‘I love the dress,’ he drawled. ‘And so does every other man in the room.’
Her cheeks dimpled. ‘Really?’ She glanced down at herself self-consciously. ‘Alfie liked it.’
‘Alfie likes everything about you.’ Patrick reached for his glass. ‘To us.’
Hayley tapped her glass against his. ‘To us.’
‘Thank you for cooking us the best turkey we’ve eaten in years…’ he kept his eyes on hers, unable to look away ‘…and for giving us such a happy Christmas.’
‘I had a happy Christmas, too.’
‘You didn’t miss being with your family?’
Hayley took a sip of champagne and put her glass down. ‘Families aren’t always idyllic, are they? I used to hope that things would change as we all grew older but nothing ever did. I even tried changing myself to be more the way they wanted me to be, but it didn’t work.’
‘Why would you want to change?’
‘Because I irritate them.’ Hayley sat back as the waiter placed her starter on the table with a flourish. ‘That looks delicious, thank you.’ She beamed at him and Patrick watched as she picked up her fork.
‘How could you possibly irritate them?’
‘Just by being me.’ She speared a prawn. ‘I’m so different from them. They see me as a clumsy idiot who laughs too much and talks too much. And they’re probably right. But it’s impossible for me to be silent and academic. I’ve tried. It doesn’t work. And it’s exhausting trying to be something you’re not.’
‘Don’t put yourself down. The things you tried to change about yourself are the things that make you special.’ He studied her across the table and found himself noticing new things about her—like the fact her eyelashes were long and dense and her lower lip was slightly fuller than her top lip. ‘Aren’t they proud of what you’ve achieved professionally?’
‘They don’t think I’ve achieved anything professionally.’ Her voice was matter-of-fact. ‘That’s the point. They think I’ve wasted my life. They’re always asking me whe
n I’m going to get a “proper” job.’
Patrick felt a rush of anger towards her family. ‘I think you’ve achieved tremendous success in your professional life.’
‘It depends on how you define success, doesn’t it?’ She ate another prawn. ‘Is success about making a difference to people’s lives, or is it about how much money you accumulate?’
‘Money isn’t a measure of success so much as an indication of career choice.’ Patrick discovered that he’d finished his starter without even noticing that he was eating. ‘If you pick a career like nursing or teaching you’re never going to be rich, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t successful.’
She smiled at him. ‘And that’s why I’m eating dinner with you and not them,’ she said lightly. ‘Because you don’t make me feel as though my entire life has been wasted.’
‘Families can be tough.’
‘Well, that’s true. And from what you’ve told me, yours was no picnic either.’
They ate and talked and, by the time midnight arrived and the New Year had been toasted, Patrick discovered that he’d told her more about himself than he’d ever told anyone before. Certainly more than Carly.
Studying Hayley’s smiling face as she told him a ridiculous story about one of her friends, he realised that comparisons with Carly were inappropriate.
There was no comparison.
When had Carly made him laugh like this? Had Carly ever asked if he should check his mobile phone in case there was a message from the hospital?
Aware that the restaurant had emptied and they were the last couple still talking, Patrick retrieved his phone from the pocket of his jacket and called the taxi, feeling nothing but regret that the evening had to end.
He wanted her to keep talking. He wanted to know everything about her.
It was the champagne, he told himself as he watched Hayley engage in conversation with the man who fetched them their coats.
She was a beautiful woman and good company.
It was natural to enjoy being with her.