by Lynsey James
‘Excuse me!’ My mum put her hand up and another staff member came right over to take our orders. That was the thing with my mum: she had an air about her that commanded respect.
‘I’ll have the loaded potato skins to start and… What about you, Em? What do you fancy?’
I glanced down at the menu one last time. ‘Just a garden salad for me. I’m not that hungry.’
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mum scowl and she told the waitress to bring a bowl of chips and some mozzarella sticks too. The girl took off before I could amend my order and a few minutes later our food arrived at the table.
‘I’ll never eat all of this,’ I said, looking down at it, ‘but I’m going to demolish these mozzarella sticks. Anyway, what did you bring me here to tell me? You said it was important.’
Mum’s knife and fork paused as she was about to cut into one of her loaded potato skins. All the colour drained from her face and she pursed her lips. I saw a flicker of what looked like fear cross her face, but it was gone before I could ask any questions.
‘Don’t worry about it.’ She waved a dismissive hand and popped a forkful of potato, bacon and cheese into her mouth. ‘It can wait until you come round tonight. So, come on, tell me what’s new. Have you got yourself a man yet?’
I shook my head. ‘Nope. I don’t have time for all that romantic stuff; too busy trying to conquer the world, remember?’
I peeked up and saw my mum visibly wince. She leaned over and took my hand in hers. ‘Emily, you really should try and meet someone nice. Although maybe get some highlights in your hair first.’
Copyright
HQ
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First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2016
Copyright © Lynsey James 2016
Lynsey James asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
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Ebook Edition © November 2016 ISBN: 9780008189969