Page 64 of A Dark Fall
“Oh. Okay.”
“Unless you don’t want me to.”
“No, no—I do. I thought, well, you don’t know any of them, so you’ll be kind of on your own.” Why am I trying to talk him out of this? Why am I so terrified suddenly?
“I assume you’re going.”
“Of course I am.”
“Then I’m not gonna be on my own, am I?”
“No, I guess not.”
He sighs. “Alex, do you want me to come or not? Tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll do it.” There’s a sliver of impatience in his voice.
What am I doing? I care about him. Imightbe falling for him. I want him to meet my friends. I should be happy hewants to meet them.
“I want you to come,” I tell him. And at that moment, I realize just how much.
“Okay. Then I’ll come.”
“Okay,” I whisper.
“Okay,” he echoes.
“She’ll be delighted. She can’t wait to meet you.”
“I want to see you tomorrow,” he says, ignoring the statement. “Can you have me for lunch again, or dinner? I’m not really fussy.”
I giggle as a ripple of goose bumps break out over me. “Um, actually, I can’t. I have a seminar in the afternoon, so I’m out of the office from lunchtime. I won’t be home until god knows when. Anyway, I don’t think I can make a habit of meeting you at lunchtime for sexual deviance.” Oh, who am I kidding? I could absolutely make a habit of it.
“Why not?” he asks, sounding serious. “C’MON!” he shouts then, and I almost jump out of my skin. “Sorry, Sakho just scored a class goal from a corner,” he tells me. “So, where’s your work thing at? In town?”
“Yes. The Lancaster. Two until five.” I could do without wasting half a day listening to sales pitches, but Douglas wants a report on what this newest patient management system is all about and whether we need to buy it, and since Sam went to the last one, and Helen before that, it’s my turn.
“So, meet me after. You could stay the night,” he says.
“Stay the night? What—you mean, at your place?”
“Yes, at my place. Where else?” He laughs. “I’ll make you dinner.”
“You cook?” The idea is amusing to me for some reason. I can’t imagine him pottering around his house doing menial things such as cooking. I imagined he sustained himself on sex and the swooning of desperate women. Desperate women like me.
“I cook a bit.”
Stay at his place. It’s a chance to find out more about him—what kind of place he lives in, what kind of things he surrounds himself with. I could knock on Ed and Betty’s in the morning and ask them to mind Fred.
“Okay then. That would be nice. I’ll come to yours and stay the night. Text me your address so I can figure out the tube?”
“Nah, I’ll pick you up. About five? Which Lancaster is it? There’s two.”
“The one at Hyde Park. Are you sure? The tube will be easier at that time.”
“I don’t mind. More time I get to spend with you, isn’t it?”
Beneath the cooling water, my toes curl, cheeks flushing from a different kind of heat. “Okay, well, I’ll see you at five tomorrow then. I’ll let you get back to your game. I’ve some cleansing to do anyway, and the water’s starting to get cold.”
“So, you’re washing me away, are you?” He makes a “tsk” sound. “Ah, well, I’ll have to cover you in me again tomorrow.”