Chapter Eight
Ros couldn’t get out of the house quick enough and thankfully Gazza felt the same. Her dad’s face was something she would always remember. The smile that appeared – the likes of which had been something she’d not seen from him for a very long time. She’d dashed off before her dad could pass comment and had been hugely relieved to escape any questioning. She’d done it. She’d sown the first seed. This was happening. She felt breathless and then realised that she was almost jogging thanks to Gazza setting the pace. Why did he always pull? It couldn’t be comfortable. For a small dog he had a lot of power. She tried to bring him to heel but he preferred to be semi-choking. Her phone rang and with some difficulty she answered it with one hand.
‘Hiya, Ros, it’s Cameron.’
‘I’ve told him,’ she blurted out. ‘My dad. I’ve told him about us.’
‘Okay. How did it go?’
‘I left before he could ask me anything but he was pleased. He looked really happy.’ Saying it out loud made something settle inside her. The lying wasn’t going to be easy but if it put that kind of smile on his face then it was worth it.
‘Well done. That’s a great start. Any chance we could meet a bit earlier? I’ve been asked to do an extra shift at the charity shop because someone has phoned in sick and Saturday is a busy day for them.’
Ros looked at the dog dragging her along. ‘I don’t think I can. I’m having to walk my dad’s dog because he’s got trouble with his back. My dad, not the dog.’
Cameron laughed. ‘I guessed that. Okay, how about we meet at a different café, one that’s dog-friendly? Do you know the coffee house on London Road?’
‘Yes, I’m not far from there.’ And at the speed Gazza is going I’ll be there in ten minutes, she thought.
‘Great. I’ll see you there in, say, fifteen minutes?’
It seemed like a good solution.
Ros took back that thought as she entered the little café. It was clearly a whole new experience for Gazza and one he was ill-equipped to handle. Being in an unfamiliar place where everyone was eating and there were new friends to meet under every table, Gazza wanted to meet them all immediately. He darted about until he’d tied himself and Ros to a table, a chair and a lady’s walking frame. A kind waitress was clearing a table nearby and came to Ros’s rescue.
‘Here you go,’ she said, leading Gazza away with a small treat and untangling his lead with the other hand. ‘What can I get you?’
‘Coconut latte with an extra shot please,’ replied Ros.
The waitress attached the dog’s lead to a loop on the solid-looking table before fussing Gazza who lapped up the attention. ‘And what can I get for this little cutie?’ she asked.
‘Oh, he only drinks water,’ replied Ros.
The waitress laughed. ‘We have a doggy menu if he fancied anything to eat.’ She pointed at a board.
Ros was wrong-footed so scanned it quickly. ‘He likes sausage.’
‘One hot diggity dog and a coconut latte extra shot coming right up.’ The waitress left them and Gazza gazed adoringly after her. Ros hoped she wouldn’t be long because she doubted that Gazza would behave himself for more than a moment.
The door opened and in came Cameron. Lots of furry faces all checked him out including a bearded man by the window. As he approached the table Gazza started to bark. ‘Hiya,’ said Cameron, kissing Ros on the cheek, which took her by surprise. She wasn’t the sort of greeter who kissed people. She mourned the dying tradition of shaking hands. ‘Oh would you look at you,’ said Cameron, dropping to his knees to greet Gazza. He stopped barking and wagged his tail so hard Ros feared he might strain it. ‘He’s gorgeous. What’s his name?’
She stopped her automatic need to apologise or explain and opted simply for the facts. ‘It’s Gazza.’
‘Cool name for a cool doggo,’ said Cameron.
Doggo? Ros let it go.
‘Hang on.’ Cameron had a huge grin on his face when he looked up at her. ‘Does this mean your dad and his dog have rhyming names? Barry and Gary. Imagine that – names that are very similar,’ he teased.
‘I hate to disappoint you but he’s not a Gary. Gazza was some footballer when my dad was younger. And this dog loves a ball.’ Gazza’s face spun in her direction at the word. There was another one they’d have to spell out.
‘Ahh okay. I’ll let him off.’ Cameron’s voice changed as he addressed the dog. ‘Who’s a good boy? You’re a good boy. Yes, you are. Gazza’s a good boy.’
‘I’ve ordered. Sorry, I didn’t know what you wanted to drink,’ she said, interrupting the particularly one-sided conversation. Although to be fair Gazza did seem transfixed by Cameron’s every word.
