The Further Adventures of a London Call Girl Read Free Page B

and try to make up for it by only eating British apples. N wolfed his down, declared it the best effort yet, and for a moment it looked as if he was going to dive for mine. That or he was looking down my top. Either way it was flattering.
    The phone rang. Unknown number – could be a client, but more likely Dr C. I answered; it was the latter. N could tell by my smile what was up and he discreetly removed himself upstairs.
    ‘I take it you made it home safely?’ I did the maths. ‘It’s, what, lunchtime there?’
    ‘Yeah,’ he said. He sounded tired, and no wonder. Very thoughtful to ring me first thing, though.
    ‘How was the flight? Any good films on?’
    ‘Um, mostly I spent the time thinking.’ My heart dropped, and I knew. He wasn’t calling because it was the sweet, romantic thing to do. He was calling to end it. He said he thought the distance was too far and that he was too busy to be in a relationship, anyway – man code for ‘I’d like it if you were more convenient, but don’t worry, I’ll find someone who is.’ He said he’d been thinking this since before the visit, but he didn’t want to ruin my good time.
    Ruin my good time? We’d barely spent three evenings together, I wasn’t the one who’d made a 12,000-mile round trip. I said nothing, just let him spool out the list of reasons. No sense trying to argue about it; I’d parted ways with so many men it was practically a lifestyle choice as well as a career. As soon as he said ‘I don’t want to hurt you …’ I felt a door shut in my heart.
    He paused, possibly waiting for the vitriol. Still I said nothing. ‘Well,’ he said, clearing his throat, ‘I hope we can still be friends.’
    Oh, cringe. Friends? I’ll say who gets to be my friend, thanks. I can play at being civilised but there is a line. There is a fucking line and he crossed it, right then, and I was not going to be Cool Girl any more. ‘No, thank you. I have enough friends as it is.’ I hung up and turned the phone off. When I looked up N was in the doorway.
    ‘I’m sorry,’ he said.
    ‘You’re not the one who has to apologise.’
    ‘Someone should,’ he said. ‘Want a hug?’ And even though I thought I didn’t, I really did.
    mardi, le 21 septembre
    Positive aspects of breakup:
    – Money saved on travel expenses
    – Never having to have awkward conversation about being a call girl
    – Noticed some hairs growing out of his nose when we were on the sofa. Will not have to deal with that
    Negative aspects of breakup:
    – Phone bill for calls to California not coming for another three weeks
    – Having to announce yet another failed relationship to family
    – Looking at phone so hard likely to cause blindness, if not insanity
    jeudi 23
    ‘It’s an impressive CV, all right,’ the young man said, flipping through my application. ‘And your references are impeccable. My colleague was very impressed when he met you. But I’d like to ask, where do you see yourself in five years’ time?’
    I smiled weakly. I hadn’t had breakfast or lunch, and was constantly checking my phone. But Dr C took me at my word and hadn’t rung. I’d turned it off before coming into the room for the interview but was starting to regret that; surely the man sitting across from me could tell how distracted I was?
    Possibly not. ‘Because in this company, we’re interested not only in our bottom line, but also in our people. Developing your skills to the best they can be. Investing in you. Yes, we think we’re just the right size to be able to deliver excellent service to our clients, while still maintaining a family atmosphere among the associates.’ I had the distinct feeling he was eyeing the line of my cleavage through my shirt, which, given that it was a very conservative, high-buttoned stripey number too starchy for call-girl work, was an impressive feat.
    I crossed my legs at the knee. Excellent service to the clients, eh? I noticed his eyes following my leg from