The Girl's Guide to Falling in Love

by Sophie Hart

  ‘What do you think?’ she asked Harry and Sally, as she jogged downstairs and into the living room. ‘You like?’

  The goldfish looked at her glumly, their mouths gawping, their eyes bulging.

  ‘Hmm, thanks for your enthusiasm, guys,’ Annie told them moodily, wondering whether she should throw on jeans and a light jumper instead.

  Oh, for heaven’s sake, Annie reprimanded herself. She was only meeting Jamie after all. It wasn’t a big deal.

  After she and Jamie had bumped into each other at the cinema a couple of weeks ago, Jamie had casually suggested one day that they should make it a regular thing. He knew that she was passionate about rom-coms, whilst he loved sci-fi, so perhaps they could introduce each other to a whole new genre? Annie had agreed, thinking it sounded like a fun idea, and today they were due to meet up at Cinema City.

  She’d been thinking about Jamie a lot recently. They kept running into each other at work – well, it wasn’t quite so accidental any more. After their pub excursion, they’d arranged to have lunch together a couple of times last week, and they seemed to have mutually agreed to both take a break at three pm every day, if Annie didn’t have a client, and meet up in the kitchen for tea and HobNobs.

  Jamie seemed like a great guy, and Annie realised that she was in serious danger of developing feelings for him. But right now, she was in denial, insisting to herself that they were friends and nothing more. She couldn’t help but remember how badly things had turned out the last time she’d fallen for someone, and she was still dealing with the emotional scars. A therapist would probably tell her that she had trust issues, Annie thought wryly, appreciating the irony.

  There was also the fact that Jamie had never given her any real indication that he saw her as anything more than a friend. They were just two work acquaintances with a shared interest in movies and pub lunches, and there’d been no suggestion at all that this was a date. Which was totally fine with her, Annie told herself firmly.

  She glanced up at the clock and realised that she should have left five minutes ago and was now running late. Damn, there was definitely no time for a change of clothes. Slipping on a pair of embroidered ballet pumps, she grabbed her bag and blew a kiss to Harry and Sally.

  ‘Wish me luck!’

  The fish stared at her dolefully, and Annie hurried out of the door.

  * * *

  ‘Hi,’ Annie said, rushing up to Jamie. He was already waiting for her outside Cinema City, and he looked gorgeous in loose jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt, his blond hair more styled than he wore it for work. Had he always been this attractive? Annie wondered idly, then quickly tried to suppress those sort of thoughts.

  ‘Hi Annie,’ Jamie grinned, bending down to kiss her on the cheek. ‘Are you okay?’

  ‘Fine. What makes you say that?’ Annie replied, then realised she was speaking far too fast.

  ‘Nothing,’ Jamie looked amused. ‘You just seem a bit… flustered maybe? As though you’ve been rushing.’

  ‘Oh, well I did set off a few minutes late,’ Annie explained, grateful to have been given an explanation for her flushed face and frazzled appearance. ‘My goldfish were taking too long to give me their opinion on my outfit.’

  ‘Your what were what?’ Jamie frowned, and Annie wondered why on earth she’d said that.

  ‘Nothing!’ she breezed, smiling brightly.

  ‘Well, I think you look great – even if your goldfish couldn’t decide,’ Jamie grinned, making Annie blush even deeper.

  ‘So are you ready to go do this?’ she asked, changing the subject as they walked into the cinema. ‘Ready to be inducted into the world of romantic comedies?’

  ‘I think so.’ Jamie looked up uncertainly at the poster. ‘Where the Heart Is,’ he read out loud. ‘The story of a big city girl who left her heart in a small town.’

  ‘Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it,’ Annie said dreamily.

  ‘Sure you don’t fancy They Walk Among Us?’ Jamie suggested, staring longingly at the advert on the opposite wall, which showed an alien face amongst a crowd of people.

  Annie shook her head. ‘Nope. But you can choose that when it’s your turn, if you like.’

  ‘Those were the terms of our agreement, I believe,’ Jamie teased. ‘Now, what snacks are we getting? I’m going to need a lot of food if I’m going to sit through two hours of a syrupy, girly cheese-fest.’

