The Dating Game

by Susan Buchanan

  ‘I think we could use this. What a day! But I think the boys enjoyed it,’ she said, offering a glass to Gill.

  ‘Yes, well they certainly have enough toys and energy. I wish I’d seen them open their presents, though.’

  ‘Gill, what’s going on?’ Christopher cut through the small talk.

  Taking a deep breath, Gill said, ‘Liam asked me to marry him.’

  ‘Whaaat?’ shrieked Sarah, ‘I can’t believe you haven’t told us until now, you bitch!’ she leapt up off the sofa to hug Gill, but her husband pulled her back.

  ‘So why isn’t he here with you?’ Christopher, ever-logical, asked.

  Playing with the zipper of her cardigan, Gill smiled sadly and said, ‘I said no.’

  Sarah’s eyes almost popped out of her head. ‘No? But why? You two are great together!’

  ‘I know it’s a bit soon to be talking about getting engaged, but I agree with Sarah. You two are great together. I haven’t seen you this happy in ages,’ Christopher said, then awaited his sister’s response expectantly.

  Gill sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, pulling at it a little, as she was wont to do when nervous.

  ‘I ran into Anton,’ she whispered.

  ‘Anton!’ Liam’s tone was incredulous. ‘After what he did?’

  As Gill brought them up to speed, Sarah’s eyes widened in horror, whilst Christopher appeared thoughtful.

  ‘So basically, Anton didn’t do anything wrong,’ said Christopher slowly.

  ‘It seems not.’

  ‘And now you’re torn between how you feel about Anton and how you feel about Liam?’ he ventured.

  ‘It’s a bit more than that,’ Gill admitted. ‘As soon as I saw that Liam was about to propose, I felt horrified, not elated. I realised that whilst I was happy with him, that was in the knowledge that things could never be between Anton and me. And now everything’s changed.’

  ‘What did you say to Liam?’ Christopher asked.

  Remembering, Gill cringed. She wasn’t exactly proud of how she had handled it.

  ‘I told him I couldn’t marry him. He looked shocked, then he said, “You’re kidding, right?” but when I shook my head and started to cry, he realised I was serious. I tried to explain, but what could I say? He wouldn’t let me comfort him, so eventually I said. “I think I should go. I’ll call you tomorrow.”’

  ‘And have you called him today?’ Sarah asked.

  Gill shook her head, ‘Not yet. I thought I would talk to you two first then return his many calls.’

  ‘He’s been calling you?’ Christopher asked.

  Gill delved in her bag and withdrew her mobile. When Christopher saw the number of missed calls and messages, he said, ‘Shit!’

  ‘So what are you going to do?’ Sarah pressed her.

  ‘I don’t know. All I know is that I can’t be with Liam, when I still have feelings for Anton. I certainly can’t marry him.’

  ‘No, you’re right. That wouldn’t be fair, on anyone,’ replied Christopher, as he got up to fetch them refills.

  ‘What a mess!’ Gill said out loud.

  ‘You don’t need to decide right away,’ Sarah advised her. ‘Give yourself a few days.’

  ‘That’s what Debbie said, and that was before Liam proposed.’

  They fell silent until Christopher returned with the alcohol-laced coffees.

  ‘I’m going to take mine up to my room, if that’s OK. I need to listen to Liam’s messages and return his call.’

  ‘Good luck,’ mouthed Sarah, as Gill closed the living room door.

  Gill listened to and read the various messages:

  ‘Gill, I don’t understand. What just happened? Please call me.’

  ‘Gill, I love you, please don’t do this,’ Gill felt a tear roll down her cheek.

  ‘Please don’t throw away everything we have.’

  ‘We don’t have to get married. Things can just stay the way they were.’

  ‘I didn’t mean to frighten you off. I should have suggested living together first.’

  ‘Gill, I’m at Michael and Petra’s, please call me.’

  ‘Say hi to your family. Wish them Merry Christmas for me,’ said without a trace of sarcasm, as he tried to remain upbeat. Her heart went out to him.

  ‘Don’t you love me? I thought we felt the same way about each other?’

