Heart to Hart ✔️

18. Dinner confessions

Sian greeted us with a bottle of red wine in her hand and a beaming smile on her face when we arrived at her flat, Sunday evening. I had rung her, earlier that day, to make sure she had enough room at the table for Alec.

Her apartment could have easily been a showroom for Ikea. From the entrance to her stylish white kitchen, there was not one item out of place. I walked through each room, noting it hadn't only been cleaned in anticipation of our arrival.

"This is such a lovely flat, Sian. It feels so homely," I complimented as I looked around her bedroom. Alec was in the kitchen with James, talking about a player transfer in some football team. Sian and I had left that discussion as soon as it started.

"Thanks, babes. I love it here. Mum and dad helped kit it out and James is already house trained," she giggled and took a sip of her wine. "So what do you think of him so far? I was so nervous before you arrived."

I flopped down onto her bed and bounced up and down a few times. "He seems nice. Nicer than the other Reed brother."

"He is, isn't he? And he's so hot! Oh, if only you knew the things he does with his–"

"Sian, food's ready," James yelled from the kitchen.

"A confession, I'll save for later." She winked. "Come on, let's eat." Sian pulled me up from her bed and through to the small dining table in their living room.

Dinner went better than I expected. James was actually quite witty. I felt awful for having misjudged him all these years. Alec appeared to like him too, football being their main topic of conversation. James didn't hide the fact he was once a player, but reassured us those days were long behind him. It was easy to see the love between Sian and him. She hung on every word that left his lips, and he looked at her as if he was discovering something new about her each time.

When Sian left the table to get dessert, Alec rushed after her asking if he could help. Throughout dinner, I noticed him nervously picking at his paper napkin. Small pieces of the white material flew to the floor as he stood up.

James stared at my side as I sat turned towards the closed-off kitchen. "So when did you and Alec become a thing?"

"Oh, we're not a couple," I answered as I faced him and took a slow sip of the drink Sian had left in front of me. My nose scrunched up. I was still not a fan of red wine as the horrible taste lingered on my tongue.

"Oh, okay. What do you reckon they are talking about?" James shuffled back in his chair and crossed his arms.

"Beats me. Alec's probably playing the big brother part and making sure she's happy."

Sian came bursting into the room, two chocolate mousses in her hands, shaking her head. A red-faced Alec followed behind her with the other two desserts.

The four of us sat there in awkward silence as our spoons clinked against the glass of the bowls. Every so often, James would rub Sian's knee as she glared at a sheepish Alec.

I needed to know what had happened in the five minutes they spent alone in the kitchen. I excused myself from the table, asking Sian if she could help me with the invisible chocolate stain on my forest green dress.

Once in her bathroom, I locked the door behind us and perched on the edge of the bathtub. Sian lowered the toilet seat so she could sit down.

"There's no chocolate stain, is there?" she sighed. She bent forward to rest her elbows on her knees and her chin on her upturned palms.

"No." I ran my hands through my hair. "Before you explain what happened in there, with Alec, I need you to listen to me and not interrupt. I know you think it's a bad idea, but I think I'm ready to see how my feelings for Alec play out. I don't think I want him to just be my friend. When we're together, I want more, and I'm scared I'll regret it if I don't try," I confessed.