  ‘It’s not syrupy and girly,’ Annie protested. ‘It’s about real issues – feelings and love and romance. And, since you asked, I’m putting in a vote for salted popcorn.’

  ‘You’re on,’ Jamie grinned, as they ordered their drinks and bought their tickets.

  ‘I’ll pay,’ Annie told him, reaching for her purse. ‘You got the tapas last time.’

  But Jamie shook his head. ‘Don’t worry about it. I invited you, so it’s my treat.’

  ‘At least let me get the drinks,’ Annie offered.

  In the end, they compromised, with Jamie buying the tickets and Annie buying the wine. One of her favourite things about Cinema City was that they sold alcoholic drinks, and the seats were so comfy it was almost like being in your own living room.

  ‘I love it here,’ Annie sighed, as they made their way into the screening room.

  ‘It’s a great little place, isn’t it?’ Jamie agreed.

  They sat down beside one another, with Annie acutely aware of just how close they were. Jamie smelt delicious, as though he’d just showered and splashed on a spicy, musky aftershave, and Annie’s heart began to beat faster. She reached for a piece of popcorn and Jamie did the same, their hands accidentally brushing. Jamie turned and grinned at her, and Annie felt her stomach flip, as though she’d just driven over a hill at ninety miles an hour. This was crazy! She’d worked in the same building as Jamie for months now, yet suddenly she was melting into a puddle if he so much as looked at her.

  The lights went down, and Annie breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that Jamie couldn’t see her in the darkness. She felt sure that everything she was thinking must be written plainly across her face.

  As the film started, Annie realised that there was no way she could concentrate with Jamie sitting beside her. She was far too aware of every movement he made, every time he sighed or shuffled or took a sip of his drink. Annie found herself fantasising about just what exactly they could do in the shadowy cinema, wishing that Jamie would lean over and kiss her passionately, the two of them making out like teenagers under cover of darkness. Surely no one would notice if he moved closer and slowly slid a hand over her knee, disappearing beneath her skirt and up her thigh towards—

  Stop it! Annie reprimanded herself, feeling her face flame in the darkness.

  ‘Are you enjoying it?’ Jamie leant across to whisper.

  His face was next to hers, his warm breath caressing the exposed skin on her neck. It felt wonderfully sensuous.

  ‘Mmm hmm,’ Annie replied, not trusting herself to speak.

  In truth, Annie had no idea what was happening in the movie. Even though it wasn’t the most complicated of plots, she was struggling to pay attention. The current scene showed the heroine alone in her office at night. She was staring wistfully out of the window, gazing at the New York City skyline. It looked fabulous, the skyscrapers all lit up, as the full moon shone over the Empire State Building.

  Then suddenly the scene switched, showing a semi-naked couple rolling around on a bed. It was a raunchy flashback, as the heroine recalled losing her virginity to her childhood sweetheart back home in Texas. Annie cringed inwardly, wondering what Jamie was thinking. Shit, what if he thought that she was some kind of sex maniac – doing the job she did, and watching films with scenes like this? Or worse, that she had an ulterior motive in bringing him to see this movie, trying to suggest that she wanted to roll around on a bed with him, and now he was sitting there mortified and—

  Stop it, Annie, you’re over-thinking this!

  Annie sank lower in her seat, trying to hide h
er embarrassment and, as she moved, her knee brushed against Jamie’s.

  ‘Sorry, sorry,’ she whispered hastily. ‘It was an accident.’

  She heard Jamie laugh quietly. ‘It’s fine.’

  Annie sat stock still for the rest of the movie, resolving to focus fully on the plot. She was slightly calmer by the time the end credits began to roll, as she and Jamie stood up and made their way back through to the foyer.

  ‘So did you enjoy it?’ Jamie asked.

  Annie wrinkled her nose. ‘It was good, but I don’t think it’s destined to become a classic. How about you?’

  ‘It was… bearable,’ Jamie conceded, and the two of them burst out laughing.

  ‘Do you, um, fancy getting a drink, or some food?’ Annie suggested, summoning her courage and surprising herself with her boldness. ‘They’ve got a great restaurant here, and—’

  ‘I’m really sorry, Annie, but I can’t,’ Jamie interrupted.

  ‘Oh.’

