Page 91 of The Life-Changing Magic of Falling in Love

‘Shut up, Joey,’ I say but I’m grinning as I say it.

‘You’re going to have to give me something realistic to report back or it isn’t me you’re going to be getting more calls from.’

‘He’s coming to Jasmine’s wedding with me.’

There’s a long pause as he absorbs the gravity of my statement. ‘For real?’

‘For real. Tell Mom for me. You know, when you’re reporting back that I’m fine.’

‘Are you though?’

‘I really am.’

‘I almost believe you.’

‘Well, that’s already better than all the other times, right?’

‘Look, we have stuff the next couple of weekends but how about next month Terese and I hop on the train and come out and see you? It’s what, like, only twenty hours, or so, right?’

‘It’s two hours and it’s a great idea, but seriously, I know you’re both saving for babies someday and I don’t even have the space to put you up.’ Guiltily my head turns towards Sarah’s room lying empty next door.

‘We can stay in a hotel,’ Joey says.

‘It’s really fine, Joey. I want you to hear me when I say I’m good. Because I really feel like I am.’ Besides, I’ve only just got Zach to agree to come to the wedding with me. I start throwing in weekends with my brother and sister-in-law and he’s going to think I’m trying to rush us into something more serious.

‘Ash—’

There’s a knock at my door.

Talk about saved by the bell.

‘Sorry, someone’s here. Gotta go.’ Springing off the bed, I walk the three steps to the front door and look through the spy hole.

‘Someone, or you?’ Joey asks suspiciously. ‘If you’re banging on your own door in the hope I’ll tell Mom?—’

‘Ashleigh? You in there?’ comes the impatient voice from the other side of my door, making me grin.

‘Is that him? That’s Zach?’ Joey asks.

‘Like I said, gotta go, baby brother.’

I end the call, open the door and stare up at Oz.

‘I brought humble pie,’ he says, bringing what actually looks like a key lime pie out from behind his back. ‘You going to let me in?’

‘I don’t know.’ I try to look concerned. ‘Can you be trusted not to break my hobbit furniture?’

‘You want me to stand up the whole time, I will.’

I have to put him out of his misery. ‘Oh, come in, you big lug.’

Oz steps into my apartment for the first time and immediately takes up all the space. Putting the pie on the kitchen counter, he turns around and leans against the wall. ‘You haven’t been into Oscars for a couple of days,’ he states.

I try to read his face. See what he makes of the scan he did of the room but the scowl he was wearing when I opened the door hasn’t deepened so I relax. ‘You here to check up on me?’

‘I’m here to apologise about the other day when you walked in on me and Carlos arguing.’

I pat his arm as I brush past to reach up to my one kitchen cabinet and get down my only two plates for the pie. ‘You were upset.’

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