Page 57 of Sorry, Not Sorry
Struck by a thought, Delilah hesitated and then asked quietly, ‘Is your mum still not talking to you?’
The news that he was back with Delilah had sparked a furious row between Noah and his mother. Even learning about Zazie’s scheme to deprive her of grandchildren had done nothing to lessen Mrs West’s fury at her son for ignoring her warning about the dangers of trusting Delilah. Since then, she had refused to speak to him until, as she put it, ‘he came to his senses’. While Noah had been at pains to assure Delilah she wasn’t to blame, it was hard not to feel guilty for causing a rift between mother and son.
‘It was bound to happen at some point. Mum’s never been happy with anyone I’ve brought home and it’s time I put down some boundaries. Don’t worry about it – I’m not. Trust me, she’ll come round,’ Noah said easily.
Delilah scrutinised him covertly, but he really didn’t appear bothered, which was a total switch from when Zazie had been the one in the firing line. When Delilah cautiously voiced the thought, Noah simply shrugged and hugged her to his side.
‘It’s different with you and me. Granted, things between us didn’t end well the first time around, but that’s in the past. Give her time – even Mum can’t stay upset forever. At the end of the day, she knows I’ve been obsessed with you from the first time we met.’
Delilah winced at his choice of words and tried to ignore the flutter of trepidation they caused in her gut. She knew Noah wanted their relationship back to how it was before she’d run out on him, but there were times when the pace of change felt somewhat overwhelming. As they spent more time together, it was becoming trickier for Delilah to balance her instinctive need to take things slowly with showing Noah she was enthused about their future and committed to making things work. While she was happy to be back with Noah, it probably didn’t help that they spent all their free time glued to each other’s side. It had been weeks since she had gone out with Armenique or spent time with her other friends, and while Noah wouldn’t have minded, after everything they’d gone through, Delilah felt guilty about even suggesting time apart.
Salome had found a part-time job with her old firm who were delighted to have her back and was juggling the demands of her new job with making time for Farhan and the kids, which made finding time for the heart-to-heart chat Delilah sorely needed almost impossible. Besides, Salome was so firmly Team Noah that she’d have been horrified to hear Delilah voice any concerns about navigating the relationship.
But Delilah didn’t need any reminders that the last time she had felt under emotional pressure from Noah, she had panicked, and their relationship had ended in disaster. After her sessions with Arne, she had learned enough about herself to recognise that emotional stress was a trigger, but she had no idea how to explain this to Noah without opening a Pandora’s box which would be impossible to close.
They sat quietly on the bench watching a family of ducks waddle past and head towards the stream while Delilah mulled over Noah’s words. After a while, she broke the silence.
‘Babe, you know I’m so happy we’re together, right? But you’ve just come out of a relationship with Zazie, and you should really take some time to process that. It’s still early days for us, and – well, we’re still getting to know each other again.’
She kept her tone light, placing a hand on his chest as if to stop him running too far ahead. He took her hand and held it tight.
‘Don’t bring Zazie into this. That was a completely different situation, and my feelings for her are nothing like we have. Del, this isn’t exactly our first rodeo – we were literally hours away from getting married! How much more is there for us to know about each other?’
‘All I’m saying is, let’s take it slow and not let things get too heavy too quickly,’ she pleaded. ‘We’ve got all the time in the world, and I just want to make sure we don’t get ahead of ourselves.’
Noah frowned, and she stifled a sigh. It was hard to blame him for looking confused or suspecting she might be trying to backtrack, and she wanted desperately to reassure him. A loud rumble of thunder broke the tense silence, and she looked up at clouds that had grown ominously dark. She shivered and turned back to Noah, kissing him hard and holding on to him until she felt the tension ease from his body.
‘That’s more like it,’ he muttered, stroking back her hair and caressing her cheek gently. His eyes lit up with a hint of mischief. ‘This might be a good time to tell you about my brilliant surprise.’
‘You look like the cat who got the cream. What are you planning?’ she asked warily.
‘No need to look so suspicious, my queen,’ he laughed, kissing her nose. ‘You’ll love it, I promise!’
Still feeling unaccountably twitchy, Delilah felt her scalp prickle with anxiety, and she forced a laugh. ‘You know I hate surprises.’
‘Relax, girl! You’ll love it.’ Noah glanced up at the darkening sky and stood up, pulling Delilah to her feet and grabbing his jacket from the bench. ‘It’s going to rain. Let’s get out of here.’
38
As Delilah hurried out of the park with Noah, there was no trace of the earlier sunshine. The rain clouds were rapidly thickening, and the sharp breeze had picked up strength, whipping dead leaves and abandoned litter on the high street up into the air. Minutes later, a flash of lightning ripped across the sky followed by a loud clap of thunder, and suddenly the heavens opened to torrential rain.
Delilah shrieked and grabbed Noah’s hand, and they raced across the road to the greengrocers to stand under a flimsy canopy overhanging a display of fruit and vegetables while the rain thundered down. Spotting a café nearby, they dashed along the pavement, almost tripping in their haste to get through the door.
Inside, the only sign of life was a bored-looking blonde woman leaning on the cash register and listening to the radio. The dim lighting didn’t disguise the dated décor and basic furnishings, but with the thunderstorm raging outside as their only alternative, Delilah quickly slid into a booth by the window while Noah squeezed his tall frame into the seat opposite.
Plucking a handful of tissues from the dispenser on the table, she dabbed her wet arms while Noah tried to brush off the raindrops clinging to his close-cropped hair.
‘Bloody hell! That was wild!’ Leaning forward, he reached across the table and gently wiped a few droplets from Delilah’s face with his thumb.
‘What can I get you both?’ The woman at the counter strolled over, making a show of tightening the straps on a tiny apron that barely covered the top half of her skintight jeans. Tucking a long strand of blonde hair behind her ears, she fixed her gaze onto Noah, or rather onto the damp black T-shirt clinging to his broad shoulders and muscular torso.
‘Del, what do you fancy – tea?’ Noah asked, tossing his rain-spattered jacket onto the dark green faux-leather banquette. When Delilah nodded, he glanced at the waitress.
‘Two teas, please.’
‘Fancy anything else?’ The woman nodded towards a small selection of sandwiches and pastries under a glass counter by the cash register, but her raised eyebrow and a slight inflection in her tone made it clear that food wasn’t the only thing on offer.
Delilah immediately bristled, but Noah shook his head in warning before she could speak. ‘Nah, we’re good, thanks,’ he said evenly. ‘Just the tea.’
