Free The Two Week Wait by Sarah Rayner Page A

means a greater chance of
conceiving a baby, and for egg donors, no extra expense at all.’
    Doesn’t sound as if it would be cheaper for us though, thinks Cath, if we have to pay for someone else’s treatment as well as our own. Privately funded IVF is hideously expensive as
it is. She shudders at the prospect. She and Rich have virtually no savings . . . Focus, Cath, focus, she tells herself, you can work that out later. She peers at the screen. She had been confused
as to why an egg donor would put herself through the trauma of IVF if she didn’t have to have it, even if it were free, but if the conception rate with IVF is nearly three times higher than
without, that explains it. She’s beginning to see how it works, but figures aren’t her strong point, and when the woman with the bob swivels round to shoot the woman next to Rich
– apparently named Sofia – an unmistakably vicious look, she is distracted again.
    ‘We’ve been so worried about you!’ the bob woman hisses.
    ‘I’m sorry, Anna.’ Sofia looks guilty.
    ‘Where have you been, for crying out loud?’
    ‘Shhh!’ hisses another member of the audience.
    Wow, she’s scary, thinks Cath. I’d hate to be on the wrong side of her. She reaches for Rich’s hand, appreciating how even-tempered he is. They’ve had their share of
tough times and painful conversations, but their lines of communication are relatively untangled, and given the journey they may be about to embark upon, she is hugely grateful for that.
    *  *  *
    ‘So where have you been?’ Lou asks Sofia the moment the talk finishes. The people around them are yet to leave, but she doesn’t care if they hear. After
what Sofia has put her through, she actively wants to humiliate her. She is pleased when Sofia blushes.
    ‘ Lo siento —’
    ‘Yes?’
    ‘I got drunk so I stayed with a friend.’
    Anna touches Lou’s shoulder. ‘Told you. Er, I think I’ll go and have a look at the rest of the exhibition for a bit. Give me a buzz when you’ve finished telling her
off.’ Sofia blushes a deeper crimson. ‘You’re bloody lucky it’s not me you’re dealing with,’ Anna says to her. ‘Lou is more of a softie than me, but I hope
she gives you a tough time.’
    ‘Sorry, Anna,’ says Sofia. ‘And thank you for bringing her here.’
    ‘I did it for Lou, not you,’ says Anna.
    Lou watches as Anna pushes past the people in front of her, then turns to her girlfriend. Sofia looks dreadful, thinks Lou, far from her usual confident self. Not only does she appear hungover
and tired, she’s sheepish. Yet Lou is not going to let up. ‘So?’
    Sofia can’t meet her gaze. ‘We went out to Soho, like I said. Some colleagues went with me to a club by Old Compton Street. When I saw the time, I had missed the last train. I am
very, very sorry – it was an accident.’
    ‘ Accident! An “accident” is what happens when you can’t control your circumstances. You could have rung me.’
    ‘My phone ran out of charging.’
    ‘Why didn’t you use someone else’s?’
    ‘I did not know your number.’
    ‘Jesus!’ In truth, Lou doesn’t know Sofia’s either; it’s a hazard of technology, precious contacts on speed dial. But that’s not the point.
‘Couldn’t you have rung the landline? You know that.’
    ‘I suppose so. I’m very sorry, really.’
    ‘You made me feel such an idiot!’ Now Lou is fighting back tears. Damn her topsy-turvy hormones. ‘You knew how important today was to me.’
    ‘I don’t know what else to say.’
    ‘Nor do I, frankly. Who were you with, some girl?’
    ‘No, no.’
    ‘Well, who?’
    ‘A friend from work hosted me.’
    ‘Who?’
    ‘Her name is Rosetta.’
    ‘Is she gay?’
    ‘No! She lives with her boyfriend. They share a flat. You can ring her if you do not believe me.’
    ‘Hmm.’
    Presently Lou is aware there is still a man sitting next to her, busy writing notes. She noticed him earlier. She reckons he is some kind of