‘Is it your birthday today?’
I glanced at the balloon. ‘What could possibly have given it away?’
He laughed. ‘It’d be rude not to offer you a birthday drink.’ He seemed to realise that he was still holding my soft toy. ‘And it’d be rude not to return your elephant too.’
His fingers grazed mine as he passed me the toy and my heart raced faster as a zip of electricity shot through my body.
‘I’m spotting a theme,’ he added, picking up the broken bag for me. ‘Are elephants your thing?’
‘There’s a story behind that…’
* * *
Georgia had met Mark five years ago when she was twenty-one and I vividly remembered her bursting into my bedroom after their first date, giddy with excitement as she told me she’d met the man she was going to marry. She’d been right about that – the big day was coming up a week on Saturday.
On several occasions over the years, I’d asked Georgia how she could possibly have known with such certainty that Mark was right for her after only one date and she’d smiled and said it was for the same reason I could say with absolute certainty that the latest boyfriend I’d dumped wasn’t for me. You just knew.
I wished Georgia still lived at home as it would have been my turn to burst into her bedroom and declare that I now understood what she’d been talking about the night she met Mark because the same thing had just happened to me.
14
PRESENT DAY
It was nearly thirty years since the first time I saw Flynn and six since the last, yet somehow he still held the ability to make my heart race and my insides turn to liquid. What was he doing here? Surely Georgia hadn’t been tactless enough to invite him to reconnect with me between questions on tonight’s quiz. No, she’d never do that to me. She knew how difficult it would be for me to see Flynn again. I anticipated she’d keep pushing me to meet him, but she’d never ambush me like this.
‘Are you okay?’
I was vaguely aware of Autumn speaking to me but I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Flynn. His hair was longer and the curls on the top were unruly. It would be driving him mad but he hated going to the barber’s. I used to have to drag him into town and plonk him down in the chair when I could no longer bear the sighs of frustration as he swatted the curls from his eyes. The beard was new and it suited him. I’d always thought it would and had encouraged him on several occasions to give one a try but he’d always shaved it off within a week, saying he looked too much like his dad and granddad. Perhaps the trend over recent years for beards on younger men had changed his mind.
‘Mel?’
Someone lightly touched my arm – Rosie presumably – bringing my attention back to my companions.
‘Yes, fine. Sorry. Where were we?’
‘Rosie was telling us about making their home in the west wing,’ Dane said.
The conversation resumed but I couldn’t relax. Any moment now, Mark and Flynn would get their drinks, turn around and spot me. I couldn’t do it. I’d known it was inevitable that our paths would cross at some point but I wasn’t ready for it to happen this soon.
‘I’m really sorry, but I’ve got a splitting headache.’ I scrunched my nose as I pressed two fingers against the gap between my eyebrows. ‘I think I’m going to head back to the hall.’
‘Do you want me to walk you back?’ Rosie asked, looking concerned.
‘No. It’s not a migraine or anything like that but I think it’ll get worse with the noise when the quiz starts. I’ll get some fresh air and an early night and I’ll be fine by the morning.’
Pulling on my coat and grabbing my scarf, I congratulated Autumn and Dane once more on their exciting news, all the while praying the bartender would slow down because, any moment now, Mark and Flynn were going to turn.
I hitched my handbag onto my shoulder and headed towards the door, straight into Flynn’s path.
‘Mel?’ He stopped short, spilling his pint over his hands.
It was overwhelming enough seeing him here – the place we’d met and fallen in love, the place we’d spent so many wonderful hours together over the years – but there was no way I could have a conversation with him.
‘I didn’t know you’d?—’
‘Sorry,’ I mumbled, shaking my head at him. ‘I can’t.’
I hastened outside, praying he wouldn’t follow me. Even before Georgia had mentioned it, I’d known I wouldn’t be able to avoid Flynn forever, but I’d been here for less than a week and hadn’t expected to encounter him quite so soon. Wincing, I realised I hadn’t even acknowledged Mark, which was so rude of me. I also felt a little immature for letting my feelings overcome me like that and storming out. The door opened and I prepared to rush off but it was Mark who called my name.
