Watching You: A Novel

Freddie saw her the moment he walked in. She was wearing his dress. ‘You’re wearing my dress,’ he said.

Romola looked at him strangely. ‘No,’ she said. ‘This is not your dress. It’s my dress. You gave it to me.’

‘That’s true,’ he said. ‘You look beautiful in it.’

‘Thank you. You look incredibly cool.’

Freddie glanced down at his black suit and red tie and shiny black shoes and said, ‘Thank you.’ Then he said, ‘You didn’t tell me if you wanted me to be your date or not. I just decided I’d come anyway.’

Romola smiled. ‘I’m glad you came. I couldn’t decide and I couldn’t decide and I kept thinking about what I should say to you because I knew you’d be waiting to find out. And then my mum said I should leave it to destiny. So that’s what I did.’

‘Destiny?’

‘Yes. She said I should just come to the dance and that if you came too I could decide then.’

‘And have you decided?’

She looked him up and down and smiled. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘Literally this very minute. I’d like you to be my date.’