‘Oh.’
Jake Steinmann stared back at her from the street. ‘You!’
‘What are you doing—?’
‘What are you—?’
Bea’s mouth was completely dry and she knew she was staring at him. But the shock of seeing him again, coupled with the fact that she was standing in the doorway of a shop she didn’t own, stole her ability to rationally respond.
Jake appeared to rally before Bea did. ‘I’m here to see Ed and Rosie.’
‘Right. Me too.’ Bea didn’t move.
‘Ah.’ Jake shuffled awkwardly. ‘So, can I – come in?’
Mortified, Bea backed into the shop as Jake followed her. They stood facing each other in the middle of Kowalski’s, neither knowing what to say. Bea could hear her heart crashing inside her chest and the swift flow of her breathing as she struggled to find words. She was completely unprepared to deal with this and felt ambushed by its sudden occurrence.
‘They’re in the back,’ she managed, hoping that Jake would venture where she hadn’t and leave her for long enough to be able to gather herself together. But Jake didn’t seem to take the hint. Instead, he remained where he was, leaving Bea feeling like she had nowhere to hide.
‘I visited your store,’ he said. ‘I left you my card …’
‘I know. Um, thanks.’ This was more excruciating than pulling teeth without anaesthetic.
Jake ran a hand through his hair and looked over Bea’s shoulder towards the closed workroom door. ‘Are you sure they’re still in there?’
‘I don’t know. Where else would they be?’ Bea watched as Jake marched behind the counter and flung the workroom door open.
‘There you are. I think you need to come out here.’
Bea heard Rosie giggle and she and Ed emerged like naughty children, sporting identical grins.
‘Would I be correct to assume this –’ Jake pointed to Bea, then back to himself ‘– isn’t a coincidence?’
‘You two know each other?’ Ed asked, aghast – his purported innocence not fooling anyone in Kowalski’s.
Jake glared at him. ‘Bro—’
‘We set you up,’ Rosie relented. ‘But let’s face it: you both wanted to see each other again. Jake, you asked Ed about Bea; and Bea, you mentioned how much you’d enjoyed speaking to Jake at the party. Except, as you might have guessed, Jake is Ed’s brother and not a barman. I just didn’t see why it should then be so difficult for the two of you to meet again.’
Bea should have felt touched by Rosie’s initiative – it was well meant after all. But instead, she felt cheated. This evening was supposed to be about a no-pressure, relaxed time out with new friends. Instead, it had become an embarrassing set-up with a guy who obviously didn’t want to be there any more than she did. And now she was trapped. She could make her excuses and leave, but where would that leave her fledgling friendship with Rosie? Alternatively, she could stay, but what could be worse than being forced to socialise with someone who didn’t want to be there, either? This evening had changed from a great Friday night out into the worst way to kill time: a blind date neither she nor Jake wanted to be on …
‘I can’t believe you did this without consulting us,’ Jake said, his blue eyes sparking with barely controlled anger. ‘It’s embarrassing. You’ve put both of us in an impossible situation.’
Bea felt awful. ‘I should probably go,’ she stated, clutching her bag like a shield.
Ed moved towards her. ‘Please don’t. My brother is an idiot. Believe me, he wanted to see you again.’
She could feel a lump building in her throat and had no intention of crying in front of people she barely knew. This evening had been a disaster already before it had even begun: now all she wanted to do was get away as soon as she could. ‘I’m sorry, I—’
‘Stay exactly where you are!’ Rosie’s command was so sharp that everyone turned to look at her. ‘All I am offering is the opportunity for the two of you to talk. I’ve booked a table at Monty’s a few blocks from here. Ed and I have made other plans. Now, I’m sorry if you both feel ambushed, but it’s obvious you enjoyed each other’s company at the party. It isn’t a date; it’s an opportunity. So take it, for heaven’s sake. What do either of you have to lose?’
