reply. ‘The pre-summer sales are on at Tuggerah tomorrow.’
‘Where the hell is Tuggerah?’
‘You don’t know the coast too well, do you?’
‘I know the Erina shopping centre. Why don’t you go there? I could meet you and we could have coffee. Or lunch?’
‘I don’t think so, Jack. Don’t forget, I’m only going with you tomorrow night as a favour. It is not a real date. It’s a one-off. There won’t be any encores. Or prequels. Take it or leave it, Jack.’
‘I’ll take it,’ he said, and smiled to himself.
You can pretend to yourself all you like, sweetheart. But tomorrow night is not going to be any one-off. You like me. I can tell. Tomorrow night is just the beginning.
‘I’ll pick you up at six,’ he added. ‘That will give us plenty of time to get down to Sydney. Now, where do you live? Give me your address and some directions so that I don’t get lost. And your mobile number, in case I need to contact you tomorrow and you’re not home.’
‘Why would you need to contact me?’
‘The world’s an unpredictable place, Lisa. I like to be prepared.’
‘That’s what Hal always says.’
‘Does he? Well, I suppose I do have some things in common with my main man.’
Like his womanising ways, Lisa thought, suddenly concerned over her decision to go out with Jack.
What on earth had she been thinking when she let him change her mind?
She’d rung him up to put him in his place and ended up agreeing to be his pretend girlfriend for the night, letting him persuade her with the promise of adult company, great food and the fantasy of actually having some fun.
But what fun would it be if she was on tenterhooks all night, worried about fighting him off at the front door?
‘You’re not having second thoughts, are you?’
Lisa rolled her eyes. What was he, a mind-reader?
‘Not at all,’ she replied crisply. If he did try something when he brought her home, she’d be ready for him. He wouldn’t get so much as a toe in her front door.
‘How about your address and phone number, then? I have pen and paper at the ready.’
She gave him both, plus good directions. It was perfectly clear, however, that he hadn’t been far afield from Terrigal, since he’d never heard of Tumbi Umbi Road.
‘There’s a Central Coast map in the local phone directory,’ she said. ‘Study it up.’
‘I’ll do that. And thanks, Lisa. I really appreciate your coming with me. You’re a good sport.’
A good sport. Was that what playboys called foolish females these days?
‘Bye for now,’ he said breezily. ‘See you tomorrow night.’
Tomorrow night…
Just the thought made her feel sick.
Oh, Lisa, Lisa, what have you done?
Chapter Six
LISA’S chest tightened as it always did when she pulled into the driveway of her mother’s place. Not so much these days because the ramshackle farmhouse would be a mess. But because her mother always seemed to say something to get her hackles up.
Lisa could hear implied criticism in even the most innocent of her mother’s comments. As soon as she pulled up on the weed-filled patch of lawn which masqueraded as a front garden, Cory was out of the car like a shot, running up onto the veranda and giving his emerging grandma a big hug before dashing off to play on the tyre which swung from a nearby tree.
‘Thanks for looking after Cory for me, Mum,’ Lisa called out through the driver’s window, trying not to really look at her mother. But it was impossible. Her hair was as red as the red in the multicoloured kaftan she was wearing. ‘Not sure what time I’ll be back. Probably not till after lunch.’
Lisa had decided on the way here not to tell her mother about going out tonight till she returned from shopping. She’d say she’d run into this mythical girl-friend at Tuggerah and been asked out when another girlfriend couldn’t go with her.
‘What’s the hurry?’ Jill Chapman called back as she walked down the rickety front steps. ‘Can’t you come in for a cup of coffee?’
‘I’ll do that when I come back. I don’t want to be late. You know what the parking’s like when the sales are on.’
‘You look very nice today,’ her mother said, drawing closer to the driver’s window. ‘There again, you always look nice. I wouldn’t have thought you needed any new clothes.’
Lisa struggled to find a smile. ‘Actually, I’m looking for Christmas presents today. But I think it’s always good to buy a few new things at the start of each season,’ she said through clenched teeth. ‘Otherwise, your wardrobe ends up getting very dated.’
‘Like mine, you mean,’ her mother said with a hearty laugh.
‘I didn’t say that.’
‘You didn’t have to. I know I look like an escapee from the sixties most of the time. But that’s what I am.’
Who would have guessed? Lisa thought wearily.
‘I have to go, Mum,’ she said. ‘Keep an eye on Cory, would you? Don’t let him wander off.’ Her mother lived on a small acreage in the Yarramalong Valley, where there was a lot of bush. And snakes.
‘He’ll be fine.’
Lisa sighed under her breath as she waved goodbye and drove off. That was what her mother always said. And what she thought. Everything and everyone was always fine. Except her daughter, of course. Her daughter was a fussy, frigid fool who had no idea how to relax, or really enjoy herself.
Maybe she was right, Lisa conceded unexpectedly for the first time in her life. Here she was, going out to a slap-up dinner in Sydney tonight with her favourite author and was she happy? No! She was already worrying herself sick over how to act and what might or might not happen when Jack brought her home.
At least her mother was always happy. She’d been happy even after her husband left her.
I should be happy, Lisa lectured herself as she drove towards Tuggerah. I have a lovely home. A wonderful son. A flourishing business. And a good, if irritating, mother.
I also shouldn’t be worrying about tonight. I am an adult woman, in control over what happens to me and what does not. If Jack makes a pass, I can handle it. There’s no reason why I can’t relax and enjoy myself.
The trouble was she always had difficulty relaxing. She seemed condemned to feel slightly uptight about everything, as if nothing was ever quite right, or good enough, or clean enough.
Lisa pulled a face. She was sick of this. Sick of herself.
Thank goodness it wasn’t far from her mother’s house to the shopping centre, the sight of Tuggerah ahead soothing her anxiety somewhat. Clothes shopping was one thing she did truly enjoy. She had a good sense of fashion and knew what suited her. When she’d attended the company Christmas parties with Greg he’d always been very proud of her.
Hopefully, Jack would feel just as proud when he came to pick her up tonight.
‘You don’t mind, Mum?’ Lisa said, glancing up from where she was sitting at her mother’s messy kitchen table, sipping coffee. The clock on the wall showed ten to one. Finding that special dress had taken Lisa longer than she’d anticipated.
‘Mind? Why should I mind? I love having Cory over.’
‘Where