Page 118 of The Little Teashop of Lost and Found
I felt myself going pink and Nile looked angry.
‘Yes, do go, darling,’ Sheila said quickly. ‘You want to be nice and fresh for the newspaper reporter in the morning.’
‘I feel tired too – I think I might do the same,’ announced Zelda, suddenly getting up.
I might have guessed she had an ulterior motive if I’d been less thick-headed with sleep, because she grabbed my arm as we reached the landing and said, ‘I want to talk to you.’
‘I don’t know what about, but it will have to wait till tomorrow – I’m bushed.’
‘It’ll only take a minute,’ she said, following me uninvited into my room and sinking on to the only chair.
‘Let’s stop playing games and clear the air: when Nile and I had our talk in the library, he said he’d told you I wanted him to be my spermdonor – but he doesn’t want to do it because he’s in a relationship with you. Not that I didn’t realize that for myself at dinner,’ she added.
That blew some of the clouds of sleep away and I stared blankly at her: ‘What?Niletold you we were in a relationship?’
‘I’m not a complete fool and I could see it for myself as soon as I saw the way you were looking at each other at dinner. He says this time it’s serious, but then, he’s been out with loads of girls and he always says that.’
‘But …’ Cogs slowly turned and I realized that Nile had only told her that to put her off. My first impulse was to deny it hotly – but it didn’t sound as if she’d believe me. ‘Nile and I—’
‘Look,’ she interrupted, ‘you can tell him you don’t mind him doing it. I mean, he needn’t have anything to do with the baby, if he doesn’t want to. There’s no reason why youshouldmind, is there? So you could talk him round and—’
‘No!’ I exclaimed with more force than I meant to. ‘Zelda, you’ve entirely got hold of the wrong end of the stick. It’s nothing to do with me! And now I’m so tired I can’t even think straight any more and I’d like you togo awayso I can get into bed,’ I finished forcefully.
‘Oh, all right,’ she said, getting up. ‘But you can’t fool me about what’s going on, so you think about it and we’ll talk again tomorrow.’
‘There’s nothing else to say. Please go away!’ I snapped, and she flounced out, giving me daggers as she went.
Wait until I got my hands on Nile tomorrow, using me as a scapegoat!
I woke late next morning so it was a scramble to get ready and downstairs in time to snatch a cup of coffee and piece of toast before the reporter arrived.
Bel was on breakfast duty and told me I was still down before Robbie and Zelda, though Sheila had long since retreated to her studio.
‘And Nile’s in the library emailing – he’s left bids for a couple of auctions today, I think,’ she added. ‘You’d better remind him you need the room.’
‘I’ll do that,’ I said, heading for the door.AndI’d ask him what on earth he’d told Zelda!
‘But she was convinced she could talk me round if she saw me face to face and she went on, and on, and on, like water dripping on a stone,’ Nile explained. ‘So in the end, I thought the easiest way of getting her off my back was to tell her I couldn’t do it because I was in a serious relationship with someone else. I didn’t say who – she filled in the lines between the dots herself,’ he added innocently.
I glared at him. ‘Yes, she did – and you’re lucky I didn’t tell her that we’renotin a relationship, serious or otherwise!’
‘Yes, we are.I’mseriously attracted to you andyouseriously doubt my intentions,’ he said flippantly.
‘Don’t be daft!’ I snapped. ‘You realize she’ll tell Robbie the first chance she gets? If she hasn’t already!’
‘Well, that’s all right because you don’t want him, do you? Or … do you?’ He eyed me narrowly.
‘No, of course I don’t!’
‘Bel said she walked into your flat just after he’d arrived and found you both in a clinch.’
‘It was one-sided: Robbie had just pounced on me and was being a bit overenthusiastic,’ I snapped. ‘Not that I wasn’t pleased to see him – I’m very fond of him – and anyway, it isn’t any of your business!’
‘Right: that puts me in my place, then,’ he said sarcastically. ‘But if you seriously don’t want him back, then I don’t know what you’re making such a fuss about, because by telling Zelda you and I are an item, I’ve solved two problems in one.’
‘You might at least have warned me what you’d said!’
‘I didn’t get a chance, or I expect I would have, but I really didn’t expect her to buttonhole you so soon.’
