‘I hear you’re moving in with us,’ Nick said in the staffroom the following day. He was always the first to winkle out the gossip, so she wasn’t surprised to find that he knew about her move. But what did he mean by ‘us’?
‘Sorry? What?’
‘I hear you’re moving into the staff accommodation.’
‘I am, yes, but don’t you live near Kennington? You told me that when you walked me home.’
‘Ah, yes, well. That was a little white lie, I’m afraid. I thought if you knew where I really lived, you wouldn’t let me walk you, and I wanted to spend some time together. Just you and me.’
‘And you came all the way back again?’
He held his hands up in submission. ‘Guilty as charged.’
Emma shook her head. She’d been doing her best to keep her distance from Nick. Living in the same accommodation as him would make that difficult to say the least.
‘How about I cook you a meal the night you move in?’
‘I don’t know. My life’s a bit of a mess at the moment.’
‘All the more reason to have a home-cooked meal. I make a mean risotto.’
Nick could be very persistent when he wanted something, but she wasn’t sure it was a good idea. She had other things to think about. She couldn’t put off telling Jay any longer and she suspected her news would come as a shock to him. Especially as she had already made arrangements to move out.
‘Have you and your fella split up, then?’ Nick asked when she didn’t answer.
‘It certainly looks that way.’
‘And you’re the one doing the dumping?’
‘It’s complicated.’
‘It always is. So risotto? Tomorrow night?’
‘Nick.’ She sighed. ‘Jay and I might be over, but I’m not ready to get into anything else.’
‘I get that. And I know I’ve made no secret of the fact that I fancy you, but I can see that you don’t feel the same. If you need a friend, though, I’m your man.’
‘Thanks, Nick.’ He was right — she did need a friend. Just as long as he didn’t try to cross any lines.
‘So how about it, then?’
‘I’m not sure. I came here to give myself space.’
‘It’s just food.’
She did need to eat and it would be nice to do that in company. ‘Risotto it is.’
* * *
Jay concentrated as he kneaded the fresh pasta dough. He needed to start making amends with Emma somehow. The atmosphere between them over the last week had been so tense. Several times he’d attempted to have a proper conversation with her, but each time he’d chickened out, afraid that if he said the wrong thing it would all be over between them. But they couldn’t carry on like this any longer, so this morning he’d checked the calendar, seen that Emma would finish her shift at six tonight, and had decided to cook her favourite pasta dish — spinach-and-ricotta ravioli with walnut pesto and a creamed basil sauce. There was wine chilling in the fridge and homemade profiteroles for dessert.
After the conversation with Liz, he’d realised how badly he’d got it wrong with Emma. Of course she felt taken for granted, the way he had treated her recently. He’d been selfish and blind, thinking only of his own needs. No wonder she’d got the wrong idea when she’d seen him with Chloe. That should never have happened. Emma had always been there for him — that was one of the reasons he loved her, because she was so caring and giving, and that was what she needed from him in return. Tonight he would do his best to show her that she was the onlygirl for him. It was her turn to receive the love she deserved. First though, he needed to have a serious talk with Chloe.
He finished kneading the pasta, wrapped it in cling film and placed it in the fridge. Then he washed his hands, wondering what he was going to say to Chloe. He would just have to wing it and make it up as he went along. He’d been putting off ringing her but tonight, when he sat down with Emma, he wanted to be able to speak to her with a clear conscience. He picked up the phone.
‘Jay, hi! It’s lovely to hear from you.’ Chloe sounded so happy to hear from him. Jay swallowed nervously.
‘Chloe, hi, I was ringing about—’
