Page 16 of All I Want for Christmas

‘That was down to his scheduling, not mine.’

‘Was it good? Did you go back to his?’ Freja asked.

‘Thatreallywould be wasting no time!’ Darcy protested, spraying toothpaste in her indignation. Her brain rattled a little as she talked; she had undone her restraint on the champagne at the National by having some espresso martinis, which were never a good idea. ‘We had drinks at Brønnum.’

‘Oh, fancy!’ Toothpaste foamed in Freja’s mouth as she spoke, and she twisted to spit into the basin.

‘Yeah. We had a nice time.’

‘...Nice?Nice?’ Freja patted the towel against her mouth. ‘Oh no. That is not good. I know you Brits. Damnation by faint praise...You hated the guy.’

‘No I didn’t!’ Darcy rolled her eyes.

‘Was he funny?’

‘He certainly thought so.’

‘Attentive?’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘Fuckable?’

‘Sure.’

‘So then, what’s the problem?’

It was Darcy’s turn to spit and she stood up, running the tap. ‘...I was on a date with the wrong guy,’ she said finally.

‘How’d you manage that?’ Freja frowned, looking confused.

‘By accident, that’s how. I met one of my other matches at the drinks reception and the eye contact was off the charts, Frey,’ she groaned. ‘The chemistry was unreal! I’d have gone straight back to his last night, no hesitations, I’m telling you.’

Freja was looking appalled by the developments. ‘So then why didn’t you?’ she cried, splaying her hands in dismay.

‘Because Erik the Property Developer has all the emotional intelligence of a slug! Instead of seeing me standing on the steps with another guy and deciding to hold onto his dignity and slink into the night, he began madly calling my name and waving at me!’ She shrugged. ‘Max the Lawyer didn’t even give me the chance to make a choice. He just said goodbye and buggered off.’

Freja reached for her moisturizer. ‘Do you think he was pissed off?’

‘Maybe mildly.’ Darcy shrugged. ‘His sure thing disappeared in smoke before his eyes.’

‘So then message him,’ Freja urged her. ‘Make another date with him – a proper one.’ She began applying the cream in long, upward strokes on her neck.

‘Ugh...I doubt he’d be bothered,’ Darcy muttered. ‘I think he was calling another girl before he’d even got in the car.’

Freja’s hands paused and she winced. ‘Oh, really?’

Darcy nodded, reaching for some of Freja’s moisturizer too. ‘I get the impression he’s got a whole...routine, down. You know, hookup back-ups.’

‘Oh. Well, maybe it was a blessing in disguise, then,’ Freja said disapprovingly. ‘Man-whore is my type, not yours.’

‘Ordinarily I’d agree.’ Darcy rubbed the cream vigorously into her cheeks. ‘But I’ve never experienced anything like that before. All bets were off with him. Usual rules didn’t apply.’

‘Is this someFreaky Fridayshit?’ Freja asked her with an incredulous look. ‘Did we swap bodies in the night? How come I’ve been sleeping with the same guy for nearly a month now and you’re ready to hook up with...?’

‘Max the Lawyer.’

‘Yes. Him.’

---