Page 45 of The One That I Want

‘What? It’s a brilliant concept and we’ve worked bloody hard on that proposal,’ she says. ‘Andwe’ll both get to use our degrees, meaning Mummy will finally get off our backs about having proper jobs. “How long do you think you can backpack around the world sleeping on other people’s sofas?”’ she says, mimicking their mother. ‘You see? Two birds, one stone,’ she concludes.

I don’t care for their mother, Lucinda, but I think if I had two daughters in their mid-twenties, one with an MBA and the other with a degree in social justice, I’d be encouraging them to (finally) start their careers as well.

‘Not to mention, you’ll be taking this off my desk,’ says Tristan. ‘Every time it comes to mind, I feel guilty that I haven’t done anything about it.’

I pat him reassuringly on the leg – he’s too hard on himself. He captures my hand in his and gives it a squeeze.

‘So, now we’ve told you about our idea, we need your advice, Poppy. Well,Eviedoes.’

‘Liv!’ Evie hisses. She flicks her eyes towards Tristan, who takes the hint.

‘I’ve got to crack on with preparing lunch anyway.’ He gets up and makes a show of putting in his earbuds to give us privacy.

Evie watches him head into the kitchen and only when he dons an apron and opens the fridge does she turn back to me.

‘Liv’s been on at me about something,’ she tells me.

‘I’ve not been on at you – I just think you should talk it over with Poppy. She’s aprofessional.’

‘Evie?’ I ask, pretending I had no idea this was coming. ‘What’s going on?’

She blows out so forcefully, her cheeks bulge. ‘It’s my boyfriend, Tyler… Look, never mind, it’s silly really.’

‘It’s not silly, Evie. Just tell her.’

She bites her lower lip and reluctantly meets my eye, her countenance a stark contrast to the spunky person she was a few minutes ago.

‘He’s asked about an open relationship. He says he loves me, but he’d like us to see other people.’

‘He wants tosleepwith other people,’ corrects Olivia, her voice brimming with judgement.

I adopt a poker face because there is no way I can say what I’m thinking.

‘And how do you feel about that idea?’ I ask evenly, now wearing two caps: matchmaker and (former) psychologist.

Evie shrugs, but it’s obvious she’s hurting.

‘I don’t know. I mean, I love Ty and I want him to be happy, but part of me thinks he’s not as serious about us as I am.’

Her instincts are bang on. In fact, I’d wager that Tyler has already started seeing other people and is looking for a way to assuage his guilt with a retroactive ‘agreement’.

‘He doesn’t deserve you,’ says Olivia emphatically.

‘How long have you been together?’ I ask.

‘Three and a half months.’

So, I was right; it hasn’t been very long.

‘Have you said “I love you” to each other?’

‘I have. He just says, “Me too.”’

I nod, wondering how best to couch my response. ‘Areyouinterested in sleeping with other people?’

‘Not really,’ she replies sullenly. I get up from the sofa and drop down next to her on the floor, then take her hand. ‘Oh, bollocks, is it that bad?’ she asks.

‘I can almost guarantee that Tyler is not your person,’ I say.

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