up concerned. ‘What’s up?’
‘Something Rosa said that’s all.’
‘Well, if it’s bothering you that much, why not tell me about it?’
‘Oh, I don’t know, Callie. I mean it’s not as if there’s even the remotest possibility of Carlos and I getting together romantically. Even if we did, it would be doomed from the start. I’m not a virgin, am I? Rosa said Carlos would expect—’
‘My dear Sophie. You’re my very best friend and, much as I love you, I haven’t a clue what you’re getting at. Unless of course you’ve seriously got a thing about Carlos?’
Studying Sophie’s forlorn face Callie sat down and took her in her arms. ‘Sweet Jesus! I knew you liked him, but I had absolutely no idea you felt like that . To think I’ve even been teasing you about going to Portugal. Gosh! I’m so sorry!’
‘So am I,’ Sophie sniffed. ‘Because despite spending months with Gavin, I now realise our relationship meant nothing at all. Yet, I meet Carlos for one brief weekend, and I can’t stop thinking about him. It’s ludicrous, Callie. Please tell me I’m mad.’
‘Course you’re not mad,’ said Callie, desperate to make Sophie less miserable. ‘It’s not as if you’ve slept around is it? Gavin was your first and only … You’re not going to tell me Carlos hasn’t had—’
‘Hasn’t had what?’
‘I was going to say hundreds of girls. Only I don’t mean that. Oh, bum! I’m not making a very good job of this. What I’m trying to say is … you don’t get to your mid-thirties looking as gorgeous as Carlos and not sleep with any women. Not every bride can be virgo intacta . Anyway, how do we know Carlos really does belong to Rosa?’
Sophie ran her fingers through her dishevelled fringe before reaching for a chocolate. ‘It certainly looks that way. Oh dear! I can’t believe what I’ve just confessed to you.’
‘Isn’t that what friends are for?’
‘That not quite what I meant. It’s the fact I even considered the possibility of Carlos and me ... well, you know.’
‘You might – when you go to Portugal.’
‘Aren’t you forgetting something? Rosa for instance.’
Callie suppressed a giggle, eyeing the almost empty chocolate box and discarded pile of red, shiny wrappers.
‘What’s so funny?’ Sophie called, hunting for her car keys.
‘You don’t think Dr Hodges injected those with truth serum do you? Expecting you to tell him your innermost thoughts and desires, if and when he got you alone?’
‘So why, when I had only two, did I pour my heart out to you? And you, who—’
‘Stop! Don’t embarrass me. Although in answer to your query, as I weigh far more than you, Dr Hodge’s truth serum is still struggling through my layers of cellulite.’
Returning Callie to the Nag’s Head, Sophie cursed the crawling Saturday night traffic. ‘It gets worse. Where does it all come from?’
‘The M1 and M25. There’s road works on both motorways at the moment.'
‘Then let’s hope they finish soon. If it’s anything like last time, it will take us simply ages to get to work.’
‘You’ve obviously forgotten the new ring road,’ Callie said, stepping from the car. ‘They start work on it sometime in March and it’s going to take months to complete. Which means plenty of business for the pub, but sheer bloody hell if you’re a driver!’
Back at the flat Sophie cleared away coffee cups and chocolate wrappers, noting as she did so how she’d inadvertently twisted her own two wrappers into a ‘C’ and an ‘S’ whereas ... With a wry smile she studied Callie’s pile of scattered, crumpled foil. Try as she might, nowhere could she decipher Patrick Murphy’s initials. She was still smiling when she heard a clap of thunder. This morning’s storm was on its way back. What was it they said about thunder in February? Walking to her bookshelves and taking down a volume, she read: “ In February , if thou hearest thunder , Thou shalt see a summer
‘Something Rosa said that’s all.’
‘Well, if it’s bothering you that much, why not tell me about it?’
‘Oh, I don’t know, Callie. I mean it’s not as if there’s even the remotest possibility of Carlos and I getting together romantically. Even if we did, it would be doomed from the start. I’m not a virgin, am I? Rosa said Carlos would expect—’
‘My dear Sophie. You’re my very best friend and, much as I love you, I haven’t a clue what you’re getting at. Unless of course you’ve seriously got a thing about Carlos?’
Studying Sophie’s forlorn face Callie sat down and took her in her arms. ‘Sweet Jesus! I knew you liked him, but I had absolutely no idea you felt like that . To think I’ve even been teasing you about going to Portugal. Gosh! I’m so sorry!’
‘So am I,’ Sophie sniffed. ‘Because despite spending months with Gavin, I now realise our relationship meant nothing at all. Yet, I meet Carlos for one brief weekend, and I can’t stop thinking about him. It’s ludicrous, Callie. Please tell me I’m mad.’
‘Course you’re not mad,’ said Callie, desperate to make Sophie less miserable. ‘It’s not as if you’ve slept around is it? Gavin was your first and only … You’re not going to tell me Carlos hasn’t had—’
‘Hasn’t had what?’
‘I was going to say hundreds of girls. Only I don’t mean that. Oh, bum! I’m not making a very good job of this. What I’m trying to say is … you don’t get to your mid-thirties looking as gorgeous as Carlos and not sleep with any women. Not every bride can be virgo intacta . Anyway, how do we know Carlos really does belong to Rosa?’
Sophie ran her fingers through her dishevelled fringe before reaching for a chocolate. ‘It certainly looks that way. Oh dear! I can’t believe what I’ve just confessed to you.’
‘Isn’t that what friends are for?’
‘That not quite what I meant. It’s the fact I even considered the possibility of Carlos and me ... well, you know.’
‘You might – when you go to Portugal.’
‘Aren’t you forgetting something? Rosa for instance.’
Callie suppressed a giggle, eyeing the almost empty chocolate box and discarded pile of red, shiny wrappers.
‘What’s so funny?’ Sophie called, hunting for her car keys.
‘You don’t think Dr Hodges injected those with truth serum do you? Expecting you to tell him your innermost thoughts and desires, if and when he got you alone?’
‘So why, when I had only two, did I pour my heart out to you? And you, who—’
‘Stop! Don’t embarrass me. Although in answer to your query, as I weigh far more than you, Dr Hodge’s truth serum is still struggling through my layers of cellulite.’
Returning Callie to the Nag’s Head, Sophie cursed the crawling Saturday night traffic. ‘It gets worse. Where does it all come from?’
‘The M1 and M25. There’s road works on both motorways at the moment.'
‘Then let’s hope they finish soon. If it’s anything like last time, it will take us simply ages to get to work.’
‘You’ve obviously forgotten the new ring road,’ Callie said, stepping from the car. ‘They start work on it sometime in March and it’s going to take months to complete. Which means plenty of business for the pub, but sheer bloody hell if you’re a driver!’
Back at the flat Sophie cleared away coffee cups and chocolate wrappers, noting as she did so how she’d inadvertently twisted her own two wrappers into a ‘C’ and an ‘S’ whereas ... With a wry smile she studied Callie’s pile of scattered, crumpled foil. Try as she might, nowhere could she decipher Patrick Murphy’s initials. She was still smiling when she heard a clap of thunder. This morning’s storm was on its way back. What was it they said about thunder in February? Walking to her bookshelves and taking down a volume, she read: “ In February , if thou hearest thunder , Thou shalt see a summer
Similar Books
