Page 16 of The Three of Us

‘So, how about you, Carly? How’s work?’

‘Okay.’ Should I tell him? About Jack? They were mates once, and he’ll want to know how he is, won’t he? They might even decide to meet up for a drink or something, once Syd finds out he’s back. Besides, I want to talk about Jack, to think about Jack, and here’s my chance. ‘There’s been a bit of a development actually.’

‘Oh, yeah?’ He looks at me quizzically as we wait at traffic lights, the rain thundering down on the car like someone banging a hammer on a shed roof, the wipers struggling to cope with the deluge.

‘Do you remember Jack Doherty?’

‘Of course. Slept on my sofa for long enough to leave an imprint! What about him?’

‘He’s back in London. Working at Mandrake’s, by some weird coincidence. I ran into him last week.’

‘Oh, that’s great. I always liked old Jacky Boy. How is he?’

‘Fine, I think. He hasn’t changed much. Still doing well in his career, still smarter than the rest of us put together!’

‘I’ll have you know I’ve been known to scrub up pretty well in my best suit, when I can get the baby sick off the collar! Or did you mean smart as in clever clogs? I can’t claim to outdo him on that score, that’s for sure.’

The car is moving again, and I realise we’re only about ten minutes from home. Thank God for Syd, or I’d have been drenched.

‘You had a bit of a thing for our Jack, didn’t you?’

I’m shocked into silence. Syd had noticed that? And if he had, maybe the others had too.

‘Oh, don’t worry. I never said anything. Not to him, or to Rosie. Not my business, after all. And you were both single back then. Well, maybe not for much longer in Jack’s case, but he wasn’t actually hitched, was he? I did wonder, for a while there, if he might call the whole thing off. I take it he didn’t though?’

I shake my head, feeling the threat of tears. ‘No. He went back to Norfolk and got married, just as he’d planned. Probably never gave me another thought.’

‘Any kids?’

‘No, he says not.’

‘If he’s telling the truth. Be careful, Carly. Men can be… well, shall we say economical with the truth, when they want to be. And, if you felt he was out of bounds back then, then he still is now. Even more so, now he’s actually married, eh?’

‘Yeah, you’re right. Girl code – not that you’d know a lot about that – says that we never take another woman’s man. It’s just that I never really forgot about him, and it’s been a shock, seeing him again. He’s still so…’

‘What? Handsome? Irresistible? The one who got away?’ He shakes his head. ‘Don’t go there, Carly. You’re a pretty girl. A catch. Don’t let my Rosie hear me say that! You can have any man you want.’

‘But what if the man I want is Jack?’

‘Out of bounds. That ship has sailed. You said it yourself, so don’t do it, Carly. Don’t even think about doing it. Just because he’s back in London doesn’t have to mean he’s back in your life. It didn’t work before, when he was still free to let it, so why should it now? Going after him…’

‘Who said I was going to go after him?’

‘Okay, maybe not, but if you’re thinking about it… well, it can only lead to trouble, you do know that? Somebody will get their heart broken, and I don’t want it to be you, okay?’

I nod. ‘There’s just nobody I can talk to about it, Syd. Suze thinks it’s all a bit of a laugh, and Fran’s got more interest in her next doughnut than in my love life.’

‘Harsh, but probably true. So, why don’t you come round to ours one day soon? Rosie sees so little of her girlfriends these days. I know the baby talk can be a bit off-putting if you don’t have any of your own, but they do go to bed sometimes, despite the impression I may have given before! And she knew Jack. She’ll be happy to listen. Give advice, even if you don’t want to hear it.’

‘I might just do that.’

‘Now, are you sure you want to be dropped off at home? I’ve got no learners booked in, so I’m free for the evening. We could grab a drink somewhere? Talk some more?’

‘Syd! After all you said about me steering clear of married men!’

‘Oh, I don’t count. Too knackered and too much in love with my wife to be any danger.’

‘Thanks, but not tonight.’