14. Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Charlotte
T he words were still floating in the air when Aiden turned to leave. Three little words forced out through gritted teeth were enough to leave me gaping after him like a guppy.
I’d meant to reply. At least, I think so. But it was as if those words had brought time and my mind to a screeching halt. All I could do was watch him leave, my eyes following the line of his broad shoulders as he wove his way between the café’s tables. He stopped only once on his way out, pausing briefly to speak to the barista, and then he was gone; the bell on the door echoing his departure. He didn’t turn back to look at me. Why would he? He knew enough.
A piercing cry from the table next to mine jerked me out of my stupor. Whirling around, my gaze landed on a young woman bent over the basinet of a pram that had been wedged between the bookshelves and her table.
‘Sorry,’ the woman mouthed as she reached into the basinet to lift out the wailing bundle of blankets.
It was as if someone had plugged the aux cable back into my life. Slowly, the din of the coffee shop came back into focus and I could hear the hum of various conversations around me. I turned away from the woman, who had begun to rub small circles across the layers of blanket and cooed softly to the infant in her arms.
Blinking slowly, I leaned back in her chair, my gaze landing on Aiden’s half of the cookie.
What the hell was that?
I frowned, my fingers moving to grip the arms of my chair.
He knew enough? I scoffed, my lips curling as I replayed the last few minutes in my head.
Reaching forward, I picked up a segment of the cookie. My eyes narrowed to slits and my frustrations were misplaced. The cookie was innocent in all of this. But the admission wasn’t enough to stop me from cramming it into my mouth, biting down so forcefully that my teeth clashed against one another as I chewed. What had moments ago been the perfect blend of buttery, crumbly, decadence, now tasted like ash in my mouth. I exhaled, my nostrils flaring as I grabbed the next piece.
So Aiden didn’t want to know anything about me. So what?
Standing, I yanked my handbag up off the floor, only releasing the tiniest huff of annoyance when the strap caught on the arm of my chair.
Did I have a nice time? Yes.
Did I think that maybe we were becoming friends? Also yes.
Would I make that mistake again? No.
I dropped my hand to my side, my fingers forming a fist as I ignored the pang that resonated beneath my chest. I’d eaten too fast. That’s all it was. Heartburn—cookie-induced reflux.
Casting a final look over my shoulder, I took in the wall of books and allowed myself a half sigh, a profound sense of loss settling into my bones as my eyes travelled across the worn spines. I could never come back here. Striding towards the door, I’d only just pulled it open when a voice called out from behind me.
‘Miss! Miss!’
Feeling someone move to stand behind me, I turned. It was the barista, and she was, in fact, calling to me. My brow furrowed in confusion as the woman skidded to a stop in front of me, a warm smile spreading across her face as she lifted a to-go cup.
‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ I shook my head, backing up a step. ‘I didn’t order anything.’
‘It’s yours.’ The woman beamed, her big blue eyes fixed on my face as she jostled the cup in her hand, waiting for me to take it. ‘Your boyfriend ordered this for you, said to give it to you when you left.’
Boyfriend? My palm flattened against my chest and I opened my mouth to correct her when I remembered Aiden stopping by the counter on his way out.
‘Oh, we’re not…’ I faltered, ‘I mean… he’s not…’
The young woman’s eyes were gleaming with excitement and she wore a smile so wide it looked painful. I knew that look. In fact, I was pretty sure I’d walked in here wearing some variation of that look. But it’d take more time than it was worth to explain to her—and myself—why that look was a bad idea.
Instead, my shoulders drooping with resignation, I reached out to accept the coffee. ‘Thank you,’ I murmured, eyes low to avoid her earnest expression.
‘Have a nice day!’
My mind reeled as I looked from the paper cup in my hand to the simple black lettering on the glass door. Taking a step to the side and out of the way of anyone who may want to pass by, I turned my back on Our Place .
I raised the cup to my face and, popping off the plastic lid, took a tentative sniff. Was this a trap? It smelled alright—okay, that’s a lie. It smelled divine. I sniffed again, inhaling deeply— too deeply. I sputtered, choking on my own breath, and jostling the paper cup and spilling some of its contents over my fingers. Real smooth.
I rolled my eyes. I was being ridiculous. Taking a deep, but normal-sized, breath, I brought the rim of the cup to my lips and took a tentative sip.
The creamy combination of milk and coffee filled my mouth and before I could overthink it, I took another, bigger sip, letting out an appreciative hum as the chocolate undertones coated my tongue.
I could feel my face split into a grin as I swivelled back to face Our Place. I looked through the front windows, my gaze landing on the pair of armchairs nearest the bookshelves. Shit. I’d really wanted to hate this place.
