Forget Me Knot (26 page)

She wasn’t sure if she was ready to go faster. “No, I’ll fall.”

“It’s OK, I’ve got you. I promise I won’t let you fall.”

As her eyes met his and they exchanged smiles—his urging her on, hers tentative and fearful—she was aware of how much she was enjoying being with this man. As they glided forward, his arm tightened round her waist. She was enjoying that, too.

They began skating round the edge of the rink, away from all the teenage racers. At first they went slowly, keeping well within her comfort zone. Then, after a minute or so, she felt him start to speed up. Panic overtook her.

“Stop! Stop! You’re making me go too fast. I’m going to fall.”

“No you’re not,” he soothed. “Just keep concentrating.”

But she was too scared to concentrate. Despite his having an arm round her, she could feel herself losing her balance. As she began to wobble, so did Dan. He was unable to save her or himself and they fell backward, landing in a giggling heap of arms, legs and skates.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Abby laughed, attempting to disentangle herself and sit up.

It wasn’t until they were both upright again that they noticed the seats of their jeans were soaked.

“Oh, who cares,” Abby said, aware that she hadn’t had this much fun in ages. “Come on, let’s have another go.”

They carried on skating—Abby improving all the time—until they realized they were both starving.

They joined the queue at a falafel stand down the road and ate as they walked back to Dan’s car.

They chatted about how the film was going and Abby asked him when he first became interested in filmmaking. He told her how as a kid he’d joined something called the Children’s Film Unit. “What began as vague interest soon became an obsession. Every summer we’d go off on location for a couple of weeks and make a full-length feature film. I started off as a runner when I was twelve. By the time I was seventeen I was directing.”

“Your parents must have been so proud.”

“My mum was. Like you wouldn’t believe. My dad died when I was seven.”

“Oh, Dan, I’m so sorry.”

“Car accident. Took my mum years to get over it. She adored him. Then, when I was twelve, she met somebody and eventually they got married, but up to then she devoted herself to me. I remember her buying me one of those director’s chairs for my bedroom. She even had my name printed on the back. When I turned sixteen, my stepfather bought me a posh, albeit secondhand, film camera. It was him who encouraged me to go to film school.”

“They sound like lovely people.”

“They are. My stepfather’s always been a bit of a film buff. Not long after he and Mum got married, he took me
to see
2001
. I’ll never forget how afterward we went out for a burger and he sat there deconstructing it and explaining what a great film it was.”

“And you caught the bug.”

“Absolutely. I owe him a great deal.”

She asked him if he still missed his father. “I don’t really remember much about him. Just the odd thing: I have memories of him coming home from the office and smelling of the cold. I can see him drinking soup. His mouth used to perform this strange chewing action. I remember being tucked up in bed and him reading me
Just William
. Afterward I’d make him look under my bed for robbers. He always went along with it. He never told me I was being stupid—even though my bed was only two inches off the floor.”

She sensed the emotion welling up inside him. She didn’t want to upset him, so she decided to change the subject.

“By the way, I watched
Boston Legal
the other night. You were right. It’s brilliant.” She thought for a minute. “I was really worried there’d be nothing left to watch once
Friends
and
Frasier
finished.”

“I know what you mean,” he laughed. “There’s nothing like the panic that sets in when your favorite sitcom is about to end.”

“Yeah. It’s like: ‘Now what do I do on a Thursday night?’ I mean,
Frasier
nights were sacred. I’d look forward to it all day. You can’t beat being curled up on the sofa with brilliant telly and a takeout curry—”

“Yeah—particularly if there are two of you.” His face had gone red and he looked down, clearly embarrassed. She
wanted to reassure him that she hadn’t taken this the wrong way and that she didn’t think he was coming on to her.

This time it was his turn to redirect the conversation. He said he still hadn’t gotten round to watching the
It’s a Wonderful Life
DVD. She told him not to worry and that she wasn’t in a hurry to get it back.

“Tell you what I did watch the other night,” he said, “for about the nth time—
The Godfather.”

“Really? I hated that film.”

Dan almost choked on his falafel. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“Why not? The Corleones are baddies. I didn’t care about any of them. There’s just nobody to root for, except Diane Keaton. I kept hoping she would eventually see the light and leave Al Pacino. The entire thing bored me.”

“I have no idea how you can dismiss one of the greatest films ever made as boring.
The Godfather
is an epic. It’s about man and his destiny. It’s about family, loyalty, love, violence, betrayal—all the big issues.”

“So’s
The Sound of Music
. Now, there’s a film…”

He started laughing. “I swear, if it’s the last thing I do, I am going to make you watch
The Godfather
again. You’ll change your mind. I guarantee it.”

“Bet I don’t.”

“We’ll see,” he said, grinning. He paused. Then: “You know, nobody quite realizes how much general knowledge they acquire from films.”

“How d’you mean?”

“Well, if it weren’t for movies, you’d never know that all telephone numbers in America begin with five-five-five…”

She was starting to laugh.

“During all police investigations,” he continued, “it’s
necessary to visit a strip club at least once. If you happen to find yourself being chased through town, you can always take cover in a passing St. Patrick’s Day parade—no matter what the time of year. The Eiffel Tower can be seen from any window in Paris. If you decide to go dancing in the street, everybody you bump into will know all the steps…”

“You know, you really have a way of cheering me up.”

He turned to look at her. “That was the whole point of tonight,” he said.

“Well, it certainly worked. I’ve had a really great time.”

By now they had reached Dan’s car. They chatted and laughed all the way back to Upper Street.

“Thanks again for a lovely evening,” she said, as they pulled up outside the shop.

