Alberta Clipper (6 page)

“Are you actually being serious?”  Christine laughed. 

“I am!”  Emily
looked indignant.  “Your job is…” she paused.  “W
ell it might be a little intimidating
for a bloke.  You advise
on inve
stments worth billions of euro
-”

“Ah, now.  Not quite billions.”

“Well,” Emily continued, “you have a lot of responsibility.  And you work in a very testosterone-heavy office.  Some guys mightn’t like that.  And chances are you earn more than
Gavan
does.  And no bloke likes that, I don’t care what century we’re in.”

“Oh c’mon Ems.”

“Look Christine, I’m just saying what I think.  It’s great you have an interesting job to talk about.  Believe me, I’d rather have your
résum
é
than mine.  No one wants to hear abou
t my day, herding a class of
six-year-olds.  But just don’t sound too intelligent.”

“E
h
, ok.”  Christine snigger
ed
into her glass.  “I’ll try.”

“It’s not your fault that you are gorgeous and clever.”  Emily
smiled
.  “Just focus on the gorgeous, that’s all I’m saying.  Less Marie Curie, more Marilyn Monroe.  Just for the first few dates.  Then you can hit him with your IQ.”

Christine smiled, and looked out over the sea.  The tide was out, and some people were walking their dogs, others jogging on the exposed sand while they had the chance.  The evening was still warm. 

“Is that how you bagged Jack?”  She looked back at Emily.

“Sort of.  Jack needs to be needed.  All the good ones do.”

“Right.  Well, t
hanks for that, Oprah.”

Emily stuck her tongue out at Christine.  Her phone beeped on the little table
between
them
.  “They’re going to wait for us in the bar next door to the restaurant.”

“Should we get going?” 

“Nah,” Emily glanced at the clock on her phone, “we’ve got tonnes of time.”  She refilled their glasses.  “It’s too nice, just sitting out.  Maybe we should have just invited them over here?”

“No thanks!”  Christine crossed her legs.  “It’s bad enough that I’m on show myself.  I couldn’t handle having to have this place ready for inspection too.”

“O
h thanks.  So you weren’t dust
ing in my honour?  Charming.  So come on.”  Emily sat back in her chair.  “Tell me more about last night.  Any internal office mergers to report?”

“Not really.  It was fine.  Good.  The usual.”

“Was sexy Craig there?” 

“Yes, with sexy Rachel, his sexy girlfriend.”

“Poor girl.”  Emily shook her head.

“I thought you liked Craig?
” Christine said.
 
“
In fact, if I’m not much mistaken, you thought he was a real catch when you first met him.  Against all my advice.”

“True,”  Emily looked out to sea.  “I did think he was a catch.  But you were right.  He’s a player.”  She looked back at her friend smugly.  “Not like Jack, now.  He may not have Craig’s dark looks, but he is a
proper manly man.  Strong and -
”

“Oh excuse me while I go and vomit.”

“Well he is!”  Emily looked mildly hurt.  “You should be happy I’m happy.”

“I
am
happy you’re happy,” Christine said quietly.  She stared into her glass.  “I really am.”

Emily leaned over and squeezed her knee.  “And who knows?  Maybe
Gavan
is your very own Mr. Right.
  He
could be it.
  The One.
”

They both laughed.

“I doubt it somehow,” Christine stood up.  “But just in case he is, we’d better not be late for our first date.  Come on, girl.  Shake your tushy.”

~

The evening went surprisingly well. 
Gavan
seemed suitably embarrassed to be on a set-up date and when Christine confided that she had
Googled
him before agreeing to meet him, he laughed.

“How modern
.  I hope you didn’t Google my father to see what he does for a living.  That would have been very twentieth century of you.”

“I didn’t know his name.”  She looked at him deadpan.  “But what does he do?”

“He’s a sex therapist.”

Christine almost spat out her mouthful of wine.  “Are you serious?” she choked.

“No,” said
Gavan
.  “He’s an
architect
.”

The restaurant started to empty out after midnight.  When the staff began to sweep the floor around them, they thought they had better go.  It was testament to the fun they’d had that none of them was keen to leave.  Christine could feel
Gavan
’s arm draped around the back of her chair, his body leaning in towards her as he debated some rugby score wi
th Jack diagonally opposite
him at the table.  She knew that he was letting her know that he was interested, and she liked that he wasn’t being too presumptuous.  Her head was pleasantly fuzzy from the three big glasses of red that she had managed to finish.  She felt her toes being stepped on, and she looked over at Emily who was sitting back in her chair with a self-satisfied grin on her face.  Emily flicked her eyes over at
Gavan
, and winked at Christine.  She too had drunk the most part of a bottle of wine, and was being less discreet than she thought.  Christine stamped her back, glaring.

“Ow!”  The boys looked up and Emily recovered
herself.  “Well gu
ys.  Should we go?”

The waiter who had been hovering nearby took his opportunity and dived at the table with a small dish containing four mints and the bill. 
Gavan
took it immediately. 

“Let me.”  He glanced at Jack.

“No,
Gavan
.”  Christine lifted her bag.  “We’ll split it.”

“Please.”  He looked straight at her.  “I’ve had a great night.  I’d really like to get this.  Maybe,” he handed the dish back to the waiter who didn’t care who paid as long as he could finish cleaning and go home.  “Maybe we can do this again soon?  And you can get the next one.  Promise.”

Christine felt her cheeks redden.  She liked that
Gavan
wanted to pay.  She liked that he obviously wanted to see her again.  And she liked that he clearly didn’t want Jack and Emily to accompany them the next time. 

