Right Here Waiting for You: A brilliant laugh out loud romantic comedy

A stray tear had escaped during her thoughts, and Magda sniffed and hurriedly brushed it away. It wouldn’t do to cry. After all, where had it got her in the past? She knew about crying your heart out. She’d done plenty of that with her back against the locked bathroom door of her en suite. There’d been no need to lock it really. Greg wouldn’t have come looking for her in there. He was oblivious to her upset ninety-nine per cent of the time, and the one per cent when he did notice something was wrong, he chose to ignore it anyway. Stupid, stupid man. For the umpteenth time, Magda felt relief wash over her at being able to spend some time away from him. It would do her the world of good. But what followed was dread at the thought of going back to him afterwards. Well, she just wouldn’t think about that yet. She had plenty of time before her return, so until then, she’d push Greg completely out of her thoughts and focus on what was waiting for her in Worthington Green instead.

Already she felt more like her old self, which was always the way when they spent time apart, as if being away from Greg allowed enough room for her original personality to come back. It was odd, how much she’d lost, when back then she’d only been able to see the things she’d gain, which, in hindsight, hadn’t turned out to be a lot at all.

Turning the volume of the car radio up to drown out her negative thoughts, she hummed along to the song playing and focused on the road. She made a few stops on the journey for coffee and snacks, just to keep her going until, finally, she passed by sights that looked all too familiar. An old windmill she’d been fascinated by as a little girl whenever her father had driven past, conjuring up a fairy-tale quality that had held Magda spellbound. There were the old factories too, now empty and unused and a bit of an eyesore on the otherwise picturesque landscape. With the sky the blue of a watercolour painting, Magda felt her heart lift at the prospect of being here again. She had missed it more than she cared to admit.

The car continued to trundle along, slower now she’d entered the town of Worthington Green, and Magda gawked through the window at her surroundings. The familiar streets and pavements and shops and cafés had hardly changed at all. In fact, it was as if she’d never been away. Soon enough, she was heading down the winding road that led towards the harbour and the tired old homes that were some of the very first to have been built there. As she passed the row of houses that led to her father’s, she wondered about the people inside them. Were they still the same neighbours she’d known growing up? Or had those people moved on with their lives and set up home somewhere far away from this place? There was a strange sort of feeling taking over her. Almost as if time had stopped during her absence and only now that she’d returned were the hands of the clock beginning to tick-tock again.

‘I can’t believe you’re no longer a virgin. What was it like? Did it hurt?’

Sophia bit her lip. ‘I don’t know how to explain it, really. It was like… nothing I’ve ever felt before. It did hurt a bit, but it’s supposed to during your first time, isn’t it? He was so gentle though.’

Magda squashed down the urge to ask more. She didn’t want to seem too interested in it. But she was. She wanted to know every single tiny detail of what it was like to have sex with Tom Archer. She looked at Sophia, tried to spot if there was any difference in her best friend now that she’d done the deed, but there was nothing obvious that had changed. She looked a bit glowy in the face, but that was expected.

‘I can’t believe it. You’re a proper grown-up woman now.’

Sophia laughed. ‘Hardly. He still makes me go all giggly when he kisses my neck.’ She snorted at herself. ‘I guess it’ll be your turn next. We need to find you a man, Magda Crossley.’

‘I’m more than happy to wait for the right one to come along,’ she replied. ‘Until then, I can just live vicariously through you.’

‘Of course you can,’ sang Sophia, dancing around the room.

She was in the throes of young love, and Magda couldn’t ignore the pang of jealousy she felt.

Chapter Six (#ulink_d2f36889-1a9d-5790-8f6f-92c90bcb149f)

The door to the salon closed behind Sophia as she stepped inside. She smiled at Cath when the stylist looked up from her appointment book. Situated behind her desk, she closed the thick black book with a shriek and flung her hands in the air in delighted surprise. The noise seemed awfully loud in the quiet salon and Sophia couldn’t help but laugh. ‘Hi, Cath. How are you?’ She made her way towards the desk, feeling warm inside at Cath’s familiar face, which was beaming at her.