“I had a great time, too.” He smiled. “Abby?”

“Yes.”

“Would you like to have dinner sometime?”

Of course she wanted to have dinner with him. But if she said yes, she risked their friendship turning into something more serious. She could feel herself starting to panic as she thought about him becoming her rebound man and how it was all going to end in disaster. “Oh, Dan, I don’t know. It’s so soon after Toby, and I’m not really sure that I’m ready to start dating.”

“Look, it’d just be dinner. No strings. No pressure. Let’s just see how it goes and take it from there.”

She sat, dithering. Then she heard a voice, apparently her own, saying she would love to have dinner with him.

“Fantastic.”

“When?”

“Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?”

“Too soon?”

Her face broke into a smile. “No, tomorrow would be great. I’ll look forward to it.” With that, she opened the car door and stepped onto the pavement.

“I’ll pick you up at eight,” he called after her.

“
SO, YOU REALLY LIKE
him, then?” Soph said, her voice brimming with excitement. “Did he kiss you? Where’s he taking you? What are you going to wear? Are you going to sleep with him?”

Having answered with one yes, a no, two don’t knows and one definitely not, Abby said she needed to get off the phone because Martin was on his own downstairs and she’d only popped up to the flat to make coffee and quickly tell Soph her news.

But Soph’s interrogation wasn’t over. “So what happened? Yesterday you said you weren’t ready to start a new relationship.”

“This isn’t a relationship. Dan is simply taking me out for dinner. No strings. No pressure. At least that’s what he told me and it’s what I keep telling myself. But I get the feeling he really likes me. And I really like him. On the other hand, I can’t stop thinking that I’m going to end up getting hurt.”

“I know,” Soph said gently, “and most people in your shoes would feel the same. Yes, you might get hurt—but you
might not. This could turn into a wonderful romance. Life is all about taking risks. That’s how we grow and learn.”

“That, of course, is why you didn’t hesitate to tell your parents about Lamar.”

“That’s different.”

“How?”

“I’m Jewish. Jews don’t take risks. We’re too busy watching out for anti-semites.”

ABBY TOOK
the mugs of coffee down to the shop and placed them on the counter. “What on earth is this?” Martin said, his face forming an exaggerated grimace.

“Coffee. What’s the matter? It’s no different from what I usually make.”

“No, not the coffee.” He tapped the glass vase containing Dan’s attempt at a flower arrangement. “This.”

Abby laughed. “Dan did it. I persuaded him to have a go at flower arranging. It’s his first attempt.”

“And his last, I hope.” Martin picked up the vase and said he would toss the flowers. “No, don’t,” she said, taking it back. “I want to keep them.” She was aware of sounding all girly and soppy, but she couldn’t help it. Martin rolled his eyes—with humor and affection rather than disdain.

“Somebody’s falling in love,” he singsonged.

“Oh, behave. I’ve known the man five minutes. I am absolutely not falling in love.”

“Bet you he kisses you when he drops you home tonight after dinner. And I bet you kiss him back.”

“Stop it. It’s not like that. We’re just friends.”

“Of course you are.”

With that he went to pick up the mail, which had just
come through the door. “By the way,” he said as he returned to the counter, “I spoke to somebody at the Citizens Advice Bureau about getting access to Debbie Harry. He put me on to this woman solicitor, who thinks she might be able to help. God knows what it’s going to cost, though.”

“I know. It’s bound to be expensive, but it’s worth having a chat with her.”

Martin agreed that it probably was. “I have to do something,” he said, putting the envelopes down on the counter. “I can’t just sit back and let Christian steal her away from me.” He pointed to the return address on a brown envelope lying on top of the pile. “Hold on to yer hat, that one’s from Islington Council.”

Abby snatched the letter and started to tear it open. “God, I bet Christian’s convinced them to make me stop displaying flowers on the pavement.” She unfolded the letter and scanned the first paragraph. She couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Omigod, this is amazing,” she cried. “Get this:
Dear Ms. Crompton, we have received a complaint about potential hazard occasioned to pedestrians by your pavement floral displays. We recognize that outdoor presentations considerably enhance the atmosphere and ambience of the surrounding neighborhood and are reluctant to ask you to desist from displaying your wares on the pavement. We would advise you, how-ever, to exercise caution and good sense when it comes to use of pavement space. We would also refer you to paragraph five, subsection nine, of the local government health and safety regulations, which clearly states that a full five feet must be left between any display and the edge of the pavement in order to facilitate pedestrian locomotion. Failure to comply with this may result in prosecution. Meanwhile, we will be taking no action against yourself at this particular moment in time. Yours, I. Strutt, brackets Missus.”

“Well, good old I. Strutt brackets Missus,” Martin cried. “For once common sense has prevailed.”

Abby shook her head with disbelief. “Yes, but Christian must be apoplectic.”

“I know. Great, isn’t it? I bet at this very moment he’s lying on the floor, chewing the carpet and kicking his feet.” Martin clapped his hands with glee and went out to buy apricot danishes to celebrate.

After he had closed the door, Abby found herself wondering how on earth Toby had managed to end up with a creature like Christian. She wondered if they would stay together.

SINCE THIS
was her first proper date with Dan, she took her time choosing what to wear and getting ready.

She picked out a teal-colored gypsy skirt and a long, slightly paler top with sleeves that flared at the wrist. She finished off the outfit with a string of small brown glass beads, which came down to her waist, and a wide chocolate-brown belt, which she fastened at her hips.

Instead of straightening her shoulder-length hair, she decided to scrunch-dry it. She did this because a) natural waves were back in fashion and b) Toby had hated this look on her. He said it made her look unkempt and disheveled.