Read Online The One That Got Away by Lucy Dawson - Free Book Online

off?’
    ‘No, I don’t,’ he slowed down slightly. ‘It’s fine. It doesn’t matter, just relax.’
    It didn’t matter?
    Whoa, whoa, WHOA! Yes, it did.
    I felt myself shrink away from him immediately. ‘Just stop a minute.’
    He didn’t. ‘That feels amazing.’
    ‘Dan!’ I shouted. And then I hit his shoulder, hard.
    He stopped and then reached out and fumbled with the light switch. I winced at the look on his face. ‘Did you just hit me?’
     he said incredulously.
    ‘You weren’t listening to me!’
    ‘Because I told you it was fine! What’s the matter with you?’
    I hesitated, having a massive moment of self-doubt now that the light was on and he was looking down at me completely confused
     … ‘You said it didn’t matter, and it does.’
    ‘I meant it didn’t matter because it was all OK.’
    ‘It’s just, you were really quick putting it on!’
    ‘Well it’s not my first time, is it?’ He exhaled heavily, propping his body weight up on his hands. ‘That’ssuccessfully killed the mood.’ He eased back, lay down beside me and stared up at the ceiling.
    ‘Why did you want the light off? We never do that.’ I said, my mind still racing.
    ‘Yes we do!’ he said, baffled. ‘And so what if …’ Then his expression changed. ‘Hang on. What are you saying?’
    There was a very ugly silence.
    ‘I didn’t see you put it on,’ I said in a small voice. ‘I couldn’t feel it. I …’
    ‘What,
exactly
, are you saying?’ he said ominously.
    ‘It’s just … I saw you with that pin … and now suddenly I can’t feel—’
    ‘I
knew
it! Fucking hell!’ He sat up sharply. ‘Without meaning to be crude, don’t you think you would have noticed afterwards that
     I hadn’t been wearing one?’
    ‘But it would have been too late by then, wouldn’t it?’ The words were out there before I could stop them.
    He said nothing, just gave me an utterly disgusted look as he quickly threw the bed covers back, got up and left the room.
     I reached for my T-shirt as I heard him banging around in the bathroom, and then he came back in, towel round his waist.
    ‘Stalling is one thing,’ he said angrily, ‘but this? Accusing me of stuff I would never do? All I wanted – heaven forbid –
     was to have sex with you.’
    ‘OK, OK, I’m sorry.’ Panicking slightly, I tried to calm him down. ‘But Dan, you can’t blame me for having doubts when—’
    ‘Doubts?’ he said incredulously. ‘You didn’t just say that! I’m your
husband
!’
    I paused.
    ‘I can’t believe you think I’d actually do something like that!’ He began to raise his voice.
    ‘Dan! Shhh!’ I hissed. ‘They’ll hear us next door.’
    ‘I don’t care,’ he shouted, then he kicked the edge of the wardrobe in frustration and his towel fell off. All the moment
     needed was a comedy sound effect. He immediately bent to pick it up and ordinarily, if we’d been arguing about anything else,
     it would have diffused everything. I would have laughed, he’d have grinned sheepishly, and the argument would have ended.
     Instead I heard the unmistakable sound of a wail through our rented ricepaper walls. He’d woken up next-door’s toddler.
    ‘Don’t. Say. Anything,’ Dan pointed a finger at me warningly. He stomped round the bed and began to pull on his tracksuit
     bottoms.
    ‘Where are you going?’ I said as he marched out.
    ‘I’m sleeping on the sofa bed.’
    ‘Oh don’t be such a baby!’ I called after him, and then closed my eyes in regret at my crass but totally unplanned choice
     of words.
    ‘Is that supposed to be funny?’ He came straight back in. ‘You think this is all a joke?’
    ‘No, of course not. I just made a mistake. I meant …’
    ‘Well try this one; my wife – who I love more than anything – doesn’t seem to want a baby with me.’ His voice cracked. ‘Hysterical
     isn’t it?’
    ‘You’re absolutely right I don’t – not like this,’ my voice was suddenly thick with