Page 11 of Amazing Grace

Grace smiled and thought how nice it would be to actually have someone handy around the house. Mark was absolutely rubbish at DIY and too tight to pay anyone to do it, so consequently they had lived in a state of unfinished jobs which she’d had to pay a fortune out to have finished before she could even consider putting the house on the market.

Within a few clicks, and before Grace could even think any further about it, Monica had sent a request through to the site to connect with Derek.

‘OK, let’s see what happens now!’

Grace could not believe that she had been talked into this. Internet dating was something that tons of people had suggested to her and she had strongly protested against. In fact, she’d had a massive row with Hannah about it when Hannah had suggested it’d be a great laugh. ‘A great laugh for the people who didn’t have to do it,’ Grace had yelled at Hannah, slamming down the phone. She’d had to ring back and apologise, realising that she was so scared at getting out of her comfort zone that she’d taken it out on her sister, who Grace knew would never upset her intentionally.

Another friend of hers, Lynne, had suggested that she should go speed-dating and said that she thought it would be great fun. It was OK for her though; she was married, and her husband John even said that he’d go too and choose someone for her! It seemed that their idea of a fun evening out was a little different to Grace’s.

Grace temporarily and conveniently forgot their discussion about the dating site and she and Monica slipped back into their favourite pastime of people watching. They loved to pick out people and make up stories about them.

While they were discussing the lives of a couple that they’d nicknamed Doreen and Dave, who had hardly anything to say and sat on their respective phones ignoring each other, there was a commotion at the entrance of the bar and a group of rowdy men came in. When they dispersed to the bar, one of them in particular caught Grace’s eye. He had his back to them and was stood on the edge of the group, not really fitting in, seeming quieter than the rest, and, oh boy, he looked like he had a body to die for from the back. He was dressed in smart jeans and a trendy blue shirt and jumper.

For the first time in a long time, Grace thought that he looked like the sort of guy she might like to get to know better, then checked herself and wondered why anyone like that would ever look at her. She was a single mum of a ten-year-old, fat and frumpy, and her idea of an exciting night out was a trip to her local Tesco to buy a new pair of pyjamas. She’d even been invited recently to a food-tasting event by the local manager for being one of their most loyal customers! Even before Monica had thrown away most of her wardrobe, Grace had had more clothes to go to bed in than she did to go out.

‘Ooooh! Fitty at ten o’clock! He’s lush!’ whispered Monica. ‘I could see you and Fitty making beautiful babies together.’ They giggled just a tad too loudly, feeling the effects of a glass or two of Pinot until ‘Fitty’ turned round and looked Grace straight in the eye.

It was Vinnie!

He smiled shyly at Grace as soon as he recognised her, seemingly embarrassed by his own loud friends.God, he really is gorgeous, she thought. Then he was lost in the crowd as they all started jostling each other and began what appeared to be a drinking competition.

Grace excused herself to go to the ladies’ and when she came out, he was just on his way into the gents’. As she passed him, she realised once again that he had the dreamiest blue eyes she’d ever seen.

‘Hello again,’ he said. ‘Sorry about the loud blokes I’m with! Hope they’re not spoiling your evening.’

‘That’s OK,’ Grace replied. ‘You don’t seem to be half as loud as they are, though.’

‘I’m not, that’s why. But my mate dragged me out.’ He looked sheepish but she couldn’t help thinking how incredibly handsome he was. She could get lost in those eyes forever. And thatvoice!

‘I know that feeling. I’m normally in watchingX Factorand eating a Chinese in my jimmies on a Saturday or dancing around the lounge toStrictly,but I’ve been dragged out by my friend Monica. She’s trying to encourage me to get out into the big bad world more.’ Grace smiled, knowing that Monica only had her best interests at heart.

‘What about your husband? Is he babysitting tonight? I noticed that you wear a wedding ring and I remember you talking about your son earlier.’

‘Oh no, the rings belonged to my mum, I just wear them because they were hers and it makes me feel close to her. No… as for me and my son’s dad, we’re not together any more.’

Vinnie smiled. ‘Oh right. That’s good. Oh sorry, I don’t mean good. You know…’

‘Oy-oy, Vinster!’ A tall, friendly looking man came up and patted him on the back. ‘Hope you’re not chatting this poor defenceless lady up, mate. You know Ellie won’t like it!’

Vinnie looked sheepish. ‘I suppose I’d better get back to my mates. I can’t wait till tomorrow, truth be told, as I normally spend my weekend mornings at the new coffee shop in town. It belongs to my sister Ruth, and I try to make it look busy for her. I always take some work along so I don’t look like an idiot on my own, or you can find me in a corner with my nose stuck in a book. I’m a proper bookworm. Probably shouldn’t have confessed that,’ he said, smiling. ‘But you should come along, it’s really nice there and the coffee is great.’

Grace loved that Vinnie admitted to reading books. Mark always said she was rude when she read instead of watched TV with him. ‘Bye, Vinnie, good to see you. Enjoy the rest of your evening.’

‘You too, Grace. And it was really nice to see you again. You look amazing, by the way!’

Grace blushed. She was not used to getting compliments. Vinnie’s cheeks also looked a little on the rosy side all of a sudden. Perhaps he wasn’t used to giving them out.

As she walked back into the bar, she turned at the same time he did, and they grinned at each other and he gave her a wink. Her heart exploded with lots of tiny fireworks. But then she thought it was just her luck to find someone she finally fancied to discover he was already taken. She wondered if ‘Ellie’ was the sender of the text message he’d received when he was looking at her garden, the one that had made him frown.

‘Monica, you will not believe who that fit bloke at the bar was.’ Grace was flushed as she returned to her seat.

‘Ooh, how exciting. Tell me more, you gorgeous creature,’ slurred Monica, who had reached the bottom of her large glass of wine and had been up to the bar to fetch another bottle. ‘I told you that you looked a million dollars tonight, didn’t I?’

‘Ha! Only Vinnie, the gorgeous landscaper. He said that his sister has a coffee shop and that I should pop in on a Saturday as he’s always there. I probably won’t go, though. Anyway, I think he has a girlfriend. His friend mentioned a girl’s name and said that she wouldn’t like him talking to me.’

‘Not going? For God’s sake girl, you don’t have to marry the guy, he only asked you for coffee! You have to go. Just get yourself out there and start to live again. You can’t just live your life for your son. You are so miserable when you’re not with him, but this is how your life is now. I just want you to do something for yourself when Archie’s with his dad. You can either wallow and have a pity party, or you can get out there and grab life with both hands. Life is too short, and you are too fabulous to be alone!’

‘I know life’s short, Mon, but I hate not being a mum and being part of a family. It’s all I ever wanted in my life, and when I had Archie I felt that my life was complete. When he’s not with me at home, it’s like the soul has gone from my house. The only thing I’ve ever been really good at in my life is being mum to Archie and when he’s not there I feel completely lost.’ Grace tried to explain.

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