Silence fell in Kowalski’s, the last of the evening sun fading as the streetlights outside glowed into life. Jake turned to Bea and shrugged, the smallest beginnings of a smile appearing. Still reeling from Rosie’s revelation, Bea managed to smile back.
‘Would you like to have dinner with me?’ Jake asked.
Bea almost refused, but Jake’s softened tone and earnest gaze changed her mind. ‘That would be lovely, thanks.’
Rosie squeaked and clapped her hands, while Ed looked like he needed a lie-down. ‘Fantastic! I’ll call you a cab.’
‘I don’t mind walking,’ Jake suggested.
‘Me either,’ Bea replied, glad of the opportunity to get some fresh air. At least if she was walking she could concentrate on that, rather than having to be cooped up in uncomfortable silence with Jake in the back of a cab. They walked quickly down Columbus Avenue, neither one making more than occasional small talk. When they reached Monty’s, Jake looked as relieved to have arrived as Bea felt.
The Italian restaurant was small and intimately lit, each table covered in a red check tablecloth and hidden from view of other diners with dark wood dividers. Bea’s heart sank as she and Jake were led to their table, which could have come straight out of a romantic movie scene. All that was missing was an engagement ring and enthusiastic violinist …
‘This is awkward,’ Jake said, peering at Bea over the top of the burgundy leather menu handed to him by the waiter. ‘And also proves that my brother has dreadful taste in restaurants.’
‘Perhaps he and Rosie love this place,’ Bea began, the ridiculousness of the situation causing her to burst out laughing.
Surprised, Jake followed suit. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said, ‘for all of this.’
‘Why? It wasn’t your fault.’
‘I got Ed involved by saying how much I’d enjoyed talking to you at the engagement party. I didn’t know he was going to play matchmaker with Rosie, mind you.’
‘Well, I told Rosie about you, so I suppose I’m as much to blame.’ She smiled at Jake, the unease of the past thirty minutes finally beginning to wane. ‘I had fun that night. And I wanted to see you again to thank you for making the evening a great one when it could have been the worst night of my life. I was a little surprised to find you were a doctor, though – I thought you were a barman.’
Jake laughed again. ‘I understand why you would have thought that. I was serving drinks behind the bar, after all. I thought you worked in a bookshop, not owned one.’
‘I own it with my friend, Russ. You met him when you visited my store.’
‘Ah. No wonder he wasn’t impressed with me. He’s obviously protective.’
‘Yes. Something like that …’ Bea was amused by Jake’s opinion of her best friend. Russ liked to think he knew everything about Bea’s life – a fact only magnified during the time she and Otis were together. Well, it served him right for assuming she couldn’t keep secrets from him. Maybe the experience would prove to Russ that she was far from predictable …
The waiter returned to take their order, his too-white smile and bushy moustache straight out of a Disney film.
‘Sir, are you and your beautiful laydee ready to order?’
‘I think so,’ Jake replied, amused. ‘Ladies first.’
‘I’ll have the Fusilli Milanese, please,’ Bea said.
‘An excellent choice for a lovely laydee,’ the grinning waiter exclaimed. ‘And you, sir?’
‘Sounds good to me. I’ll have the same.’
‘Bella. You would like wine, too?’
Jake selected an Australian Cabernet Shiraz from the wine list and Bea could see him struggling not to laugh.
‘Excellent. I will leave you two alone now.’ With a parti
ng wink at Bea, the waiter disappeared.
‘Interesting fella. I wonder which part of Italy he comes from,’ Jake chuckled. ‘My guess is somewhere north of Queens.’
Bea giggled, the sparks of her previous meeting with Jake reappearing. After an unpromising start, the evening was turning out surprisingly well.
