Sushi for Beginners - Marian Keyes [129]
‘Marcus is just kind of ordinary,’ Ashling explained. ‘He doesn’t go bungee jumping or protest against motorways or anything mental. No insane hobbies, I like that in a man.’
‘What else?’
‘I like…’ Suddenly Ashling turned on Joy and said savagely, ‘If you ever tell this to anyone I’ll kill you.’
‘I promise,’ Joy lied.
‘I like that he’s sort of famous. That he gets mentioned in the paper and that people know about him. Yes, I know, that makes me shallow, but I’m being honest with you.’
‘How are his freckles?’
‘Freckly.’ A pause followed. ‘Look, I’ve one or two myself,’ Ashling said defensively. ‘There’s no shame in them.’
‘I’m only saying…’
‘There’s Ted at the door. Let him in, will you?’
Ted came into the bedroom, obviously excited. ‘Look at this,’ he yelped, and unfurled a poster.
‘It’s you!’ Ashling declared.
It was a picture of Ted’s face on top of an owl’s body with the words ‘Owl Ted Mullins’ across the top of the page.
‘Wow, that’s fantastic!’
‘I’m getting them printed, but what do you think?’ He unfurled another poster and let one hang from between each thumb and index finger. ‘Red background or blue background?’
‘Red,’ Joy said.
‘Blue,’ Ashling said.
‘I don’t know,’ Ted mused. ‘Clodagh says –’
‘What Clodagh?’ Ashling barked an interruption. ‘Who Clodagh? My friend Clodagh?’
‘Yes, I called around to her…’
‘What for?’
‘To collect my jacket,’ Ted said defensively. ‘What’s the biggie? I left my jacket when we were babysitting, it’s hardly a crime.’
Ashling couldn’t explain her resentment. She had no option but to mutter, ‘Right. Sorry.’
A tense silence reigned. ‘Pass me my new lipstick please,’ Ashling said shortly.
She tipped it from its box and twisted up the waxy finger, shiny and new. Gorgeous. But as she admired it, she was afflicted with a sudden, very unwelcome awareness.
‘I don’t believe it,’ she breathed. Quickly she inspected the base of the lipstick, launched a searching scramble in her make-up bag, unearthed another lipstick and checked the base of that also. ‘I don’t fucking believe it,’ she exclaimed, in despair.
‘What?!’
‘I’ve bought the same lipstick. I spent all morning looking for a new lipstick and I’m after buying exactly the same one I had already.’
With a passionate rush of I’m such a failure, Ashling was all set to hurl herself on the bed, except the bell rang. The alarm clock on her dressing table said half past eight. Which meant it was twenty past.
‘That better bloody not be Marcus Valentine at the door,’ she threatened.
It was.
‘What kind of man arrives early?’ Joy asked.
‘A gentleman,’ Ashling said, not at all convinced.
‘A weirdo,’ Joy said, not quite under-her-breath enough.
‘Out, the pair of you.’
‘Make sure you use a condom,’ Joy hissed, then they were gone. Seconds later Marcus appeared up the stairs, all smiles.
‘Hi,’ Ashling said. ‘I’m nearly ready. Would you like a beer or something?’
‘A cup of tea. I’ll make it, don’t worry about me.’
While she hurriedly finished preparing she heard him opening cupboards and drawers in the kitchen.
‘Cute apartment,’ Marcus called in to her.
Ashling wished he’d be quiet. Providing witty repartee while applying lipstick was not one of her strengths.
‘Small but perfectly formed,’ she called back absently.
‘Like its owner.’
Which was nothing near the truth, Ashling thought, but it was nice of him to say so.
And that kind of set the tone. She cheered up, put the lipstick shame behind her, brushed her hair and went forth to meet his admiration.
Before they left Marcus insisted on washing his teacup.
‘Leave it,’ Ashling said, as he dashed it under the running water.
‘Ah no.’ He placed it on the draining-board and turned to her with a grin. ‘My Mammy taught me well’
She got that feeling again. More buds poking their heads up.
The place he took her to was intimate and rosy-lit. At a corner table, with their knees occasionally touching, they drank cold white wine so dry it sucked at their teeth, and admired each other, dewy-skinned and flawless in the candlelight.
‘Hey, I like your…’ And