Page 42 of The Last Saturday In July
‘He can’t, sure didn’t they sell their house five years ago, to go globe-trotting in a camper van? I hope it keeps fine for them. So, I invited him to stay with us.’
‘He’s moving in?’
‘Ah Jess, what could I do? The poor lad would have ended up on the streets. I’m sure it’s just for a short while.’
‘Well, I suppose he’s already there a lot of the time.’ Jess wasn’t sure what else to say.
‘Exactly.’ Carmel paused. ‘The thing is, would you mind if the two of them took your room? It’s bigger than Zoe’s and there’s a better bed.’
Jess scrabbled with the idea. If she ever had to move back home … which wouldn’t happen, because she lived with Simon. And she always would.
‘Jess, are you still there?’
‘Still here, Mam.Er,that’s fine.’
‘Are you sure? I mean, you’ll be wanting to come back here the night before the wedding, but we’ll make Zoe’s room lovely for you.’
‘Oh, Mam, I wasn’t planning to do that.’
‘But it’s traditional!’
‘We can talk about it again. Honestly, I’m fine about the room. What about Zoe? Is she pleased Finn is moving in?’
Carmel tutted. ‘You never know with Zoe. She can be as odd as two left feet sometimes.’
Maybe Zoe felt trapped. It was one thing moving in with your boyfriend, but another having him move into your parents’ house. Finn was generous and easy-going, if a bit moody at times, but he was a total dreamer. Still, maybe this would make or break them.
‘I’ll talk to you soon, Mam, I have to go.’
‘Jess?’
‘Yes, Mam?’
Carmel cleared her throat. ‘I just wanted to say, I’m glad things are working out for you and that you’re settling down with such a nice man. You were always the sensible one. Now, I’ll see you soon.’ She hung up.
Jess sat still for a long moment.Always the sensible one. God. Her phone pinged with a message from Simon:Meet you for lunch at Oui Monsieur, 1pm?Oui Monsieur was one of Simon’s favourite city-centre eateries, but he’d never suggested meeting there for lunch mid-week. In fact, he rarely suggested meeting for lunch at all during the week, because he usually only had time for a sandwich at his desk. It probably meant he had good news: he might have got that promotion at work. She messaged back with some food and drink emojis and put her phone away.
Early on in their relationship, she’d tried a few sexy WhatsApps, but Simon had deleted them immediately and asked her not to sext. ‘Say if I mislay my phone and somebody saw those?’ he’d said. Which was hilarious, considering that Simon was the most careful person in the world, and Jess doubted he’d ever lost anything in his life. Plus, would it matter if his girlfriend sent him a few risqué messages? Still, it was just one of his little quirks. Feeling a bit better, she got back to work. Today was already improving.
Jess left shortly before 1 o’clock and hurried across town to Oui Monsieur, where Simon was already waiting. ‘Sorry I’m a bit late.’ She kissed him briefly on the cheek and slid into the chair opposite. ‘So, any news?’
Simon pushed his glasses up his nose. ‘David rang. He sounded glad to be home.’
‘Brilliant! I’ll organise drinks as soon as possible. I know Kate’s looking forward to meeting him.’
Simon looked surprised. ‘Really?’
‘Well, yeah, he’s the best man and she’s my bridesmaid. Plus, they’re both single.’ She beamed.
Simon chuckled. ‘You’re such a romantic. Oh, before I forget, I picked you up something on the way here. He took a small box of artisan chocolates out of pocket and slid it across the table to her. ‘I thought you’d like to have something with your coffee in work.’
Jess felt a rush of love for him. ‘Thank you, that was really thoughtful.’ She examined the beautifully wrapped box. They were a far cry from the cheap chocolate she kept in her desk drawer.
‘So, do you think they’d hit it off?’
‘Who?’
‘David and Kate.’
