Kitty spied a woman wiping her eye with a napkin. She caught another rolling her eyes.
‘Will you do me the honour of being my wife?’
Despite the fact all knew this was coming, there was another rumble of excitement, which again was quickly hushed as all eyes were on Mary-Rose, waiting for her answer.
She looked at Sam, smiled that beautiful perfect smile and said, ‘Yes.’
That was all everybody needed. The room erupted in celebration, the manager was quick to join the table and offer his congratulations, where he announced they would all receive drinks on the house. A friendly man at the table beside them sent a glass of champagne to the bride- and groom-to-be, and Sam, who had previously been sitting at the head of the table, bumped up a friend so that he could sit beside his new fiancée. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and she leaned in and covered her face.
‘I’m going to kill you,’ she said so quietly that only Kitty could hear.
‘Just smile and wave,’ Sam said, a grin on his face, and she finally looked up and waved her thanks at the neighbouring tables offering their congratulations.
‘Guys, I don’t mean to rain on your parade,’ Kitty said finally, ‘but I’m so confused. I thought your name was Mary-Rose Godfrey.’
Sam laughed.
‘Oh, Kitty, I’m so sorry.’ She turned to Kitty and kept her voice down. ‘It is Mary-Rose. Don’t mind him, he’s always doing this.’
‘Always doing what?’
‘Proposing! It’s just this weird thing that he does. It’s not real.’ She became serious. ‘You do know it wasn’t real?’
Kitty’s mouth dropped.
Sam howled.
‘But it was so beautiful,’ Kitty said, disappointed.
‘You see?’ Sam exclaimed, looking at Mary-Rose. ‘Other people find it touching.’
‘Then do it to someone else for a change.’
‘It’s more fun with you, sweetheart.’ He squeezed her even tighter and she scowled. ‘My little shnookums here doesn’t always appreciate it.’
Kitty looked from one to the other. ‘So you just randomly propose to people when you’re out.’
‘Not just people. Just Mary-Rose. I know she secretly likes it.’
‘I hate it.’
‘She doesn’t always know how best to express it, though.’
Kitty laughed. ‘And you do this when you’re out.’
‘Restaurants, bars, cafés, you should try it sometime. You will always get a free drink. One time our entire meal was complimentary, another time we got that bottle of champagne, remember?’
Mary-Rose nodded.
‘So you do this for free food and drink?’
‘And to bring sunshine to Mary-Rose’s days. Now, now, don’t look so angry, sweetheart, we just got engaged. People are looking and here come our free drinks. If you don’t perk up I’ll kiss you.’
Mary-Rose pasted a smile on her face so quickly Kitty was in hysterics.
The free drinks arrived with a complimentary dessert plate for the happy couple with ‘Congratulations’ written in balsamic dressing at the bottom of the plate.
‘Last time we got a free meal,’ Sam said quietly so that the manager wouldn’t hear. He handed Mary-Rose a spoon.
‘You’ve proposed here before?’ Kitty asked.
‘Oh, no, always a different place,’ Sam explained. ‘A criminal never returns to the scene of the crime.’
‘Actually they do,’ Mary-Rose said. ‘That’s the saying. A criminal always returns to the scene of the crime.’
Sam frowned. They were almost nose-to-nose, they looked so comfortable together, so at ease and yet it was all fake. Kitty doubted that. Somebody must have felt something. She thought about her and Steve, how so often people commented that there must be more to their relationship, despite her persistent denials. They wouldn’t say it any more now he had Katja. She swallowed, feeling a shocking sadness sweep over her.
‘But that’s stupid,’ Sam said. ‘Why would they go back to the scene?’
‘That’s the point. They are stupid. They make mistakes and they go back or else it’s for self-gratification. They get cocky. Just like you wanting to come back here and do this again.’
‘I wouldn’t do that.’
‘In about a year I bet you’d risk it.’
They continued their debate and Kitty turned to watch everyone around her. It was undeniable that the atmosphere had completely transformed since Sam’s proposal. Everyone resumed their conversations but this time it was with more gusto. The energy had picked up in the room, it was louder, there was more laughter, people had fed off their happiness, and whether they believed in love or not they were willing to celebrate on the young couple’s behalf and bask in the glow of those who did. Sam had done more than get a free drink or a free meal, he’d done more than embarrass his friend, he’d lifted spirits, he’d brought everyone around them together, at least if only for a few minutes. He had done something very special.
Mary-Rose returned home to the sound of the television on upstairs as usual. She dumped her bag and coat on the stairs and went straight upstairs to her mother’s bedroom. She was sitting up in bed, propped up by cushions, watching late-night infomercials. Her new obsession was with the kitchen knives, not the knives themselves but she loved watching the chefs chop at top speed. Mary-Rose read into it that her mother missed being able to be so agile, to chop and cook as she used to, but it could simply be nothing more than a fascination with the speed of professionals. She didn’t like to think about it too much, though she was sure she probably would as she dedicated much of her day to thinking about what her mother could no longer do.
She greeted her with a kiss. ‘Do you need to go to the toilet?’
Her mother nodded and Mary-Rose took her arms and lifted them over her own shoulders, pushed back the bedclothes, scooped her arms under her mother’s legs and lifted. Her mother was heavy; it always surprised her how much heavier she was than she looked each time she picked her up. Trying to stay steady, she slowly made her way to the en-suite bathroom and lowered her mother to the ground, where her mother held on to the safety bar on the wall while Mary-Rose pulled her panties down and lowered her to the seat. She turned her back then, her mother liked her to, and she tried to drift away in her mind to give her as much privacy as she could.
Her mother’s muffled words snapped her out of her tired trance. Nobody but their care worker and her closest friend, Sam’s mother, would understand what she had said – her words were like that of a child – but Mary-Rose smiled, then laughed.
‘Yes, Mom, he proposed again.’
Her mother spoke again, and Mary-Rose shook her head. ‘No. Don’t be silly. It’s just a bit of fun.’
But for some reason, that night, of all the nights that Sam had proposed, tonight her mother’s comment made her think. A startling thought that for the first time didn’t quite repel her.
Three things happened that Sunday to make it officially the worst day of Kitty’s life.
First, after Kitty had got home from the restaurant she’d