The Dating Game

by Susan Buchanan

  ‘Mum, Dad,’ Gill hugged and kissed her parents. ‘Let me help you with your bags.’

  As Gill brought in the bags, her mother walked alongside her. ‘No, not that one, Gill. That’s just dirty washing. That can stay in the car.

  ‘You can use my machine, you know.’

  ‘No, it’s quite all right. It can wait until we get home. Robert, where did you put the wine we bought for Gill?’ Gill’s mother asked.

  ‘It’s behind the passenger seat,’ Gill’s father called to his wife, from where he was busy trying to wedge open the outer door to Gill’s flat.

  ‘It’s good to see you, Mum.’

  ‘And you, darling. You do look well. You’re positively glowing. Or maybe it’s just the cold weather?’

  Gill tried not to sigh. It was typical of her mother to give a compliment and just as quickly snatch it away. Carrying the remainder of the bags towards the flat, Gill took a deep breath and ascended the stairs.

  ‘Tea or coffee?’ Gill asked her parents, once they were suitably ensconced on her sofas. Her father appeared a little out of breath and she couldn’t help feeling concerned for him. He seemed much frailer than last time she had seen him. She made a mental note to call them more often. Her mother, of course, was much more resilient. She’d probably outlive them all.

  ‘Gill, there are some biscuits in that bag. No, not that one,’ her mother scolded, ‘the blue and white checked one. That’s it – a luxury chocolate biscuit selection.’

  ‘I do have biscuits, Mum.’

  ‘I know, dear, but I know what we like.’

  Gill bit her tongue. Her mother could be infuriating sometimes and she needed to keep the peace, since she was about to hit them with a major piece of news.

  As they sat catching up on the gossip from her brother’s and from her parents’ neighbours, Gill waited for the right moment to bring up Liam, and the fact that he would be joining them for dinner and the theatre that evening.

  Her opportunity soon appeared, when her mother asked her what she had been up to, after, of course, reprimanding her for rarely calling them.

  That works both ways, thought Gill.

  First of all, she told them of the developments at the agency, and her new recruits. Her father nodded approvingly, delighted that the business was doing so well. Her mother tried to pry about facts and figures, but Gill remained vague, not wishing to be side-tracked from her purpose.

  Then she talked about Debbie and how well Olivia was doing at school. Likewise when her mother asked after Angela, she told her she was doing well at the school where she taught, and that her son, Matthew, was also thriving. Gill’s mother never missed an opportunity to comment on what a shame it was that Matthew’s father didn’t live with them.

  Gill gritted her teeth and changed the subject. Finally, she talked about her trip to Barcelona and the bizarre circumstances which led to her meeting Liam.

  ‘So, are you seeing this man, this Liam?’ her mother’s forehead had scrunched up.

  ‘Yes, we’ve been seeing each other for a few months now.’ It was a little under two months, but her mother didn’t need all the details.

  After subjecting Gill to a thorough grilling on Liam, his prospects and his intentions towards her daughter, Gill’s mother finally asked, ‘So, are we getting to meet this one? We didn’t meet the last one.’

  Thank God for that, thought Gill.

  ‘Well, actually, I’ve invited him to have dinner with us tonight, and he quite fancied going to see Dirty Dancing, too.’

  ‘A man who wants to go and see a musical,’ her mother seemed torn between wondering if he was sent from Heaven or gay. Meanwhile, Gill’s father had perked up considerably at the news that another male would be present at the evening’s proceedings.

  As soon as she politely could, Gill slipped away to call Liam.

  ‘Hey, how are you?’

  ‘Good, you? Has the eagle landed?’

  ‘Don’t know about the eagle, but two pensioners, one very opinionated and who would give Hyacinth Bucket a run for her money, are here.’

  Liam laughed, ‘I’m sure she’s not that bad.’

  ‘Well, don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.’

  ‘What time are we meeting at?’

  ‘I thought we could meet at the restaurant at six thirty. The show starts at eight thirty. That gives us plenty time.’

  ‘OK, I’m looking forward to it.’

  Gill only wished she was.