  He saw the way her face dropped, and quickly added, ‘I’d love to, I really would but… I can’t.’

  ‘Oh,’ Annie repeated, feeling crushed. ‘No problem.’

  ‘It’s just that I have to… well, it’s a bit complicated actually. But I’d love to do this another time. We could grab a drink after work, or I could take you out for dinner – one night next week?’

  ‘Sure, that’s fine,’ Annie rambled, doing her best to sound bright and breezy even though she didn’t feel bright and breezy at all. What on earth had she been thinking? Once again, she’d totally misread the situation, scaring him off with some ill-judged comment.

  ‘I’ll walk you to your car,’ Jamie offered. ‘Are you parked nearby?’

  ‘A few streets away. Don’t worry about it, it’s fine,’ Annie insisted, not wanting to prolong her humiliation any further.

  ‘I’d like to,’ Jamie said softly. Annie looked up and met those dazzling blue eyes, and knew that resistance was futile.

  ‘Okay,’ she agreed.

  They set off walking, both of them deep in thought. Annie was cursing her own stupidity, whilst Jamie was thinking something very different.

  ‘How’s everything with work?’ Annie asked, eager to break the silence and get back to a safe topic.

  ‘Huh?’ Jamie asked, looking confused for a moment. ‘Oh, yeah. It’s going well, thanks. Really well actually. I don’t think I told you – we only found out on Friday – but Matt and I have a really important meeting coming up.’

  Annie looked at him questioningly.

  ‘It’s with this company called Gamejacker, who are pretty massive in the gaming world right now, and we’re pitching for a contract to develop new ideas for them. If we get it, it’s the big time for us.’

  ‘Wow, that sounds exciting,’ Annie told him genuinely.

  ‘Yeah. I’m a little bit terrified to be honest,’ Jamie admitted. ‘It’s not my natural territory, schmoozing the big execs. But needs must, I guess.’

  ‘You’ll be wonderful,’ Annie assured him. ‘You always have this calm, confident aura about you.’

  ‘Do I?’ Jamie looked surprised. ‘That’s really nice to hear – especially coming from you.’

  ‘Me?’

  ‘Yeah. You’re the expert at this kind of thing, aren’t you? You know, spotting personality traits and following your intuition.’

  Annie smiled. ‘If you say so. It doesn’t seem to work once I’m out of the office though. Professionally, I’ve got it together. Personally…’ she trailed off.

  ‘You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself,’ Jamie insisted. ‘You’re clearly a very good judge of character – that’s why you’ve come out with me,’ he grinned, as Annie laughed.

  ‘Well, this is my car,’ she said, indicating her Mini as she came to a stop beside it.

  ‘Right.’ Jamie stopped too, both of them turning to face one another. ‘Honestly, I’m really gutted that I can’t do tonight. I’ve already organised something that I can’t get out of. But we’ll definitely do it another time. I really like spending time with you, Annie.’

  ‘Me too,’ Annie admitted shyly. ‘But don’t worry about it. Another time.’

  ‘I’d like that, Annie. I really would. It’s just that…’ Jamie paused, as though he was about to say something more, then came out with, ‘Have you ever seen the movie Paul?’

  Annie shook her head, a little thrown by the unexpected change in the conversation. She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting him to say, but it certainly wasn’t that.

  ‘It’s a sci-fi movie, with Simon Pegg, but it’s a comedy too, so it’s a good intro to the genre.’

  ‘Sounds great. Is Cinema City showing it? We could go see it next time.’

  ‘No, it came out a few years ago, so it won’t be in the cinema. I’ve got it on Blu-ray though…’

  ‘Well, how about instead of going to the cinema next time, you come over to mine and we’ll watch Paul? I can always cook us some food, get a bottle of wine in…’ Annie trailed off, realising what she’d just suggested. It sounded as though she was trying to seduce him, and she looked up in panic, expecting to see an expression of horror on his face.

  Instead, Jamie looked genuinely pleased. ‘Yeah, I’d love to. It’s a date.’

  ‘Is it?’ The words were out of Annie’s mouth before she could stop herself. ‘Oh, I didn’t mean—’

  But Jamie simply grinned at her, shrugging his shoulders. ‘Sure,’ he said easily. ‘Look, I’ve got to head off now, but I’ll see you at work on Monday. Have a great evening, Annie.’

