Page 52 of A Kiss under the Stars
Where are they going on the train? Is it a work thing? Butit’s after six now... surely too late in the day for that? So...maybe it’s a personal thing? A break away somewhere, just the two of them?
After all the excitement of getting ready and anticipatingspending time with Liam, I’m now feeling as flat as Holland. But without thewindmills and tulips to cheer me up...
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
When I phone Liam’s mobile the following afternoon,half an hour before his show is due to start, I’m fully expecting him toanswer, sounding in work mode.
I’m going to invite him to have lunch tomorrow.
After seeing him heading for the station with Nat, I supposeI panicked and jumped to conclusions, imagining all sorts that probably weren’ttrue at all. I guess that’s what can happen when you really like someone...all sorts of insecurities emerge from the woodwork.
When he doesn’t answer, I call the number for the stationinstead, intending to leave a message for him. But when I talk to the cheerygirl who answers, she tells me that Liam is away from the radio station todayand so is Nat. ‘I can leave him a message... ask him to callyou when he gets back?’
‘Oh. No, it’s fine. I’ll... catch him someother time. Thank you!’
Feeling uncertain again, I sink down on the sofa. So they’restill away. The weird thing is, his show – when I turn on the radio – is goingon as usual. I guess it must have been recorded in anticipation of him and Natnot being here today. Okay, so we probably won’t be having lunch tomorrow,then. But I’m probably just being paranoid, suspecting that he and Nat might beup to something romantic...
I give myself a pep talk about too often letting myimagination running away with me. And when my mobile rings later and it’s Liam,I answer in a light-hearted, cheery way, sure there’ll be a perfectly innocentexplanation for his absence from the radio station today.
Greetings over, I say, ‘Hey, I saw you heading down to thestation last night, by the way. Were you off to do something interesting foryour programme?’
There’s a brief pause. Then he says, ‘Station? No, I was athome last night.’
‘Oh.’ My heart lurches.That hesitation before heanswered...‘Right. I felt sure it was you, but I guess Iwas mistaken.’
‘Yes, you must have been. Anyway... I wascalling to see if you were free tomorrow for lunch?’
I swallow, my insides in an uproar. There can be no room fordoubt now. Liam lied to me about where he was last night, presumably because hewas with Nat and he doesn’t want me to know that. Why would he do that if notfor some devious reason? Shades of Guy are creeping in here and I really don’tlike it.
I clear my throat. ‘Actually, I’m... busytomorrow.’
‘Right. Are you doing house things?’
‘Er, yes. Eddie’s coming to fit the new kitchen units so I thinkI’d better be here.’
‘Ah, yes. I’d keep your eye very firmly on that one, if Iwere you,’ he says lightly. ‘What about the day after, then? For lunch?’
‘Erm... look, Liam, can I phone you andlet you know? It’s just I don’t know how long the kitchen will take.’
‘Of course. Of course. Right, well, take care, Lottie. AndI’ll see you soon hopefully.’
‘Great. Yes. Bye.’
I’m trembling a little when the call ends. I so wanted toarrange that lunch, but my radar for men who like to have their cake and eat itis pinging far too loudly to ignore. Best to give Liam a wide berth from nowon, if I can’t trust what he’s telling me. Because when I saw him last night,he was definitely going into the station...
*****
Over the next few days, I concentrate on Eddie and makingsure the kitchen is fitted properly, trying my best not to think about Liam andNat.
Once, I’m in Sunnybrook and I catch sight of him coming outof the newsagent’s, so I quickly step into the post office doorway and lurkthere for a while until the coast is clear.
But then a few days later, I’m picking up groceries from thevillage store and when I step out onto the high street, there he is. Liam.Walking towards me.
Panicking because he’s definitely seen me, I start hurryingalong, back to the car, pretending I haven’t noticed him. But he runs after me,calling my name.
Damn! He’s going to catch up with me before I get back tothe car, and I really don’t feel like talking to him right now...explaining why I haven’t been replying to his texts...
There’s a bus trundling to a stop on the other side of theroad. Quick as a flash, I look both ways and cross the road, then I jump aboardin the nick of time. Breathlessly paying the driver for a trip a few stopsalong, I peer out and see Liam standing on the pavement, hands on hips, staringover at the bus. Then, to my dismay, he sprints across the road.