  Gill needn’t have worried. Liam charmed her mother more than she would have imagined possible. At certain points, she was sure her jaw was hanging open, given how girlish her mother was around Liam, and how she would pat him on the hand and say ‘Oh, you!’

  Liam and her father had surprisingly a lot to talk about – not least when her father asked about the best way to re-grout his bathroom tiles. Talk of hill-walking done in earlier years and golf, also kept them occupied, and dinner passed all too quickly. Gill breathed a sigh of relief and crossed her fingers, as they left the restaurant and headed for the theatre.

  ‘What a wonderful performance!’ said Gill’s mother when the final curtain came down. Like the majority of the audience, she had given the cast of Dirty Dancing a standing ovation. Even Liam, who had come, more for the sense of occasion than because he liked musicals, he’d admitted to Gill’s dad, remarked on what a great job the cast had done.

  They all tumbled into the taxi which Liam flagged down and soon they were heading over the river to the south side and back to Gill’s flat.

  Her mum was a little tipsy – a couple of glasses of wine, with her slight frame, and she was giggling like a schoolgirl. Gill stifled a laugh. It was hilarious watching her mum with Liam. Gill gave him the thumbs up, as she heard him regale her parents with another tale from his repertoire, whilst she organised the drinks.

  The four sat chatting happily together, Gill’s father more animated than she’d seen him in years, whilst they drank their spirits and liqueurs. Whisky for Gill’s father and Liam, Baileys for her mum, and Gill stuck to wine. Mixing her drinks gave her a hell of a hangover.

  A few hours later, Gill’s mum excused herself for yawning. Gill gave Liam a look. Liam said, ‘Don’t be silly, Mary. It’s been a long day for you both. You’ve done well, quite frankly, to last the pace today. We’ll let you get some rest.’

  Gill’s mum glanced at her daughter, as if to say ‘what a sweet boy.’

  Gill brought bedding through to her parents and then said, ‘Night, see you in the morning. Sleep well.’

  ‘Night, love,’ said her dad.

  ‘Night darling, lovely to meet you, Liam,’ her mother shook a bewildered Liam’s hand.

  As Gill and Liam closed the living room door behind them and entered Gill’s bedroom, Liam said, ‘I don’t think they know I’m staying. Should I go?’

  ‘No-o-o. Don’t be silly. If they haven’t worked it out, that’s their problem. I’m thirty-seven and it’s my flat,’ Gill said, then silenced his protestation with a kiss. Soon a pile of discarded clothes lay beside the bed, as Gill and Liam slid in between the sheets, covering each other’s body with their own.

  Fifteen minutes later, Liam stifled a moan as he whispered in Gill’s ear, ‘I’m coming, Gill, I’m coming,’

  They collapsed together, exhausted.

  Suddenly the door opened and the light went on, as Gill, horrified, heard her mother say, ‘Gill, I can’t get the sofa bed mechanism…aargh!’

  ‘Mum, put the light off, please. I’ll be through in a minute.’

  For all his attempts to slide under the covers, Liam was still partially visible, on top of Gill. Gill was mortified, but Liam even more so.

  ‘Oh my God, do you think your father will challenge me to a duel?’ he tried to make light of it.

  ‘I can’t believe my mother walked in on us! Hasn’t she heard of knocking?’ Gill was outraged. ‘I’m really sorry. Let me just go and deal with this sofa bed. I won’t be a minute.�
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  Steeling herself, Gill slipped on her terry towelling robe and left the room.

  ‘Mum, what’s the problem?’

  Her parents fell silent as she entered. News obviously travelled fast, as they both turned to her guiltily. It was clear her mother had been divulging to her father that she had just interrupted Gill and Liam in bed.

  She stared at them expectantly, daring them to take issue with her sleeping with her boyfriend, in her own home.

  Her mother lowered her eyes first, ‘I can’t get the mechanism to release,’ she finally said.

  Relieved, sensing the moment had passed, Gill said, ‘It’s easy, look, you slip your fingers under here, push and voilà.’ The bed sprung open and she helped her father unfold it to its full size.

  ‘Thanks,’ said her mother.

  ‘Right, do you need anything else, or can I go back to bed?’

  ‘No, we should be OK now, dear,’ her father smiled at her.

  ‘Great, night then.’

