Read Online From Pasta to Pigfoot by Frances Mensah Williams - Free Book Online Page B

fan base was growing daily and Dermot was proving particularly popular with the young girls that queued up for hours to get into their gigs.
    Faye sighed with regret. ‘No, Caro, much as I love Dermot, I don’t think I would be very good company at the moment. Besides, I’m sure Marcus wouldn’t mind an evening out alone with you for a change,’ she giggled. ‘Actually, just getting you out of the house at all will be excitement enough! You two are such a boring couple and you’ve only been living together for a year.’
    â€˜That’s not true!’ Caroline said indignantly. ‘We go out loads of times.’
    Faye was silent for a few moments waiting for her friend’s honesty to get the better of her. Caroline was legendary for her total dedication to the cause of lounging.She loathed any kind of physical exertion with a passion and had even been known to pretend not to hear the fire alarm at her office because she couldn’t bear the thought of climbing down four flights of stairs. She loved watching television as much as she hated physical effort and was guaranteed to be found on the sofa, TV remote in hand, within minutes of getting home from work.
    â€˜Okay,’ she admitted reluctantly. ‘So I can be just a teeny bit addicted to watching telly.’
    Faye snorted with laughter. ‘A teeny bit?’ Speaking with a fake whine in her voice, she went on. ‘“I’m sooo sorry, Faye, Corrie’s on tonight and I’m already recording two other TV shows, so can we go to that exclusive concert that you’ve only got once-in-a-lifetime tickets for another day…?”’
    â€˜Okay, okay, point taken,’ Caroline laughed. ‘Mind you, now that Marcus and I are together, we don’t need to go out looking any more. So why bother?’ She sighed blissfully, her voice dripping with smugness.
    Faye rolled her eyes but had to admit that Caroline had a point. Marcus O’Neill was a successful stockbroker who met all of Caroline’s father’s marital aspirations for his daughter. Marcus was both Irish and very wealthy, having co-founded a successful hedge fund in his early thirties and Mr Duffy had fallen in love with him at first sight. Fortunately, Caroline had also followed suit and, after two years of dating, she had moved into his spacious bachelor pad, having first insisted that he order a bouncy new sofa and the full Sky TV package.
    Dr Bonsu, who was fond of Caroline, had shaken his head in sorrow when Faye had excitedly broken the newsto him. Like many Africans of his generation, the thought of his daughter living with a man without the benefit of marriage went against both his Catholic upbringing and the norms of his society. Although William and Lucinda had been seeing each other for over three years, William continued to live at home, although only in deference to his father’s wishes. Any suggestion of moving out to live with Lucinda inevitably led to the ‘road to moral decadence’ speech from the doctor. As far as their unrelenting father was concerned, both Faye and William would live with their future partners only after marriage.
    Just then Faye spotted her boss approaching her desk with more speed than his heavy frame usually allowed.
    â€˜Caro, I’ve got to go!’ she whispered urgently. ‘I’ll call you later!’ Sliding her phone under the papers on her desk, she smiled guiltily up at her boss.
    â€˜I’ll just print the agreement out now and bring it through to you, Mr Fiske,’ she said brightly, trying to sound efficient.
    Peering at her anxiously through his round rimless glasses, her boss made no move to return to his office and continued to hover at her desk. The meeting with his client was scheduled to start in ten minutes and the signing of this agreement was the main reason for the appointment. Faye glanced across at him and felt a pang of guilt as she saw him