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“Which doesn’t mean that’s what she was asking for,” said Carys. “She might have been in for the whole hog, like actually hitting on you as in she actually liked you.”

“You’re never going to find out if you don’t let people in,” Mo said. “You should have at least had a drink with her. Don’t you want to find someone?”

“I have someone. Someones,” Ellie said.

“Me, Carys, Paul from next door, and Constable don’t count,” said Mo. “Don’t you want someone special?”

“I’m just fine the way I am, thank you. I’ve got friends and I’ve got a company to run. Besides, not everyone wants someone around all the time. I mean, do you? You want to be tied down to just one person? To involve someone else in every decision that you make?”

Mo shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind a Bogey to my Bacall. Or a Bacall to my Bogey. Whatever.”

“Fine,” huffed Ellie. “What about you, Car? Interested in any amazing women right now?”

To her surprise, Carys, who was generally the first one to over-share about her dating life, clammed up and turned faintly pink. “Dunno,” she mumbled.

“As a society we put far too much emphasis in pairing off and forming these isolated units,” said Ellie, warming to her theme. “In actuality, we’re probably better off in group situations, rather than relying on just one person to fulfill all our needs.”

“So you’re poly,” Mo said. “I can get behind that.”

“No,” said Ellie shaking her head. “That’s not what I meant, I just meant…”

“You just meant that you haven’t found the right person yet,” said Mo. “The one that makes you believe that you can do anything and that makes you think you never want to be with anyone else ever again. And my point is that the woman at the bar could have been that one, but since you didn’t give her a chance you’ll never know, will you?”

Ellie snorted, not least because the idea of anyone as strikingly beautiful as English Rose wanting anything to do with someone who lived in a flat where you could literally touch all the walls at the same time was laughable.

Then, for just an instant, she imagined what it might be like to wake up next to that face, to see that face when she walked in the door in the evening, to have that face be a part of her world.

Ridiculous.

“I know,” she said. “And I know that picking up women for one night stands in bars is not my scene, thank you very much.”

“Enough, enough,” said Carys. “You’ve done your relationship counseling for the day, Mo. Now where are you two on graphics?”

For the next hour they both filled her in on what they were looking for in terms of place cards, menus and invitations. And then Mo yawned and stretched. “I tell you what, I could go for hair of the dog. Fancy a drink?”

“Absolutely not, it’s home for me,” Ellie said, thinking of Constable and the book she had sitting on the coffee table.

“Carys?” Mo asked, turning casually to her.

She hesitated for a second then shrugged. “Why not?”

“Because you have work in the morning, because you should have an early night, because you’re a responsible adult,” said Ellie.

“And you’re boring,” Mo said, getting up from their seat. They leaned over and dropped a kiss on Ellie’s head. “But we love you anyway.”

“Don’t forget I’ll be at Darlington’s in the morning,” Ellie called out as they were leaving.

But neither of them seemed to hear her.

Chapter Seven

Strolling out of the bathroom and into her walk-in wardrobe, Jem wondered what her best option was. Obviously, she needed to look stylish, that was a given. But she needed to be demure as well, which was a tough ask. In the end, she selected a black dress and was zipping it up when her phone buzzed.

Delighted you’re joining us. Followed by a devil emoji and a laughing face. Fucking Jasper. If she’d known that her father was having dinner with him, she wouldn’t have invited herself along.

Actually, she probably would have, to be fair. Her father’s main assistant, Audrey, had texted her a reminder to be at the office tomorrow bright and early. The problem with that was that Jem didn’t do bright or early, let alone both.

Which meant she needed to be persuasive and lovely over dinner, whilst still getting her car fixed and not outing herself in front of her horrifically homophobic brother. What a wonderful evening.