‘Sophia! It’s been too long, doll.’ Cath, who had known Sophia since she was a young girl, rushed out from behind the desk, lunged towards her and enveloped her in a massive hug before taking a step back to frown at Sophia’s hair. ‘Far too long, it seems.’ She didn’t look impressed, and lifted a strand of hair before eyeing the wispy ends as if they were about to bite her. Sophia felt an old memory begin to resurface.

‘Are you sure this is a good idea?’ Sophia looked at the two boxes of hair dye in her hands. They’d got them from the chemist’s on the way home from school, and now they were in Sophia’s bedroom, about to open the boxes and get started.

‘Of course it’s a good idea!’ Magda bounced on the spot. ‘Look how cool they are! We’ll look like a couple of pop stars when we go to school tomorrow morning. Everyone will want to copy us.’ Magda winked.

‘But won’t we get sent home or something? I mean, when I said hair dye, I meant normal colours. But I’ve got pillar-box red, and you’re about to turn your hair bloody purple!’

‘Oh, Sophia. Stop worrying. This is exciting. Don’t you want to stand out? We’re going to look ace. The girls will be so jealous of us.’

Sophia eyed the box in her hand. ‘Hmm…’

‘Right. That’s it. No more time to think about it. We’re doing this right now.’ Magda tugged on her hand and pulled her out of her bedroom and down the hallway to the bathroom. Magda shut and locked the door behind them. ‘Who’s going first? Me or you?’

Suffice to say, their moment of glory when they’d got into school the next day had lasted only until they’d stepped into their classroom. The teacher had gasped and they’d both been sent home, not allowed to return until their hair was back to normal. They’d laughed about that for ages. Sophia swallowed. It was that bloody invitation. It was bringing it all back to her. She focused on Cath.

‘It’s not that bad, is it?’ She suddenly felt self-conscious and wished she’d made the appointment to have her hair sorted out sooner. It was the same old story though. She’d intended to, but had just never found the time or forgotten.

‘Nothing your old Aunty Cathy can’t sort out. It’s a good job we’re not busy. Come on, take a seat and let’s sort you out, girl.’

Cath led her to an empty seat and, as she began to snip away with her scissors, asked Sophia how her parents were. ‘I tell you, I couldn’t believe it when I heard they’d left. They’d always seemed pretty settled to me, your folks. Happy and that. I was quite surprised when they went through with it. I suppose I thought they’d pull out at the last minute but they didn’t. Off they went. I was so shocked.’

‘You and me both,’ said Sophia. ‘But they’re both very happy in their new home and that’s all that matters, isn’t it? I think you can grow tired of a place if you’re there for too long, and perhaps that’s how they were beginning to feel here. They lived here for forty odd years so it’s understandable in a way.’ She shrugged. ‘Still, they’re not too far away for a visit off me and Esther. I think they like having that distance between us, you know? We’re not in each other’s pockets but they’re still there, if we need them.’

‘I understand. I suppose it’s more of an occasion when you and Esther go to see them, rather than popping in and out all the time. Lift your head up for me, sweetheart. There we go, perfect.’ Cath snipped some more. ‘And what about you, Sophia? Is there a man on the scene yet? Anyone special in your life?’

‘Not yet,’ replied Sophia. ‘Honestly, I don’t feel like there’s room in my life for a man.’ Her thoughts turned to Michael. ‘What with working at the post office and looking after Esther, there’s barely time for me to just be me, never mind adding a man into the mix. Not sure how I’d find the time to entertain one.’

‘Well, that’s no good, is it? What about that online dating malarkey? Have you thought about giving that a go? It’s quick and simple. Thinking about it, I could set you up on a date with my grandson Simon. He’s about the same age as you. Good lad too. He’s on the lookout for a woman, tired of the single life now. He works full-time, takes good care of himself, and tells a cracking joke or two. What do you reckon?’