  ‘What went wrong? We always have such a good time together.’

  The messages continued in the same vein. Mentally preparing herself, Gill dialled Liam’s number.

  ‘Gill!’ the relief in his voice was palpable. ‘Thanks for calling. Are you all right?’

  ‘I’m fine. How are you?’

  ‘I’ve been better – glad to hear from you.’

  Gill didn’t know what to say next. After a brief pause, she said, ‘Can you meet me tomorrow? Kelvingrove Park, three o’clock.’

  Liam jumped at this lifeline.

  ‘I’ll see you there, outside the art galleries?’

  ‘Yes, see you then, Liam.’

  This had to be done in person. It would be hard, but it was the only way.

  As Sarah and Christopher said goodbye to Gill at one thirty on Boxing Day, they wished her luck. They had given her strict instructions to call after her meeting with Liam. Gill hadn’t even told any of her friends yet, not even about Liam’s proposal. She hadn’t wanted her screwed-up life to mar their happiness at Christmas.

  She arrived at Kelvingrove Park early, so she took the opportunity to call Debbie. After wishing each other a Merry Christmas and listening to Debbie’s news, Gill told her of the events of the past few days.

  Debbie whistled, ‘Gill, it’s like a bad Latin American soap opera.’

  ‘As I said to Lisa recently, no, this is just my shit life.’

  ‘Liam will be devastated, but he will get over it.’

  ‘I know. I’m just not looking forward to telling him. But I owe it to him, to tell him face to face. Do you think I’m doing the right thing by telling him why?’

  Debbie mulled this over for a bit then said, ‘Yes, I think so. It’s not as if you’ve met someone since you started going out, or betrayed him with an ex. The circumstances here aren’t exactly normal.’

  You can say that again, thought Gill.

  ‘OK, I’m going to go. I need time to think before I see him.’

  ‘Good luck.’

  Gill wandered through the park, enjoying the splendid isolation, as it gave her time to organise her thoughts. At five to three, she headed back to the art galleries. Liam was already standing outside, a hopeful look on his face. His eyes lit up when he saw Gill and he moved towards her, ready to embrace her.

  ‘Don’t Liam, please. This is hard enough.’

  Stung, he recoiled and dug his hands in his pockets.

  ‘Why don’t we go for a walk, so I can explain?’

  As they walked through the park, Gill told Liam everything that had happened since that afternoon when she had bumped into Anton on Buchanan St. She told him how she had felt about him before he went to Minsk and how, since seeing him again, her feelings had returned. As she held Liam’s hands in hers and looked him in the eye, she told him how she did care deeply for him and hated that she was hurting him, but that she couldn’t marry him, or even be with him anymore, when she had such strong feelings for someone else.

  Liam struggled to take it all in. It was clear he was only just holding it together. He inhaled deeply a few times, turned away and rubbed his face with one of his gloves.

  ‘Do you need more time, is that it? More time to know what you want?’

  Sadly Gill shook her head, ‘Liam, when you asked me to marry you, I should have been deliriously happy, but I wasn’t. Who knows, if Anton hadn’t reappeared, maybe things would have been different – although it was a bit soon,’ she countered.

  ‘Are you going to start seeing each other again?’

  ‘I don’t know. I need time to get my head round things. All
I know is I can’t be with a lovely man who asks me to marry him, when I don’t feel ecstatic that he has asked me.’

  Reluctantly Liam said, ‘I think I understand. I think. Gill, I love you. I wish I’d told you earlier. I wish I’d asked you to marry me earlier, but…’ as if thinking out loud, ‘maybe you would have just left me later.’

  Gill rubbed his arm and said, ‘Liam, I need you to know, I loved the time we spent together and I really never intended to hurt you and it hurts me so much that I have to.’

  Liam nodded weakly in comprehension.

  She hugged him then, tears flowing openly down her face, she sobbed, ‘I really want you to be happy. I hope you find someone who deserves you and who can love you as much as you love her.’

  They clung to each other for a few moments, crying unashamedly. Finally, Gill broke away and said, ‘Goodbye, Liam,’ and she turned and walked out of the park, digging in her coat pockets for a handkerchief, and hiccupping as she tried to stem another sob.

