Page 102 of A Chef's Kiss for Christmas

“Hi,” he said brightly. “How are you?”

“Fine.” She sat rigidly on the couch.

“I tried calling you the other day. I wasn’t sure if you were ignoring me.” The jokey edge to his words was unconvincing, and she could have sworn he sounded nervous.

“I’ve had a busy few days,” she said, fighting the urge to apologise.

“Everything okay with you?”

“Yes. Everything’s fine.” Her mind flashed to Warren kissing her goodbye, and she felt a rush of butterflies in her stomach. When she thought about that, things felt way betterthan fine.

“Listen…” His tone was suddenly serious. “I was wondering if we could meet up sometime?”

“Oh.” She grimaced, torn between saying no and also curious as to why he suddenly wanted to meet.

“I’ve been wanting to speak to you, and it will be easier in person.” He paused. “And it’s been ages since we properly caught up.”

She refrained from stating that it was difficult to have a proper conversation with him when he insisted on always bringing a date whenever they saw each other.

“How about I buy you dinner?” he asked in a rush. “Are you free tonight? I could book a table at The Bakers Arms.”

Part of her wanted to curse him and hang up. For so long, she’d wished he’d call and ask to spend time with her. It seemed unfair that he’d waited until she was finally moving on.

“If you can’t make it tonight, just let me know when,” he added eagerly.

“Tonight is good for me.” If she turned him down, she’d always wonder why he’d wanted to speak to her. Better to get it over with so she could finally put that part of her life behind her.

Maybe they could be friends now. She couldn’t face it after they broke up, but now she could imagine them having a platonic relationship.

“Do you want me to pick you up?”

She told him she’d meet him there. That way, she could leave whenever she wanted and wouldn’t feel trapped.

Ending the call, she flopped back on the couch and reflected on the phone call. After what he’d said to her at the party, and what she now knew from her friends about their crossed wires after they broke up, she was fairly sure he wanted to talk about them patching things up.

Maybe she should have insisted they have the conversation over the phone. It wasn’t as though anything he said would convince her they should give it another go. Finally, she’d movedon, and even though things with Warren felt a little uncertain, she knew it was something she wanted to pursue.

But if she was about to start a relationship with Warren, she really wanted to get proper closure on her relationship with Hayden.

In the end, she was glad she had dinner plans to focus on. It saved her from dwelling on the fact that Warren hadn’t called. She’d really thought he’d have been in touch by now, though she supposed it was only yesterday that they’d spoken. He was no doubt busy with work, too.

She was all ready to head out and meet Hayden when her phone rang again. Disappointment hit when it wasn’t Warren calling. She checked the time, debating whether to answer or just message Carla and say she’d call her back later.

In the end, she swiped her finger across the screen, then put her on speaker so she could chat while she got her coat and boots on.

“I haven’t got long,” she said. “I’m about to go out. Is everything okay?”

“Fine,” Carla replied. “I just wanted to hear how it went with Warren’s family.”

“All good.” She dragged the zip of one boot and then the other. “Apart from when I told his parents and sister they were horrible people and stormed out of dinner.”

“You didn’t!”

“I did.” She smiled thinking of it. “I even slammed the door behind me.”

“Why?” Carla asked, through gentle laughter.

“Long story. I’ll tell you next time I see you, but I really have to dash now.”