Page 47 of The Blind Date

"Many people seem to be doing that lately. Move out of London, that is."

For the first time since meeting Cedric, we were actually getting along. It was a strange feeling, and I couldn't help but brace myself for his next insult, but when it never came, I was left even more confused than before.

Had he lost his touch, or had I just become more tolerable of this insufferable man?

“Renting a place in Canary Wharf probably isn’t the best plan if you want to save money.” I pointed out the obvious.

"You're not wrong there," Cedric chuckled. "My lease ends in six months. If I can’t afford to buy a place, I’ll move somewhere more affordable.”

“How long have you lived there?”

“It’ll be ten years when I move out.”

“That’s a long time,” I whistled under my breath but chose not to probe further. Especially after Alfie had mentioned that Cedric had been married before. Perhaps he used to live there with his wife. That was a can of worms I wasn’t prepared to open.

“It’s time for a change, I think. Plus, my parents aren’t getting any younger, you know?”

“They certainly aren’t.” My lips tugged down just slightly at the corners. “I’m not sure about you, but my parents seem to be getting more desperate with age.”

"How so?" Cedric asked, curious.

“They try to set me up with every man they come across.”

“My parents do the same thing!” Cedric groaned.

“Your parents try to set you up with every man they come across too?” I teased.

"Very funny, darling,” he replied dryly. "But they're seriously getting out of order. They keep setting me up on these blind dates without telling me, and when I try to refuse, my mum makes me feel guilty, so I always end up caving.”

“I can do better than that.”

“Let me hear it.”

“My mum got me drunk at my best friend’s wedding and made a deal with me that I would go on ten blind dates a month until I find my soulmate. Her words, not mine.”

"Thankfully, my parents haven't gotten that extreme yet." Cedric threw his head back and laughed. "How many dates have you been on so far this month?"

“Ten.”

“Ten already? But it’s only October twelfth.”

I nodded. “You were actually my tenth blind date of the month.”

Cedric paused for a moment to do the math. "But Friday was only the eighth," his voice trailed off in question, and I nodded. "How did you manage ten dates in eight days?"

“I actually did ten dates in four days," I told him, struggling to stop my lips from curling up into a grin. It wasn’t something to be proud of, but I sure did find humour in it now that I couldn’t the other day. "One on Sunday, the first of the month. I then did four on Wednesday, three on Thursday and two on Friday. You were the last."

"How did you manage four dates in one day?" Cedric gaped, stunned. "You had to have taken days off work for all those dates!”

"Nope.” I shook my head. "I did breakfast, lunch and an early dinner. I had early drinks planned with the fourth date on Wednesday. He bailed on me, but I’m still counting him.”

"I have to admit, that's impressive," he whistled lowly.

"Mum said I wouldn't be able to do it, but I proved her wrong."

“Did anything come of those dates?”

“If it did, I wouldn’t have gone out with you on Friday.”

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