Swipe Right
Page 32
‘Maybe,’ I say, coyly, and she dabs at her eye, as if wiping away a tear and turns to Mickey and Dan.
‘She’s like a fledgling bird,’ she says. ‘Off with you now, fate awaits!’
‘Who is this guy?’ Dan asks, and I can’t really blame him. He’s heard an awful lot of Ollie chat today.
‘He used to work here,’ Mickey explains. ‘We all think they are probably soul mates.’
‘Well, one thing at a time, eh,’ I say. ‘I’ll see you all on Monday.’
I’m walking through reception when Mindy nods towards the glass door and Ollie Taylor’s standing outside, leaning against the wall. James Dean cool, Ray-Bans nestled in his sandy hair, bomber jacket with varsity ribbing, Adidas trainers, waiting for me. My heart flutters. I take a deep breath and push the door and now I’m out of the building and into the fresh spring evening. He turns towards me, pulls his headphones out of his ears and grins.
‘Hi… Are you Fran?’ he asks, narrowing his eyes, as if we’ve never met.
Total goof. It’s cute. I play along, laughing.
‘I am, and you must be Ollie.’
He nods. ‘Really nice to meet you. You look very lovely.’
‘Thank you. So do you. Very cool.’
‘So, I thought we might grab a bite to eat, if you like?’
‘Absolutely,’ I say, and I love the way he’s run with this starting over thing. Really, it’s adorable. ‘Where were you thinking?’
‘Well,’ he says. ‘I know an awesome little Mexican place a few minutes’ walk from here. Great tacos. Best guac ever. And I have it on excellent authority the margaritas are spot on, as well. Feeling it?’
‘That sounds like a delight,’ I say and I really can’t stop beaming. ‘Lead the way.’
We stand and look at each other for far longer than necessary, and then he takes my arm and laces his fingers through mine and squeezes just a little, and we stroll along the pavement, in the late afternoon sunlight, down through Fitzrovia towards Soho.
A Letter From Stephie
I can’t believe I’m here again. It feels like hardly any time at all since the seed of this book planted itself in my head when I was watching When Harry Met Sally for about the fiftieth time, and yet it’s now out in the world. I’m so delighted to have the wonderful team at Hera behind me, not to mention the support of you, the reader, so thank you for choosing Swipe Right as your next read, it really does mean the world.
It’s been such a fun project, and I have adored bringing Fran and Ollie to life and putting a millennial spin on a classic more-than-just-friends love story, so I really hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed creating it! And as ever, I love to hear from readers, so if you enjoy this book please consider leaving a review or a rating. Or, if you wanted to drop me a line directly you can find me on
https://twitter.com/imcountingufoz
https://www.facebook.com/stephiechapmanauthor/
Once again, thanks a million for picking my book!
Take care and love always,
Stephie x
Acknowledgements
Enormous thanks, as always, to Keshini and Lindsey at Hera, without whom the first draft would still be languishing on my computer, if not mulling around in my head. Thanks also to editor Jennie Ayres and Vicki McKay for helping me to hone and shape and smooth out all the edges. It really does take a village.
To my best friends, strands of whom I’ve woven into this book, thank you, mainly, for being you. You’re the mannerisms, the conversations, the WhatsApp messages and the Twitter DMs, the advice, the rolled cigarettes outside work and at pubs. You’re the dynamics between my characters, as well as what helps me to bring them to life. You’re the best people I know.
To my family. Thank you for the gift of time. And the gift of snacks. And the gift of coffee (and wine, and gin). And the gift of the Nintendo Switch for keeping the children amused.
And to all the writers I chat to on that there Twitter. You’re the encouragement to keep going and I’m glad we’re all in this, cheering each other on, celebrating our achievements and straightening each other’s crowns, together.
Finally, thank you to everyone who liked Call Me Maybe enough to come back for Swipe Right, I can’t tell you how much that means to me. Hope you’ve liked this one, too x
Books By Stephie Chapman
Call Me, Maybe
First published in the United Kingdom in 2020 by Hera
Hera Books
28b Cricketfield Road
London, E5 8NS
United Kingdom
Copyright © Stephie Chapman, 2020
The moral right of Stephie Chapman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 9781912973316
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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