*
I spend the rest of the day reading a thriller that I took from the book shop. The plot is so intriguing that I forget that I’ve been reading for hours and it’s only when my stomach starts rumbling that I realise it’s almost dinner time. Jamie isn’t home yet. Why am I worried about a total stranger?
I’m about to get off the sofa, when my phone begins to ring. It’s Elly.
“Hello?”
“Ashley!” She shouts into my ear.
“Why are you shouting?”
“I’m sorry, I’m just too excited – you have no idea what happened!”
“What?” It’d better be exciting news for her to be screaming so loudly into my ear.
“I got a phone call that I wasn’t expecting at all.” she announces proudly.
“Who from?” I ask unwillingly.
“Alex!”
“Alex?”
“Alex! He asked me out for dinner this Saturday. Can you believe it? I don’t know what I’m going to wear or what I’m going to say, I’m worried that he might not like me.” Elly can become slightly paranoid when it comes to going on dates with someone that she likes, and I know that there’s no way of calming her down when this happens. I’m surprised that Alex has chosen to call Elly directly, rather than waiting for me to invite her.
“How did he know your phone number?”
“I gave it to him when he came to the book shop? I hope you don’t mind – because if you’re interested in him, I won’t go out with him, don’t worry.”
“What are you on about, Elly? Of course I’m not! I’m happy that he asked out. You two are a perfect match.”
“You reckon?”
“I’m pretty sure.”
“What should I wear then? What are we supposed to talk about? What if I can’t find any topic that interests him? Oh shit.”
“Calm down, Elly. Alex is very friendly and easy to talk to.”
“You say that because you’ve known him for years!” she moans impatiently. Then she pauses for a moment. “Hang on – yeah, that could work!”
“What?” I ask, slightly alarmed. Elly seems to be about to come up with an idea that I’m not going to like.
“You know both of us – if you came along, it would be a lot easier for us and we would avoid any awkward moments of silence.”
“If you really want me to, I’ll go with you.” I breathe out and relax – I was expecting a lot worse. “If everything goes well between you two, I’ll find an excuse to go home early, okay?”
“Okay, but I need to ask you one more favour.”
“What, now?”
“Well, if you came along by yourself, it wouldn’t really feel like a date and I could maybe begin to see you as a rival – and that’s not the right way to begin getting to know somebody. I can’t ruin a life time friendship just to go out with a man.”
“Elly, what are you on about? I’ve known you forever and there’s nothing wrong with me joining you all by myself. I’m not interested in Alex at all.”
“I know that – but I mean something different. Ash – take Jamie with you. Let’s make it a double date and we’ll all be happy.”
“Are you serious?” I’m hoping that either I misunderstood Elly, or she’s gone completely crazy.
“Yeah, it would be a lot better – you and Jamie, and me and Alex. It’ll be fun, and if everything goes well between me and Alex, you two can go home early.”
“Elly! I would never go out with Jamie! Also, Jamie didn’t seem to like Alex last time they met casually, I’d say it’s best not to force the situation.” I attempt to dissuade her.
“Don’t be silly, nothing will go wrong… you owe it to me because I’m your best friend and I’ll be cross with you forever if you don’t help me out.”
“I could ask Evan or Drew to go with me – I’m sure they would accept my invite.” I’m so desperate to change her mind.
“No way, they’re both taken and they’re probably very busy. Stop protesting – ask Jamie out. It’s just a dinner on Saturday night. Thank you so much!” Elly tries to end the conversation.
I can’t believe it. How on earth am I going to ask him out? He probably hates me right now. Elly’s asking for too much this time. If anything goes wrong, it’s certainly not going to be my fault, that’s for sure. I’m pretty sure that it’s not going to be an easy night out for me.
A few seconds after I end the phone call with Elly, I hear Jamie open the front door – talk of the devil!
He ignores me, takes off his coat and walks into the kitchen. Okay, I have to find a way to ask him out sooner rather than later – he’ll most likely reject my invite and I’ll tell Elly that she’ll have to come up with another plan. I pluck up the courage; I get off the sofa and head to the kitchen.
“Are you feeling better?” I ask innocently. He lifts his brown eyes for a moment, then he lowers them again and begins to fiddle with a pan and a wooden spatula. It’s obvious that cooking dinner is a lot more important to him than I am. “Are you okay?”
“Why do you ask? I’m fine, thanks.”
“I’m just trying to get you to talk, that’s all.” I reply, defensively. How on earth do I dare ask him out?
“I don’t like talking about myself,” Jamie mumbles.
“Okay then, let’s talk about… commitments?” I propose, trying to get closer to my goal. I can’t wait to get it all over and done with, I just want him to reject me so that I can get back to Elly.
“Commitments?” He suddenly looks intrigued.
“Yeah, like… weekend commitments.”
“What are you talking about? It’s Sunday already!” he says tersely.
“I’m talking about next weekend – do you have any plans for next Saturday?”
“Why do you want to know?” Here we go, this is the right time to say it.