Food and wine arrived and both of them began to relax in each other’s company. Bea noticed Jake’s habit of making intense eye contact when he was speaking, his doctor’s training evident in the way he studied her responses. He listened intently, too, leaning slightly forward to emphasise how carefully he was taking in what Bea said. Unlike their first meeting, they exchanged more personal details of their lives as they spoke, Bea feeling confident to do this, having shared humiliation with him at the hands of their well-meaning friends. As they spoke, her original hope that she and Jake could be firm friends returned. She liked Jake’s view on life in general; his sense of humour was never far away from anything he said. It was refreshing to hear someone else’s point of view, especially when her own group of friends had remained the same for years. Jake wasn’t predictable, yet so much of what he said resonated with Bea’s own worldview.
When dessert arrived, Jake pushed his plate across for Bea to taste as naturally as if they had been friends for years. Bea did this with Russ – largely because neither of them could make a decision when they went out for cheesecake, waffles or ice cream – but when she first met him it had taken months until he’d willingly offered to share his food.
‘So, be honest: did you freak out when you received my card?’ Jake asked. ‘It’s OK if you did.’
‘A little, maybe. I was more taken aback than anything else. It also didn’t help that Russ is my ex’s biggest fan, so he wasn’t happy I was keeping secrets from him. Not that I was, obviously. He just thinks I tell him everything, when sometimes I don’t.’
‘He cares about you. That’s a good thing, isn’t it?’
Bea folded her napkin and laid it on the table. ‘Most of the time. Occasionally it can become a bit claustrophobic. He wasn’t happy when I broke up with Otis – my ex. But then he didn’t have to go out with the bloke.’
Jake sniggered, then apologised. ‘I’m sorry. “Bloke” is such an English word.’
‘Since we’re being honest, how did you know where to find me?’ Bea asked. She had been mulling over the question since Jake’s card had arrived at the bookstore.
‘I asked Ed if he could figure out who you were. All I could remember was your red hair, that you’d been invited to the party with your brother and something about you working in a bookstore. Rosie worked it out in the end because she’d met you at Celia Reighton’s event. She asked Celia, who told her where I could find you.’ He gave a wry smile and looked down at his empty dessert plate. ‘I must confess, I regretted leaving that message.’
‘Why?’ Bea studied his expression carefully. Was this where Jake admitted he’d thought better of contacting her? Had Rosie and Ed forced his hand this evening?
‘Because it was a lame thing to do. And because I haven’t done anything like that for – years.’ He raised his eyes to hers, that searching intensity there again. ‘I thought you’d think me a jerk.’
‘I didn’t. I was surprised, but it was a pleasant surprise.’ Bea liked Jake’s vulnerability, which seemed so at odds with the confident persona he projected.
He smiled. ‘I’m glad.’
Bea wanted to ask so many things; to find out when Jake had last done something so spontaneous; to discover why his marriage had ended; to know his thoughts on the future. She wanted to continue their exchange of reasons not to date again – that having been the thing she’d enjoyed most about the first time they spoke. Their conversation tonight was more personal than it had been then, but it was still the polite, non-threatening past-timing of new acquaintances. So why did Bea feel as if she had known Jake for years? And why did she want more?
This is good, she reminded herself. It’s more than I could have hoped for. She smiled as she remembered Russ’ favourite motto he had practically chanted like a mantra during the two years they planned the bookstore, before it even came into being, when Bea wanted so much to get started and launch into their new business: Baby steps, Bea. Baby steps …
She was enjoying this evening: her wish to see Jake again had been granted and her hopes about the possibilities for their future friendship had been confirmed. From the little he’d said about his ex-wife and divorce, she could understand his need to establish The Pact – and knowing that he had sworn off relationships made her feel safe. Tonight was a great night, she told herself. Beyond that, who knew?
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Monty’s Italian restaurant, Columbus Avenue, Upper West Side
Jake had not been prepared to meet Bea again today, but the evening was turning out surprisingly well. She was as funny, good-natured and sweet as he had remembered, and seemed happy to share more personal details of her life with him. Seeing Bea in a different environment to the engagement party gave him a fresh perspective on her character – and he liked what he found.