  Annie swallowed, wishing that the ground would swallow her up. ‘You too,’ she managed, as she climbed into her car and quickly drove off.

  21

  Chapter Twenty-one

  ‘I know nothing about sex, because I was always married’ – Zsa Zsa Gabor

  It was a Saturday morning and the three couples, together with half a dozen of Annie’s other clients, were once again gathered in the boardroom. They’d just completed a rather terrifying trust exercise, which involved closing your eyes and falling backwards into your partner’s arms, relying on them to catch you.

  Annie had hired a crash mat from a local gym, just in case, and it turned out to have been a wise decision. Whilst Zoe let herself drop into the safety of Simon’s muscular arms without batting an eyelid, Julia couldn’t bring herself to trust Nick at all, and kept squatting down on the floor the moment she overbalanced. Nick, in turn, was becoming increasingly frustrated, which didn’t help the situation one bit.

  When the couples swapped round, Ray leant his full weight back onto Linda without hesitation, sending both of them crashing into the safety of the mat, their limbs entangled as Linda lay crushed beneath Ray. A flustered Linda, and a slightly hysterical Ray, finally emerged unscathed after much flapping and flailing.

  ‘Right, after all that excitement,’ Annie began, doing her best to calm the giddy, adrenaline-fuelled couples around her, ‘we’re going to finish with a brief verbal exercise.’

  ‘Is that the same as an oral exercise?’ Zoe whispered to Simon, and the two of them started giggling.

  Annie rolled her eyes at them – it had been that kind of morning – which only made the two of them laugh even harder. ‘I need you to pair up with someone who’s not your usual partner,’ she continued. ‘And find a seat together in the room.’

  When everyone was settled, looking expectantly at Annie, she went on, ‘Okay, now this is going to be fairly quick. You only have five minutes each—’

  ‘I can be quick. I reckon five minutes is about all I’d need right now,’ Simon muttered to Zoe, who let out an undignified snort.

  ‘But you’re going to take it in turns and I want you to tell the person you’re working with three things that you love about your husband or wife, boyfriend or girlfriend. These can be physical – for instance, you might love their bottom,’ Annie suggested, which raised a few sniggers. ‘Or it could be something simple like, “I love the
fact that they bring me tea and toast every morning”.’

  ‘Chance would be a fine thing,’ Ray piped up cheekily, and Linda shot him a look across the room.

  ‘Whatever you want really,’ Annie smiled. ‘It’s just a tool to get you thinking about all the reasons you appreciate your other half.’

  Linda and Simon paired up together, and were surprised to find that they got on rather well. Simon reminded Linda of her son, Robbie, and she enjoyed listening to him talk about Zoe and their upcoming nuptials. Seeing the two of them so young and full of optimism gave her a sharp pang of nostalgia.

  ‘Do you want to go first?’ Linda asked.

  ‘Sure,’ Simon nodded agreeably.

  ‘All right, what are your favourite three things about Zoe?’

  ‘Boobs and bum,’ Simon responded instantly. ‘And… um… personality?’ he finished, clearly struggling for the third.

  ‘Ah, yes, can’t forget the personality,’ Linda laughed. ‘So are those your three?’

  Simon shrugged. ‘Yeah, I think so. That pretty much sums it up! How about you? That’s your husband, isn’t it?’ he asked, nodding across the room at Ray.

  ‘Yes, that’s him,’ Linda replied, in a tone that Simon couldn’t quite read. ‘Hmm, well, I might have said “bum” once upon a time too, but probably not any more. That all went south a long time ago,’ she chuckled. ‘Not that I’m any better. Gravity gets us all in the end, I’m afraid.’

  ‘Nah, you look great still,’ Simon grinned flirtatiously. ‘If I wasn’t engaged, I’d be after you myself!’

  ‘That’s very sweet of you, but I don’t believe a word you’re saying! No, for Ray I’d say… his sense of humour. He can sometimes be quite funny, I suppose. And, um, he’s very practical. He’s good at fixing things – changing light bulbs and putting up shelves and so on. That’ll do, won’t it? And the third…’