Just the Two of Us

by Georgie Capron

  Lucy felt a calm sense of reassurance settle over her like a blanket. With Rory by her side, she felt utterly protected, as though she could survive anything, that no matter what happened, she would be okay.

  Chapter Thirty

  The following day Lucy had a much-needed evening in to sort through some admin at home. Rory had some work to finish and so he was spending the evening at Thurloe Crescent. Though Lucy would prefer to be with him she was looking forward to having some time to sort through some of the domestic chores she had been neglecting of late.

  At seven thirty the doorbell rang. She skipped over to the intercom with a smile on her face, assuming that Rory had been unable to resist and had decided to come over and surprise her. ‘Hello?’ she said as she held down the intercom. It was so crackly she could barely hear anything other than a garbled male voice rustling down the line. She held down the buzzer and left the door ajar, rushing back to the hob to lower the heat on the soup she was making for her dinner.

  There was a knock at the door, which was odd, seeing as she had left it ajar. Suddenly on alert that it may not be Rory, she rushed back to the door, ready to defend herself from an unwanted visitor and kicking herself for not getting the intercom repaired.

  As she pulled open the door, the person she saw standing there was the last person in the world she had been expecting. Her heart skipped a beat and her stomach lurched at the unexpected sight of him. She couldn’t have been more shocked to see him standing there. ‘Alex!’ she said. ‘What are you doing here?’

  ‘Hi Lucy, I’m sorry to turn up unannounced. Can I come in?’

  ‘Err…’ She wasn’t sure. ‘I suppose so.’

  He took a step forward and came into the sitting room.

  She felt unbelievably awkward in his presence. ‘What do you want?’ she stammered. She couldn’t think of a single reason why he would turn up out of the blue like this. Her head was spinning slightly as she took in his once so familiar features, now strangely unfamiliar. She had only seen him on Facebook since they had broken up. It was as if she was seeing him in a dream or a memory, not in real life.

  ‘I just wanted to talk to you,’ he said, somewhat nervously. ‘Can we sit down?’

  ‘Sure,’ she said, intrigued to find out what he had to say for himself.

  He sat on the sofa and she sat down on the chair next to it.

  ‘I didn’t know if you’d answer the phone if I called, it’s been so long…’ he tailed off.

  ‘It has,’ she agreed.

  ‘I drove past and saw that your light was on so I knew you must be in, I guess I just took a chance and rung the bell, hoping you’d agree to see me.’

  ‘The intercom is broken, I actually thought you were someone else…’ said Lucy unapologetically.

  ‘Oh. Are you expecting someone?’

  ‘Not especially.’

  ‘Right.’ They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes before Alex plucked up the courage to speak. ‘I guess I just wanted to apologize for everything I did to you. I have felt so guilty. You were nothing but amazing to me and I treated you badly, I know that now… I was moody, work-obsessed… I’m surprised you didn’t kick me out yourself.’

  Lucy was amazed at this apology. She still couldn’t get used to him sitting on her sofa, being in her flat. It was hard to believe that he used to live there. ‘I see. Well thanks… I guess?’ she said.

  ‘The thing is, Lucy, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking recently. I was wondering, hoping, if maybe…we could give things another go?’ He looked up at her with his brown eyes full of hope, yet nervous at the same time.

  Lucy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The words that she had so desperately longed to hear for all those months, which would once have been music to her ears, now just seemed ridiculous. ‘Another go?!’ she repeated, incredulous.

  ‘The thing is… I think I just freaked out. I really loved you but I don’t think I was ready to commit. I think I just ran away because I was too afraid. I thought I could love someone more, but I know now that I was wrong. There is no one out there better for me than you. I don’t think I’ll ever find someone as good for me and I just hope that I’m not too late… that you might consider giving me another chance?’

