Take a Chance on Me (7 page)

T
he timer gave
off a loud ping. Charlie opened the oven door to let the batch of cakes cool. She was tired after a long day at the café, followed by the radio show and then belly dancing. The class was great fun and there had been no more run-ins with the mystery man. Now though she felt drained.

She logged onto her email account and one email caught her immediate attention. It was from a name she hadn't seen in her inbox for a while; one she was hoping not to see again. The email was from Harrison Matthews who she had dated briefly and who had not wanted to let the relationship end. She clicked onto the message. It began,
Dear Charlotte
. She groaned. No one other than Harrison, or her mother when she was cross with her, ever called her Charlotte; she was Charlie to everyone she knew. It made her feel uncomfortable. Feeling needled she read on:

Charlie banged her head against the keyboard three times. No. Not again. She thought Harrison was out of her life. He was definitely not the sort of man she could settle down with. He was clingy and soppy and irksome.

S
he first met
Harrison at the hospital coffee shop. Being lunchtime it was extremely busy, so almost all the seats were occupied. He asked if he could take up the remaining free seat next to hers. He seemed reserved and shy. He had only been at the hospital twelve weeks and it was all still new and overwhelming. Charlie felt sorry for him. Once he was installed, she asked him about his job and chatted to him, much as she did with any of the patients or staff there.

When she took a break at the coffee shop the following day, he came and sat by her again. This time he was keen to talk about his role in the hospital as a diagnostic radiographer. He explained, at length, about techniques such as computerised tomography scanning, or magnetic resonance imaging which uses magnetic field and radio frequency waves to produce cross-sectional images of the body. It was all gobbledygook to her. However, Harrison was enthusiastic about his work and so she listened politely. He was currently working in the X-ray department but wanted to specialise in angiography and investigate blood vessels. She admired the medical profession and Harrison's desire to be involved in helping cure people.

Harrison was an odd sort though. He took himself and his job seriously but he was not the confident sort, in fact, he nibbled his bottom lip when not talking and looked down when walking the corridors, as if frightened to make eye contact with anyone. He was a loner who did not seem to bond with his co-workers; Charlie appeared to be his only friend. He invited her out to dinner. She was not keen to accept his invitation as she did not want to actually date the man but he insisted the meal was purely a thank you for making him feel more at home at the hospital. So reluctantly she accepted.

He was much younger than her and not at all her type, although she wasn't sure what her type was any more. Gavin had just married Tessa and she felt alone and very slightly vulnerable. One thing she was sure of, she was not attracted to Harrison.

Harrison had chosen to take her to an upmarket Italian restaurant in town, where he surprised her by speaking Italian and impressed her with his menu and wine choices. In this environment, he seemed more at ease and spoke with passion about Tuscany, an area he'd visited as a boy. He chatted about Italian art and cooking and his penchant for preparing Tuscan dishes. His enthusiasm was infectious and Charlie found she was warming to him.

They enjoyed an extravagant meal of cold-water prawns and white crab meat served on a bed of mixed leaves; delicious pancakes rolled with goat's cheese and wild porcini, served on a bed of rocket with cherry tomatoes and roasted garlic; followed by fresh salmon in a light brandy and lobster sauce with prawns and asparagus tips; and finished off with fresh strawberries drizzled with Prosecco.

The restaurant lighting was low and romantic. Candles flickered on every table. Soft romantic music played. They were the only people there that night and the waiters kept a discreet distance. Fuelled by the best part of two bottles of Gavi di Gavi Marco Bonfante wine, Charlie regaled Harrison with stories about hospital radio, her life and her hopes for the future. At the end of the evening, as they got back into his car, she thanked him for the meal and gave him a peck on his cheek. He blushed then kissed her on the lips. She responded to his kiss eagerly, even though a voice in her head warned her to stop being stupid. But she had been starved of affection for too long.

She should have pulled away, yet an animal urge in her had made it impossible to break from his embraces. She recalled the clumsy attempts to have sex in his car; the fumbling, murmuring, and the final embarrassing moment when Harrison, far too inexperienced it seemed, had ejaculated way too soon, leaving her frustrated. Harrison was oblivious to the disappointment and gazed starry-eyed at her. Mercifully, he didn't ask if it was good for her and dropped her home, driving off without wanting an invite to come in.

She tried to avoid him over the next few days. But he'd turned up at the studio. Seeing his keen face smiling at her through the studio window, she was mortified that she had let the situation get out of hand. She made vague excuses about how busy she was and how she had no time that week to see him.

The following week, he blocked the corridor as she raced to get to the studio. She was late and had no time to talk to him. He invited her to the theatre to watch a comedy about doctors. She was in such a hurry, she accepted his offer. During the play, he attempted to put his arm around her shoulder. She wriggled away from it pretending to look for something in her handbag. Afterwards, she said she had to rush off to bake cakes for the next day. He seemed disappointed and leant in to kiss her. She let him but did not return it with fervour. She hoped he would sense her reluctance but he didn't take the hint. Thereafter, he began popping up when she wasn't expecting him: when she did the rounds to ask patients for requests or outside the studio as she was leaving. Although he was amiable and pleasant, she began to get a niggling feeling about him.

He invited her to a concert. She refused, citing work as an excuse. He looked so deflated that she felt guilty and agreed to go for a quick coffee with him to make up for it. At the coffee shop he stared at her with puppy dog eyes and told her how amazing she was. Charlie shuddered at the memory. She apologised for leading him on in the car. He put a finger against her lip when she tried to explain and stopped her speaking.

‘It's okay,' he said. ‘I know.' Charlie thought he understood that it had been a one-night stand and left feeling relieved.