Sophia was trying her best not to cringe. Being set up on a date by Cath was a bit… much, wasn’t it? Simon sounded nice but she didn’t know him. He could be anyone. Still, Cath was a genuine woman and if she said he was an okay guy then Sophia trusted that he was. What was she even thinking of here? ‘I’m not too sure… Like I said, what with Esther and work, it’s tricky too organise anything that…’

‘Nonsense. You know as well as I do that you’re making excuses. Why? You’re a gorgeous, young, independent woman, Sophia. I bet, if you put yourself out there, you’d have a line of men waiting to take you out. Come on, give it a whirl. See what happens. I promise you he’s nothing out of the ordinary. Just a genuinely nice guy who I know would enjoy your company. Go on, make my grandson’s day!’

As her name suggested, Sophia Good was a good person at heart, and now she felt as if she couldn’t turn down Cath’s offer without insulting her in some way. She wriggled uncomfortably in the seat and chewed her bottom lip. She caught Cath’s persuasive gaze in the mirror and felt herself cave immediately. ‘Okay. Fine. Let’s do it.’ Perhaps it was time to add a little excitement to her days, after all? It would be nice to have something to look forward to.

‘Really?’ Cath waved her arms in the air in celebration. ‘Fantastic! Oh, he’ll be chuffed to bits, and wait till I tell him what a cracker you are. He won’t be able to believe his flipping luck. Once we’re done here, I’ll take your phone number and text it across to him.’

Cath continued cutting Sophia’s hair while wearing a massive, almost manic, grin and Sophia wondered what on earth she had just let herself in for. She’d only popped into the salon for a quick cut to tidy herself up a bit. Now, thanks to her inability to say no to people, she’d be leaving with a date lined up for some time in the very near future with a man she had never even met.

*

By the time she’d dropped Esther off at school the following morning, Sophia had already heard from Simon. He seemed eager to meet her and had been texting her non-stop ever since the first message had arrived the previous evening while Sophia had been cooking Esther’s dinner in the kitchen. She’d frowned at the unknown number when it had popped up on-screen, until he’d signed the message off with a friendly ‘Simon x’. The conversation had flowed easily between them since, and Sophia was enjoying chatting to someone new and getting to know him.

Simon was thirty-one and worked at a call centre full-time. He’d said he couldn’t wait to take her out and was nothing but kind and complimentary, but the thought of having to meet him face-to-face and find something to talk about while sitting opposite him sent nerves raging in her stomach, and she wished, not for the first time, that she’d turned down Cath’s offer as soon as the kind woman had made it. Now Simon had her number, Sophia knew it would be almost impossible to get him to delete it. And alongside all those dating worries was Michael, and what he’d think, and what he’d say.

Part of Sophia, the stupid romantic part that still believed in ridiculous fairy tales and non-existent happy-ever-afters, imagined that the thought of her going on a date would make Michael jealous, but then the rational part of her mind kicked in and she saw sense once again. After all, he’d been pushing her to dip her toe into the world of dating recently, simply because he was being brave enough to do it himself and wanted her to be brave too. So he wouldn’t be jealous. If anything, he’d be happy for her.

So, why did she feel so miserable since he’d announced he was venturing into the world of online dating? Why did she feel jealous? It wasn’t like she’d ever made him aware of her feelings. She’d kept it all inside, telling herself she was simply waiting for the right moment to arrive, but the thing was, the right moment had probably passed her by and now she’d gone and stuffed the whole thing up.

Once her morning shift at the post office had finished, Sophia headed home. She needed to find something to wear for the fast-approaching reunion. Just a week to go, so she was hoping next-day delivery was an option. With her legs tucked beneath her and a hot cup of coffee at her side, she eyed the items on-screen, but she wasn’t entirely sure what she was looking for.

A couple of hours passed, leading Sophia nicely into early afternoon as she went from one retail site to the next, trying and failing to imagine herself in any of the dresses that caught her eye. Just when she was about to give up, she paused and looked twice. On the screen was a simple yet gorgeous floor-length, backless black dress. She eyed it in contemplative silence for a few seconds, wondering whether she’d be able to pull it off. She wasn’t sure she’d ever worn anything like it before. It was classy. It was sexy without revealing too much. Not too expensive either, so Sophia decided to go for it, and once she’d added a pair of black stilettos to her basket, along with a sparkly black clutch, she proceeded to the checkout with a sense of accomplishment.

*

The next morning, Sophia spotted Michael waiting for her at the school gates. They walked together to the café once free of their kids.