‘Seriously?’ I ask her.
‘I saw this place at the weekend. Mi Corazon means “my heart”. That was a sign. We were literally talking about him and the phone rang. It’s the sparks of your love flying into the universe and it all converging to create a brilliant romance. I can feel it in my waters, Josie.’
I sit there and shake my head, grinning to hear her enthusiasm, her excitement and, more so, her hope.
‘I’m not even wearing earrings.’
‘We have earrings downstairs.’
‘They’re shaped like penises.’
‘He won’t know. We’ll cover them up with your hair.’
SEVEN
As mentioned, I like to be prepared for a date. I like to have perused the menu, shaved the stubble from my armpits at least and not be wearing my marketing director’s stud (not penis) earrings and Michelle’s very dark liquid eyeliner that I fear makes me look a little geisha.
It’s just lunch. No one has full-on kisses after a date in broad daylight so we can chat over guacamole, joke over churros and then shake hands and proceed with the rest of our days. It will be lovely and civil. There will be no alcohol involved either. Unprofessional people down tequila at lunch. I will have a sparkling water, or maybe a glass of wine like the classy managing director that I am.
As I walk up to the restaurant, I can see his figure waiting by the door and immediately my body reacts, a breath I can’t exhale, a warmth to my cheeks, a biting of my lip to hold back my glee. He’s still wearing that duffel coat, the hair is still wild and uncontrollable, but the eyes, the smile… I’m just gawping now, trying to hold in my immense happiness at seeing him and I wave with both hands. This is not very cool at all. Stop being cute, Cameron Cox. And you, Josie Jewell, rein in the socially awkward, just swoosh in, double air kiss. How wonderful to see you, Cameron.
‘Hiiiii!’ I say, like I’m singing a really long note in a voice that’s not my own.
He comes in for the peck on the cheek. He smells like fresh laundry and Juicy Fruit chewing gum. Urgh, don’t lose it, Josie, just go in too wide so he gets a kiss of your ear and your colleague’s earrings. I put an arm around him. He wasn’t expecting that so we kind of hug.
He laughs in response. ‘I wasn’t sure if you were going to be here. I thought Michelle would tell you that you’re going for lunch with me and I’d be standing here on my own.’
‘Is that why you waited outside?’
‘Yep. Plus, I also thought waiting was gentlemanly.’
‘Like the other night at your parents’ house.’
‘Oh no, that was purely selfish so I could use you as a human shield.’
I laugh at this point and, quite awfully, my chewing gum falls out of my mouth. Did he see that? I hope he didn’t. It catches on my coat and I pick it off as subtly as I can, stuffing it into an old tissue in my pocket.
He holds the door open and puts a hand to the small of my back. What is this? Is this a date? No, it’s lunch. With tortillas and dip.
‘Hi, we’ve booked a table for two under the name…’ Shit. Did Michelle book it under my last name because that will mean letting the cat out of the bag before we’ve even had time to sit down and look at a menu. ‘Josie?’
‘Josie Stantz?’ the restaurant manager asks.
Oh, Michelle and your need to romanticise this moment.
Cameron seems entertained at least.
‘That’s me.’
‘Please follow me.’
As we walk through the restaurant, I’m reminded that eating out is actually quite a rarity for me. Such a rarity that I have long-standing friendly relationships with many of the Deliveroo drivers in my area. In fact, when I do eat Mexican, it’s mainly a family pack of Tex-Mex dips and extra cheese with a sharing pack of tortillas that I share with myself. The past week has been the peak of social activity for me.
This place is also maybe not what Michelle had in mind. I think she thought it’d be small and intimate, but there’s a real street food bustle element, an open kitchen and lots of memorabilia to try to recreate some sort of Mexican mercado. This is where all the sombreros are.
‘Have you been here before?’ the manager asks in his T-shirt with a burrito on the front.
‘I haven’t,’ I say and Cameron shakes his head.
