipsing round bars and clubs eyeing up potential eye candy. But who knew; maybe that was the old Grace? She hadn’t been alone for so long that she couldn’t really remember how it felt.

  Sally and the bridesmaids came into the room then, laughing about something and then gushing over the gift Steve had brought from Sally’s husband.

  ‘Are you ready?’ Sally asked Grace, looking up at her a few moments later.

  Grace caught a glimpse of Steve and he smiled and waved goodbye silently. She took a deep breath before answering Sally, ‘I think so, yes.’

  Amber waved to Jack as she made her way through the crowd to the bar where he was standing with Grace and Rachel following closely behind her. It was already really busy and the party had only started thirty minutes ago. Jack was deep in conversation with a work colleague, so Amber helped herself to three glasses of champagne from a tray sitting on the bar and turned to the others.

  ‘I wish Tidemans Christmas ball was as nice as this,’ she said, admiring the huge dance floor and trays of canapés being handed out by the waitresses wearing black skirts and white blouses.

  Rachel was busy eyeing up Jack. ‘Is it just that I’m noticing now I’m single or has Jack been working out?’

  Grace was gawping too. ‘Has he had his hair cut? It looks nice.’

  Amber looked over at him, feeling happy to be in his presence as always. He was looking rather gorgeous in his pale blue shirt and grey trousers, but no different to how he usually looked. He’d always been a catch. Perhaps she’d just never really thought about it before. ‘He looks the same,’ she replied insouciantly. ‘I wouldn’t get too excited anyway, we know he’s engaged to Natalya now,’ she said sulkily, unable to hide her discomposure. ‘There’s plenty of good-looking, single men here tonight to keep you both occupied, don’t worry, and if we don’t like any of them then who cares? We’ll still have fun and there’s always the next night out.’

  Amber watched as Jack shook hands with the man at the bar and walked over to them. He smiled widely. ‘Alright girls? You’re all looking beautiful,’ he complimented, kissing their cheeks. ‘You okay for drinks?’

  ‘Fine,’ Grace smiled back, ‘We’ve just got these,’ she lifted her glass.

  ‘How are you?’ Rachel asked him. ‘Congratulations on the engagement. Amber told us about it. We met Natalya yesterday; she seems lovely.’

  Jack nodded, ‘Yes she told me she went to see you.’ His eyes flicked over to Amber. ‘She loved the make-up by the way, so thanks. I knew you’d do a good job.’

  ‘It wasn’t difficult to make her look pretty,’ Amber told him honestly. ‘She’s beautiful.’

  ‘I know. I’m a lucky man,’ he replied merrily.

  Amber couldn’t help but suddenly feel that Natalya was the lucky one. Jack was her best friend and she hadn’t realized how much she cared about him until now. It had been the two of them for so long. The thought of him doing everything with Natalya now made her feel sad and left out.

  They chatted for a short while between them before Jack excused himself. ‘I’ll catch up with you in a bit, I just want to chat to someone over there,’ he explained.

  ‘He’s nice over there,’ Rachel said, her eyes glittery in excitement.

  ‘Which one?’ Grace asked.

  ‘The one with dark hair. Quite tall,’ Rachel replied, sneakily looking over at him. ‘No wedding ring too, which is good.’

  ‘Go over and chat to him,’ Amber persuaded her.<
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  ‘And say what?’ Rachel frowned, looking doubtful.

  ‘Just ask how his night’s going,’ Amber suggested casually. ‘Smile at him, flirt, I don’t know.’

  ‘I can’t.’ Rachel gave a nervous laugh as though the thought of approaching someone was ludicrous.

  ‘Follow me,’ Amber instructed them, wanting to show Rachel that there was no need for being shy or bashful. Ever since Amber could remember she’d always been confident approaching men. She genuinely didn’t see what the big deal was? What was the worst that could happen? Her friends needed to understand that you couldn’t just wait around and hope that someone was going to talk to you. Sometimes men felt intimidated too. Sometimes they were just as shy.

  ‘You’ve got to go for what you want in life,’ she told Rachel when they were only a few feet away from him, ‘or you’ll never get anywhere.’

  Rachel looked mortified. ‘What are you going to say to him? Amber, please…’

  Amber ignored her and tapped the man that Rachel had said she liked on the shoulder. She shot him a bright smile when he turned around with a baffled expression on his face. ‘Hi. My friend here was saying she thought she recognized you from somewhere. Whereabouts do you live?’ she asked him. ‘Is your name Chris?’

  ‘No, it’s David. I’m from Wimbledon,’ he replied, glancing back at Rachel.

  Amber pivoted round to Rachel. ‘He’s from Wimbledon, Rach. It can’t be who you thought it was.’

  ‘Why, where are you from?’ David asked Rachel, taking a few steps closer to her.

  Amber smiled at Grace. That’s how it’s done.

  Another suited man David had been chatting to turned his attention to them. ‘You don’t work with us, do you? I’ve never seen you before if you do.’