Page 37 of The Life Daisy Devlin Designed
He threw back some of his drink, and Daisy got the feeling that he was deliberately avoiding looking at her.
“Why didn’t you come over and say hello?” he said to Brian.
Brian shrugged. “I had a meeting, so I didn’t really have time. Anyway, didn’t want to interrupt.”
“God, Brian!” Laura gave an embarrassed laugh.
James’ jaw tightened. “Why would you be interrupting?”
“No reason.” Brian grinned. “Can’t imagine what it’s like having someone live with you like that. I mean, your place is so small. Does she bring back friends? Boyfriends?”
“She prefers to go out to socialise.” James’ tone was even. “Daisy and I both respect her private life.”
In the silence that followed, Daisy pointed to her empty glass. “I’m going to get another one of these. Laura, what are you having?”
“I’ll come with you.” Laura slipped off her chair. “Same for you, lads?”
Daisy caught James’ expression as they turned to head to the bar, but for once she didn’t care. She was furious with him for not telling her that he’d had coffee with Alma in town, especially as she’d been caught off-guard in front of Laura and Brian. And she completely dismissed the little voice in her head reminding her that she was being a total hypocrite.
Instead, she turned her feelings of anger towards Brian. It was bad enough that he’d brought up Alma, but it was unbelievable that he’d made that stupid remark about the size of their house, given the fact that he and Laura were renting!
“Hey, watch where you’re going!” A woman with an armful of drinks glared at her.
Daisy muttered her apologies, before slightly changing her route to the bar. She wished she hadn’t told Laura that James had refused his parents’ offer to help them buy a bigger place. It was clear that Laura had mentioned it to Brian – who seemed to love making James doubt himself. Which was strange, she thought, remembering what a risk-taker James had been when she’d first met him, how confident he’d been about everything.
At the bar, Laura turned to her. “Let me get these.”
“Okay, thanks.” Daisy glanced surreptitiously around the room again, but there was no sign of Matt. Somebody elbowed her in the ribs as they jostled for a space at the bar, and she tapped Laura’s shoulder. “Back in a few.”
Without waiting for a reply, she weaved her way back through the bar and took sanctuary for a few minutes in the ladies’, washing her hands and touching up her make-up. As she came back out, her head smacked into the chest of a man going into the adjacent loos.
“Sorry!” She got her balance, and found herself looking up into very familiar, dark-blue eyes. “Matt!”
“If this was a film, that’d be our cute meet,” he said, smiling, and Daisy found herself laughing.
“Who are you here with?” she asked.
“Ah, you know, some of the old college gang. You?”
“Um, James and Laura and Brian.”
He nodded and looked around. “Bit different to the sort of places we used to go to, isn’t it?”
“You mean those scruffy, student pubs?”
He looked at her. “I kind of miss them.”
There was that little spark again. Suddenly, she wished that everything could be like it used to be, and they could just leave and catch a late film somewhere.
“Excuse us.” Two women passed them on their way to the bathrooms.
Both of them eyed up Matt, Daisy noticed.
“I’d better get back,” she said. As she went to step away, she spotted James heading in their direction. “Oh, shit!”
“What?”
“James is coming over.”
