Read Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend Online
Authors: Jenny Colgan
Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend (38 page)
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Finally they did and, jiggling slightly, he turned to face her. The dark bristle on his unshaven face suited him, she thought, made his jawline taut and his cheekbones more evident. He grinned at her, more awkwardly than he had since the first moment they’d met, at that gruesome conference in Northumberland two years ago.
‘Posy,’ he said suddenly, swallowing.
And Posy found herself thinking, stupidly: I wonder how your face should look when you’re being proposed to. Happy? Obviously. Surprised? Sexily surprised? How would that work? Maybe pretend you’re getting an Oscar. No, hang on, don’t pretend it’s
anything
, this is one of the most amazing experiences of your life that you’re meant to remember for ever! But then, the last thing you want to think of is whether or not you were making a pig’s face. Or even thinking about your face at all, instead of love, and the future, and the wonderfulness of it all! Why hadn’t she put more lipstick on? What if he wasn’t about to propose and she’d got it all wrong? Maybe he was going to chuck her. But on top of a mountain? Who would do that? Maybe he was going to chuck her
off
the mountain?
anything
, this is one of the most amazing experiences of your life that you’re meant to remember for ever! But then, the last thing you want to think of is whether or not you were making a pig’s face. Or even thinking about your face at all, instead of love, and the future, and the wonderfulness of it all! Why hadn’t she put more lipstick on? What if he wasn’t about to propose and she’d got it all wrong? Maybe he was going to chuck her. But on top of a mountain? Who would do that? Maybe he was going to chuck her
off
the mountain?
‘Uh, Posy, are you all right? You look like you’re about to be sick.’
Posy managed to hold it together. Vomiting was definitely
not
the look she was after. No. There was a long moment of silence, and in the distance a bird circled the sun. Posy turned to look at it, giving what she felt was a nice polite long stare. And sure enough, when she turned round again, Matt was very uncomfortably perched on one knee. Suddenly, she didn’t have to worry about her face, because she could feel her heart leap straight into her mouth, and an uncontrollable grin start to stretch into her cheeks.
not
the look she was after. No. There was a long moment of silence, and in the distance a bird circled the sun. Posy turned to look at it, giving what she felt was a nice polite long stare. And sure enough, when she turned round again, Matt was very uncomfortably perched on one knee. Suddenly, she didn’t have to worry about her face, because she could feel her heart leap straight into her mouth, and an uncontrollable grin start to stretch into her cheeks.
‘Matthew Farmer!’ she said in a surprised tone.
Matt returned the grin, somewhat lopsidedly.
‘You should know,’ he said, ‘this is profoundly uncomfortable. I have pebbles sticking into me and, I think, some poo.’
‘I shall remember these words until my dying day,’ said Posy. Matt went pink.
‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘Hang on. It’s meant to be . . . Right. Hang on. I have it.’
Posy nodded expectantly.
Matt held up a blue box and popped it open. The noon-time sun caught the glint of the diamond inside, and it winked across the hilltops like a signal beam.
‘Posy. I meant to write some notes for this. Uhm. But we’re on a mountain. They would blow away.’
Posy bit her lip as Matt took a deep breath.
‘I do love you, you know.’
Posy nodded, heart banging at her ribs.
‘Uhm . . . should we get married or something? Seeing as, you know, I’m down here and everything.’
Posy caught her breath. Then, just to be equal, she knelt down too, in the sheep poo and small rocks on the ground. He proffered her the box.
‘Do you mean it?’
‘More than anything, Posy. More than anything.’
They stared into each other’s eyes; Matt’s blue and clear, Poppy’s so dark they were almost black, with a thick fringe of lash.
‘Oh yes!’ she said. ‘Ooh yes! I love you!’
Matt burst into a grin.
‘But not
too
much of The Smiths at the wedding, all right?’
too
much of The Smiths at the wedding, all right?’
They both jumped up and dusted themselves down, so they could embrace more easily.
‘Some.’
‘No!’
‘I’m going to invite Morrissey.’
‘You are not. He’ll bring the mood down.’
They kissed again, laughing.
‘Can you get a signal? Can we phone everyone?’
‘Put the ring on first.’
‘Ooh, yes.’
Posy extended her finger. ‘Did you get it fitted?’
‘No,’ said Matt. ‘I just said, my girlfriend has really gigantic shovel-like man hands.’
‘I do
not
,’ said Posy, whose large feet were the bane of her life.
not
,’ said Posy, whose large feet were the bane of her life.
‘I did too,’ said Matt, as the ring slid perfectly on to the fourth finger of her left hand. ‘They thought I was buying it for a chap. The jeweller kept trying to intimate that it was quite all right, gay weddings were legal and everything. It was really embarrassing.’
He looked at her. ‘Do you like it?’
It was a perfect solitaire, with two smaller cut diamonds on either side, on a platinum band.
‘I love it,’ said Posy, truthfully.
‘You didn’t want to shop for it?’
‘Matt. Ssh.’ She looked at him. ‘You chose it. Which means it’s exactly right. Now, can we call everyone?’
‘
Not
your sister. You’ll be on for two hours and I want lunch and champagne and lots of nice things!’
Not
your sister. You’ll be on for two hours and I want lunch and champagne and lots of nice things!’
‘
Can’t
promise,’ said Posy.
Can’t
promise,’ said Posy.
So Posy had to wait till they’d got down the mountain and celebrated rather loudly in a pub (she’d thought people would have been more excited, but it turned out that loads of people got engaged on the peak every year, they even kept a special bottle of champagne in the fridge just for the purpose). But this didn’t dent their amazing feeling - that they had caught a cloud from the mountain top, and surfed it down.
Later, after an afternoon sojourn at their bed and breakfast - Posy felt obscurely weird having sex in a B&B, after all it was someone else’s house and someone else’s bed. And in the day-time too! - their landlady had been full of congratulatory winks, but oddly that didn’t seem to make things any less embarrassing.
‘Ooh, marital relations,’ Matt had said. ‘I could get used to this.’
‘You’re going to have to,’ said Posy, then wondered if reminding Matt he was only going to get to sleep with one woman for the rest of his life wasn’t a bit mean.
‘Good,’ said Matt, smiling at her, and she reached up to meet him.
‘I’m very, very happy,’ he said afterwards. ‘I was bricking it a bit though.’
‘Why?’ said Posy, genuinely surprised. ‘Didn’t you think I would say yes?’
Matt shrugged. ‘Well, I don’t know, do I? Women, you’re funny things.’
‘But you know I love you, don’t you?’
‘Yeah, course I do.’
‘Well, then, why were you nervous?’
‘No reason. I just . . . you know, sometimes you’re bit private . . .’
Posy sat up and put her arms around her legs.
‘You say that like it’s a bad thing.’
‘It’s not a bad thing. But, you know. Sometimes I think there’s a part of you locked away, that I can’t get to. I don’t mind, you know. A woman should be a bit of a mystery. But it makes you a little . . . unpredictable.’
‘I’m the least mysterious person ever! You’re the one that spends six hours boiling up their Oyster card to get the magnetic bit out and stick it to a wand so you can magically open the tube barriers.
That
is mysterious.’
That
is mysterious.’
‘You’re right,’ said Matt. ‘Forget I ever said it.’
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