Page 12 of The Last First Date

Normally Helen would have observed a safe two metre gap from the edge, just in case the cliff crumbled beneath her, but like the gulls on the wind rising up between the rocks, she felt a rare lift of self-assurance within her. Plus she knew that even if Brody was as honourable as he made himself out to be, there was only one real reason why men suggest to women that they watch the sunset together from the cliff tops.

‘So you’re an East Londoner too? Let me guess, when you’re not going back to your Cornish roots you like to drink rosé wine from the Boundary’s roof garden, and I bet you write your infamous blog from Fix 126 coffee?’

‘Okay, have you creeped on my Instagram to suddenly know this information? Or am I that much of a cliché?’

‘No, because you’re being very mysterious about what it is!’

Helen paused – her job was a constant thorn in her side when dating. Guys she met usually googled her so much that before date two they knew more about her business than she did. Online she had a slightly kitsch persona and for the sake of personal branding wore a lot of polka dot aprons: little did most people know that out of sight of the camera she usually had her sweatpants on underneath. Whilst her online avatar was also constantly chirpy in the face of a withering shopping budget – or missing a key ingredient – internally Helen didn’t feel like that at all. She was totally over guys turning up on dates thinking they knew everything about her after googling her, and being left feeling not in the least bit understood. Not to mention the guys she turned down popping up in her DMs and harassing her thereafter.

The net result of all this, was that Helen had developed a solid policy of being aloof about her work on her first dates.

‘It’s just I like to get to know someone a bit first; it can get a bit awkward if someone knows more about you online than in the real world.’

‘No worries, that makes perfect sense to me, no more questions asked, for now!’ Brody playfully jibed. ‘So do you want to know how I know where you write your blog from?’

Helen managed a small smirk as their eyes met.

‘Well first of all, Fix does the best iced almond milk lattes in Shoreditch, which I know you like, and I know you’re an East London girl.’

‘Do you go there?’

‘All the time. It’s right next to my office. Great gluten-free brownies too.’

‘So, you’re telling me in another lifetime we could have met in my local coffee shop?’

‘Hehe, well don’t go overestimating me now, I’m not sure I’d make a habit out of chatting up attractive women in my local coffee shop, but if I saw you, well you’d at least get a smile out of me! Guess the real question is … would you smile back?’

‘You KNOW I would! Stop digging for compliments!’ Helen’s smile gave her dimples, and she surprised herself by actually being playful. In Brody’s presence she felt like she was occupying parts of her personality that she hadn’t known in a long time: like she was throwing open shutters on a room in a house, to recognise that yes in fact it was still there. She didn’t need Brody to tell her that she was glowing.

He smiled at her, and held her gaze just a second longer than before. His hand stroked her hair to the side of her face to see how full and deep her smile was. Then he leaned in to kiss her. His lips were soft and lingered after they first touched hers, as if waiting for permission that he could kiss her more. Helen pushed hers back into his and she heard him make a small sound of satisfaction. ‘Now, I’ve really got to get you home …’

Helen sighed and looked out at the darkening sky. ‘It has to end here, doesn’t it?’

‘For now …’ Brody looked right at her, his hand lingering on the side of her face, ‘but not for long. When we’re back in London, you’ll be ordering an iced almond milk latte, and there I’ll be. You’ll be sick of me soon enough, so I better enjoy this time whilst you’re still excited to see me again.’

‘Are you asking me on a second date?’ Helen looked up at Brody tracing her eyes across his face.

‘Maybe a last second date I guess …’

Chapter 6

‘Well, I wasn’t expecting that at all.’

Brody leaned against the bonnet of his car. The Tesla’s lights were on full beam on a starless night. The car was in the middle of nowhere, halfway down a dirt track, with hedgerows towering either side, pulled up on the verge. Even if you wanted to, you couldn’t see where you were. The night was silent apart from the occasional low moan from the fields beyond.

Helen felt moderately embarrassed, she should have known that Brody dropping her back was a bad idea. Now his car had struggled to a halt on the precarious country road that led into an old farming hamlet where her family home was, with the utterly unromantic sound of cows lowing in the background.

‘I’m so sorry. I should have explained that we were going to have to cross some Land Rover-friendly terrain …’

‘Helen?’ Brody turned to face her now, and Helen felt a shiver of intensity ripple through her body as her eyes met his.

‘Yup …’

‘Can I ban you from apologising? Or maybe we can get you to promise me that you’ll limit yourself to just once a day. It’s not a problem, driving you back means I got a whole extra hour with you.’

‘Should have got that VW huh?’

Brody gave a knowing nod, then shook his head gazing down at the floor.

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