All the Single Ladies by Jane Costello

Author:Jane Costello
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, azw3
Tags: Contemporary Fiction, Contemporary, Literature & Fiction
ISBN: 9780857206572
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Published: 2012-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 46

‘So do you mind me asking your surname?’ Ben says. ‘That’s the thing about this online dating – you don’t get to find out some fairly rudimentary details.’

‘Brooks,’ I reply.

‘Samantha Brooks,’ he muses. ‘That’s a lovely name. And it suits you.’

I smile. ‘Good job, really. How’s Mildred’s cat?’

He grins and rolls his eyes. ‘Fighting fit again. I think Mildred may just want to marry me as a result.’

I laugh and his eyes glint in the sunshine. We’ve moved from the bench to a prime location on the lawn in a bid to stay in the sun. He insisted I sat on his sweatshirt, despite my protestations, which weren’t just motivated by the potential grass stains, but also by the idea of those stains being in the shape (and size) of my bum cheeks. It doesn’t matter that I’ve lost weight. I could be the size of a hamster and still worry about my bum cheeks.

‘How long have you been single, Sam?’ he asks.

‘Oh . . . not long really. I split up with someone a couple of months ago.’

He takes this in. ‘Had you been together long?’

I nod, trying to look as if this fact is as inconsequential as the colour of my ex’s favourite socks.

‘Your decision or his?’

The temptation to fib is suddenly overwhelming. While I know that everybody’s been dumped at some point in their life – and if you haven’t there’s probably something wrong with you – I still feel as if admitting it puts me in a category where I’d rather not be. Loser. Victim.

However, I’m such a pathetic liar that I’m aware that if I attempt to say I ditched Jamie in the same manner Alexis Carrington might dump her sixth toy boy of the year, he’d realize instantly. And given that I’ve already had to confess to being the woman who catapulted a pile of dog poo through the air, I’d be expecting way too much for him to overlook that as well.

‘It was his, I’m afraid.’

‘I see. Then . . . isn’t it a little early to be on a dating website if you’ve just had your heart broken?’ he asks gently.

‘Oh he didn’t break my heart,’ I insist, with an annoyingly unconvincing twang. ‘My heart’s fine. Everything about me’s fine. Fine, fine, fine.’ I sound like I’m yodelling.

‘Glad to hear it,’ he replies, clearly not believing a word. ‘So what made you take the plunge and sign up to the site?’

‘I was roped into it by my two best friends.’

He suppresses a smile. ‘Ah. Another one who was coerced.’

‘You had a similar experience?’

He nods. ‘My sister, Kate, insisted I signed up. Though “insisted” might not be the word. She’s very bossy. In fact, she’d have been at home in Stalinist Russia.’

I laugh. ‘Have you been single for a while?’ I ask.

When he returns my gaze, our eyes lock momentarily and time stands still, for no reason I can put my finger on. One thought runs through my head as fast as the blood pumping in my veins: I so want this man to find me attractive.

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