Page 44 of Kiss Me Like You Mean It

‘Hmm,’ she murmurs. ‘Tell me about this town then, what’s it called, Roseport? Sounds cute.’

So I do, I tell her everything, from Bud picking me up and the twilight, Nirvana-fuelled yoga class, to Miss Rita and her ice cream with a side of gossip. By the end Tara is cackling, delighted.

‘Oh my god, it sounds amazing!’ she says. ‘I know you don’t want to believe you’re in a romance novel, but please tell me there’s a gorgeous, aw-shucks police chief and he’s going to be caught up in a love triangle with you and Nico?’

‘Well, actually…’

‘No!’ Tara exclaims, leaning forward with so much enthusiasm that kernels of popcorn go flying.

‘Not the love triangle bit,’ I laugh, ‘but I did meet the handsome police chief, and he seems very nice. He invited us out for drinks after the town meeting.’

‘Lee. Please.’ Tara’s face is suddenly very close to the camera. ‘This is so important. Please tell me he was wearing a cowboy hat.’

‘I’m afraid not.’

She sighs and sits back. ‘I guess you can’t have everything.’

‘I should probably get ready to go,’ I say reluctantly. ‘I think they said the meeting was at seven so we’ll all be heading off soon. What do you think a town meeting looks like?’

‘Chaos from the sound of it,’ Tara sounds gleeful, but then she must see the worry on my own face. ‘But absolutely nothing you can’t handle. You’re so clever and so brilliant, and they’ll love you.’

‘Thanks,’ I murmur. ‘I hate that I feel so awkward. It seems like it’s a really tight community and obviously they all love Nico…’

‘Oh yeah, everyone loves Nico,’ Tara grumbles.

‘I just meant the fact that they’re all so determined to be a part of this plan to help him. That’s strange, right? Nice, but strange.’

I can’t imagine any of my neighbours enthusiastically hurling themselves into a little light perjury for my benefit. I’m not even sure most of them would be able to pick me out of a police line-up. (Surely correct and normal?)

Tara only shrugs again. ‘Things are different in small towns, and they are all… you know… American. Who knows how things work over there. They put marshmallows on sweet potatoes – they’re capable of anything.’

‘Good point,’ I agree, getting to my feet. ‘Well, thanks for the pep talk. I’ll let you know how it goes. Brace yourself, this place seems pretty… eccentric.’

‘That’s because the town itself is a character!’ Tara yells, as I end the call.

When I hang up, I notice I have another message from Adrian:

A work trip? Nice. Anywhere glamorous? Xx

I feel another pang of guilt. I know ending the relationship was the right thing to do, and if I’m honest I thought he’d be annoyed, more than happy to disappear from my life, but I guess he’s really taking this friendship thing seriously.

I’m in the States, I type, and then hesitate. I can’t leave it at that, can I? It sounds so cold and his message was friendly. Don’t know about glamorous, but it’s very pretty. After a moment’s thought I add a couple of kisses… that’s what he did so it seems polite.

I don’t have to dwell on it for long because there’s a soft knock on the door, and when I open it Nico is standing there, looking sheepish. In the background I can hear Phoebe and Magda locked in a loud and competitive card game.

‘Sorry, can I—’ Nico gestures towards me and I pull the door wider, letting him in.

‘It’s your room,’ I remind him.

‘You know you really don’t have to come tonight.’ He lifts a hand and rubs the back of his neck. ‘I would understand if you decided you didn’t want any part in this.’

He doesn’t know he’s echoing Tara, but yet again it’s a reminder that Nico seems less than thrilled by the prospect of pretending to be married to me. It’s hard not to take it at least a little personally.

‘It’s not such a big deal,’ I say with what I hope is an easy shrug. ‘Let’s go to the meeting and hear what everyone has to say.’

He huffs out a sound that might be a laugh. ‘Honestly, I don’t know why I’m trying to talk you out of it, you’ve always been so stubborn.’

‘I have not!’