He follows me through to the kitchen. I flick on the lights, the dim ones that only light up the counter.
He sits at the little breakfast table.
‘Coffee? Tea? Night cap?’ I ask.
‘Night cap?’
‘Let’s see…’ I rummage in a cupboard. ‘I’ve only got gin, Baileys or Pimm’s, I’m afraid. Or white wine?’
‘Gin’s good.’ He smiles. His eyes crinkle at the corners, and I get a flash of those lovely teeth.
Am I really doing this?
I cut a lime into wedges and break ice out of the mould. He watches as I run a wedge of lime around the rim of the glass before giving it a squeeze and dropping it into the drink.
‘Very professional.’
I hand him his glass and sit down.
We drink.
He has the kind of stubble that’s almost a beard. It’s flecked with grey and there’s a little grey at his temples. His knee is bobbing up and down like he’s listening to some internal soundtrack. I drag my eyes away before he catches me staring at him, the phrase ‘it’s like riding a bike’ rolling around in my head.
‘I thought about what you said before.’ He looks at me intently. ‘About it being a long time and I want you to knowI’m not in a hurry so… you know, when you’re ready to… I mean, I know what it’s like… to start seeing people again after… whatever… and I had a good time tonight. I enjoyed spending time with you so… I’m happy to, you know, hang out until you’re ready––’
I’m not sure if I want to put him out of his misery or if I just want him to shut up, but I shift forward in my chair and kiss him. I taste the lime on his lips and smell whatever aftershave that is.
I pull away to gauge his reaction.
He grins. ‘Or we could rush in.’
Heat flushes my cheeks, and as I look away, something catches my eye on the table.
It’s Liv’s door key with its ‘O’ keyring.
She’s here.
Chapter 25
December 1995
Christmas Day
When Will went into the sitting room, Reu was spinning around with his mouth wide open.
‘Mary Poppins!’ shouted Aidan.
Reu shook his head.
‘Ghostbusters!’ called Uncle Brian.
Reu shook his head again.
‘The Sound of Music?’ guessed Will.
Reu pointed at him while touching his nose, the universal gesture for a correct guess in charades. Reu had just learned it and was enjoying using it.
Aidan groaned. ‘You didn’t even see how many words it was!’