Chapter Fifty
A date? I pondered this all the way to the Ebbsfleet area.
Eventually, the Range Rover slowed, and the roundabout to the hospital loomed into view.
So, was this a date date? Or just, you know, an entry in the diary, so to speak?
‘I’ll have a look at the website’ – Liam interrupted my thoughts – ‘and check availability.’ He shifted his weight behind the steering wheel, then produced his mobile from the back pocket of his jeans. He handed it to me. ‘Pop your number in.’
‘Oh, er, right,’ I said, taking the phone from him. Well, this was all happening rather quickly. Or was it?
Oh, don’t be ridiculous, said my inner voice. He’s simply being friendly. This is no different to Sally or Alice asking you to stick your number into their phone. How else can Liam message you later? Via the Starlight grapevine?
I tapped his mobile. It immediately asked for the passcode.
‘Fifteen eleven,’ he said, pre-empting me from asking the question. ‘It’s the first four digits of my date of birth,’ he explained. ‘Otherwise, I’d forget. I get fed up with passwords and the saga of having to remember them all. They always need to be kept simple.’
‘Yes, I totally get that,’ I agreed, thinking of the numerous times I’d had to reset my own passwords.
Hm. The fifteenth of November. That made Liam a Scorpio.
I wondered if that was compatible with my star sign.
I had a feeling it was. But weren’t male Scorpios a rather dangerous and sexy star sign to get entangled with?
Not that I was getting involved with him.
A night out to see Abba was hardly going to be sexy.
Not unless I wore flared trousers with a sequinned bra top – which wasn’t going to happen at my age.
‘Oh,’ I said, peering at the screen. ‘You have a WhatsApp message. It’s from someone called Victoria.’
We were now bouncing over some sleeping policemen and heading towards a carpark.
‘Read it to me, please,’ said Liam.
‘Er’ – I hesitated as the red and white barrier shot up – ‘the message is a little abrupt.’
‘That’s my Victoria,’ Liam grinned. His Victoria? ‘She’s so blunt, she calls a spade a shovel with commitment issues.’
‘O-Oh,’ I stammered. Quite a scary woman then.
Her profile picture was that of a black labrador, so I had no idea what she looked like.
However, I imagined her to be a duplicate of Mel B with a bold personality and wild hair.
‘It says – sorry for the language – when are you going to return my calls, you flipping nobhead?’
Oh, Lord. This must be the woman that Liam had previously mentioned.
The one who he was handling softly-softly.
His work in progress – or however he’d worded it.
Although this woman didn’t sound remotely soft or kitten-like.
More like a tiger. Even so, it told me that the man by my side was one who caught a woman’s interest mostly by ignoring her.
What was that saying? I seemed to remember my son frequently quoting it.
‘Mum, I’ve had my fingers burnt too often by chatting up a girl and then immediately suggesting a date. In my book, you need to treat them mean to keep ’em keen.’
I’d rebuked James for that attitude. To me, it wasn’t kind. But it looked like Liam shared the same thought. Despite her apparent feistiness, I felt a little sorry for the narky Victoria.
‘If you don’t mind’ – Liam was now looking for a parking space – ‘can you tap out a reply for me?’
‘Sure. What should I say?’
‘Tell her to stop being a pain in the whatsits and that I’ve been busy.’
‘Bit harsh,’ I muttered, tapping away. ‘Shall I add a kiss?’
‘Yes. Send five. Oh, and a red heart emoji. That will keep her quiet for a bit.’
‘Right,’ I sighed.
Well at least I was seeing firsthand what Liam Lancaster was like in the Romance Department.
Obviously, men in the building industry were more interested in pouring concrete than feelings.
Personally, if I were Victoria, I’d tell him to send his kisses to a bag of cement and stick the heart emoji up his spirit level.
But at least I now had confirmation that our date to Abba was nothing more than a mate’s date.