Chapter 18

“I always said she’d be mine and not yours, didn’t I?”

“William! Oh my, God! It’s really you!”

Will turned towards the voice just in time to be crushed in a bear hug. Amy held him so tightly he could hardly breathe. He gasped for air when she finally let go.

“Sorry,” she said as she ran her hands down his arms to take hold of his. She stepped back, pulling his hands away from his sides and looking him up and down. “It’s just ... It is so good to see you.”

“It’s good to be seen.”

“I’ve missed you.” She hugged him again. “Missed you so much. I wish we...” She stepped back and held his hands again. “No. No. I promised myself I wouldn’t do that.”

“Do what?”

“Dwell on the past. You’re here now and that’s what counts. So what if we lost twenty years.”

“It’s no time at all really.”

She smiled the smile he remembered from his youth that could light up a football stadium. It spread from her lips to her eyes and her face flushed as she swung his hands gently and shook her head. “Well. Look at you. All grown up and sexy.”

“And nearly bald.”

“Bald is sexy. I like bald. Sign of virility.”

“So I’ve heard. But look who’s talking about sexy.”

“Me? No. I’m old, fat and ugly.”

“You’re a woman in her prime. And I’ve seen more fat on catwalk model.”

“Liar. Look at me. I need to lose at least a stone. And I look ancient.”

“You look wonderful. Can I get you a drink?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

“What would you like?”

“I’ll have a Champagne Supernova.”

Will nodded to the barman.

“Ice, Madam?”

“Of course.”

Her voice was subtly different from what he remembered. She still had the melodic tempo that Walminster was famous for, but her rich tone was deeper, more coloured. Will leaned against the bar and drank her in. Her golden hair was folded up high on the back of her head except for two thick strands which hung down to frame her face. She wore an elegant long dress of dark blue velvet that matched her eyes and clung to the gentle curves of her slender hourglass figure.

“You’re staring,” she said.

“I can’t help it. You’re even more beautiful than I remember. More elegant. More like a lady.”

“Flatterer.”

“Always.”

The barman placed Amy’s drink on the counter. Will picked it up and handed it to her, then paid the barman. He held up his own glass of Scotch. “Cheers.”

“Cheers.” She sipped her drink, then stepped forward and put the glass back on the bar. She placed a manicured hand on the lapel of his suit, brushed away some imaginary dust and then straightened them. “Nice suit.”

“Italian.”

“Armani?”

“How did you know?”

“Good guess. I had a feeling you’d choose designer and you never struck me as the Gucci type.”

“You always knew me better than I knew myself.”

She half-smiled. A sad smile that hinted at regret. “Maybe I did.” She sighed. “You’ve certainly done well for yourself from what I’ve heard.”

“In some ways. My career, I guess.”

“And love?”

“I’d hardly call a thirty-eight-year-old divorcee a success in love.”

“How long were you married?”

“Seven years.” He shrugged. “Not long, is it?”

“It can’t have been all bad.”

“It wasn’t. We had some good times. And, of course, if I hadn’t been married, I wouldn’t have Sophie.”

“Your daughter?”

He nodded. “She’s amazing. She was just five when Lynn and I split up and a parental divorce is supposed to screw kids up. But she’s the most unbelievably down to earth girl. I don’t know anyone who’s got their head screwed on quite as tightly as she has.”

They had wandered away from the bar as they talked and arrived back at the table Will had been sitting at with Bobby earlier. Amy sat and crossed one leg over the other. This opened the slit in the side of her dress, revealing her black nylon-covered leg. Will sat next to her and tried hard not to stare.

“Enough about me,” he said. “What have you been up to all these years?”

“Oh, you know. This and that.” She waved her hand dismissively.

“Did you ever graduate?” The last he’d heard, she’d been struggling with her course at Westmouth University and considering dropping out.

She shook her head. “It wasn’t for me. I tried. I really did. But, honestly, after we ... After us ... I lost motivation.”

“So you went back home?”

“Yeah. I have a small unit in the Parkway Centre.”

“Selling what?”

“Ladies fashion.”

“Nice. Business good?”

She cocked her head. “So-so.”

“You found him then?” It was Lizzie. She sat next to Amy and placed her half-full glass on the table.

Amy grinned. “He was propping up the bar, looking lonely.”