Chapter 16
ELIZA
The rest of Eliza’s shift passed quickly. Jules kept nudging her and laughing.
‘I should be shadowing you, not the other way around,’ she said. ‘I doubt that rude loser will come back any time soon. As for your dancing… where did you learn that?’
A warm glow ran through Eliza as she gave her ID back to a young woman, took payment and nodded her through.
‘YouTube is wonderful. But I’ve not let my hair down for a while, in private let alone public…
Events at home have made it difficult. Tonight’s reminded me how important some things are; how I’ve really had enough of a certain person.
I’ve always loved dancing and did ballet and tap as a young girl – could have taken it further, I reckon. ’
‘Why didn’t you?’
‘Things were different back then. It was harder for girls, women, to follow their dreams. Mum and Dad thought it best I work in the factory where my boyfriend was supervisor. Once we married, my ambitions faded into nothing.’
‘That’s a shame. You’ve sure got the moves.’ Jules tightened her ponytail and looked at her watch. ‘Midnight. Your friends are still waiting for you, in the chillout room. How’s your first shift been? Coming back?’
‘Try to stop me!’ Eliza patted Jules’s arm and left.
She turned right, into the chillout room.
Dimmed lights. Quiet jazz music. Nice. Ignoring Ariana and Rae sitting on a couch, she went over to Jez at the bar in the corner.
A giant fake palm tree stood next to it and peaceful shots of beaches hung from the dark green walls. ‘How did I do?’ she asked.
‘Amazing,’ he said, and ran a hand through his thick, side-parted hair, lifting the front to show a whisper of grey. ‘How about a soda and lime to celebrate? I’ll get you one from the main bar, or we serve hot drinks in here.’
‘So can I come back tomorrow to work?’
‘I’ll email you your shifts.’
‘You see now how not everyone is made for retirement? What’s more, I can get on a stool quite easily, thank you. I pretended to struggle climbing on because of your comment.’
Jez put down the bar towel. ‘I only mentioned that because of your height, Eliza.’
‘Oh, well, fair enough, but I can also manage on my feet all night, like the other bar staff.’
‘I said that because I struggle. In the wrong shoes, it’s a killer.’
She bit her lip. ‘And suggesting I don’t know what Tinder is?’
His face broke into a smile. ‘Okay, possibly that one was a bit ageist – but that’s only because I have trouble keeping up, and reckoned you and I are at a similar place in life. I mean, you don’t look a day over sixty-five.’
Oh. Heat seeped into her cheeks and she relaxed.
‘Thanks for being thoughtful. I’ve got nothing against ageing, it’s other people’s attitude that’s the problem.
As long as you keep moving forwards, that’s the main thing.
I mean, anyone looking at you might think you were a George Michael fan.
Now that would make someone old, being stuck in the eighties.
’ Her eyes twinkled and she headed over to Carrie’s friends.
She sat down on a comfortable armchair opposite their couch and didn’t say a thing, waiting expectantly for them to break the silence.
‘Soooo,’ said Ariana, twirling one of her curls. ‘You dance?’
‘And easily deal with tossers?’ said Rae.
Eliza raised an eyebrow, waiting before replying.
‘Perhaps we jumped to the wrong conclusions,’ said Ariana, and she blushed.
‘But you seemed so fragile when we first met,’ said Rae.
‘No. You assumed that, so I played along,’ said Eliza in a kind tone.
‘The two of you thought I’d prefer to stay in.
You ordered me a sherry – I haven’t drunk one of them for years but didn’t like to make a fuss as the barman went to such an effort to find it!
And I’ll take clubbing over gin rummy any day. ’
The three of them smiled at one another.
‘You’re amazing for someone who’s nearly seventy-five,’ said Rae.
‘Am I? Isn’t that a somewhat old-fashioned notion?
Al Pacino had a son at eighty-three! The Queen was ninety-six when she died, the King of Saudi Arabia is ninety, and David Attenborough is nigh on a hundred, for goodness’ sake!
Joan Collins, Julie Andrews, Clint Eastwood, they are in their nineties…
All of these people are active and contributing.
I could name many more, and we normal people are no different to famous ones.
I still have hopes and dreams.’ She shrugged.
‘You must have grandparents between you. Surely they haven’t given up. ’
‘Sorry, Eliza,’ said Rae with a sheepish look.