  Apart from phone calls to Debbie and the girls, and to her brother, Gill lay low for the next few days. She did oodles of housework and watched crap TV to take her mind of things. She had barely left the house since Boxing Day, only venturing out to buy bread and milk. Her friends were worried about her, but she assured them she was fine; she just needed time to herself. She watched the entire period drama box set she’d been given for Christmas in two days.

  On the thirtieth, Gill awoke to the birds singing. It was a brighter day. Wrapping up well, she walked through Queens Park. By the time she returned home, she had come to a decision. She knew what she was going to do.

  ‘Hello?’

  ‘Anton, it’s Gill.’

  ‘Gill, how are you? Merry Christmas.’

  ‘Merry Christmas. I’m well. Anton, the reason I’m calling is because I’d like to meet you, tomorrow. I’ll come through to Stirling. Can you meet me at the university, main entrance?’

  ‘Yes, of course. At what time?’

  ‘One o’clock.’

  ‘I’ll be waiting.’

  ‘See you then.’

  The next twenty-four hours passed as if in slow motion but finally the last day of the year arrived.

  Gill parked her car and decided to take advantage of the free time and go for a walk. She’d never been to Stirling University before and was struck by the beautiful scenery and the backdrop of the Wallace Monument which towered above it. By the time she reached the main gate, it was five past one. At first she didn’t see Anton, but then as she neared the gate, she saw him standing inside it, staring at the university buildings.

  ‘Anton,’ she said shyly.

  ‘Gill,’ he bent down and kissed her on both cheeks. That she had let him do that, was a step in the right direction, he thought.

  Now that she was here, she didn’t know what to say. How to process all the thoughts that were tumbling through her mind and arrange them in a coherent fashion, so that someone else, he, Anton, could understand?

  The university was closed, because it was outside term time, but some companies still worked between Christmas and New Year. But today was Saturday and it seemed no one was around.

  Gill half-wished she had arranged to meet Anton in a café or a pub, somewhere where she would have something to do with her hands, somewhere where they would be facing each other and this would be easier.

  They walked into the campus and after a short exchange of pleasantries, Gill blurted out, ‘I’m no longer with my boyfriend.’

  Anton looked taken aback, then hopeful. ‘Why?’ he asked.

  Thinking carefully what to say next, Gill finally said, ‘Because I realised that, whilst I care about him a lot, I love someone else.’

  Assuming, correctly, that she was referring to him, Anton took her face in his hands and said, ‘Gill, I will never let you down. I love you,’ and he kissed her. With that kiss, all the worry about whether or not she was making the right decision evaporated, and when they drew apart, Gill smiled at him and said, ‘I love you, too.’

  They embraced again and when they pulled apart, Gill said,

  ‘Here’s to Caroline Morgan and Happy Ever After dating agency.’

  ‘No,’ Anton said, ‘Here’s to our happy ever after.’

  Note from the Author

  I hope you enjoyed The Dating Game. You can follow me on Twitter @susan_buchanan or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/susan.buchanan.author

  I also have a blog which I update several times a week with news of whichever book I am working on, as well as other fun stuff for readers. http://www.susancbuchanan.blogspot.co.uk

  If you don’t want to miss anything, be sure to follow the blog. For now, I will leave you with the blurb and an excerpt of my first novel, Sign of the Times.

  Twelve people. Twelve star signs.

  Sagittarius - Holly, a travel writer, visits Tuscany to research her next book. Seeking help when her car breaks down, she gets more than assistance when Dario, a vineyard owner, puts temptation in her path. Disappearing without explanation, he proves elusive. Bruised, Holly tries to put it behind her until a chance encounter brings her feelings to the surface again.

  Capricorn – Holly’s fiancé, Tom misses her while she is in Italy and turns to an internet chat room for solace. His construction business is under threat, but could foul play be at work?

  Gemini - Holly’s sister, Lucy, a serial man-eater finally meets her match, which puts her long-term relationship and career in jeopardy. Cheating she discovers, can have devastating consequences.