  Lucy felt a little bit sorry for him sitting there, wearing his heart on his sleeve, but his words just left her cold inside. And at the same time slightly offended. She didn’t believe what he was saying, not for one second. She knew that he was probably feeling sorry for himself and a bit lonely, and he obviously thought she was an easy bet, that he could click his fingers and come crawling back with his tail between his legs. Well she wasn’t that woman anymore. Even if she hadn’t met Rory, who was so incomparably amazing, so completely out of Alex’s league in every way, she wouldn’t have bought his sob story. She was not going to accept anything like this as good enough for her. She wanted to be with someone who couldn’t live without her, not someone who would settle for her because they hadn’t met someone better.

  ‘Alex, I’m sorry but it’s far too little too late. I’ve moved on. And, to be perfectly honest, I don’t think we were ever right for each other in the first place. I see that now. I was so in love with you at the time, I couldn’t see our relationship clearly, but with distance I know it was far from perfect. It just wasn’t good enough, I need so much more than that. I deserve so much more than that.’

  ‘I know you do… that’s why I want you to give me another chance. I’ll change. I’ll be better this time, I promise. I’ve missed you so much.’

  ‘I’m sorry but no. I’m seeing someone else, anyway, as it happens. And he’s amazing. I wish you the best of luck, I really do, but now I’d like you to leave.’ Lucy stood up and walked over to the door. She had nothing else to say to him. She just wanted him to get out of her flat as quickly as possible.

  He nodded his head. ‘I see,’ said Alex sadly. He stood up and walked over to the door. ‘You’re probably right. I’m sure there are many guys out there who are much better than me…’

  She didn’t want to encourage his self-pity so she just stood there, holding the door open.

  ‘Goodbye Alex,’ she said firmly.

  ‘Goodbye Lucy.’ He looked at her sadly, hesitating as to whether to kiss her or not. He obviously thought better of it and walked through the door, taking one last look around her flat as he left.

  She shut the door quickly behind him, her heart pounding. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. Walking back to the sofa where Alex had just been sitting, she sat down heavily. She went over the conversation once again, marvelling at his audacity to turn up unannounced like that and casually ask for her back, as though nothing had ever happened, as if none of this time had passed. The cheek of it! Seeing him again confirmed what she had suspected, Rory already meant more to her than Alex had ever done. She never felt on her guard with him, she was so relaxed in his company. He didn’t have any character traits that she disliked. His personality was so unselfish, so genuine and he was such a positive guy. Alex had been the opposite and she thanked her lucky stars that she could now see him and their relationship for exactly what they were.

  She picked up the phone and called Claudia. ‘You’ll never guess who’s just been around…’ Lucy said.

  ‘Who?’ asked Claudia.

  ‘Alex!’

  ‘Alex? No way! Why? What did he want?’ she asked, clearly shocked.

  ‘He asked me to give him another chance,’ said Lucy, still unable to believe it.

  ‘What? That’s ridiculous. As if you would take him back after everything he did to you!’

  ‘I know!’

  ‘Did you tell him to get lost?’ asked Claudia.

  ‘Of course I did! Even if I didn’t have Rory I would have… the audacity of the guy!’

  ‘What did he say exactly?’

  ‘That he’s realized I was as good as he’d get, basically, and would I be happy to try again on those oh-so-flattering terms
.’

  ‘Idiot!’ said Claudia. ‘Dan said that he’s been feeling pretty down recently, but he had no idea that he was going to turn up on your doorstep! If he had given me an inkling that he suspected that, I would have told you, obviously…’

  ‘I know you would have, Clauds. It’s just so odd to think how much I once prayed that he would do exactly that. Now everything is so different, I’m so different…’

  ‘And you’ve got Rory… much more importantly!’

  ‘Yes thank god for that too…’

  ‘Did you tell Alex about him?’

  ‘I said I was seeing someone.’

  ‘Well at least that should shut him up. Hopefully he got the message.’

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘Are you going to tell Rory?’

  ‘I’m not sure,’ said Lucy.

  In the end she did tell him when he phoned her later on in the evening, just as she had tucked herself up in bed. She played the whole episode down and reassured him that she hadn’t even considered saying yes for a millisecond, that she was completely over him and that she was really only interested in one man, and one man only.

