Millie's Game Plan by Rosie Dean Page B

bound to be exactly the kind of girl a man in Lex’s position would want. I also thought I might lose my nerve if I left it till later. I got his voicemail. ‘Hi Lex. It’s Millie Carmichael here. We met last night…’ Duh! He’d need to be senile to have forgotten me in less than twenty-four hours. ‘Thank you so much for driving me home and yes, I would like to come to the party. Thanks.’
    When I returned to my seat, Gus was engrossed in a game on his mobile phone and had his iPod plugged into his ears. Would Lex reply? I stared out of the window and, as the miles and minutes whizzed past, began to imagine Lex building a bullet-point list of reasons not to date Millie:
    *  Nosy
    *  Clumsy
    *  Skinny
    *  Feeble – faints at the sight of blood (probably due to being skinny)
    *  Too mean to invite a guy in for coffee
    *  Too uptight to invite a guy in for coffee
    *  So uptight – undoubtedly frigid
    Putting it that way, why would anyone go out with me?
    My phone buzzed a text message at me:
    Will pick you up at seven. Lex
    Ha! I glanced up at pasty-faced Gus. I bet he didn’t have a fabulous party in London to go to on Saturday. I replied:
    Great. Mx
    I didn’t think the kiss was too forward – at first. But he didn’t send a reply and I began to doubt it. Sophisticated women didn’t put kisses on texts to men they’d only just met, did they? Who was I kidding – sophisticated? If you asked fifty people what word sprang to mind when they thought of me, I’m pretty sure ‘sophisticated’ wouldn’t feature.
    I forced myself to think, If it’s meant to be…it’s meant to be . Which was exactly what Dad would have said. Though what Dad would have thought about Lex, I could only imagine. He always said the most important thing any man could do for either of his daughters, was to cherish her. He didn’t care whether they were rich or poor, so long as they were honest and looked after his girls. ‘Just like I look after your Mum,’ he’d say and they’d exchange a dewy-eyed look. At least his emotional investment had been good even if the grasp of fiscal security had escaped him.
    Gus dropped me at Marshalhampton House so I could pick up my car. I’d dispensed with the sling, and could manage to hold the steering wheel without too much pain.
    ‘Tidy old place,’ he said. ‘Who do you know lives here?’
    ‘A lady I met at the cricket,’ I said, loftily.
    ‘Cricket?’ He threw me a look of disbelief. ‘D’you watch it or play?’
    ‘Watch. Occasionally.’ I opened the door before he’d applied the handbrake. I wanted out before he could quiz me further. I stood by the boot, pointedly waiting for him to extract my portfolio so I could be shot of him, before Vonnie or Arabella could appear and invite us in for tea. If that happened, Gus might find out about me and Lex, and I had every intention of keeping my private life to myself.
    ‘It may surprise you to know, but I play for Saddlehampton.’ He came round and opened the boot, grinning at me as if he’d found a soul mate.
    ‘Excellent.’ I leaned in and pulled out my laptop bag. ‘Thanks for the lift, really appreciate it.’ I headed off towards my car, Gus following with the portfolio.
    ‘We’re doing well this season. I scored a personal best, too; my first half-century. Not bad considering I never played cricket at school. Fancy you being a cricket fan,’ he added, clearly seeing me through new, rather doe-like, eyes.
    Yikes!
    ‘I’m not. Not really. I’m a fair-weather fan. I like sitting in the sunshine, drinking a glass or two…you know…great British summertime and all that.’ I opened the tailgate of my car.
    ‘You should come see us play. We’ve got a pub skittles team, too – Nag’s Head Nerds, we’re called. Great laugh.’
    I’d take his word for it. ‘Well, thanks again for the lift.’ I slammed the hatchback closed as soon as he’d deposited the portfolio, and gave him a dismissive, cheery