  Libra - Holly’s uncle Jack, an eminent prosecutor, juggles a difficult teenage son with his high profile career and finds himself lacking. When his son’s school work starts slipping, he decides he needs to take control, but it’s not long before the balls all come tumbling down and Jack finds his family on the wrong side of the law.

  One event binds them all…

  Excerpt: SIGN OF THE TIMES

  Chapter One

  Holly - SAGITTARIUS

  Fun loving, friendly, philosophical, intellectual, straightforward and optimistic. Blunt. Dislike being tied down and love travelling. They require freedom of thought. Traditional, conventional.

  “Would passenger Jameson, flying to Pisa proceed immediately to Gate 84. Your flight is fully boarded and awaiting departure. Passenger Jameson, flying on BA 2600 to Pisa, Gate 84, thank you.”

  Holly rolled up her sleeve to study her watch. Damn! It was eleven o’clock. Her flight left at eleven twenty. No wonder they were calling her name. She always lost track of time in the shops. She couldn’t walk past a cosmetics counter. Laden down with Clarins tinted moisturiser, body crème and an eye gel, she hurried towards the cash desk. She knew the flight would wait. There would be up to another two calls before they told her that her luggage was being off-loaded. She had just enough time to snap up these bargains and hightail it to the gate.

  The tannoy burst into life again, demanding Holly’s presence. Even Holly was becoming anxious now. Unfortunately, the girl was having trouble with Holly’s credit card,

  “It’s asking us to ring for authorisation,” she explained.

  “Damn,” Holly swore. “Look, I’ll just pay cash. I’m in a bit of a hurry.”

  “If you’re sure,” the head cashier eyed her suspiciously, as if Holly had just presented a stolen card.

  “Yes, yes!” muttered Holly, willing them to hurry up.

  Transaction completed, Holly thanked them, flew out of the shop, glanced at the signs to see in which direction the gate lay and sprinted towards it. She was about halfway there, when the tannoy announced that passenger Jameson, travelling to Pisa’s luggage was now being removed from the hold and she would no longer be able to travel on this flight.

  “Shit!” swore Holly. She quickened her step to Olympic pace and almost sped straight past the gate.

  Unable to catch her breath, she pulled out her passport, gesticulating wildly at her name on her passport. The ground staff
member smiled, waiting for Holly to regain her breath and then speak.

  After several attempts, Holly managed to blurt out that she was Holly Jameson, ready to travel and to please not unload her luggage as she was here. The woman smiled at her, not unlike the wicked witch of the west and said,

  “We can’t let you travel now. You’re too late.” She acted positively triumphant as she told her this.

  “But you haven’t unloaded my luggage yet,” exclaimed Holly.

  “Yes, but it’s being attended to. As soon as they locate it, it will be removed from the hold and the flight will depart. That way at least the aircraft will only have suffered a slight delay,” she replied superciliously. Her words were intended as a direct dig at Holly for having held up the flight. OK, so it was partly her fault, not entirely her fault mind, as without Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee serving her in the shop, there wouldn’t have been a problem. But how many times had Holly had to wait for flights that were delayed? Spurred on by this thought, Holly interjected, “But if I board now, it’ll save them having to look for my bags. Then the flight can leave even sooner.” She cast an imploring look at her tormentor, but in the same crisp tones as before, she was informed, “There’s another flight at four o’clock.”

  Holly knew she was wasting her breath with Miss Iron Knickers. Defeated, she said wearily, “Don’t suppose I have much choice.”

  “Not really,” replied the woman, with the same fixed smile, which Holly would have loved to wipe off her face.

  Holly looked on, as her flight rose into the air. At least she’d managed to secure a window seat. It would be a treat for her not to be squashed between two strangers. There really was nothing worse than being jammed between an obscenely overweight man who burped and farted all the time and an arrogant one, full of his own self- importance.

  Looking for her mobile, she came across her compact and checked to see if she looked as hot and bothered as she felt. To her relief her creamy complexion looked unflustered and her shoulder length, black, naturally curly hair wasn’t as unruly as she had imagined. Taking out her Motorola U9, she called Tom.