However, after that episode, flowers began to arrive at the studio on a daily basis. Each bouquet carried a message: ‘To Charlie. You are my sunshine. Love Harrison.' ‘For Charlie. My friend. My rock. With love.' ‘For the most beautiful girl in the world.' She didn't know what to do.

‘Talk to him,' suggested Mercedes. ‘Be honest with him. Tell him you don't want a relationship.'

Charlie asked Harrison to meet her at a local pub after work. He arrived carrying a large box of chocolates, a huge smile plastered over his face. He planted a kiss on her nose.

‘I'm so glad you've found time for
us
,' he gabbled, not giving Charlie an opportunity to speak. ‘I was telling the other radiographers about you today. They can't believe you're my girlfriend,' he continued. ‘Wine?' he asked and, not waiting for a response, headed for the bar, leaving Charlie shaking her head in disbelief.

‘Harrison, I'm not your girlfriend. We just went out a couple of times,' she hissed at him when he returned with two glasses of wine.

‘Of course you're my girlfriend,' he insisted. ‘After
that
night. It meant something special, Charlie. You don't make love to strangers.'

Charlie shook her head. ‘It might have meant something special to you, but me, well, I wasn't thinking straight. I'm so sorry. It wasn't the same for me. I don't want you to think we have anything special. We don't.'

She waited for him to become upset or shout at her. He didn't. He merely smiled. ‘I can wait, Charlotte,' he said.

‘Don't you get it? I won't be repeating that episode again with you. It was a mistake. I was drunk and lonely.'

‘
That episode
? Charlotte, we made love. That's what people who love each other do. That's why it's called making love.'

‘For heaven's sake!' she said, her voice rising. They were beginning to attract the attention of other people in the pub. ‘We didn't make love. We had sex. Brief sex. It wasn't even good sex. In your car. Once!' she hissed, frustrated now. ‘And, please don't call me Charlotte.'

He looked confused for a moment then smiled again, annoying Charlie further. He really did not want to understand. She had no option.

‘Look, I don't want to see you again. Okay? It's over, whatever it was.' She left him sitting alone in the pub, his box of chocolates untouched on the table.

The following day, Harrison came by the studio. Mercedes told him to go away while Charlie hid in the back office, but he waited by the exit door and when Charlie emerged he pleaded with her to reconsider and go out with him again. She refused, so he trailed after her along the corridors to her car until she got angry and told him to leave her alone.

The flowers continued to arrive. Charlie felt sorry for him and didn't want the hospital staff to get wind of it and tease him, so she took the flowers home, each day. After a week or so of managing to avoid him, he visited her at home.

‘Charlie, I don't know what I did wrong. Please tell me. I want to make amends,' he sobbed.

Charlie couldn't be cruel, so she invited him in, made him a cup of tea and explained she wasn't ready for a relationship. She told him it wasn't his fault. She explained she needed to be alone. She was still getting over the breakdown of her marriage. He was too young and she felt so old. He seemed to accept it and left.

For a few weeks afterwards, he drove past her house every other night on a motorbike and stopped opposite her front door. At first, he stopped only for a minute or two then revved the bike and went, but then he stayed longer, sometimes for an hour. She knew he was there even though he made no contact with her. She heard the quiet purr of the motorbike engine as it cruised past. She peered out of a darkened upstairs window on one occasion and observed him sitting, watching her door. She toyed with phoning the police but she could not. This was Harrison. He wouldn't hurt her. He was upset. Eventually he'd get fed up and go away.

Then the phone rang at all hours of the night. When she answered, she would be met with silence. On one occasion she spoke, ‘Harrison, is that you?' No one replied. She unplugged the phone at the socket.

Driving to work one day, she noticed a motorbike that stayed exactly two cars behind her car. It trailed her all the way to the hospital. When she left work, it was parked in a lay-by near the hospital. Pretty sure it was Harrison, she stopped to tell him to quit pestering her. This time she had had enough. He was startled when she hurtled into the lay-by, brought the car to a halt beside his bike and, leaping out of it, steamed towards him.

‘What the hell are you up to? You know where I work. You don't need to follow me about. If you keep this up, I'll report you for harassing me. I'm sick of it. I'm fed up with the stupid flowers and you appearing outside the studio window. I'm sick of you lurking outside the café and my house, and if you phone me once more, I'm going to the police. Mercedes is married to a policeman. I'll get him to arrest you.' She stood hands on hips. Harrison seemed surprised and hurt.

‘Charlotte, sweetheart, I can explain,' he began.

‘Don't call me Charlotte, you cretin! And, for crying out loud, I am NOT your sweetheart. I never have been nor will I ever be. Now piss off and leave me alone.'

‘There's no need to swear at me,' he said, his right eye twitching.

‘I haven't even begun to swear properly. Just fuck off, Harrison. I don't want to see you or your poxy bike again.'

She marched back to her car, climbed in, slammed the door, revved it and drove off at speed, leaving Harrison sitting on his bike with a strange look on his face.

She calmed down at home and decided she had been a little harsh on the man. However, he had frightened her. Her outburst would hopefully put off Harrison, who must now surely think she was a deranged foul-mouthed bitch, and not the paragon of virtue that he had believed her to be.

That following night, a motorbike engine woke her, and shortly after the phone rang. She answered it. There was nothing but eerie silence punctuated with one muffled sob. After a poor night's sleep, she came downstairs to find a note pushed through the letterbox:

And that had been the end of it. Until now.

Harrison was the last person she needed in her life now or ever. She thought about replying to the email but decided against it. She pressed the delete key with determination. It was best to ignore it. When Harrison heard nothing from her, he would no doubt understand that she was not interested in him. She had more important things to sort out. She had cakes to box up, requests to read, shows to prepare and a bizarre proposition that she needed to consider.