Chapter Twenty-Six
“You’re going where? And with whom?” Sophie asked, almost dropping a tray of fresh-from-the-oven scones.
“To the cinema with Matt.”
Sophie put the tray down. “Why exactly?”
Faith stood in the kitchen doorway, keeping an eye on the counter for any new customers wandering in. “Because he asked me. He thought I could do with some cheering up.”
Sophie stared at her open-mouthed, as though she’d suddenly declared she was going to strip naked and dance on the café’s tables. “But this is Matt we’re talking about. You know, the same guy who used to be called Aaron, your first love, who cheated on you and broke your heart.”
Faith watched a couple at the table in the window, leaning across their empty plates for a kiss. “He’s a friend. That’s all.”
“That’s like saying I’m the Queen of England.”
“What are you going on about?”
The couple at the window table were still kissing.
Sophie snapped her fingers to get Faith’s attention.
“I mean, basically, it’s a lie. You can’t just be ‘friends’ with Matt. It’s not going to work. All that first love stuff makes it complicated enough, but when that first love is a predatory alpha male like Matt, you haven’t got a chocolate flake in the oven’s chance of it being OK and him behaving himself.”
The couple got up to leave, waving their thanks at Faith as they made for the door. Faith waved back.
“It’s not like that. We’re going to the cinema, that’s all. And you’re sworn to secrecy on this by the way.”
“You know he’s doing this to wind Zane up, don’t you?”
Faith did know that. Maybe she wanted to wind Zane up too.
Sophie shook her head, waving a spoon of strawberry jam in Faith’s direction and several dollops fell to the floor with a splat. “Damn.” She fetched some kitchen roll to mop up the jam, lobbed the tissues in the bin and turned to Faith. “Just be careful. Matt still fancies you. He’s trouble. He might be Zane’s mate and you guys have only just split up, but somehow I don’t think any of that is going to stop him making a play for you. No matter what he says.”
The doorbell jangled the arrival of a woman and two fractious children.
“I can handle Matt,” Faith said as she headed for the counter, pinning a welcoming smile on her face.
“I remember when you used to get an interval at the pictures. The lights came up, all the couples sprang apart who’d spent the first half of the film snogging each other’s faces off, and then the usherette used to come round with that tray of vanilla ice cream tubs.”
Faith laughed. “How old are you again?”
“Same as you, as you well know. We used to have some fun when we went to the pictures all those years ago, didn’t we?”
“We did,” Faith nodded, “but I think the trips to the cinema you’re remembering must have been when you were about five years old with your parents. When we went to the cinema while we were at uni, it was the multiplex. There was no interval, and you bought your ice cream and popcorn from the counter in the foyer.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Matt replied. “The couples still used to snog each other’s faces off though didn’t they?” He nudged her playfully. “In fact, I don’t think I can remember seeing more than ten minutes of any film we ever went to, I was far more interested in your hand up my T-shirt and your tongue in—”
“Matt!”
“What?” he asked, trying to look innocent, and failing miserably. “I’m just saying. We had some great times together. Some very, very good times, as I recall. There was always something special about you.”
“So special that you decided to sleep with someone else whilst we were still together.”
Matt sighed. “Not this again. I’m sorry. Believe me; you cannot comprehend how sorry I am that I screwed things up between us. I was in love with you. Unfortunately at that age my hormones were running amok and sex was on my mind a fair chunk of the time. I couldn’t resist when Vicky Carlyle invited me to her room. Even while we were doing it I kept thinking of you.”
Faith resisted the temptation to point out that his hormones still seemed to be running amok ten years later.
“Why is it always so warm in these places?” Matt pulled his shirt, still partly-buttoned, over his head.
“This is new,” Faith said, pushing the sleeve of his T-shirt up to take a closer look at the tattoo she’d just spotted on his arm.
Matt watched as she ran her fingers across his skin, tracing the outline of the dragon tattoo. “New to you, yes, but not new to me. I had it done years ago. Do you like it?”
“I’m not really a tattoo kind of girl, but—”
Matt smiled. “You do like it.”
“I was going to say, I don’t go for guys with tattoos, but it suits you.”
“It’s kinda cool don’t you think?”
“Yes.” Faith nodded. “It is kind of cool.”
She moved her hand away from the fabric of his T-shirt. He caught her fingers in his.
“You know, I often wonder about us. Wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t acted like an idiot all those years ago. We used to be so good together. We still could be good together.”
Faith pulled her fingers away. “Matt,” she said warningly. “You said tonight was about being friends, about distracting me from…” She left the sentence unfinished, not wanting to say his name.
“Let’s get out of here and go to my place.”
“Matt! Are you even listening to what I’m saying?”
“What better distraction eh? What better way of getting over someone than by getting with someone else? Don’t you fancy me anymore?”
Faith shook her head in despair. “Friends, Matt. That. Is. All.”
