needs a bit of ceremony. You first, Fabia.’
‘Will Hargreaves,’ announced Fabia with satisfaction, then grinned at the other two. ‘I didn’t cheat, honest. Just luck of the draw.’
Con groaned as she read hers. ‘Joe Kidd.’
‘But he’s been chasing you ever since freshers’ week,’ objected Rose. ‘That’s no contest—’ She stopped dead, her face flushing crimson as she saw the name on her own slip.
‘Who on earth have you got?’ demanded Con, taking the paper from her. ‘Crikey—James Sinclair.’ She raised an eyebrow at Fabia, who shrugged defensively.
‘Why not? You said any name we like.’
‘So we did,’ agreed Rose, the light of battle in her eyes. ‘Luck of the draw, just as you said. The legendary Sinclair is only captain of the rugby team and so brilliant he’s bound to get a double first—not to mention being a good looking hunk and in his finals’ year. Piece of cake. I’ll have him slavering after little old first-year me in no time.’ She thrust her hands through her hair in despair.
Con patted her shoulder soothingly. ‘Steady on. You don’t have to go through with it if you don’t want to.’
‘Of course not—it was just my stupid joke,’ said Fabia, remorseful now. ‘Pick another name, Rosie; you can’t possibly go after Sinclair.’
‘Why not?’ demanded Rose hotly. ‘You don’t think I’m sexy enough to attract a man like him, I suppose!’
‘No, love! It’s not that.’ Fabia hesitated. ‘The thing is, rumour has it he might be gay.’
‘That’s just gossip, because he doesn’t chase after every female in sight,’ scolded Con.
Rose sighed glumly. ‘Any female at all, the way I hear it.’
‘How do you know?’
‘When I went to a rugby match with Ally Farmer—she’s going out with the full-back—she told me that Sinclair isn’t interested in women.’
The other two exchanged a look.
‘I’d forgotten you liked rugby,’ said Con thoughtfully.
‘I went to a couple of matches when you two were off shopping…’ Rose trailed into silence, eyes suspicious as the others looked at her in speculation. ‘What?’
‘Sinclair must have seen you,’ Fabia pointed out.
‘Transfixed by my beautiful blue eyes while he was charging up the field with half the opposing team hanging from every limb,’ said Rose scathingly. ‘I wish!’
Con, diverted, tilted Rose’s chin up. ‘He could have been, they’re big enough, and unusual, sort of navy blue.’
‘Nice,’ agreed Fabia. ‘But, as I keep saying, you should use some paint on them, Rosie, you don’t do them justice.’
‘They’ve got twenty-twenty vision, just the same, and I assure you that the mighty Sinclair did not notice me.’
‘He will if we carry out the plan scientifically,’ Con assured her, ‘so here’s what we do…’
Rose crawled into bed that night utterly convinced of her own insanity. Because she had flatly refused to renege on the task of ensnaring James Sinclair, Con and Fabia had abandoned their part in the scheme in favour of forming a back-up team for the project Rose had referred to as mission impossible. According to Con it would have been child’s play to enslave Messrs Hargreaves and Kidd. Sinclair, on the other hand, constituted a challenge Rose could hardly be expected to tackle single-handed. So Con and Fabia would research every last thing about Sinclair’s tastes, family background and relevant details, taking care not to give the game away. Then when Rose was in Sinclair’s actual company—a prospect that rendered Rose sick with apprehension at the mere thought of it—she could drop casual phrases into the conversation that would indicate like tastes and interests of her own, and thus convince him she was a soul-mate.
But first, Con had instructed, Rose must run into Sinclair by accident.
‘Where?’ demanded Rose.
‘When I said “run” I meant it,’ said Con ruthlessly. ‘At the stadium the town council lets us use. Get yourself there early in the morning. Very early. Joe Kidd says Sinclair runs at the track there most mornings about seven before anyone else does.’
‘I have to run?’ gasped Rose.
‘At seven?’ said Fabia, equally horrified.
‘Rose must be there well before that,’ said Con cruelly. ‘He must come upon her by chance, not the other way round.’
‘Not much before,’ wailed Rose. ‘Or I’ll be dead before he even gets there.’
Tossing and turning in her bed, Rose decided that the whole scheme was madness. In the morning she’d tell the others she’d changed her mind. She fell asleep at last for what felt like a split second before Con was shaking her awake again, deaf to all protests as she thrust her victim into a track-suit, found socks and trainers and, while Rose pulled them on, twisted the tumbled black hair into a hasty plait. Con crammed a scarlet sweat-band low over Rose’s eyes, then pushed her out of the door.
‘Coffee when you come back,’ she promised in a whisper.
‘If I come back,’ said Rose bitterly.
The stadium was deserted when she got there. She brightened. Perhaps he’d gone already. It was a grey, damp day, but thankfully no actual rain. Praying that Sinclair wouldn’t turn up for once, Rose jogged up and down on the spot for a bit, then with zero enthusiasm began to run round the track. Three times max, she promised herself, then back to bed, no matter what. For the first circuit Rose, unaccustomed to serious running, thought she might possibly expire before she completed it. But during the second lap she gradually mastered the art of breathing and running at the same time and felt a little better. Then she heard footsteps behind her, and her heart lodged in her throat and she could hardly breathe at all. She stared straight ahead, the breath whistling through her lungs as a tall figure in a dark track suit ran past, eyes turned towards her for an instant. Sinclair acknowledged her existence with the slightest of nods, then raced on down the track.
Now her quarry was in sight, flowing round the track with coordinated grace, Rose summoned up her last shreds of stamina to keep going. Instead of leaving at the next exit she ran on to make another circuit of the track to allow the legendary Sinclair to lap her. This time he gave her a fleeting smile as he passed, and Rose, feeling she’d done all, and more, that could be expected of her, left Sinclair to it and dragged herself back to the flat, hoping her heart would slow down to a normal beat some time in the foreseeable future.
‘Mission…accomplished.’ She panted, chest heaving.
Con and Fabia pounced on her with cries of delight, demanded every detail, then hustled her off to shower.
‘Can’t have you too stiff to run next time,’ said Con firmly.
‘Next time?’ gasped Rose. ‘I’ve