He had so nearly walked out of Kowalski’s this evening. Angry with his brother and Rosie for blatantly setting him up, he was ready to leave. But Bea’s crestfallen expression and the realisation that she was as surprised and embarrassed as he, made him relent. Jake could be accused of many things, but being unkind wasn’t one of them.
For the first part of their meal, he had been asking himself the same question: had he agreed to it out of genuine interest for him or concern for her? Only a few days ago he had been so adamant with himself that he was putting Bea out of his mind; yet here he was, now, enjoying a meal with her. What was that all about?
He imagined counselling himself in his new consulting room: one Jake Steinmann lying on the leather couch, while another sat in the high-backed chair nearby, taking notes as he asked questions.
Why do you think you have a connection with this woman? Is she a diversion to stop you thinking about your wife? What is the real reason for being here this evening?
Bea was telling him about how she and snotty Russ had conceived the plan to run a bookstore when they were fellow students, laughing at their early ambitions for the place, which included a live music venue, licensed bar and vintage record store crammed in between the bookshelves. He liked Bea’s laugh. It bubbled up from a place deep within her, gurgling out like a fountain, and was impossible not to join in with, even if you didn’t get the joke. He couldn’t remember the last time he had heard Jessica laugh. Hers had invariably been at someone else’s expense and the stories she told highlighted the failings of others rather than the follies of her own life. Bea, by contrast, possessed that uniquely British self-deprecating humour which took delight in the absurdities of life. It was never cruel or biting, but rather an all-inclusive wit that caused a smile rather than affront. Jake was fascinated by it, having never had the opportunity to experience such humour at close quarters before.
Scrap that: he was fascinated by Bea, period. Being able to enjoy dinner with a beautiful woman completely unhindered by the usual date pressures of expectation and silent agenda was a brand new experience for Jake and he felt comfortable in Bea’s company. Swearing off relationships with her at the party might just have been the best decision he had made this year.
As dinner ended and they finished their coffee, Jake wondered if he should ask the question that had been burning a hole in his head all evening. Would she agree? Was this a one-off or a precursor to more? She might refuse, of course: she was a sweet person who wouldn’t want to hurt his feelings but not want any more contact than they had already shared. He had to be prepared for that. After all, when he’d first seen Bea at Kowalski’s, he had been seconds away from declining dinner with her. There was only one way he would find out for certain: and with the minutes to their parting ticking away, he knew he was running out of time.
After much insistence when the
bill arrived, they split the amount and walked out of the restaurant sharing jokes about the comedy Italian waiter who was still grinning at them like a Pearl-Drops-sponsored Lothario as they left. Out on Columbus Avenue a natural lull appeared in their conversation – and Jake seized his chance.
‘How about doing this again some time?’ He cringed as shock painted Bea’s face. ‘I’m not hitting on you,’ he added, dismayed at the awfulness of his chosen words. ‘I had fun tonight and I think you did, too?’
Bea nodded, an unmistakable pink flush appearing on her pale cheeks. ‘Definitely.’
‘Besides, we’ve talked for a whole evening without continuing our list of non-relationship benefits. I think it’s something we should continue, for the good of mankind.’
Bea raised her eyebrows. ‘For the good of mankind? Wow. That’s some responsibility.’
‘It is. We owe it to the poor, unfortunate single souls of New York to carry on the good work we have begun, don’t you think?’
She laughed. ‘I think maybe we should. I believe you have my number.’
‘And you have mine.’ It was Jake’s turn to blush.
‘Good. So …’ She looked up the street, the red lights of cabs illuminating her hair like a crimson halo. ‘I should probably get a taxi home.’
‘Where are you headed? We could share one?’ The question was out of Jake’s mouth before he could stop it. Now she really might think he was hitting on her …
‘Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. You?’
‘I’m in Williamsburg.’
‘Oh.’
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Jake kicked himself for even suggesting a shared cab ride home. What was next: come up for coffee?
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