“When I got to Carleton and first saw you in the Coffee Pot I was stunned. Not just about seeing you again after all that time, but also because I thought wow, she’s even more gorgeous than she was ten years ago. Plus, you’ve got your own business, you’re a leading light in the Tourism Association, all the things you wanted. Success is really sexy on a woman. Then I found out about you and Zane and I was seriously mad. But then I thought, hey, we’re talking Zane here. I can easily out-manoeuvre him when it comes to women. No competition. When we were in Austria, he saw so little action that I even asked him once if he was gay. All the women threw themselves at him and got zilch. If I wanted to try to get you back off him I was convinced I could.”
“Leave it, Matt.”
“I said leave it!”
The woman in front turned and looked at them both. Faith couldn’t work out if she was intrigued or horrified by their conversation.
Matt leaned forward and offered the tub of popcorn to the woman. “Popcorn? Help yourself, it’s toffee.”
The woman tutted and turned away.
“Can you keep your voice down?” Faith hissed at Matt.
Even in the semi-darkness as the lights dimmed ready for the start of the film, she could see the scowl on his face.
The scowl didn’t last long though.
Matt offered her the tub of toffee popcorn. “I take it you don’t fancy snogging my face off during this film then? Not even to get back at Zane?”
Faith felt a small smile tug at her lips at Matt’s cheek. “No,” she said, trying to sound indignant. “No, I don’t.”
“So we’re actually going to watch this film?” Matt asked, taking back the popcorn.
“Yes, we are.”
Matt shrugged. “Well, I guess there’s a first time for everything.”
“Look under your seat.” Matt instructed when they were back in his car after their trip to the Cineplex.
Faith peered at him suspiciously. “Why?
“Just look will you?”
Faith explored under the passenger seat of the car and pulled out a carrier bag with two bottles of wine inside. Rioja, her favourite.
“Thought I’d go for the wine as well as the pictures, like I’d mentioned earlier. Back to your place for a nightcap?”
Faith sighed. “OK.” She’d forgotten how persuasive Matt could be when he set his mind to it. “But don’t get any ideas.”
Matt started the car and selected first gear. “As if.”
“If you’re trying to get me drunk so I’ll sleep with you,” Faith said, as she topped up both their glasses with the Rioja, “then you’re wasting your time.”
“Blast! My master plan scuppered.” Matt made himself comfortable on her sofa, leaning back against the cushions.
Faith sat on the opposite end of the sofa and sipped her wine. She had only agreed to go out with Matt tonight because she was so low and so fed up with Zane. She knew that Matt could be great company, but she had no intention of getting involved with him. She was in love with Zane. It was Zane she wanted, not Matt.
OK, maybe, on some level, agreeing to tonight had been about spiting Zane. Word would doubtless get back to him that she’d been out with Matt. He would hate it. Perhaps it would provoke him into opening up to her about their relationship and they could try again.
But it was a dangerous game to play. A high-risk strategy which could all backfire on her. Zane might mistakenly decide she’d wanted to get back with Matt all along. If that happened, he’d never have anything to do with her again.
She glanced at Matt, sprawled on her sofa. Why was he here? Was it simply to cheer her up as he’d said? Or was he trying to wind Zane up? If so, why?
She put her wine on the table and turned to Matt.
“Why did you ask me out tonight, Matt? Tell me the truth.”
Matt took a sip of his wine. “Like I said. I wanted to cheer you up.” He leaned forward and put a hand on her knee. “I’m prepared to do whatever it takes.”
Faith moved his hand away. “What if the thing that would cheer me up is for you to help me figure out what’s going on with Zane?”
He sighed. “Fine. Then that’s what I’ll do.”
“I don’t understand what’s going on with him.” Faith couldn’t keep the frustration out of her voice. “He was so serious about us, about our relationship. That it had to mean something to him. And it did. I know it did. He seemed so committed to us, and then—”
“Zane doesn’t do casual anything, but especially when it comes to women and relationships. With him it’s all or nothing. When he gets involved it’s full-on. Like with you. He’s absolutely crazy about you. That’s part of the problem.”
“How do you mean? Why is that a problem if I feel the same about him?”
Matt shook his head. “Look, it’s not for me to say. Just try to be patient with him, OK? He has some stuff he needs to work through. He’ll tell you himself, when he’s ready. “And,” he added, “You guys should be together. You will be.”
“So what was all this about, Matt? These last few months, when you’ve been trying to wind Zane up, messing with us by flirting with me at any and every opportunity? Asking me out tonight? Hitting on me? Why were you trying to cause trouble between us?”
“Believe it or not, I was actually trying to make things better for the two of you. Make your relationship stronger.”
“How so?” Faith frowned.
“I can’t go into details, but believe me: my intentions were pure.”
“I know you too well! Your intentions are never pure.”
“Well, as far as you’re concerned they are.”
“Really?”