Heaving a sigh, I took another sip of coffee, my mind drifting away from thoughts of the coffee and towards those of Aiden. Why did he get me this? After the way he’d left… I didn’t understand. I tilted my head skywards, taking in the grey skies of London. I hated that.
Becky would know. My lips pursed, and I pulled my earphones out of my bag. I allowed myself one last look at Our Place before turning to start the short walk home. Hitting the call icon, I dialled Becky’s number. The call went to voicemail. It was almost three—her shift had already started.
Pulling up the messaging app, I held a finger over the microphone button and started to speak.
‘Hey Becky, I know you hate these, but I wanted to talk to you and I don’t know how often you actually listen to your voicemail,’ I started in a rush. ‘Anyway, I’m walking home so I hope you can hear me over the traffic and the people, but I just… I needed to talk to someone about what just happened.’
‘Okay, so you know how Aiden asked me to be his girlfriend—fake girlfriend—for that wedding coming up and how I was going to ask him to be my plus one to the Christmas party? Well, I did.’
Checking for traffic, I crossed the street, clutching the nearly empty coffee cup to my chest as I spoke, the words coming out faster and faster.
‘We met, and it was weird, I mean, not weird weird. More like… weird that it was kind of nice, if that makes sense? We were together ages—way longer than I thought we’d be. But it was nice… easy. Which is a big deal for me, you know?’
‘Anyway, it was going great when all of a sudden, he shoves a cookie at me—double chocolate chip by the way, you would have died—and leaves. Just leaves and when I asked him if he had any questions, he just said “I know enough,”’ I lowered my voice in a mock imitation of Aiden’s, the warmth of my earlier frustration flooding to my fingers as my grip tightened on the cup in my hand.
‘What does that even mean? In the past month, we’ve spoken more than we have in the whole time he’s lived in our building, but it’s not like he asked me anything about myself. So how could he possibly know enough about me?’
Stopping abruptly next to a trashcan, I poured the last dregs of coffee out and threw the cup away. ‘ I know enough,’ I scoffed, nostrils flaring in indignation. ‘Butthole!’
Pinching my eyes shut, I took a few measured breaths before I continued. ‘I know that this is technically the favour that I owe him, but I don’t think he even knows what I do for a living, let alone anything a boyfriend would know about a girlfriend. Am I just supposed to go along with whatever stupid backstory he has for me? That might work for his party, but it wouldn’t work for mine.’ My voice came out in a low whine as my heart rammed against my ribcage in protest.
‘And then,’ I exclaimed, my voice rising in pitch as confusion rose to the surface, ‘just as I’m leaving, the barista hands me a coffee—one that my boyfriend ordered for me.’ My words slowed, my body overcome by both indignation and my apparent lack of fitness as I trudged up the deceptively steady incline of my street.
‘I had no idea what to do,’ I puffed. ‘She looked like she’d just been part of the most romantic gesture since Mr Darcy rescued Lydia for Lizzie. Honestly, Becky, the kid had hearts in her eyes. She was practically swooning.’
My head dropped back and I let out a noise that started as a grunt but ended somewhere closer to a wail. ‘I feel like I’m getting whiplash here. And I don’t know what to make of any of it. I was so confused when he left and then I got mad and the coffee thing happened and then I got confused again and now I’m mad at myself for being confused and it all just…’ The last of my words disappeared into the sky in a puff of white smoke.
‘This is a bad idea…’ I said after a while, my voice coming out small and unsure. I should cancel. There was still time for him to find someone else to take to the wedding. I shook away the feeling of discomfort at the image of Aiden dancing with some faceless woman and continued onto my street.
I could tell everyone that my boyfriend couldn’t make it to the Christmas party. Maybe he could be a doctor and would be conveniently out and saving lives that night? I frowned. Over the past few hours, I’d come to like the idea of having, if not a buddy, then a buffer at the party.
I sighed, fully aware that I was now just recording the sound of my trudging home. But I couldn’t bring myself to end it just yet. I needed to know what to do. I chewed on my lower lip.
What would Becky do?
I stopped several feet from my building’s entrance. Well, first thing’s first. I’d have to get rid of any romantic notions. No matter what my books said, it had become painfully obvious that this was not that kind of agreement. I couldn’t picture Becky worrying about whether or not some guy wanted to get to know her. If anything, she’d ignore him until the wedding and show up looking like a bombshell.
I could do that.
Well, maybe not the bombshell bit, but the rest of it I could do… I hoped.
‘Okay.’ I smiled, squaring my shoulders determinedly. ‘That’s what I’ll do. Thanks, Becks. Call me, okay? Love you, bye.’