Chapter 31
31
Jess woke the next morning with the nagging headache that signified she probably shouldn’t have had that last glass of wine the night before. Oh well, she thought, squinting and sitting up. It had been fun, and she and Brianna had successfully completed their mission, which was to get their friend laughing again. Besides, she decided, shrugging into her dressing gown and padding through to the kitchen, the headache was nothing that poached eggs on toast and a good strong cup of coffee wouldn’t fix.
She spent her morning finishing her column for the week. Her inspiration had come from last night’s girly get-together, though it had been brewing since her encounter with the snooty shop assistant from the haute couture shops she’d ventured into with Brianna and been cemented by the lass on the checkout at Tesco’s the day before. She’d decided to write about the unspoken and universal language that existed between women, and how some women were part of the sisterhood and some definitely weren’t.
Having emailed her final draft off to Niall, she was debating whether beans on toast was a good idea for lunch or whether she might be better going for something like a chicken wrap from the Spar shop down the road when the phone rang. It was Nick.
The conversation was short and sweet as he was on his way to a meeting. Jess crossed her fingers and hoped it wasn’t over in Bray. He told her he would swing by around seven thirty to pick her up. She hung up thinking he’d sounded very masterful and felt her stomach knot in excitement at the thought of the night to come.
For once she didn’t have to spend hours agonising over what to wear because Nora had taken it upon herself the night before to choose Jess’s outfit. ‘You need to dress to impress for a man like Nick because Ewan told me he usually dates model types,’ she’d declared knowledgably as she’d hauled a cream sixties swing dress out of Jess’s wardrobe. ‘This, girlfriend, is the perfect dress for in-home dining.’
She’d handed it to Jess then disappeared back into the wardrobe again, reappearing a few moments later looking pleased with herself as she held up a pair of matching heels. ‘Wear your hair down,’ she’d ordered bossily before picking up Jess’s new bra and pinging it across the room at her.
Now Nick was fifteen minutes late, and Jess had just finished rechecking her make-up in her powder compact for the third time since she’d plonked her bottom down on the cold vinyl in Riverside’s foyer. She jiggled her crossed legs in an effort to stop thinking about the fact she needed the loo and to prevent the bare backs of her thighs from sticking to the seat. Brianna always said she had a Woolworths bladder, but this was down to nerves, Jess thought, peering out into the dark for any sign of slowing headlights. She was loath to wait outside on the street for him and not just because of the nip in the air but because last time she’d loitered out there waiting for a ride, a passing Japanese tourist had said, ‘Konnichiwa – how much?’
Taking a deep breath in order to calm the butterflies, Jess glanced down at her dress. At least she knew she looked good. She sent Nora a mental ten out of ten for choice of outfit because as she’d tottered past in her cream heels, Puff the Magic Dragon had just about fallen out the window between drags. She’d also bumped into Gemma from across the hall for the first time in ages. Dressed as per usual in head-to-toe skin-tight black and clutching a water bottle, she had, of course, been coming back from a workout.
‘Jess – wow! You look fantastic. Have you got a hot date?’ She’d winked but then she’d ruined it by going on at her about joining her down at the gym again.
No chance, Jess thought now, wondering whether Gemma was on some sort of commission. Perhaps she got free membership if she managed to recruit new members?
Jess’s musings were interrupted by a toot. Nick was outside.
As she pulled open the heavy doors, the sounds of Justin Timberlake reached her ears. She ran over to the car, and as she climbed into the seat next to him, her heart skipped a beat. He looked gorgeous in a crisp white shirt and jeans, his hair still wet from a shower. He turned the music down, and as he leaned toward her, she caught a whiff of that same delicious aftershave before she lost herself in the kiss that followed.
It wasn’t until a group of lads walking up the Quays began calling out, ‘Whoa! Go on, get in there, mate!’ that they broke apart.
Nick grinned cheekily at her before revving the engine and expertly weaving the car out into the evening traffic.