Maggie patted Tamsyn’s arm. “You’d think we were getting married in Westminster Abbey. It’s a hundred people in our back garden.”
Carmen laughed. “Yes, but she’s won BAFTAs, don’t you know? It has to be done just right .”
“Do you two want me to leave the room so you can talk about me without the inconvenience of me being here?” Tamsyn said archly, but there was a smile in her eyes.
“Oh, no, where’s the fun in that?” Maggie batted her eyelashes in feigned innocence.
Once again it struck Carmen how at ease Tamsyn and Maggie were together. The casual playing and teasing and all of it wrapped in a layer of warmth, love, and affection that was impossible to miss. Have I ever had that? With Lewis, yes, she mused, but that was a long time ago .
“Oh, and who will be your plus one?” Tamsyn asked. “Gerald, I presume?”
Carmen startled, then sipped her drink to give herself a moment to respond. “I suppose so. I mean, I would need to ask him, so as long as he doesn’t have plans for that date already…”
Of course they would think she’d bring Gerald. Although their relationship was less than conventional, they were a couple in the eyes of everyone they knew. Tamsyn and Maggie had met him a couple of times, and they’d seemed to like him well enough. Yet somehow, the thought of taking him to something that special felt…off. As if it didn’t quite fit the picture.
“Lovely,” Tamsyn said, and for the first time in all the years Carmen had known her, she knew without a doubt that Tamsyn was one hundred per cent acting when she said it.
Chapter 4
“Hi.” Carmen dropped a kiss on Gerald’s cheek before sliding into the seat opposite him. “I’m sorry I’m late.”
He smiled good-naturedly, his blue eyes crinkling. “No worries.”
He looked, as ever, very put-together this evening. His suit, one she didn’t remember seeing before, was beautifully tailored, a dark charcoal grey that contrasted well with the pale blue shirt. She supposed he was handsome—other people had told her he was, but she’d been attracted to his calm and quietly amusing personality, not his looks. Certainly, he was easy on the eye, she thought as she found herself looking at him properly for the first time in months.
Their waitress definitely seemed to think so too. When he flashed her a wide smile, she fumbled handing him the menu.
“You look very nice.” Gerald cast a quick look over Carmen’s blouse. “I’ve always liked that colour on you.”
The colour in question was a deep green, which Carmen knew did match well with her blonde hair. She’d made an extra effort tonight, having forced herself to go home first to change before dinner. It had been tight, time-wise, hence her being a little over ten minutes late for their date. But as ever, Gerald seemed to let such things wash over him, and his compliment made the effort worthwhile.
She nodded at him by way of thanks, but his gaze had already returned to the menu.
“I’ve been craving seafood all day,” he said. “Care to share a platter with me?”
“Actually, I’d rather not. I’ve been really looking forward to having a steak.”
He glanced up. A little twist to his mouth told her he was unhappy, but after a moment, he merely said, “Fine. I’ll have the gambas. That should suffice.”
There was something about the word suffice that lodged an uncomfortable sensation deep in Carmen’s gut. He was compromising, which everyone needed to do now and then in any relationship. It shouldn’t bother her because this was something they did quite often when they dined out or chose a movie to watch or a play to see. Somehow, this time, it didn’t sit right with her. Not that she would change her mind about the seafood platter. But his use of the word suffice resonated with all the other thoughts she’d been having the last few days about their relationship.
And especially since she’d seen how connected Tamsyn and Maggie were.
“You’re frowning,” he said.
She blinked and realised her gaze had drifted. Once she focused on him again, she smiled brightly, determined to push her unsettling thoughts away. “Was I? No idea why.” The lie slipped easily off her tongue but only added to her inner tension rather than helping to diminish it.
Dinner passed in an uncomfortable blur. Carmen was distracted by her thoughts and could only muster the bare minimum of conversation. Gerald seemed at a loss as to how to fix it.
But it’s not his problem to fix. It’s mine.
When they left the restaurant, Gerald held out his arm for her to hook hers through, and they strolled down the street in a silence she didn’t find at all comfortable. Five minutes later, they reached the corner where they would have to make a decision as to whose home they were heading for.
I don’t want to go home with him. Why?
She could blame tiredness, and it wouldn’t be far from the truth. It had been one heck of a week again. She could also blame her period; it was due in a few days. But actually, she became hornier the closer her period got, so that couldn’t be it. She pursed her lips and kept her head turned away from Gerald. She thought back on their evening, on how…bland…it had all been. There was never any drama or surprises with Gerald; she always got exactly what she expected from a night out with him.
“So, your place or mine?” Gerald gave her arm a slight tug to bring her round to face him.
“I…” She swallowed. “Do you mind if we just call it a night? I’m sorry, but I’m very tired.”
Carmen surprised herself in finding the words, and it was obvious from the look that crossed Gerald’s face that he was equally taken aback.
“Of
