Page 101 of One Night in Edinburgh

‘Were you on drugs? Or drunk on the beer?’

Jamie flashes his eyebrows at me, a twinkle in his eye. ‘Neither. You remember me telling your brother that I’m a Partick Thistle supporter?’

‘Uh-huh…?’

‘Well, you know the whole what3words thing, where every three metres squared of the world have been given a unique combination of three words?’

My face lights up in recognition. ‘Serve. Minus. Pigs. It’s a square of the pitch at their stadium.’

‘Spot on.’

‘That’s brilliant. I love it.’

‘So, there you go…’ He looks at me meaningfully. ‘Now you know the full, ugly truth.’

My expression neutralises. ‘Gosh, Jamie, you’ve been through so much. I wish I could have been there for you.’

‘Don’t think about that.’ He reaches up and strokes my cheek lovingly. ‘I had to do it myself. Only the two mates who I stayed with knew about it all. I didn’t even tell my dad. He’s not exactly loaded and he doesn’t keep well – never really got over my mum’s death. I couldn’t have lived with myself if my news had made him worse. I have learned, though, that I need to let people in and to accept help.’

‘Did nobody help you at the time, to try and save your home – like in an official capacity?’

‘You mean the bank and stuff?’

‘Yeah.’

‘They did what they could. They were very good about it. I went through all the official channels, but the situation was dire. When I realised there was no saving the brewery, I tried to get a job to keep myself afloat, but it was basically impossible, because what does every prospective employer want?’

‘Of course, references.’ My heart sinks as I realise just how bad Jamie’s situation was.

‘Yup. My most recent employment had gone up in smoke and hit the local press in the process. I was vouching for myself because I’d been a business owner, and all it took was one Google search for those employers to find out why I was looking for a job – and that I’d been questioned in relation to fraud.’

‘Oh, my goodness.’ My hand flies to my mouth. ‘But that’s so unfair. You weren’t involved.’

‘Yeah, but the police didn’t know that at the time. They were just doing their jobs. I was cleared of any wrongdoing obviously, but mud sure sticks. It didn’t take long for me to realise that I wasn’t going to get anywhere finding work, and I didn’t even have a car or a bike to take up something such as takeaway food deliveries.’

‘Oh, Jamie, I can’t even imagine how awful it must have felt having no options. Or how demeaning it must have been being treated like a criminal.’

I shake my head, still unable to digest what I’m hearing. Then, to my horror, I feel myself welling up.

‘Hey, no tears.’ Jamie wipes a rogue one from the corner of my eye. ‘This is a happy day. We’re back together… aren’t we?’ He winces as he realises his presumption.

I nod eagerly and he pulls a relieved face.

‘Great, so we’re back together, I’ve got a flat and a steady job and I’m looking at business options again – though this time I’ll be pursuing themalone…’ He allows this pointed comment to hang in the air.

‘Definitely after that experience,’ I vigorously agree with him. ‘If you don’t mind me asking, how did you finally get back on your feet?’

‘A charity helped me. Their volunteers would come by and give me food and check I had somewhere to sleep. They even arranged emergency accommodation on the nights I didn’t have enough for a hostel. I resisted their help at first: my bloody pride getting in the way again. I thought I had to do it myself. But then I realised that I would be stuck in this cycle for ever if I didn’t take some help. They told me they could help me get back on my feet, so I eventually put my trust in them. It’s been a hard slog, but I’m getting there. They’re amazing people.’

‘Like angels.’ I turn away and blink back the tears that are forming again so that Jamie doesn’t see them.

‘Anyway, that’s enough of that talk,’ Jamie announces. ‘It’s your birthday. Let’s focus on that.’

‘Oh yeah, I almost forgot. How did you know? Did I tell you and you remembered? And actually, how did you know we’d be here tonight?’

He looks a bit sheepish. ‘It’s all a bit of a fluke. I’ve been plucking up the courage to contact you – then you walk into this bar this evening while I’m out with some friends from my uni days. I couldn’t believe it. I asked one of them to do a reccy to make sure none of the blokes at your table was your boyfriend. He reported back that it appeared to be safe territory, and he’d overheard that it’s your birthday – so I had my in. They’ve moved on to another bar now and given me a pass for the night.’

‘Ooh, you’re a sneaky one.’ I gently tap his nose like he’s a naughty puppy.

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