trust herself to speak anymore. She walked quickly to the front door and left the house.
She didn’t
care
about money. She didn’t
mind
working hard, and even though she hated self-pity she did begin to feel that the world was conspiring against her. Her own family were so unsupportive and her boyfriend impervious to any signals and hints. He
was
herboyfriend, wasn’t he? He had mentioned no other woman and he had said she was lovely. Admittedly, he hadn’t said he loved her, but being lovely was the same thing.
Lisa caught sight of herself in a shopwindow: she looked hunched and defeated.
This would never do. She brushed her hair, put on more makeup and held her shoulders back and strode confidently along to Anton’s, to the place where a great restaurant was about to rise from the rubble and confusion that was currently there.
Later she would think about where to live and where to work. Tonight she would just drop into the gourmet shop and buy some smoked salmon and cream cheese. She wouldn’t weary him with her problems. She would hate to see that impatient frown again on his handsome face.
To her great annoyance there were eight people there already, including her friend Miranda, who had been the one to introduce her to Anton in the first place. They were sitting around eating very gooey-looking pizza.
“Lisa!” Anton managed to sound delighted, welcoming and surprised at the same time, as if Lisa didn’t come there every evening.
“Come on in, Lisa, and have some pizza. Isn’t Miranda clever? She found
exactly
what we all wanted.”
“Very clever,” Lisa said through her teeth. Miranda, who looked slim like a greyhound but who ate like a hungry horse, was sitting on the ground in her pencil-slim jeans, wolfing down pizza as if she had known no other food. Some of the men were people who shared Anton’s flat. The other girls were glamorous and suntanned. They looked as if they were auditioning for a musical.
None of them was broke, in debt, with nowhere to live and nowhere to work. Lisa wanted to run away and go and cry somewhere, big heaving sobs. But where could she go? She had nowhere, and this, after all, was where she wanted to be.
She slipped the smoked salmon and cream cheese into one of the fridges and came to join them.
“Anton has been singing your praises,” Miranda said when she looked up momentarily from the huge pizza she was devouring. “He says you are a genius.”
“That’s going a bit far.” Lisa smiled.
“No, it’s the truth,” Anton assured her. “I was telling them all about your ideas. They said I was very lucky to get you.”
These were the words she had wanted to hear for so long. Why did it not seem as real and wonderful as she had hoped?
Then he said, “Everyone is here to give some ideas about marketing, so let’s start straightaway. Lisa, you first …”
Lisa didn’t want to share her ideas with this cast. She didn’t want their approval or their dismissal.
“I’m last in—let’s hear what everyone else has to say.” She gave a huge smile at the group.
“Sly little fox,” Miranda whispered, but loudly enough to be heard.
Anton didn’t seem disturbed. “Right, Eddie, what do you think?” he began.
Eddie, a big bluff rugby player, was full of ideas, most of them useless. “You need to make this place a focus for the rugby set, somewhere people would lunch on the days of an International.”
“That’s about four days a year,” Lisa heard herself say.
“Well, yes, but you could host fund-raisers for various rugby clubs,” he said.
“Anton wants to
make
money, not give it away at this stage,” Lisa said. She knew she sounded like someone’s nanny or mother, but honestly …
A girl called April said that Anton could have wine appreciation classes there, followed by a dinner serving some of the most popular choices of the evening. It was so ludicrous as a moneymaker that Lisa hardly believed anyone would take it seriously, yet
She didn’t
care
about money. She didn’t
mind
working hard, and even though she hated self-pity she did begin to feel that the world was conspiring against her. Her own family were so unsupportive and her boyfriend impervious to any signals and hints. He
was
herboyfriend, wasn’t he? He had mentioned no other woman and he had said she was lovely. Admittedly, he hadn’t said he loved her, but being lovely was the same thing.
Lisa caught sight of herself in a shopwindow: she looked hunched and defeated.
This would never do. She brushed her hair, put on more makeup and held her shoulders back and strode confidently along to Anton’s, to the place where a great restaurant was about to rise from the rubble and confusion that was currently there.
Later she would think about where to live and where to work. Tonight she would just drop into the gourmet shop and buy some smoked salmon and cream cheese. She wouldn’t weary him with her problems. She would hate to see that impatient frown again on his handsome face.
To her great annoyance there were eight people there already, including her friend Miranda, who had been the one to introduce her to Anton in the first place. They were sitting around eating very gooey-looking pizza.
“Lisa!” Anton managed to sound delighted, welcoming and surprised at the same time, as if Lisa didn’t come there every evening.
“Come on in, Lisa, and have some pizza. Isn’t Miranda clever? She found
exactly
what we all wanted.”
“Very clever,” Lisa said through her teeth. Miranda, who looked slim like a greyhound but who ate like a hungry horse, was sitting on the ground in her pencil-slim jeans, wolfing down pizza as if she had known no other food. Some of the men were people who shared Anton’s flat. The other girls were glamorous and suntanned. They looked as if they were auditioning for a musical.
None of them was broke, in debt, with nowhere to live and nowhere to work. Lisa wanted to run away and go and cry somewhere, big heaving sobs. But where could she go? She had nowhere, and this, after all, was where she wanted to be.
She slipped the smoked salmon and cream cheese into one of the fridges and came to join them.
“Anton has been singing your praises,” Miranda said when she looked up momentarily from the huge pizza she was devouring. “He says you are a genius.”
“That’s going a bit far.” Lisa smiled.
“No, it’s the truth,” Anton assured her. “I was telling them all about your ideas. They said I was very lucky to get you.”
These were the words she had wanted to hear for so long. Why did it not seem as real and wonderful as she had hoped?
Then he said, “Everyone is here to give some ideas about marketing, so let’s start straightaway. Lisa, you first …”
Lisa didn’t want to share her ideas with this cast. She didn’t want their approval or their dismissal.
“I’m last in—let’s hear what everyone else has to say.” She gave a huge smile at the group.
“Sly little fox,” Miranda whispered, but loudly enough to be heard.
Anton didn’t seem disturbed. “Right, Eddie, what do you think?” he began.
Eddie, a big bluff rugby player, was full of ideas, most of them useless. “You need to make this place a focus for the rugby set, somewhere people would lunch on the days of an International.”
“That’s about four days a year,” Lisa heard herself say.
“Well, yes, but you could host fund-raisers for various rugby clubs,” he said.
“Anton wants to
make
money, not give it away at this stage,” Lisa said. She knew she sounded like someone’s nanny or mother, but honestly …
A girl called April said that Anton could have wine appreciation classes there, followed by a dinner serving some of the most popular choices of the evening. It was so ludicrous as a moneymaker that Lisa hardly believed anyone would take it seriously, yet
Similar Books
