Bargained Marriage

A quick glimpse around the luxurious restaurant informed Claire Williams that she’d arrived first which was usual.

And that’s a gold star for me,’ she murmured under her breath, before sending a smile to the approaching waiter. I believe there’s a reservation in the name of Lucas Thompson.’

‘Certainly madam.’

He didn’t even need to check the reservation book, but led her across the room to a table set in an alcove and screened from the rest of the room by palms. Knowing Lucas, it was probably the best table in the house. She wondered if this was one of the places where he normally brought his women.

Not that they were his women, of course. It was just that there was such a parade of them in and out of his life.

You can’t talk.

She bit back a sigh.,

The restaurant was upmarket, of course and the eschewed modern minimalist lines that were currently in vogue, celebrating instead a colonial decor popular over a century ago. It reminded her of raffles in singapore. Minus the heat and humidity. This wasn’t the kind of establishment that needed to justify itself. She took a seat.

Can i get you a drink madam?

Yes, please. A sparkling mineral water would be lovely.’

He blinked before his face became a smooth mask again.Ah…so he recognized her too huh? She resisted the urge to tease him . New leaf, remember?

She glanced through the screen of palms at the rest of the room and shook her head.

Horrible.’ She murmured normally she and Lucas met in the cafe at the Tate Modern. Where they could stare out at the vista spread before them rather than at each other.

And where occasionally their shoulders would bump accidentally, ofcourse_ Lucas would never purposely touch his best friend’s little sister. Especially not now Michea was dead. But those accident moments always made her feel less alone.

‘Crazy,’ She murmured Also you have to stop talking to yourself like this or someone will overhear. She thought about that for a moment and then nodded. So what?

It wasn’t like a century ago, when they could have had her committed for such eccentricity. Besides, she’d been called far less savoury things by the press… and her father.

She watched the waiter return with both her mineral water and Lucas,and missed the Tate Moderna’s cafe with its view over a great city. But today called for more salubrious surroundings. Today was Michael’s birthday. Maybe that was why she felt so claustrophobic amid all this airy, white shuttered cane and palm expansiveness.

Lucas couldn’t see her as well as she could see him, but she tried not to study him too intently anyway, though the temptation lurked at the edges of her consciousness, As usual her heart-rate picked up speed at the sight of those impossibly broad shoulders, long legs and lean hips. Lucas Thompson was built along lines that made every woman in the room stand at attention, figuratively speaking. A woman had once told her that she ovulated every single time she clapped eyes on Lucas.

She tried to ignore all thoughts of ovulation, eggs and procreation. Regardless of what looked like she knew that, as usual, his hips would press into a thin line when he saw her.

‘Such a shame,’ she murmured, because, actually, she really liked him. Still, she’d love to see him run to fat. Just a little bit. Just one flaw~that was all she asked. Maybe then she would feel on more of an even footing with him.

You might as well ask for the moon.

‘Claire,’ he said when he reached her.

As predicted those hips pinched together. So did the skin around his eyes. It was a double shame because he had a nice smile, though she rarely saw it.

‘Hello, Lucas.'

She rose and they gave each other perfunctory perks on the cheeks, keeping the width of the table between them. She pulled back and planted herself in the chair again and tried to ignore the heavy thud-thud of the pulse on the throat.

It was like this every single time the stilted distance and the heart thudding.

She suspected it was because there was no other person on the planet who had loved Michael as much as she had except for Lucas and her father but that was too difficult.

Since the viciousness of her parents separation and subsequent divorce when she was eleven and Michael sixteen when the only thing her parents were focused on was hurting each other she and Michael turned to each other. They had seemed to realise that the had no other family to rely on. She’d done her best to stop him from growing too grave and serious, while he’d done his best to stop her from feeling as if she didn’t measure up. She’d looked up to him so much. Had depended on him.

And now he was gone.

She couldn’t believe the hole it had left in her life. It made her think that she and Lucas should hold each other tight on the occasion they did see each other, take comfort in each other. But it was never like that.

But some strange sense of honour kept them in touch, some respect for Michael they weren’t prepared to surrender.

Would he be relieved if she hadn’t shown up if she just stopped turning up for their monthly coffee dates and occasional lunches? Would he feel he’d discharged some unspoken duty to Michael and was now off the hook? The thought made her heart ache. She couldn’t stop coming. He was one of her last links Micheal. And Michael was the only person who had truly loved her for who she was.

She couldn’t let that go. She couldn’t let Micheal go, which meant she couldn’t let Lucas go. And she wanted to tell him she was sorry for that, she’d like to make him smile if she could.

‘You look glum,’

That slammed her back to the present . ‘Sorry,’ just feeling a bit wistful for…for what could have been,’

He closed his eye and pinched the bridge of his nose and she realised he had thought she was referring to Michael.

Make things more cheerful.

She waved to encompass the restaurant. I have not been here before.’

He straightened. ‘Do you like it?

It’s lovely,’ she said, because she was always on her best behaviour with Lucas

Amazingly he laughed. ‘You hate it.’

Well, the fact of the matter is I’m starved. So as long as the food is good, I don’t care about anything else.’