Your Room or Mine? by Charlotte Phillips Read Free Book Online

times which paper he would prefer.
    Her quick exit should feel like a gift.
    Why the hell then, had it left him feeling so short-changed?

    ****

    â€˜You had a one-night-stand?’ Shauna stared at Izzy, incredulous. ‘You?’
    Izzy took a defensive sip of her coffee because she still couldn’t quite believe her own behaviour, and glanced around the café to make sure no one had heard.
    â€˜It WAS on the ‘Get-over-Him List,’ she pointed out, keeping her voice low and hoping Shauna and Suzy might do the same. ‘
You
suggested it. Right there at number nine, right after eat your own body-weight in ice-cream, blow some cash on a new wardrobe and get plastered on white wine.’ She paused. ‘All of which I did.’
    Shauna was shaking her head.
    â€˜It wasn’t a
real
suggestion. I’d had a couple of drinks. It was just one of those things that come up when you brainstorm. I never for one second thought you’d actually DO that one. If I did, I would have told you about all the caveats that come with it.’
    Oh for Pete’s sake.
    â€˜Caveats?’
    â€˜Exactly.’ Suzy, veteran reader of womens’ magazines, leaned in as if about to impart a great secret. ‘There are rules you need to follow if you’re going to do something as reckless as have a one-night-stand.’
    â€˜Go on.’
    She flapped a hand at Izzy, the other clapped to her forehead.
    â€˜Don’t rush me, don’t rush me, I’m trying to remember. OK, first and foremost, you don’t pick anyone you’re likely to encounter in daily life. Far too complicated. No bosses, no brother’s-best-mates, no colleagues…’
    â€˜That’s fine then,’ Izzy said with a note of triumph. ‘Box ticked.’
    Suzy nodded approvingly. ‘There’s more.’
    Of course there was.
    â€˜You make it clear from the outset there won’t be anything further than this one night.’
    Izzy took a sip of her coffee and nodded.
    â€˜Ground rules. I did all of that. I’m not a complete idiot.’
    â€˜Safe sex?’ Shauna said and Izzy inhaled a mouthful of coffee.
    â€˜Of course,’ she managed, trying not to cough.
    â€˜And you can give him no way of finding you afterwards. No phone number swapping.’
    â€˜Even if you want it to be more?’ Izzy asked with sudden interest. Not, of course, that she did.
    â€˜
Especially
if you want it to be more. They never look that good the next morning you know. You go to sleep thinking you’re with an Adonis and then you wake up and he looks like a troll.’
    Whatever Izzy was uncertain of regarding the previous night, she was sure about one thing.
    â€˜He wasn’t a troll,’ she said. She could hardly think of him without her stomach melting.
    â€˜Trust me, he was. They always are. The magic never extends past the next morning,’ Shauna insisted. ‘Best to bail out of these things while it’s all going well.’ She sat back in her chair and folded her arms authoritatively. ‘Basically, what it all comes down to is one thing: A one-night-stand can only ever be a success if it’s anonymous. Meddle with that and it can only end badly.’
    Suzy flapped a hand for Shauna to be quiet.
    â€˜Never mind all the rules. Did it WORK? That’s the most important thing. Are you feeling better about what Joe did, are you empowered and ready to move on?’
    A night with Oliver had certainly opened her eyes. It hadn’t negated the loss but there was less of an ache somehow. She understood now that she hadn’t so much been grieving for Joe but for the idealised future she’d had in her mind, which had included him. That had been her guiding light for over a year. Without it she’d felt like she was cruising round in circles. What she needed now was a sense of direction. And she intended to get that by throwing herself into her work,