Page 60 of A Night with Damien Spur

‘Beth passed first time.’ Kate took a sip of wine. ‘I wonder if girls have a better pass rate.’

‘I don’t know. Anyway…’ Nicholas sank back into no man’s land. ‘Oh, I forgot to mention, poker night’s been changed to Tuesday, just for this week. It’s Pepe’s birthday on our usual Friday and his wife has arranged a special treat.’

‘Oh. What will you do instead?’

‘I thought maybe you would like to go to the cinema or see a show.’

‘Not really… Chicken’s nice.’

‘My steak’s not bad. Bit overcooked, though. All these health and safety rules… Bet they don’t have that problem in Argentina…’ He plucked a green bean from his plate and popped it in his mouth. ‘Well, what would you like to do?’

‘Mmm, let me think.’ Kate shut her eyes and strummed the table with her fingers.

‘Ah!’ she said. ‘I know. Why don’t I make a romantic dinner for two at home?’

‘Fine! That would be lovely.’ Nicholas patted her hand. She seemed so happy. He’dcracked through her shell. He hadn’tseen her looking so well in ages.

Maybe we can make it work, he thought.

***

Tripping down the aisle with her trolley that Friday, Kate grabbed the Romantic Dinner for Two special: twelve quid with a bottle of wine thrown in.

Caesar salad, main chicken and leek cosy casserole and a side of mash, two lemon tartlets and a bottle of Rioja.

Late afternoon, Nicholas whistled up the garden path and called out a husbandly, ‘Darling, I’m back,’ to signal his arrival.

‘I’m in the kitchen, Nick,’ she shouted.

Kate, in navy tracks and a grey T-shirt, was arranging the ready-made Caesar salad on plates. ‘I didn’t expect you to come home so early. Was going to have dinner ready on the table and I’m not even dressed yet.’

She gave Nicholas a slither of a smile as he stood by the door with a black leather man bag on his shoulder and one hand behind his back.

‘My second appointment in Cambridge was cancelled at the last moment,’ he said, ‘so I took the earlier train home. Had to buy a new ticket, as the one I’d bought was off-peak. Cost me another hundred and twenty pounds. Anyway – ta-da! – I bought you some flowers…’ He proffered a bunch of tired-looking yellow and white carnations. ‘I know they look sad, but not much left on a Friday afternoon… Best of the bunch, as it were,’ he added apologetically.

‘Can you put them in a vase?’ Kate asked with a cursory glance.

Nick grabbed a blue pitcher, filled it with water and dropped them in.

Kate stared at the faded bouquet. ‘They look how I feel, but thanks anyway. It’s the thought that counts as they say… So,how was your day?’ She opened the oven door and poked the chicken, which sat in a foil dish, with a fork.

‘Mmmm, something smells good.’ He gave her a peck on the cheek.

‘Well, one of us has to save money. Dinner for two, twelve quid, you can’t go wrong. Would you like a glass of wine? There’s the Rioja that comes with the meal, but I’ve already got a bottle of white in the fridge. Opened it today for lunch.’

‘Thanks.’ He held up the bottle. ‘Not much left. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I bought some red. I’ll open that instead.’

‘So, how was your day?’ Kate asked again.

‘My day was okay,’ he said, ‘but on the way back the train was crowded and I had this girl next to me who wouldn’t stop shouting on her mobile.’

‘Oh well.’ Kate took the bottle of white from the fridge and poured the remainder into a tumbler.

‘Can’t you use a proper wine glass, Kate?’

‘I don’t like the stems. They always seem to get broken in the dishwasher, and it takes ages to wash them by hand, because they go all misty if you don’t do them properly. Anyway, I’m going to have a shower now.’

She gulped down the wine. ‘I’m a bit smelly. It was very muggy today and after the supermarket I did some DIY to the shed. There were a few wooden planks that needed fixing and it really made me sweat, plus I put some compost on the vegetable patch. I did wash my hands, but still it’s hard to get rid of the pong.’

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