  Just as Gill was closing the door, her mother said, ‘Oh Gill?’

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘Will Liam want breakfast in the morning?’

  Trying not to laugh, Gill turned to her mother and said, ‘Full cooked, I should think. Night.’

  As Liam and Gill lay in bed later, trying not to laugh at the sheer embarrassment of her mother walking in on them, Gill felt that things were finally working out for her.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  December

  The driving November rain had been replaced by the splendid, but deceptive December sunshine, which tricked you into thinking it was warm outside, when in reality it was bitterly cold. A scarf, hat and gloves were a prerequisite.

  Gill shivered despite her warm coat, as she unlocked the main door to the building, before entering the agency. Even with the heaters on full, due to the old windows, the rooms were not as toasty as she would have liked. She kept on her coat as she brewed the coffee.

  When her team arrived, within five minutes of each other, Gill stopped working and came through to offer them tea and coffee.

  ‘I want to talk to you about something.’

  ‘Sounds ominous,’ said Janice. Amanda seemed a little worried, whereas Angus merely appeared interested.

  ‘Nothing to worry about, quite the opposite,’ said Gill cheerfully, as she bustled around, preparing the drinks.

  Gill finally placed the mugs on the table in front of her staff and said, ‘I was thinking we should have a Christmas party. I know it’s late and most places will be booked up, but I’ve done a little research and there are three places in town which still have some availability for the week before Christmas. I just wanted to ask you all if you fancied it, before I book it.’

  ‘Oh, we’ve never had a Christmas party,’ said Janice, rubbing her hands together in glee. ‘Not a real one, anyway, with it just being you and me,’ she said to Gill.

  ‘When would it be?’ Angus asked. ‘I have something on the Saturday before Christmas.’

  ‘Well, I was thinking the Friday or the Saturday, the sixteenth or seventeenth, but if Angus is busy on the seventeenth, is everyone OK for the sixteenth?’

  ‘It’s fine for me,’ said Amanda.

  ‘And me,’ said Janice.

  ‘Don’t see a problem,’ Angus chipped in.

  ‘Great, so now all we have to do is think about venue.’

  Gill told them the three venues and the themed nights at each. She asked them to decide amongst themselves, and to let her know what they preferred by the end of the day, so she could book it.

  As Gill sat doing the accounts, she could see the past few months had been good. She would have the full news from her accountant at their meeting in January, but already she had the gist of it, and the news appeared very positive.

  Life was more balanced now. She’d even started exercising again and loved it. She and Debbie had found a Zumba class in Maryhill and had been twice already. Gill was determined to get fit and with the party season looming, the sooner the better.

  With Christmas around the corner, and realising how stressful a time it could be, Gill had told her staff they could have a couple of long lunch hours to pop into town and do some shopping. Today it was her turn and she left the office, armed with her list, so she could hit the shops; a quick in and out. She needed to go to a specialist camera shop for the x2 converter she was going to buy for Liam. A hamper would do the trick for her mother, whereas anything wrestling related, plus pyjamas, covered her nephews; perfume for her sister-in-law, the list went on and on. She thought she had been pretty methodical about it. She wouldn’t get everything today, but half would be a good start.

  Ninety minutes later, as she walked back up Buchanan St, laden down with shopping bags, Gill was full of Christmas spirit, listening to the street artists belting out Christmas carols instead of their usual fare.

  Suddenly her legs gave way and she struggled to stay on her feet. About thirty metres in front of her, walking directly towards her, was Anton. She froze. She couldn’t move. He hadn’t noticed her yet. She had to get out of there. Too late. He glanced up, trying to pick out the shop he was looking for, and found himself staring directly at Gill. Confusion crossed his face and then his features broke out into a broad smile. Quickening his pace, he walked towards her. Gill didn’t know what to do, so she turned and fled. Biting back tears, she turned onto St Vincent St and tried to push past the lunchtime shoppers, in an effort to get away.

  ‘Gill,’ she heard his voice call, ‘Gill, wait.’

  It was no use. He caught up to her. He didn’t touch her, but instead stepped in front of her.

  ‘Gill, I’m sorry. There’s so much to explain. I barely know where to start.’