‘I’m a large Americano with hot milk.’
‘Okay. I’ll remember that.’
The waitress appeared with Ros’s drink and Gazza’s sausage, which the dog inhaled before the bowl was even on the floor. Cameron gave his order and they settled down to talk. Thankfully Gazza was happy to sit between Cameron’s feet in the hope of him dropping some pastry crumbs from the pain au chocolat he’d ordered.
‘There’s something you need to know,’ said Ros.
Cameron looked concerned. ‘Okay, what’s that?’
‘I sort of panicked and now Dad is expecting you for lunch tomorrow.’
‘That’s cool,’ said Cameron. ‘Who doesn’t like a free meal? And I love a roast dinner.’ Ros instantly relaxed a fraction.
‘Right. Shall we pick up where we left off?’ said Ros, pulling her notebook from her bag.
‘Okay,’ he said, wiping the last crumbs from his lips and surreptitiously letting Gazza lick his fingers. Ros took her hand sanitiser out of her bag and pushed it across the table to him. ‘Cheers.’
Ros consulted her notes. ‘Where did we meet?’
‘At the cocktail bar.’
‘Yes, I know that, but for the backstory when Dad asks.’
‘But that works as good as anything we could make up. I work in the bar and you came in with Darla to pick up her paycheque and we got talking.’
‘I don’t know,’ said Ros, making a note in her book.
‘Why not?’ Cameron sipped his drink but she knew he was still fussing the dog under the table. ‘I think it’s a very plausible story. What have you got that’s better?’
Ros wasn’t exactly blessed in the imagination depart-ment. Logic and facts were far more her cup of tea. She had a quick think and nothing of any use came to mind. ‘Fine, we’ll stick with the cocktail bar.’ He probably did have a point.
‘What happened?’ asked Cameron.
‘When?’ Ros was lost.
Cameron smiled at her. He did that a lot. Why did people smile all the time? What did they have to be so cheerful about? ‘When we met, what happened?’ he asked. ‘We need a better story than you came in and I asked you out.’
Ros straightened her spine. Her feminist spider sense had been triggered. ‘I could have asked you out.’
‘You could. I like that. Let’s go with that. So why did you ask me out? What was it about me?’ For once he looked serious as he turned his face first one way and then the other, lifting his chin and then doing a thoughtful look out of the window.
‘I wouldn’t have asked you out,’ said Ros and then instantly regretted it. Sometimes her brain didn’t have a softening feature.
Thankfully Cameron laughed. ‘I don’t think you would either. I’m guessing that’s not your style. How about you ordered a...’
Belatedly Ros realised that was her cue to fill in. ‘Oh... uh... Pinot Grigio. Properly chilled.’
‘Okay, and I explained that we had a new-to-us wine in that I thought you might like. I gave you a taster. We got talking and we found that we had something in common, which was...’
Ros was too busy scribbling notes so she missed her cue again. ‘Sorry. Um.’ She shrugged.
Gazza made a whimper from under the table. ‘I’m not sure this is working,’ said Cameron.
Ros was disappointed because she was quite pleased with how far they had got. ‘Perhaps we should keep to the list.’ She tapped her notebook.
‘It’s not that I don’t like your detailed flip chart questionnaire – very thorough. But I think what we really need to know, the sort of thing that could catch us out, are the little details that connect people. You know like when you have an all-nighter because one thing leads to something else and before you know it hours have gone by. Gina and I used to do that all the time.’
Ros had no idea what he was talking about. ‘All-nighter? Like clubbing?’
Cameron frowned as if he wasn’t sure if she was teasing him or not. ‘I mean those nights when you first get together with someone and you stay up all night just talking and getting to know each other.’ He beamed her a smile – or was he smiling at a memory? She couldn’t be sure.
He made it sound like a common thing. Could she reveal that she’d never had this experience? ‘How would that go exactly?’ she asked.
Cameron pouted his full lips. ‘We’d be lying down for a start.’
‘Not really practical.’ Ros indicated the coffee shop.
‘I’ve an idea,’ said Cameron, leaping to his feet, making Gazza jump up and bounce around. ‘Come on,’ he added, reaching for her hand.
Ros hastily paid the bill and they exited the coffee shop quickly with Gazza leading the way, even though he obviously was clueless as to where they were going. Cameron guided them down London Road to East Park. It was a place Ros hadn’t been for many years. Scenes of picnics with her mother and father swam into her mind and then later ones where there was just her and her dad. Unhelpfully she now had an image of her picnicking alone – was that a glimpse at her future?
