Page 49 of Christmas off Script
Leo bit the inside of his cheek to stop a sigh from escaping. Often, he managed to avoid talking about his family until the third date. But sooner or later his potential girlfriends would discover who his parents were. Reactions went from shock and horror to excited curiosity. Sometimes women didn’t seem bothered, but by then they’d usually decided Leo wasn’t right for them for another reason.
He met Ellie’s gaze and attempted to smile reassuringly. ‘He only has two wives, and he’s got a heart of gold.’
Her eyes lit up. ‘So, you know him then?’
‘Yeah. He’s my dad.’
Ellie’s excited expression froze, then crumpled into remorse. ‘Oh god, I’m so sorry! I had no idea.’
Leo shrugged, as if it didn’t matter, even though it always did.
‘Is hereallyyour dad?’
He nodded.
‘Wow. My parents are accountants.’
A handsome waiter with black hair and flashing dark eyes appeared, giving his full attention to Ellie. ‘Mademoiselle, have you seen anything you fancy tonight?’
Ellie blinked as she stared up at him, her cheeks turning pink. ‘I, er… What would you recommend?’
He came to her side and bent down, his cheek inches from hers as if he was reading the menu for the first time and his eyesight was failing. ‘Let me see what you might like.’
Ellie swallowed and leaned towards him.
Leo resisted the urge to roll his eyes. This was a first. Usually, his dates waited until the end of the night before they made it clear they weren’t interested in him. Was it the blond hair that put them off? His family? His crap jokes? Or just the total lack of chemistry between him and whoever he was attempting to date?
As the waiter eye-fucked Ellie and exaggerated his French accent to the point of caricature, Leo thought back to Lila, the only long-term girlfriend he’d ever had. With her platinum-blonde hair, she had similar looks to Ellie.And an attraction to dark-haired men. She would always finish with Leo before sleeping with someone else, so he could never accuse her of cheating. But when the thrill of her new fling wore off, or he treated her badly, Lila would return to Leo, knowing he would take her back.
Why did I?At the time, he’d believed he was in love. But now, looking back, was he just in love with theideaof being in love? Was he trying to find some normalcy amidst the chaos of a family with one dad and two mums?
‘And for you, Monsieur?’
Snapped into the present by the waiter’s voice Leo ordered, then forced his posture to relax. Even though Ellie reminded him of Lila and what a fool he was to have stayed with her for so long, he smiled.
‘What subject do you teach?’ he asked.
‘Maths.’
Leo tried not to flinch. He barely scraped through his GCSE in the subject.
Ellie rolled her eyes. ‘That’s the usual reaction I get.’
‘Sorry, I’ve got a real mental block about maths. My brain shorts out if anyone mentions the word. I remember trying to learn quadratic equations and thinking, “what’s the point”?’
‘But they’re amazing!’ she exclaimed. ‘They’re a fundamental concept in algebra. They develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills, they’re widely used in other STEM subjects, and they can model economic and business issues. Like calculating profit maximisation and cost minimisation. The skills you learn from solving quadratic equations can be applied to so many areas in life!’
Leo clenched his jaw, fighting a yawn. ‘Maybe it was just how they were taught to me then. I could never get my head around them.’
Ellie frowned. ‘That’s such a shame.’
It is?He forced himself to nod.
She paused, then seemed to come to a decision about something. ‘Okay! I know what we’re going to do!’ Pulling a pen from her bag, she opened out her paper napkin. ‘My mission tonight is to change your mind about maths and teach you a quadratic equation!’
When they leftthe restaurant a few hours later, Leo still couldn’t do a quadratic equation, and Ellie had been slipped a piece of paper by their waiter, presumably with his number on it.
‘Thank you for a lovely evening,’ Leo began, breaking the awkward silence. ‘I’ve really enjoyed meet—’
