emergency?’
Emma took a deep breath. ‘Well, I went to the DIY centre yesterday and ran into Will.’
‘Oh, good. You followed my advice. And?’
‘And I asked him out. For dinner!’
‘So he said yes? Told you.’ Alice sounded smug. ‘Where’s the emergency in that?’
‘Al, he thinks I’m going to serve a home-cooked meal.’ Emma felt her blood pressure rising just thinking about it.
Alice snorted. ‘Cook? You? I remember when you tried to make instant noodles in university, and they overflowed and burnt on the—’
‘Okay, okay, no need to bring up that story again.’ Emma cringed, recalling how the charred noodles had set off the fire alarm, evacuating the whole student hall into the cold January night. Everyone called her Noodle for the rest of that year, and she’d only shaken the name by moving to rented accommodation.
‘There has to be something relatively easy, something even you can’t muck up. Hmm … ’ The phone went silent for a minute, and Emma imagined Alice’s brain flipping through a catalogue of recipes. When they’d lived together after moving out of the student halls, Alice had done all their cooking. It was so good Emma had gained almost a stone.
‘Right,’ Alice said finally. ‘Red Thai chicken curry. It’s not possible to mess up. Just chop and then stir-fry the ingredients, pour in some coconut milk and let it simmer. Cook rice on the side, and you’re done. Not the most original meal ever, but it’s tasty and quick to prepare.’
‘And you’re sure this is something I can make?’ The dish sounded simple, but then again, so had the noodles.
‘I’m sure,’ Alice responded confidently. ‘I’ll email you the recipe . But forget food—what are you going to wear?’
‘Er … ’ What was she going to wear? With George, wardrobe never warranted a second thought—the two of them had lived in business suits. Actually, the only time she’d seen George not in a suit had been the twice-a-week lovemaking sessions they’d scheduled in, although looking back, ‘lovemaking’ might be stretching it a bit. More like ‘in and out’. In fact—Emma winced at the memory—she remembered watching the clock above George’s desk and wondering how much longer this would take. Sex with him always felt awkward and stiff, and all too often George would end up head-butting Emma, or she’d put a knee in his groin. Not exactly the stuff of romance novels.
But Will … Emma’s heart lurched as an image of the two of them in bed filtered into her mind. She could imagine his hands sliding down her skin as she pulled herself up against his bare chest—
‘Right, that settles it,’ Alice interrupted her thoughts. ‘I obviously can’t leave you to your own devices. This is your first real date after rodent George, and you need to get back on board with a bang.’ She sniggered. ‘Well, if you’re lucky, that is. I’m not working until tomorrow night, so we’ll hit the shops in the afternoon.’
‘No way.’ Emma shuddered. She hated shopping at the best of times, and going with bossy Alice—who’d no doubt try to shoehorn her into something two sizes too small—would be torturous. ‘I have loads of things to do here before Will comes over.’
‘Oh, for God’s sake, Emma. He’s not interested in your bloody flat. He’s interested in you. Meet me at one tomorrow at Bond Street Tube.’ And with that, her friend hung up.
Shaking her head, Emma put down the phone. Maybe Alice was right. She could do with some new comfy clothes, something besides suits and skirts. And maybe a nice top to impress Will, too. Glancing at her watch, Emma was stunned to see it was almost ten thirty. She had to move fast if she wanted to be on time for lunch with her mum.
A few hours later, the train pulled into Virginia Water. Emma walked from the station to where she’d grown up, her eyes taking in the large house with a neatly tended garden that hadn’t changed a bit on the
Emma took a deep breath. ‘Well, I went to the DIY centre yesterday and ran into Will.’
‘Oh, good. You followed my advice. And?’
‘And I asked him out. For dinner!’
‘So he said yes? Told you.’ Alice sounded smug. ‘Where’s the emergency in that?’
‘Al, he thinks I’m going to serve a home-cooked meal.’ Emma felt her blood pressure rising just thinking about it.
Alice snorted. ‘Cook? You? I remember when you tried to make instant noodles in university, and they overflowed and burnt on the—’
‘Okay, okay, no need to bring up that story again.’ Emma cringed, recalling how the charred noodles had set off the fire alarm, evacuating the whole student hall into the cold January night. Everyone called her Noodle for the rest of that year, and she’d only shaken the name by moving to rented accommodation.
‘There has to be something relatively easy, something even you can’t muck up. Hmm … ’ The phone went silent for a minute, and Emma imagined Alice’s brain flipping through a catalogue of recipes. When they’d lived together after moving out of the student halls, Alice had done all their cooking. It was so good Emma had gained almost a stone.
‘Right,’ Alice said finally. ‘Red Thai chicken curry. It’s not possible to mess up. Just chop and then stir-fry the ingredients, pour in some coconut milk and let it simmer. Cook rice on the side, and you’re done. Not the most original meal ever, but it’s tasty and quick to prepare.’
‘And you’re sure this is something I can make?’ The dish sounded simple, but then again, so had the noodles.
‘I’m sure,’ Alice responded confidently. ‘I’ll email you the recipe . But forget food—what are you going to wear?’
‘Er … ’ What was she going to wear? With George, wardrobe never warranted a second thought—the two of them had lived in business suits. Actually, the only time she’d seen George not in a suit had been the twice-a-week lovemaking sessions they’d scheduled in, although looking back, ‘lovemaking’ might be stretching it a bit. More like ‘in and out’. In fact—Emma winced at the memory—she remembered watching the clock above George’s desk and wondering how much longer this would take. Sex with him always felt awkward and stiff, and all too often George would end up head-butting Emma, or she’d put a knee in his groin. Not exactly the stuff of romance novels.
But Will … Emma’s heart lurched as an image of the two of them in bed filtered into her mind. She could imagine his hands sliding down her skin as she pulled herself up against his bare chest—
‘Right, that settles it,’ Alice interrupted her thoughts. ‘I obviously can’t leave you to your own devices. This is your first real date after rodent George, and you need to get back on board with a bang.’ She sniggered. ‘Well, if you’re lucky, that is. I’m not working until tomorrow night, so we’ll hit the shops in the afternoon.’
‘No way.’ Emma shuddered. She hated shopping at the best of times, and going with bossy Alice—who’d no doubt try to shoehorn her into something two sizes too small—would be torturous. ‘I have loads of things to do here before Will comes over.’
‘Oh, for God’s sake, Emma. He’s not interested in your bloody flat. He’s interested in you. Meet me at one tomorrow at Bond Street Tube.’ And with that, her friend hung up.
Shaking her head, Emma put down the phone. Maybe Alice was right. She could do with some new comfy clothes, something besides suits and skirts. And maybe a nice top to impress Will, too. Glancing at her watch, Emma was stunned to see it was almost ten thirty. She had to move fast if she wanted to be on time for lunch with her mum.
A few hours later, the train pulled into Virginia Water. Emma walked from the station to where she’d grown up, her eyes taking in the large house with a neatly tended garden that hadn’t changed a bit on the
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