‘This way,’ said Cameron and a tug from Gazza’s lead pulled Ros back to the present. They walked under the wisteria-clad walkway. The sweet scent of the pretty purple flowers was delightful. They left the path that Gazza seemed particularly excited about and followed Cameron until he plonked himself down on the grass in the sunshine. ‘Here’ll do,’ he said, lying down.
Gazza saw this as an open invitation to jump on Cameron and try to lick his face. ‘I’m so sorry,’ said Ros, trying to restrain the overexcited hound.
‘He’s fine,’ said Cameron, lifting up the wriggling creature and setting him down on the grass where he sniffed about wildly.
‘What now?’ asked Ros.
Cameron smiled at her. ‘You need to lie down.’
‘But it might be dirty or wet.’
Cameron pulled off his hoodie and laid it on the ground next to him and kept Gazza away by fussing him. ‘Here you go.’
Ros wasn’t sure. But then she reasoned that she wasn’t sure about any of it and she’d come this far so she carefully sat on the top and Cameron kindly kept Gazza’s advances at bay by hugging him.
‘Give me the lead and lie down,’ said Cameron.
‘Is that really necessary?’ asked Ros, starting to feel rather silly, and she had a quick check to make sure nobody was watching them.
‘I’m afraid it is,’ said Cameron, slowly lying back down.
Reluctantly Ros joined him and was immediately struck by how blue and cloud-free the sky was.
‘Take a moment,’ said Cameron.
Ros took a deep breath and Gazza walked over her solar plexus, making her emit an ‘oomph’ sound.
‘Sorry,’ said Cameron, guiding Gazza back to lie between the two of them. When the dog finally settled down then so did Ros.
The sun was warm, the ground beneath her was soft and there was a faint smell of grass and flowers in the air. She felt surprisingly calm. Especially given there was a hairy black dog panting away near her shoulder.
‘What are you thinking about right now?’ he asked.
‘Literally nothing. Except possibly what my head is lying on.’
‘Okay. Try not to think about that. We’re trying to find something we have in common so focus on that. What do you like?’
‘My job.’
‘Risk management. See, I remembered.’ He seemed to be thinking for a moment. ‘Probably nothing that we have in common there. What else do you like?’
There was an embarrassingly long pause while Ros tried to think of things that weren’t work that she liked and was struggling to find anything. ‘Sorry.’
‘It’s fine. Shall I go through things I like and you can jump in when there’s something you can relate to? Anything, however small a connection.’
‘Okay.’ Ros nodded and closed her eyes so she could concentrate.
‘I’m into hiking and hill walking. I’ve only been a few times but I had a blast skiing and learning to snowboard. I love the outdoors in pretty much any weather. I like it when you’ve gotten really cold and wet and then you come inside to warm up.’
He left a little pause as if willing her to agree but she couldn’t. Skiing seemed very high risk and Ros didn’t take risks. She also loathed being cold or wet. Being cold and wet was the worst.
He continued. ‘I read a lot. I have to for uni so my novel reading time is reduced but I still enjoy a good thriller. Something twisty. I like watching those sorts of things on TV too.’
‘I only read non-fiction.’
‘Okay. Don’t worry, we’ll find something. What else? I enjoy comedy, stuff that makes me laugh. I’ve been to a few comedy club nights; they’re always fun. Um...’ She got the feeling he was running out of things. ‘Music!’ he said a bit louder as if discovering it lurking at the back of his mind.
‘Yes, I like music.’
‘Excellent,’ he said, sounding relieved. ‘I like anything from Eighties pop to indie rock. Who do you like to listen to?’
‘Bach mainly,’ said Ros and she heard the gush of air as Cameron let out an exasperated sigh. ‘But I like classic musicals like The King and I . Do you like musicals?’ she asked.
‘Nah, I’m afraid I’m more into club classics,’ he said. He was quiet for a bit and she missed the sound of his voice. It had a lovely timbre to it.
They lay there in silence for a couple of minutes. Ros listened to the birds in the trees, the sound of nearby traffic and then footsteps as someone was walking the nearby path. They were listening to the radio and Ros almost tutted that they didn’t have headphones plugged in. She did not like those people. As they grew closer she could hear it was sports commentary and she tuned in.
‘Cricket!’ they both said at the same time.