“Nothing!” Damn you, Ashley. Be brave! Say it now or never. “I mean… Elly’s going out on a date on Saturday and she doesn’t want to go out by herself. She asked me to come along and…”
“Why should that matter to me?” He glares at me, it’s worse than I expected.
“Well, it would be a little weird if a man went out on a date with two women at the same time. Elly asked me if I would ask you to come out with us too. I don’t know why, I don’t fully understand her, but she insisted. It’s not a big thing, we’re just going to have a meal with them and, if everything goes well, we’ll leave early. That’s all.” I try to play it down. I don’t want Jamie to misunderstand me – he already looks slightly amused and there’s a faint smile in the corner of his mouth. I thought that he was very morose a few seconds ago?
“You’re asking me out?” Jamie asks, trying to interpret what I am saying.
“I’m just asking if you can come along on Saturday night. It’s for Elly. For her date. She asked me to ask you, it’s not my idea.” I try to clarify. He thinks about my answer for a few seconds, trying his best to understand the situation. “Are you okay?” I ask him after a whole minute of silence between us.
“Yeah, I’m just thinking… what do I get out of this?”
“Excuse me?”
“Why should I do this? What do I get out of it?” he explains patiently.
“I’m asking you to do her a favour!” I burst out, annoyed.
“That’s not a good enough reason.” If I didn’t know how much Elly cares about this date, I would leave the kitchen right away. I’m trying my best to be patient, even if Jamie is testing me as never before.
“What do you want?” I ask, feeling overwhelmed and tired.
“I don’t know,” he mutters thoughtfully. I know that he has a clear idea of what he wants from me already. “The TV. I want to have access to the TV upstairs.”
“No way! That part of the apartment is mine and it always will be.”
“These are your own rules, the will doesn’t say that.”
“I know, but this is my apartment and I have every right to set m
y own rules – and that is what I have decided.” I burst out, in a desperate attempt to stand up for myself.
“That’s why I’m asking to have access to the TV as a reward.”
“It’s not going to happen – ask for something else, anything that doesn’t have to do with the apartment rules. I can’t amend the rules, they exist because I want to make sure that we carry on sharing the apartment in a civilised way.” I say. He’s already an annoying enough guest as it is, even with the basic rules in place. I’ve been too generous and I don’t intend to compromise on that matter. The apartment is mine and it always will be.
“My life has been a nightmare since I’ve been here. It feels like being in prison. I can’t go anywhere!” Jamie protests defiantly.
“That’s not true, you keep roaming around pretty much anywhere and you’re free to get out of the apartment any time you want. Nobody forces you to stay at home.”
“What do you mean? The will says that I must live here and I don’t intend to give away the company, especially after I’ve spent so much of my life on it, just because you don’t want to share your apartment with me. I would expect you to behave more maturely about the matter, in these circumstances.” His train of thought doesn’t make sense at all, but I can’t forget about Elly and how desperate she is to meet Alex – I have to keep calm and try to find an agreement. Elly will owe me a huge favour if I ever manage to convince Jamie to go out with us this Saturday.
“I’m a mature girl,” I repeat decisively. “There’s no room for you on the upstairs sofa – as you see, it’s not my doing, it’s the whole context that doesn’t let me give in to your request.”
“That’s bullshit, there’s plenty of room on that sofa, just like this one here,” he insists, pointing to my beloved sofa. “There’s room for at least five people here.”
“Not if I lie on it,” I reply quickly.
“You’re unbelievable,” he bursts out, then he turns round and fiddles again with the pans and the spatula. That means ‘no’ to me.
“I take it your answer is ‘no’.”
“You’re unbelievable,” he insists.
“You’ve said this already and I don’t agree, but I don’t want to argue right now. I just want to know what to tell Elly.” He turns round and glares at me – his intense, brown eyes are terrifying, but I’m used to that now. I take that attitude as a challenge to stay here and fight for what I want.
Finally, he sighs, he runs his hand through his hair and relaxes his shoulders.
“When’s the dinner again?”
“This Saturday.”
“Okay, okay, I’ll go with you. I’ll do it for your friend – she doesn’t deserve a friend like you at all. I don’t know why she still hangs out with you.” He’ll never learn to be nice to me – I’m pretty sure it’s only me he acts like this with. In any case, I will find out very soon. I swallow my anger and get off the stool – this conversation was rather fruitful, so I’ll ignore his mean attempt to hurt me once again.
10
Elly has been over excited all week, making her practically useless at work – the boss blames me because I arranged a date for her. How can he be so unfair? I have a feeling that Jass isn’t aware of the full story behind Elly and Alex’s date, and that’s why he’s blaming me. I have been working hard to cover for her mistakes – which caused some delays in my own work. I still have to call Mr Purfoy to check which dishes he intends to offer here at the Lighthouse. I will have to work really hard to make sure that I don’t get fired. I sit down in the comfortable armchair in Jass’s office and dial Mr Purfoy’s number.
“Hello, Alan Purfoy here.” The man sounds very confident and reassuring.
