me time
lurch dangerously and in that instant she knew she couldn’t go through with it. She’d just have to hide, that was all. Hide for a couple of hours and then go back and tell Angie that Kevin had stood her up. Whirling on the heels she was not used to, Rose
walked bang into a blue checked shirted chest. “Oh,” Rose stared, gripped by panic. She looked
up at the man attached to the blue checked shirt. Well, there was no getting out of it now. “Oh hello, I’m Rose.” “Hello Rose,” Kevin said, pleasantly enough. “Nice
to meet you.” “You too,” Rose bit her lip, flustered and uncertain
of what to do next. Realising she was blocking the entrance to the pub, she gestured lamely at the door. “Shall we go in?” “Well, that is why I’m here,” Kevin said, smiling
shyly, but not really making eye contact. Rose was far too embarrassed to look at him as
they walked into the bar, suddenly conscious of the knee-length dress and the pointed toes on the shoes that did not belong to her. This sort of get-up wasn’t Rose at all. Rose liked sensible shoes, suitable for long country walks. But Angie said sensible shoes wouldn’t get her a man and had made her walk up and down the hallway for half an hour until she got the hang of walking in a reasonably straight line. They reached the bar and
Kevin smiled awkwardly. His smile was rather nice, Rose thought, even if he did look bewildered. What on earth had Angie told him about Rose? Whatever it was, the expression on his face, pleasant as it was, clearly showed that the reality did not live up to the half-hearted hype. “Um, I’ll have a white wine please,” Rose said
wasn’t nearly as horrible as Angie had painted him. Yes, he was bald – but not in a shiny, desperate for a comb-over way. He’d clearly decided long ago enough was enough and shaved off what remained of his hair. Angie hadn’t mentioned that he was tall, tall enough for her nose to make contact with the middle of his chest and, while she hadn’t yet been brave enough to look him the eye, there was no sign of a beer belly. Maybe he’d got his act together since Angie dated him, or maybe she had been lowering Rose’s expectations so she would be pleasantly surprised. That would have been an uncharacteristically subtle approach for Angie but it had worked. In any event, Rose rather liked the look of Kevin, which somehow made it all the more tricky to know what to say to him. “Thank you,” she said as he set a glass of wine
down on the bar in front of her. She looked around the pub. It was busy but not packed. “Would you like to sit down?” “Why not?” Kevin said, his smile spreading. Rose
she’d been expecting, Kevin seemed just as uncertain and nervous as she
brightly, putting on her best brave face. “OK… right, fine!” Kevin seemed surprised to be
buying her drink. But then again, Angie said he was a skinflint. She’d warned he’d make her do rounds. Rose watched as he placed his order at the bar – a glass of white wine and a pint of bitter. He really
130 OCTOBER 2011 |
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of the small town lothario
Instead
noticed he had very nice eyes, the same blue as his shirt, friendly and warm. Rose had to admit that she liked Kevin’s eyes. They didn’t seem squinty at all. They sat at the table for a moment or two, listening to the murmur of conversation, the clink of glasses. Kevin looked a little uncomfortable as if he couldn’t remember what he was doing here in the first place. “So tell me about yourself,” Rose said, tipping her head
to one side in what she hoped could pass off as a coquettish fashion.
“OK…” Kevin said uncertainly. “Well I’m 47, I own a landscape gardening firm, I have a daughter, Elsa,
who’s 14 and keeps telling me to get out more. Oh and I’m a widower – I lost my wife getting on for five years ago now.” “Oh I’m so sorry,” Rose said, irritated that Angie
hadn’t mentioned this vital piece of information. “Thank you,” Kevin nodded. “I never thought I’d be ready to meet another person. But like Elsa keeps
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