Page 17 of Made Up for Love
“Deal.”
Joel hung up. The first thing he had to do was get Lydia’s details to give to Sophia for the flight. He couldn’t message her; however he did know her room number. He hauled himself off the bed and went over to the phone, punching in the digits.
“Hello?”
“Lydia, it’s Joel. I need to know when your birthday is.”
She laughed. “Why, are you going to buy me a present?”
He felt his mouth curve into an involuntary smile. “Maybe.”
“July thirteenth.” She paused. “Do you think we’ll still be friends in seven months’ time?”
Oh God, he hoped so. “And what year were you born? Sophia will sort out that ticket for you.”
She told him. It turned out they were only a few months apart in age, although Joel felt that the events of the last year had taken their toll and had made him old before his time.
“Are you sure about sorting that out?” she asked. “I don’t want to put you to any trouble.”
“It’s no problem. And you still have to pay me back, remember?” He was only half joking.
“Don’t worry, I won’t forget.”
He could almost hear her smiling at him over the phone.
“All that exercise and fresh air has made me really hungry. I’ll see you in a few minutes, Joel.”
“Sure. See you soon.”
11
Lydia didn’t know why she chose to wear the dress for dinner that evening. Maybe she was testing out what the sales assistant had said earlier about Joel’s reaction to her in it. She knew that the heeled boots she had didn’t really go and wished she’d bought a pair of shoes, as well, while they’d been out. She never thought she’d be so sick of the beautiful, Italian leather boots that had cost her almost a week’s wages. Thankfully, there was a pair of perfectly matching cranberry suede heels waiting at home in her wardrobe. If she ever made it home. It felt like she’d been away for weeks.
When she made it downstairs, Joel was already waiting at the same table they had sat at last evening. Butterflies flitted in her stomach as if she were on a real date. It was crazy, she reflected, how she felt after being with someone for such a short time. The artificial situation they were in perhaps didn’t help. If they’d bumped into each other in a bar in London, would she have felt this way this quickly?
As she walked towards him, she felt the heat of his gaze on her. His eyes lit up as she got closer, taking in her appearance. She’d worked hard on getting her hair right, casual curls tumbling over her shoulders—the best she could do without her trusty GHDs—and subtle make-up, a smoky eye and nude lips. While she was able to create fabulous looks for other people, she often struggled doing it for herself, but was proud of the result.
“I knew that dress was the right one.” Joel stood up and kissed Lydia on both cheeks, taking her aback slightly. “You look fantastic. Your sister can’t possibly be mad at you for buying this beauty.”
“Thank you,” was all she managed before sitting down.
“The weather seems to be clearing up,” said Joel. He gestured out of the window and Lydia noticed that it seemed there was a thaw beginning. “Hopefully that means we can get flights home tomorrow.”
There was a small part of Lydia that didn’t want this to end. Despite the way everything had initially gone wrong, she had enjoyed herself the last twenty-four hours or so. Joel was great company and seemed genuinely interested. It would be a shame if they didn’t meet up again.
They ordered from the same limited menu and Joel selected another bottle of the red wine they had drunk the previous night to go with their steaks.
“What are your plans for Christmas?” Buoyed by the very good Merlot, the words slipped out of Lydia’s mouth without thinking.
“Staying away from as many parties as possible and wishing it was New Year’s Eve.” Joel looked down at the table, avoiding Lydia’s gaze.
“Really? You don’t have friends you’d usually celebrate with? Or maybe you’re more of a churchgoer?”
Joel shook his head. “This time last year I was planning my wedding.”
Lydia’s mouth dropped open. She remembered him saying that he’d broken up with his fiancée. Had she been flirting with a married man all this time? Surreptitiously, she checked his left hand for any sign of a ring, but it was bare. How was it possible that he hadn’t mentioned it before? She thought back on all the conversations they’d had that day.
“What happened?” She took a big gulp of her wine, almost not wanting to hear the answer.
