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Christy sodding Blake.
    ‘I’m so sorry, Jack. Do you want me to go
get a tattoo to make up for it?’
    Eventually he smiled, and I started
breathing again. ‘I forgive you, and it seems harsh to make you go
under the needle now. Besides, I still love my Tweety.’
    I kissed his shoulder. ‘So do I.’
    ‘Are you hungry at all?’ he asked, my
misdemeanor apparently forgotten. ‘I’m peckish. Why don’t I fix us
a snack? I think we’ve got some cheese and biscuits.’ He bounced
out of bed, grabbing the thick brown robe hanging behind the door,
and left me to my thoughts.
    It was an impossible situation, and not only
because I’d lose Jack if I told him the truth. This was bigger than
our relationship. It was as if my past was being erased. With each
date more of the hurt, the confusion and anger of my teenage years
were rubbed away. That left a clean slate to fill any way I liked.
I couldn’t lose Jack. Not now, when I- when I what? Loved him? Did
I love Jack? Well, if you call the deep tickle in your guts or
heart palpitations at the thought of him or fantasies about
spending the rest of our lives together love, then yes, I suppose I
did love him.
    I loved Jack. Jesus, now what was I
going to do?
    I jumped a mile when a grey ball of fur
landed on the bed. His purrs rumbled as soon as I tickled under his
chin. ‘Hello. Who are you?’ I whispered. His yellow eyes bore into
mine from a perfectly round face that made him look like a hairy
china doll.
    ‘Get off, Felix!’ Jack said as he made a
grab for the cat, who deftly evaded him by climbing onto my belly
for a cuddle.
    ‘Oh it’s all right. I don’t mind.’
    ‘You’re not allergic?’
    ‘Hmm?’ I nuzzled Felix’s soft grey fur,
sending him into purry overdrive.
    ‘I thought you were going to die when you
had that reaction to Lily le Bon’s scarf.’
    A memory surfaced at the mention of Lily le
Bon. It was big news round the school. The day Lily le Bon’s
cat-hair-covered scarf nearly killed a classmate. Poor Lily was
never quite one of the popular girls after that. ‘Ah, yes,
darnedest thing. I outgrew it. I’m fine with cats now.’
    ‘Good, because I’d hate to lose you now.’ He
kissed me again. I kissed back, thinking the exact same thing.
     

Chapter 6
     
    Kate and I made a breakthrough about a month
after her volleyball incident. It was clear to me that she needed
to find her way around bullies like Ariadne. But she couldn’t do
that without some confidence. The time had come to look beyond the
science to help her.
    ‘Tea?’ I asked as she shrugged off her coat
and slumped in the chair.
    ‘No thanks. I had a chamomile tea with lemon
before I came.’
    ‘Really??’
    ‘Gullible,’ she sang. ‘But you’ll be pleased
to know that Mum has banned caffeine in the house.’
    ‘What, for the whole family?’
    ‘Yeah, Dad’s fuming. She makes him drink it
at his office.’
    ‘Sorry about your dad but it’s a step in the
right direction. You can always have a cup of hot water if you’ve
got a craving.’
    ‘Mmm, sounds delicious. I can’t wait to go
home and try it.’
    I smiled. ‘Fine. How about more fruit?’
    ‘Can’t we talk about something else?’
    ‘Your parents pay me to talk about
nutrition.’
    ‘And look how successful that’s been,’ she
said. Then, noting my expression: ‘I’m sorry. I don’t mean that
you’re not a good dietician. I’m sure you are. You’re just dealing
with a very difficult client.’
    I sighed. ‘Kate. Don’t you want help to
change the things you’re finding difficult right now?’
    She thought about this for a moment. ‘I
don’t see how eating my veggies or drinking herbal tea is going to
do that. Even if I was thin, Ariadne would still make my life
miserable.’
    ‘It’s not about being thin. It’s about being
fit and healthy. That could give you more confidence and then you
wouldn’t be such an easy target for the bullies.’
    ‘Look at me, Ms. Markham. I mean really