“Erm hi, this is Ashley Morgan from the Lighthouse book shop. I’m calling to ask you for more details about the book bar – my boss has asked me to discuss a menu with you.”
“I’m sorry – I’m not following. I can’t create a menu for Mr Hale – I’m a chef.” My Purfoy speaks with a hint of resentment
“Of course, I’m very well aware of that – he just asked me to note down a list of options and perhaps suggest something that we know our customers would like. Mr Hale would like to make sure that everything will be organised perfectly to give our customers a good impression.” I try to explain. I’m worried that his ego will stop him from talking to me.
“And do you think that you would be able to decide what is appropriate and what’s not?”
“I’ve been working here for years and I’m pretty sure that I know most of our regular customers.” Why is he being so rude?
“Are you saying that you’re conversant with the hospitality industry and that you understand how to combine different flavours for innovative dishes? Are you a specialist in the field?” he asks sarcastically.
“I work in a book shop, Mr Purfoy.” I remind him, unable to mask a hint of resentment in my voice. I hope that he doesn’t notice – I should be as diplomatic as possible, but this man is making it very difficult.
“See? You’ve just said it – you’re not an expert. Let me do my thing, I know what I’m doing.” Then he hangs up. I hold the handset to my ear for a few seconds longer, struggling to realise that he’s just hung up on me. How am I going to tell the boss?
“Everything okay?” Elly’s happy voice distracts me from my worries for a moment – I put down the handset and lean back in the armchair.
“I’ve just had a terrible conversation with someone. He’s supposed to be a professional but he’s been so nasty with me!”
“Jamie?” She rolls her blue eyes, looking bored.
“No, it’s Jass’s soon-to-be business partner, Mr Purfoy. How can the boss like such a terrible man?”
“Did you ask him about the menu?”
“Yeah, Jass asked me to take care of it, but Mr Purfoy doesn’t seem prepared to discuss it at all.” I sigh, frustrated. I still can’t believe how rude he was.
“Why? What did he say?”
“He said that I don’t know anything about hospitality because I work in a different area, so I should just leave the decisions to him – he said that he knows what he’s doing.” I say despondently. Mr Purfoy is not one of the most pleasant men that I know. I stand up and head to my usual position behind the counter, whilst Elly follows.
Elly giggles and sits next to me behind the counter.
“Well, that’s one job done!” she exclaims happily.
“I’m glad that we only had a phone conversation, or I would have punched him as soon as he insinuated that I should keep my mouth shut.”
“It’s all up to him now – if he doesn’t want our suggestions, he’ll feel the pressure.” Elly says. I know that he won’t care about our customer’s judgment.
“I hope that he’ll do something sensitive, Elly – if everything doesn’t go smoothly, Jass won’t like it at all… and we don’t want that, right?” Elly thinks about this for a little while, then she lifts her eyes up and looks at me decisively.
“We must convince the chef to trust you and have a discussion with you!” she states forcefully. I agree with her.
“How are we going to do that?” I ask.
“I don’t know yet, but it’s kind of late and I have to dash home to get ready for tonight. I want to look pretty! Be punctual tonight please,” she adds with a wink.
“Yes, don’t worry, Elly. By the way, I don’t think that I’ll have dinner with you…” That seems like a good plan, if I want to make sure that they have a chance to engage in meaningful conversation.
“Oh, yes you will… and you’re coming with Jamie – wear your best dress!” she commands, then disappears through the front door. It’s fifteen minutes before closing.
*
I manage to get home at 8:15 p.m., which is a record time for me. I must admit, being so early doesn’t make me happy at all. I know that Jamie is at home already and this makes me a little nervous. I have a feeling that Elly hopes to get me to like Jamie and vice versa
. I hope that she doesn’t try any clever tricks at dinner – I don’t want her to have anything to do with Jamie. I have never told her about kissing Jamie the night I was drunk, and that’s the first ‘important’ thing I have avoided mentioning to her. If I told her, she would begin to analyse the story and that’s the last thing I want. I have managed to put it out of my mind and I don’t want anybody to force me to think about it now.
“I’m back!” I shout as soon as I open the front door. The living room lights are on, but Jamie isn’t there. I walk into the kitchen, to see if he’s working at the counter – he’s not there. I get back to the living room and I see him on the stairs – he’s still wearing casual clothes and it looks like he hasn’t bothered to get ready for tonight.
“Hi,” I greet him, a little surprised. “You remember that we’re going out tonight, right?” I wouldn’t be so polite to him if I didn’t care about Elly.
He smiles at me – it’s one of those smiles that would make any girl fall for him. He looks happy.
“Of course I remember, but it’s a little early and I don’t take longer than twenty minutes to get ready.”
That’s fair enough – I definitely take a lot longer than that. While looking at him, I feel an uncontrollable urge to touch him, so I’d better walk away now. This man confuses me and overwhelms me without even realising – I have to be careful with him.
“I think I might need an hour or so – I don’t even know what I’m going to wear.”
“What about the black dress you wore the first time you went out with Alex?” he smiles.
The Inheritance: A feisty, giggle-inducing romance Page 12
