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Instead, she asks, ‘Could you do me a favour?’
‘I can try.’ I’m careful not to promise anything.
‘I was hoping I’d spot that young man Finn who’s often in here today, because I’m going away for a few weeks tomorrow so won’t see him. I’ve mentioned Alexandra to him before and keep forgetting to give him her number. Would you be able to give this to him the next time he comes in?’
She hands me a slip of paper and I stare at it between us. I’ve never explicitly asked Finn if he’s dating, and he’s never brought it up. He, like a well-adjusted person, probably keeps his exploits to himself. I’m not entitled to know everything about him. God knows he hears enough about my own dating life to make up for it.
Still, I say, ‘I’m not sure if he’s single.’
Samantha has a strange expression on her face and says, ‘I’d really appreciate if you could give it to him. He knows I was going to put them in contact.’
I weigh up what to do with it. Maybe he is dating, and from what I’ve heard about Alexandra, they’d probably be a good match.
There’s a pause, but eventually I say, ‘Sure. I’ll give it to him.’
After she leaves, the paper sits untouched for an hour, until I’m overcome by the unexpected, inexplicable urge to get rid of it. So I throw it away.
Unfortunately, I regret this almost immediately. Which is why, when the front door opens, I’m sure whoever just walked into City Roast will be bewildered to find me elbows deep in the bin.
‘Am I interrupting something?’
Finn appears on the other side of the counter, eyes showing all the amusement his twitching mouth is struggling to contain.
I straighten, my hair dishevelled, coffee grounds as far as the eye can see, but in my hand is my prize: a crumpled piece of paper.
‘This is for you,’ I say, handing it to him.
He takes it gingerly between his thumb and index finger. ‘Fantastic,’ he says flatly, ‘just what I’ve always wanted.’
I seize it back, wiping it on my apron to get rid of most of the gunk before placing it back in his outstretched hand. ‘Soy-la— uh, Samantha gave me her number to give to you.’
‘But I already have Sam’s number.’ This is not surprising in the slightest, though it does make me wonder why she couldn’t have just texted him her daughter’s contact info.
‘Her daughter. She gave me her daughter’s number to give to you. So you can ask her out.’ I don’t know what I expected from Finn. Maybe a heartfelt thank you, or some sort of celebration. I didn’t expect him to look at me like I’ve just suggested he chop off his own hand. ‘You never know, she could be the love of your life.’
‘I feel that’s unlikely,’ he says, clearing his throat. ‘What do we know about her?’
This is my time to shine. I talk to him over the sound of the coffee grinding. ‘She’s called Alexandra, Alex for short, is twenty-five, got an economics degree at Durham, did a master’s in marketing at LSE, and now lives in Maida Vale.’
‘Not much, then.’
‘She’s also an equestrian.’
‘My favourite star sign.’
I glare at him as I tamp the coffee grounds in their basket. ‘She travels the world competing and has won tons of awards. Samantha’s very proud of her. I think you’d work well with someone who travels a lot.’
It’s true. If he’s going to be with anyone, it’ll be someone who won’t make him feel claustrophobic and glued to one place. Especially knowing he’s further into the process of getting the San Francisco job.
‘Sure. But no thanks,’ he replies with a shrug.
My hands freeze. ‘What do you mean, “no thanks”?’
‘There’s really only one definition, Ava.’ He drops his voice to a whisper. ‘No.’
‘But I saw photos. She’s beautifulandtalented. She sounds kind of incredible.’
‘What do you want me to say? I’m sure she’s great. And I’ll take her number, but I’m not going on a date with her.’
