Page 46 of For Love or Money
It turned out he was a very good cook, and as her signature dish was a bog-standard spag bol, she was happy to act as his sous chef and let him boss her around a bit. He had proper knife skills, and he’d shown her a great trick for dicing onions. After they’d filled up Jane’s freezer with healthy meals, he’d made a fiercely hot Thai green curry for dinner, after establishing that that was how all three of them liked it, and he’d even baked a cake for dessert. She was beginning to suspect Al was the nicest boyfriend she’d ever had. It was just a pity he wasn’t for real.
Still, as far as her family were concerned, he was. At least he’d get her mother off her back for a while.
15
‘Ihope they like me,’ Al said as they drove to her parents’ house the following Saturday. ‘The new boyfriend.’
She glanced across at him. ‘Lead with being an architect – Mam will be impressed by that. But she’s not fussy really, not now I’m thirty. She’s afraid I’ve been left on the shelf, so as long as I’ve got a man, she’s happy.’
‘What about your dad?’
‘He’s married to Mam, so he’s taken. She wants me to have a man of my very own.’
Al laughed. ‘You know what I mean.’
‘Yeah, he won’t like you.’
‘What?’
‘It’s nothing personal,’ she said. ‘He just doesn’t think anyone’s good enough for me.’
Al smiled. ‘I bet I can win him round.’
Lesley raised her eyebrows sceptically. ‘Knock yourself out. But I’m telling you now you’ll be wasting your time.’
‘Lesley!’Her mother threw open the door and ushered them inside. ‘And you must be Al,’ she smiled, extending a hand to him. ‘I’m Miriam.’
‘It’s a pleasure to meet you,’ Al said as they shook hands.
She beamed at him, and Lesley could tell by the way her eyes lit up that she was already impressed. ‘Well, your father will be happy to see you,’ she said to Lesley as she led the way down the hall. ‘He could do with cheering up.’
‘Oh? What’s wrong?’
‘Ah, he’s just a bit down because no one liked his breakfast on Instagram.’
‘Oh, right.’
‘Lesley!’ Her father was sitting at the kitchen table, fiddling with his phone. ‘You’re a sight for sore eyes.’
‘Hi, Dad.’ She introduced him to Al and they all sat.
‘Katrina’s just taking Skipper for a walk,’ her mother said. ‘She’ll be back shortly.’
‘So, Mam says you’re having problems with Instagram,’ Lesley said, nodding to her father’s phone. ‘No one liked your breakfast?’
‘Ah, now! That’s a bit of an exaggeration.’ He scowled at his wife. ‘It wasn’tno one.’
‘What did you have?’
‘Scrambled egg,’ he said, handing Lesley his phone, ‘with granary toast.’
‘Nice picture,’ she said, looking down at the screen.
‘I even put a bit of parsley on the plate for a splash of colour.’
‘So I see. Good effort.’
‘The presentation is excellent,’ Al said, looking over her shoulder.