‘I should have known better,’ said Ariana. ‘Although sometimes prejudice is funny – when idiots assume Rae is gay, not me, simply because of her short hair. What a joke! She’s the straightest woman I know, and I swear would even send an AI boyfriend an inappropriate photo of—’
‘Ariana!’ hissed Rae.
Eliza laughed.
‘Drinks, ladies?’ called Jez from the bar, moving in time to a jazz tune, clapping his hands and swinging his hips. ‘I’ll be cashing up in here soon. I offered Eliza a soda and lime but perhaps you’d all like something stronger?’
‘How about I get dressed and you two choose the drinks for when I’m back? But not sherry!’ said Eliza to Ariana and Rae.
She changed out of the uniform, collected her things and when she came out of the locker room, Jez was returning from the chillout room, carrying an empty tray. Eliza stopped and rubbed her hip. She caught his eye. ‘Still know how to have fun, but I pay the price these days.’
‘Tell me about it! George Michael songs get me straining my back every day of the week.’
Eliza’s eyes twinkled again. ‘Sorry about my little joke earlier. You look pretty sharp, to be honest. George Michael was actually rather special. Did you know he wrote “Careless Whisper” when he was only seventeen? It’s one of my all-time favourite songs.’
‘Even though you can’t kick your legs in the air to it?
’ Jez’s eyes crinkled. ‘And don’t worry about the comment.
No shame here about loud and proudly not forgetting a legend.
Did you know that he used to get mistaken for one of his lookalikes?
Could that have happened to me?’ He ran a hand through his hair and posed.
Actually he was quite handsome.
She forced herself to turn away.
What was that all about?
Jez had a kind face. A sense of humour. He wasn’t patronising either. Despite his reservations about her age, he’d let Eliza deal with that rude customer.
She gathered herself and turned back, wrinkling her nose. ‘You should consider putting lavender into your scent machine instead of…’
‘Black Orchid. But lavender? The club will smell like a spa!’
‘Lavender is a wonderfully calming flower and will do any troublemakers the world of good. It does have anti-inflammatory qualities.’ She went back to the table where three fizzy orange drinks with mint sticking out of the top were waiting.
‘These are called Second Chance,’ said Ariana.
‘The exact colour of my favourite gerbera daisies,’ said Eliza, and she raised hers in the air. ‘Here’s to that!’ She sipped and then gave the biggest yawn, and caught their smiles. ‘Well, I’m not Wonder Woman you know. Good thing I get to lie in tomorrow.’
‘You like flowers, then?’ asked Rae.
Eliza sipped her drink. ‘Yes. I put out a fresh bunch every week. Everyone should buy themselves bouquets. They make me feel calm, happy, so many things.’
‘Potted plants make me feel like that,’ said Ariana.
‘Pot makes me feel like that too,’ said Rae, and she winked.
The chat moved on to generic things: Rae’s family in Newcastle, how Ariana had met her girlfriend Izzy, favourite brunch places in Manchester.
Ariana and Rae had never been to Bramhall and Eliza told them about the huge park there and restaurants.
The two young women spoke of their families too.
No conversation veered near the subject of Carrie.
Interesting.
‘I got an email from Carrie late this afternoon. I’d sent her a photo of Boo,’ said Eliza.
What a positive reaction she’d had from Carrie about her age.
The email had seemed full of life. Sunny, carefree Greece must have already been having a good effect on her.
‘Did she tell you she’d crossed paths with Giannis GoGo there – the singer who had that huge hit with “Can’t Break Me”? Have you found out anything else?’
Rae snorted. ‘We haven’t replied to her messages recently. No doubt we’ll see photos of them online before you know it.’
‘Wonder if she actually knew he was there and that’s why she went.’ Ariana rolled her eyes.
‘No. Carrie said she was going to keep well out of his way,’ said Eliza. Wow. Something really was off between Carrie and her two friends.
‘So… enough about Carrie. You said you bought a new life to escape a man?’ asked Ariana, moving the conversation on swiftly as they drained their glasses and pulled on their coats.
‘I did. Just left. Without warning. Tonight has shown me that things can’t go on as they are where I used to live.’
Can’t Break Me. The words of that Giannis GoGo’s big hit played in her head.
‘The time has finally come to confront him properly. Dealing with that young idiot tonight reminded me of the strength I have that I forget about, sometimes.’ Under the table, Eliza curled her fists.
‘So tomorrow – or rather today, later on – before my shift, I’ll be paying a surprise visit to my bungalow to deal with the problematic man in my life, once and for all. ’