“OK.” He threw his hands up in the air in a gesture of defeat. “Maybe sometimes they weren’t. Sometimes I just can’t help myself. I see a pretty woman and that’s it. Old habits and all that I guess. Like in the cinema just now. Sometimes though, the flirting, hitting on you, it was all an act. Bravado. Other times it was because I was angry and frustrated. My life, my love life in particular, is a complete mess. And I guess I took things out on you guys. Yes, I was out to cause trouble. And I’m sorry.”
“Are things not going well with you and Emily then?”
Matt shook his head. “It’s more complicated than that.”
“I’m a good listener if you want to talk about it.”
“Thanks for the offer, but no, I don’t.”
“Things will come good for you, Matt. I know they will. One day you’ll meet the right woman. You’ll fall madly in love with her and all this behaving like a horny teenager will stop.”
Matt slipped an arm around her shoulders and she leaned in for a cuddle, knowing that friends were all they would ever be.
“You know,” Matt said, his voice quiet, “I think you might just be right.”
Zane switched off the television. It wasn’t helping to distract him from thoughts of Faith and what she was doing right now. Was she at home watching the same TV programme he’d half-watched for the last hour? Perhaps she was out with Sophie, in some pub, drinking wine and calling him all the names under the sun.
He wanted to ring her up, tell her he’d made a mistake and ask if they could meet up and talk. Twice he’d picked his phone up and almost called her number. Then he’d deleted her number from his phone list, kidding himself that this would mean he wouldn’t be able to ring her. But he knew her number off by heart, so that had been a waste of time.
He could do with someone to talk to right now, but his options were severely limited. Matt? Yeah, right. Dave? No. They got on well, but not well enough to talk about this kind of stuff. His dad? No. Zane was always careful to keep mention of women and relationships out of his conversations with him, although he usually had a few minutes chat with Helene whenever he and his dad spoke on the phone, and she always asked, with hope in her voice, if there was anyone special in his life yet.
As if some telephone gods had sensed his dilemma, his mobile buzzed into life. He saw Becca’s name on the display.
“Hey, Bex! To what do I owe this honour? Everything OK?”
“Everything is fine, thanks. I’m calling because James has been off work and we’ve all been out for the day. My darling husband has fed, bathed and read stories to the terrible twosome, they are now exhausted, fast asleep and snoring loudly, and I’m reclining on the sofa like a lady of leisure whilst he cooks us a delicious romantic dinner.”
Zane laughed. “Wow, I’m impressed.”
“Me too.” Becca giggled. This suggested to Zane that whilst reclining on the sofa like a lady of leisure, she was also drinking. “Anyway, whilst, for once, I have some time and some peace and quiet, I thought I’d give you a call and see how you are.”
“I’m OK.”
“That wasn’t a very convincing OK. How are things going with the Centre?”
“Brilliant. We’ve actually exceeded our business targets for the month.”
“Well done you! And Matt of course. Say hi to him for me, though not too enthusiastically, I don’t want to encourage him! Is he still flirting with every woman within a ten-mile radius?”
“We live in the sticks now, Bex. Fewer women around. So I think he’s probably upped the radius to fifteen or twenty miles now.”
Becca giggled again. “I still haven’t forgotten the last time I met him. Your sister, a wedding ring on my finger, seven months pregnant, and he tries to get off with me!”
“Yeah, I know. Sorry about that.”
“He said he found pregnant women really sexy. And, you know, I think he really meant it!”
“I’m sure he did,” Zane replied, thinking that he didn’t want to talk about Matt and his flirting.
“So, how is Faith? It was lovely to meet her, though that was far too long ago now. I’m ashamed we haven’t got around to meeting up again since that night at the Royal.”
Zane cleared his throat. “Faith and I are finished.”
“What? When?” Becca screeched, causing Zane to move the phone away from his ear for a moment. “Why?”
“You know how it is. Things just weren’t working out.”
“I do know how it is for you, Zane. But I saw you and Faith together, the way you looked at each other, even though it was still early days for you guys. I hoped this time you’d be able to forget the past and move on with your life. Maybe even dare to plan a future with a woman you love, do the whole marriage and two-point-four kids thing. Deep down I know it’s what you want, you just have to allow yourself to believe you can have it. I want you to be happy. Dad and Helene want you to be happy.”
Zane said nothing.
“You have to stop blaming yourself for something that wasn’t your fault. Give Faith a chance. Give yourself a chance.”
Zane heard muted talking in the background. “What was that about?” he asked, in need of a change of subject.
“Just James saying dinner is almost ready. He says hi to you.”
“Tell him I said hi back. I’d best let you go and get your dinner. I’ll try to get away and come and see you guys soon OK?”
“You’d better!”
In a serious tone Becca added, “Zane, for me, please, talk to Faith. Tell her everything. Trust her. Give her that chance. I think she could be the one for you.”
“I’ll think about it.”
Zane turned his phone off and left it in the kitchen. Talking to Becca had helped a little. She was right, as was usually the case. She’d thought Faith could well be the one for him. He’d thought so too, for a while – before he’d let the past crowd his mind and let Matt give him a reason to call it quits with her.