  Gill was unable to get past him without creating a huge scene, so with her head bowed, she listened to him.

  ‘Gill, there was a reason I couldn’t contact you. I need to explain,’ but Gill cut him off.

  ‘That’s nice, Anton, but I really don’t need to hear it. Goodbye,’ and she pushed past him.

  ‘Wait, Gill, please.’ He caught up to her again and extracted a business card from his pocket. ‘We have a lot to talk about – I don’t want this to be the last time I see you. Please, take my card.’ He thrust the card at her. Realising he wasn’t going to go away if she didn’t take it, she took it from him, reluctantly, and popped it in her pocket.

  ‘Goodbye, Anton,’ and Gill turned and walked quickly through the crowds, tears blurring her vision.

  As she stood at the traffic lights, waiting for the green man to come on, she stifled a sob. What a shock! She hadn’t been prepared for that. It was bad enough when she thought she would never see him again, but to see him, standing right in front of her; all the emotions had come flooding back, all the disappointment and feelings of rejection.

  Trembling, she fished her phone out of her bag and called Debbie. She answered after four rings.

  ‘Debbie, I need to see you urgently. Can you meet me after work?’

  Her friend, startled by the tremor in Gill’s voice, agreed to meet her at Chez Molinières at six thirty.

  Gill wasn’t sure how she made it through the rest of the day. When Janice told her that the three of them had decided that the Abba themed Christmas party would be the most fun, Gill had tried a smile, but feared it came out as more of a grimace. She then asked Janice if she would mind calling to book, and Janice, seeing Gill’s ashen face, said, ‘Consider it done.’

  As Gill was about to leave the office to meet Debbie, her phone rang.

  ‘Hi, it’s me. How’s your day been?’ Liam seemed particularly upbeat.

  ‘So so,’ Gill replied evasively. She couldn’t banter with him, not at the moment. She simply wasn’t capable of it. Her mind felt overloaded, as if it would explode at any moment due to the pressure building up in it.

  ‘How are you? How was your day?’ she asked mechanically. This needed to be a short call. Thankfully she had the excuse
of rushing out to meet Debbie, and Liam had called her on the landline.

  She listened to him as he told her about his call from his brother in the US, and how he intended coming over for New Year. Liam sounded so excited.

  ‘It’s been too long,’ he said.

  Liam talked a little of their plans for the weekend, and then Gill, having difficulty keeping calm, interrupted him, ‘Liam, I’m really sorry, but I’m going to have to run. I’m supposed to be meeting Debbie at Chez Molinières in ten minutes.’

  ‘Oh, no problem. I’ll see you tomorrow. Have a nice time.’

  Gill dreaded the thought of the next evening. How could she see Liam tomorrow, with this maelstrom of emotions whirling around inside her? Any fool would be able to detect something was wrong, so her boyfriend would definitely guess.

  With a heavy heart, she closed the storm doors to the building and set off to meet Debbie.

  ‘A large glass of Pinot Grigio, please,’ Gill said to the barman.

  Debbie eyed her curiously.

  ‘Gill, you look like shit. What’s wrong?’ Pausing, her mouth dropped open, ‘You’re not pregnant, are you?’

  Wordlessly Gill shook her head.

  ‘No, you can’t be, or you wouldn’t be drinking,’ Debbie thought out loud.

  Running her hands through her hair, Gill sighed deeply and blurted out, ‘I ran into Anton.’

  Debbie’s eyes widened and she was momentarily speechless. When she recovered, she said, ‘Where?’

  ‘In Buchanan St.’

  ‘What was he doing in Buchanan St?’

  ‘I don’t know, Debbie. I didn’t exactly ask him,’ an edge of frustration crept into Gill’s voice.

  Realising how upset Gill was, Debbie didn’t take her to task over snapping at her. She simply said, ‘Tell me what happened.’

  Gill relayed her brief encounter with Anton.

  ‘So, what now?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Gill. ‘I feel sick. I can’t concentrate. I don’t know how I’m going to act normal around Liam tomorrow night. I’m furious,’ she said, as tears threatened to fall. ‘I thought it was just the shock of seeing him that made me feel like this, but that was five hours ago, and if anything I feel worse now.’