Cameron looked around. ‘I figured if you lived in Ocean Village it would be a smart pad but wow this is a gorgeous place you have.’
Ros was happy to take compliments about her home. The modern top-floor apartment with wrap-around balcony and views over the marina was her pride and joy. ‘Thank you.’
Cameron came to stand next to her and whistled through his teeth. ‘That is some list. I know you said you wanted to go over a few details but this is a whole workshop. I bet you don’t usually workshop your relationships.’ He laughed.
Ros sidled over to the flip chart pad and tore off a couple of pages, hastily folded them on her way to the recycling box. He didn’t need to know about the disastrous session with her last boyfriend.
‘Anyway I’d best get these in some water,’ she said, scanning Cameron as she picked up the flowers. He looked all studenty in his hoodie, ripped jeans and canvas pumps. ‘Would you like a drink?’
‘A beer would be great, thanks.’
‘I meant tea or coffee,’ said Ros.
‘Gotcha. Builder’s tea, two sugars please.’ There was an awkward silence while Ros made the drinks. It was beyond weird to have this virtual stranger in her home. She wasn’t blessed in the small-talk department as it was and this was stretching her skills.
‘Did you come far?’ she asked.
‘Portswood. I’m in a house share there.’
‘I remember my shared house. Awful, I don’t envy you going back to university. Master’s or PHD?’
‘It’s my first time at uni. I’m studying for a BSc in Computer Science.’
‘Oh,’ said Ros, not really knowing what else to say. ‘Anyway, shall we crack on?’ She passed him his tea.
‘Sure. Can I ask about your dad? His diagnosis is really tough on both of you.’
‘Thanks. It was a bit of a shock. Well, huge shock actually. He’d been fine. Just a bit tired. His GP sent him for a blood test and . . .’ Ros didn’t want to relive the series of appointments that had led them to the diagnosis.
‘Sorry.’
‘It’s fine.’ She lifted her chin. ‘What did you want to know?’
‘What’s his name?’
‘Barry.’
‘Is he in hospital or . . .’
‘He’s at home for now.’ She’d had some leaflets about care options but they were still in the kitchen drawer, although she knew she’d have to face them at some stage.
‘That’s good. And what’s he like?’
Ros had a think. ‘He’s kind and generous. The sort of person you know will do everything they can for you. He retired early a couple of years ago but until then he worked hard. He ran his own business and he brought me up single-handed.’ Ros had to take a moment to keep her emotions in check.
‘He did a good job,’ said Cameron. ‘With you, I mean.’
‘Thank you.’
‘Anything else?’ he asked.
‘He makes the best Yorkshire puddings,’ she said. ‘Please can we turn our focus to you? We have a lot to cover.’
‘Sure. You’ve probably checked if I’ve got a criminal record.’ Ros let out a nervous laugh. ‘Although I’m surprised you still invited me over.’ Oh heavens, thought Ros. What on earth had he done? She would berate Darla later for letting a criminal into her home. Cameron waved a hand in front of her to get her attention. ‘I’m joking. I’ve never even had a speeding fine but that’s because I don’t have a car.’ Cameron chuckled. Ros found she was staring at him. Why would someone joke about being a criminal? She was baffled by this man. ‘Well, clearly I’m not as funny as I thought I was. What else do you want to know about me?’
‘I’ve made a list,’ said Ros, making a mental note to see how to find out about people’s criminal records, just in case.
Cameron helped Ros move the flip chart stand nearer to the table in the dining area and she went back to the first page, which had a dividing line with areas of interest on the left and space on the right for Ros to fill in the answers. ‘Your full name is Cameron . . .’
‘Cameron Alfred DeFelice.’
Was it too much to ask that he had a simple name? ‘DeFelice. Is that hyphenated?’
‘Nope. Just plain old DeFelice. Gran did some digging on the internet and we have Italian roots.’
‘How interesting,’ said Ros, adding the names to the chart as well as his initials. ‘C-A-D. Cad. Hmm. That doesn’t bode well for a suitor. Maybe we should change your surname.’ She said it more to herself than Cameron.
‘I don’t think we should overcomplicate things. Maybe not change things unless we really have to. It’s more likely I’ll forget and slip up.’
Ros spun around. ‘Do you have memory issues?’
Cameron chuckled. ‘No, but I’ve seen your list and I think there might be a lot to remember.’
They filled in some basic information about his family. ‘Tell me about your family,’ said Cameron, taking a sip from his mug. ‘Nice tea by the way. You make a great cuppa.’
Ros was surprised by the compliment. ‘Thank you. I don’t think we need to go into any great detail about me. Dad will be interested in you.’
‘Yeah, but I don’t want to get caught out. If we’re in a relationship there’s stuff I should know like . . .’ He looked to the ceiling as he thought. ‘What was your first pet’s name?’
