Page 2 of When The Night Falls

She tucked a lock of her light-blonde hair behind her ear as she continued to assess our sumptuous surroundings. Her hesitation was blatant.

I sighed. Olivia could sometimes be impossible to deal with. If she didn’t get her way, she transformed into a whiny brat that I couldn’t be bothered to babysit. It didn’t help that I was already beginning to suffer from a guilty conscience at the constant thought of my neglected coursework, and seeing as I was a law student in my third year at UCL, it was not a matter that I took lightly. Besides, my reasons for being here were purely selfless. I wasn’t the one who had wanted to go out tonight. She was. So, if she was going to be a pain in the arse, I would leave her to prowl on her own. But I had already warned her of that, so she had been surprisingly compliant today.

Finally, she directed her attention to me. ‘Fine. Let’s give it a chance.’

I groaned. ‘Took you long enough.’

‘Yeah, sorry. It’s just been so long since we’ve had a girls’ night out that I want everything to be perfect.’

My lips twisted with amusement. ‘Like you’re actually here to spend quality time with me,’ I said with a note of sarcasm.

‘Hey, I’m here for that too. It’s just that, ever since I broke up with Colin, I haven’t had sex.’

I couldn’t help grinning. ‘What, so you’ve had a dry spell for three months? Poor you.’

Three months without sex? I’d be going insane. No wonder she had been so eager about this night.

She gave me a scowl. ‘Yeah, well, unlike you, I haven’t got a fuck friend. I need to satisfy my libido somehow.’

‘Vibrator not doing the job?’

‘Not even close. I need skin-to-skin contact –I need a man.’

‘And preferably one with a heavy wallet at that.’

A chortle escaped her. ‘Hey, you know I’m not like that. I just thought it would be nice to find a lawyer since I’m a law student and all that. We’d have something in common.’

‘Aside from sexual desperation, you mean.’

She shoved my shoulder. ‘Stop teasing me.’

‘Sorry.’ I laughed. ‘I couldn’t help myself. Anyway, we’re in the right place, then.’ I shook my head. ‘I still don’t understand how you managed to persuade me into joining this.’

Olivia snorted. ‘Cara, even though you may come across as aloof, you’ve actually got a fairly warm and large heart in there – that’s how I managed to persuade you. A heartbroken best friend isn’t something you’re able to ignore.’

‘Lesser of two evils, perhaps.’

‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

I smirked. ‘Maybe tending to your needs is my way of making you shut up sooner.’

She scoffed. ‘If that’s your attitude, you’ll make a rubbish parent.’

Amused, I focused on the menu. ‘I suppose it’s a good thing I don’t want children, then.’

Did I want children? I always said I didn’t, but Mum always told me that the right man would change my mind. Since I was one for keeping an open mind, I didn’t argue with her on that. She had wisdom in her years that I could only dream of. My perspective today was no guarantee of tomorrow’s.

‘Have you settled into your new flat yet?’ Olivia asked.

I looked up and saw that her eyes were wandering. Another smirk surfaced on my mouth. She surely wasn’t wasting time locating a target. Well, I appreciated that. As soon as she sealed the deal with someone, I’d be heading home.

‘No, I’ve been so busy with coursework that I haven’t had time to unpack much. I had to search for a whole hour before I found this dress.’ I glanced down at the purple material. It was my favourite cocktail dress because it clung to my figure like glue. Although I wasn’t voluptuous – I didn’t have big breasts like Olivia – I had relatively wide hips, and years of hard work at the gym had got me a round, perky bum, which this dress accentuated beautifully in my opinion. ‘But I’ve booked a date with Jason tomorrow to finish unpacking.’

Jason and I had met at a pub three years ago, where a live band had been performing songs by Arctic Monkeys – one of my favourites. Our encounter had been perfectly coincidental and, in retrospect, rather comical. I was returning from the bar with a new round of drinks for my younger sister Phoebe and myself when a drunken idiot bumped into me, and the impact made me spill the pints I was holding over Jason, who was walking past me just then.

I was mortified, but, thankfully, Jason didn’t fail to notice that it hadn’t been my fault. After telling off the lad that had bumped into me, he offered to buy me a new round. I was so charmed by him at that moment that I struck up a conversation with him, only to learn that he also studied at UCL, although he wasn’t on my course. Instead, Jason was about to finish his second year of studying medicine back then.

After a few minutes of effortless and invigorating conversation, I invited him to join my sister and me. Since he was there with a couple of mates, he brought them along, and ever since that fateful moment, we had formed an irreplaceable and platonic friendship.

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