  ‘I’m glad to hear it,’ said Rory. ‘I couldn’t bear to lose you now that I have finally found you. It sounds lame, but I honestly didn’t know if I’d ever meet someone I could trust, someone I liked, after losing Abi…’

  ‘I know. And I promise you, I’m not going anywhere,’ she said. ‘You’re stuck with me now, for as long as you want me!’

  ‘You’d better get very used to me then!’ he laughed. They talked for a while longer before hanging up the phone.

  Lucy dozed sleepily, dreaming of Rory morphing into Alex and back again as she allowed her mind to drift off into a deep sleep.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  On Wednesday evening, Rory had been invited to dinner at Lucy’s grandmother’s house in Chelsea. Lucy had been looking forward to it all week, glad that she had something positive to focus on after the disappointment of realising yet again that she wasn’t pregnant. Annie had been calling her daily to confirm that the meal was still going ahead, to discuss the menu and to make sure that she had written down the right time to expect them in her diary. Lucy promised her grandmother that they would both be there by 7.30 p.m. and that they were very much looking forward to it. She was sure that Rory and Annie would get on like a house on fire.

  She met Rory at the tube and they walked to Annie’s little studio together. Lucy was carrying a big bunch of lilies and Rory had bought a bottle of champagne, a sure-fire way to win over her grandmother. They walked down the narrow streets lined with mews cottages, peeping through the windows as they passed by to spy on the residents as they settled in for the evening, shedding the stresses of the day.

  ‘Have you heard anything more from Alex?’ Rory asked, trying to maintain a casual interest in the subject but clearly desperate for reassurance that she wasn’t about to run back to her ex.

  ‘Not a word,’ said Lucy.

  ‘That’s good,’ said Rory.

  ‘As I said, he could do nothing to persuade me. I’ve got you now! And who could want anything else?’ she laughed as he bent across and kissed her.

  The melodic chime of the doorbell announced their arrival at number 34. Lucy could see her granny pottering around in the kitchen through the window as she rang the bell. Annie was wearing her most sophisticated dress and a set of diamanté jewellery, her trademark red lipstick was painted brightly on her lips; she looked like a glamorous yet tiny Mrs Pepperpot.

  Opening the door with a waft of Dior perfume, she embraced Lucy and then set her beady eyes on Rory, sizing him up as potential grandson-in-law material within seconds, an enamoured smile beaming across her face, radiating her approval.

  ‘Champagne? Why you shouldn’t have, you naughty boy!’ said Annie playfully as Rory proffered his bottle. ‘And flowers… I keep telling you not to spend your money on me, you terrible children!’

  ‘We like spoiling you!’ said Lucy. ‘And anyway you’re the one spoiling us tonight, by cooking us a delicious dinner.’

  ‘Well, I wouldn’t say anything until you taste it. It could be ghastly!’ warned Annie. ‘Let’s open this, shall we?’

  Rory did the honours and cracked open the bottle of champagne. Lucy collected three champagne flutes from the corner cupboard and poured them each a glass, tilting the bottle as she did so to prevent the bubbles from overflowing onto the Persian rug beneath them. Rory proposed a toast, and as they chinked glasses, he complimented Annie on her home, resulting in a fairly detailed ‘tour’ of the property, surprising given the size of the place; you could glance an eye over it in a matter of seconds. In response to her captive audience, Annie seemed to develop verbal diarrhoea, regaling Rory and Lucy with endless stories from the long and rich tapestry of her life. Somehow, mid chatter, she managed to assemble their dinner, with a little help from Lucy.

  They dined on prawn cocktail with baby gem lettuce, followed by chicken with grape and celery sauce and new potatoes. It was clear that Rory was as smitten by Annie as she was by him. Enjoying the new-found friendship that was blossoming before her eyes, Lucy watched Rory as he threw his head back and laughed time and time again at one or another of Annie’s scandalous stories or peculiar mannerisms and sayings. Her grandmother’s conversation was peppered with ‘Annie-isms’ as Ollie and Lucy liked to call them; she often slipped in and out of an American accent at random intervals and was truly the most entertaining company.