“Thanks
Gav
.”  Emily stood and Jack helped her with her jacket.  “Next time we should meet at Christine’s place.  We were just discussing earlier how it would be fun to have you guys there for food some evening.  It’s got a great balcony overlooking the bay.”

“Great!”  Christine swatted her friend.  “Or you could invite us over to your place?  Or do your parents let you have friends over?”

“Ugh, don’t.”  Emily looked at
Gavan
.  “It’s just temporary,
Gavan
.  I’m not actually living with my parents.  My lease was up, and my flatmate was moving to London, so I’m just back home until I find someone to share with.  My best friend,” she turned to Christine, “won’t share with me.  So I’m doomed to trawling through the personals until I find someone who does want to live with me.  Hopefully, they won’t turn out to be a serial axe-murderer.”  She smiled.  “I’d hate Christine to have that on her conscience.”

“Maybe you’ll find someone else you know who’s looking for a flatmate.”  Jack was obviously trying to be nonchalant but failing badly thanks to the chianti.  Emily looked at him and her cheeks flushed.

“Come on, you two.” 
Gavan
nodded towards the waiter who was holding the door open for them now,
evidently
bored of being decorous.  Jack put his arm around Emily, and they walked out followed by
Gavan
and
Christine
.  The waiter closed the door behind them, making quite a show of bolting the
locks
on the inside.  For a moment, the four of them stood on the pavement, Emily nervously looking from Christine to Jack and back again. 

“So.  Great night guys.”  Jack tried to break the awkward silence. 

“Yes.  Thanks again
Gavan
.”  Christine knew she had to take control of the situation.  “I’m gonna head home.  I guess you guys are going back to Jack’s?”  She looked at Emily. 

“Oh yes.”  Emily gushed, and then seemed embarrassed at her own eagerness.  “I mean, I’m certainly not going home.  I can’t have a hangover there.  They’d give me no peace.”  She looked at Christine.  “Unless you want me to come home with you?”

Christine knew that Emily didn’t mean that, but she played along with the little charade. 

“No, no.  Not at all.  I’ll be grand.”

“I can walk Christine home,”
Gavan
said, looking from Emily to Jack.
 
“
It’s sort of on my way anyway.”

Christine felt tingles up her
neck
.  “Well, okay.  If you’re sure?”

Jack wasn’t sober enough to play any games.  His sole objective was to get Emily back to his place without delay. 

“Great,” he said.  “
Well, thanks again
Gav
.  My round next time.  Bye Chris.”  He kissed her cheek. 

Emily hugg
ed her hard
.  “Text me later,” she whispered into Christine’s ear,
before being
steered off down the road towards the city centre
by Jack
. 

“This way, right?” 
Gavan
pointed in the opposite direction and Christine nodded, and t
hey started walking
towards
her
southside apartment. 

The night was almost balmy.  Christine carried her jacket and bag in folded arms. 
Gavan
walked with h
is hands stuffed into his jeans
pockets.  The street was busy with people hailing cabs
, heading home
.  Others were standing outside bars,
smoking. 
Christine and
Gavan
walked in silence.  The realisation that both of them were trying to avoid the holding hands issue made Christine want to laugh.  She would be twenty-nine in ten days, and here she was, walking down the street with a guy, hoping he’d curl his fingers around hers.  It felt a little like the past fifteen years had been a dream, and she was walking home from school next to Alex Mosse, their bags on their backs, arms swinging by their sides, she willing his right hand to touch her left hand by accident on purpose. 

“What are you grinning at?” 
Gavan
was looking at her with a smile on his own face.

“Nothing.  Sorry.  Ever been in there?”  She pointed towards a pulsating bar just ahead.

“No.  Do you want to get a drink?”  He stopped outside.  A smart looking
doorman acknowledged them
.

“No.  No thanks.”  She smiled at the
doorman
who
nodded
graciously.  “Unless you do?”

“Not really.”  He looked down at her.  He was tall.  “Maybe a coffee would be nice though?”

Christine looked at him.  She was too old for messing about.  She liked
Gavan
.  She wanted him to come back to her place.  That was all.  There was no need to think further than that.  She did her best to ignore the nagging thoughts rapping on her head, like little old ladies trying to get in.

You don’t know him well enough.

You’ve only met him once.

You’re going to look like a tramp.

What would your mother think?

She muffled them all out with the help of the three glasses of chianti. 

“I have coffee at my place.”

He smiled.  “Great.  Let’s do that then.”  His voice was distinctly husky.  He took his hands from his pockets and put an arm around her shoulder
s
.  For a second, Christine thought he was going to kiss her there on the street.  But he just turned and started to walk again, this time quicker, holding her to him.  The butterflies in Christine’s stomach suddenly started dancing, and she felt a wave of nausea wash over her.  She stopped suddenly and took a deep breath.

“You okay?” 
Gavan
looked concerned.

“Fine, sorry.  Fine.” She boldly moved closer to him so he would put his arm back around her.  He seemed relieved.  Then a loud noise behind them made them turn their heads.

“Whoa, cheers mate!”  A dark-haired man almost fell through the door of the bar and out onto the street.  He was followed by another well-
dressed bloke in his twenties and
a couple of skinny, sequinned girls in very high heels.  They laughed loudly at the first guy, as he stumbled and grabbed onto the
doorman
for support.  The doorman, who had apparently learned his trade at a Swiss finishing school, smiled obligingly at them all.