  After a cup of Annie’s best filter coffee accompanied by bittersweet Bendick’s mint chocolates, Lucy and Rory finally stood up to leave, mystified at how quickly the evening had flown by as they suddenly realized that it was eleven o’clock. Annie was clearly besotted with Rory, she announced that she had adopted him already. They kissed her goodbye, making the usual promises to call and come and see her soon, then set off for Thurloe Crescent, both of them filled with admiration at how much energy a ninety-one-year-old could have. She made them both look positively lame in comparison. The sparkle and mischief in her eyes, the sheer sense of fun she had, was inspiring, and Rory announced that she would indeed make the perfect match for Great Uncle Seamus, as Lucy had suggested.

  Lucy spent the next couple of evenings planning the dinner party that she and Rory were hosting on Saturday night. They had invited Ben and Christina originally, but since then the numbers had grown somewhat with the addition of two more couples: John and Anna, and Daniela and Ed. Anna and Ed were both members of Rory’s old gang that had formed so many years ago back at university; Daniela and John were their other halves, all firm friends now and extremely close to Rory. Lucy knew that she would be under close scrutiny from all parties; she felt under pressure to make sure the menu was up to scratch and that the evening went off with a bang. Lucy also wanted the opportunity to see Rory in his natural habitat surrounded by his oldest mates. It always provided a fascinating insight into a person, meeting their friends. Lucy believed that you never really knew someone one hundred per cent until you had also met their friends and family, for a person’s character could only really be revealed in the context of those who know them best. She couldn’t wait... Lucy was happy with her decision to shelve any plans for future rounds of IUI for the time being. She had a feeling that she may not need to continue down that route now that she had Rory.

  After careful consultation with Tor and Claudia, as well as advice from Ginny, the best cook of all time, she came up with her perfect menu. For the first course she was going to serve little cheese soufflés on a bed of watercress, followed by beef Wellington (her personal favourite) with potato dauphinoise, spinach and tender stem broccoli. The dessert was in Rory’s hands and he insisted that he was going to make something; Lucy was suspicious as to his capabilities but appreciated the gesture nonetheless.

  On Saturday morning they went for a long run around Hyde Park, Rufus racing ahead of them. After a few miles circuiting around the outer edge of the park, they
stopped to catch their breath and walked back to the Serpentine Lake. They sat at the open air cafe watching the tourists feed the swans and ducks. A huge wealth of birdlife had settled in the area thanks to the regular feedings and the cafe by the lake was an ornithologist’s utopia. Rory was in charge of restraining Rufus who was interested in the variety of birds for entirely different reasons. Lucy went inside to order a couple of lattes and bought some huge oatmeal and raisin cookies that were begging to be eaten in a glass jar by the till; they were soft and chewy and the perfect accompaniment to the rich coffee.

  As they sipped their drinks and admired the view of the lake Lucy asked Rory to give her the low-down on the couples that were coming over that evening. She knew quite a lot about Ben and Christina but wanted to be armed with some information about the others before she met them.

  ‘Okay, well in a nutshell… Ed is an incredibly successful investment banker; he often travels to New York and all over the world and is disturbingly good at his job. He works quite long hours but so does Daniela so they don’t seem to mind too much. They have an amazing nanny.’

  ‘Wow!’ said Lucy. ‘What does Daniela do?’ she asked.

  ‘Daniela is a human rights lawyer. She did languages with Abi at university and is trilingual, seriously intelligent and also doing something to really help the world. So not at all sickening!’ laughed Rory.

  ‘Oh my god I’m so intimidated!’ cringed Lucy. ‘What am I going to say? I spend my days selling new flavours of toothpaste, it doesn’t really come close!’

  ‘Luckily they are very self-deprecating and a totally chilled-out couple, you would never guess in a million years how high-powered they are, which is what makes them so awesome in my view…’ said Rory.

  ‘Such an attractive quality,’ agreed Lucy.

  ‘Anna and John met when they used to work in a hospital; they are both GPs now.’