We made love again the following morning. It wasn’t better but neither was it any worse. Sean was pleased with himself. Surely I would choose him now. I had to tell Oliver that he had lost. And he had all the arguments ready. Oliver had cried off so many times I could hardly remember what he looked like. Sean had been there for me when Oliver hadn’t. And he had been there for me when I needed him most. To Sean it seemed logical and sensible. I wasn’t the sort of woman, he insisted, who would sleep with a man and then go out with another. Those were the arguments I was to use with Oliver. It never occurred to him that Oliver would accept I’d chosen Sean and not demand an explanation. That Oliver would respect my decision, whatever it was. But I wasn’t looking forward to telling him. I still liked him a lot.
Later we went back to my house and tried to make a list of what had been taken. It was surprisingly little. Apart from what I’d already identified, the only other item was a silver teddy bear moneybox Granny Wise had given me as a Christening present. It wasn’t worth a lot of money, maybe fifty or sixty pounds but it had great sentimental value. I took the list to the police station. Later that day, a man called to check for fingerprints. There were none that couldn’t be explained. The man said it looked like they had been wearing gloves. It didn’t make me feel any less upset. We spent the rest of the day clearing up the mess they had made and went back to the café.
Sean left me upstairs while he prepared the meals for the next day. I knew I had to phone Oliver but I dreaded making the call. In the end, it was Oliver who called me. “How did the funeral go?” he asked sympathetically. I burst into tears again. He waited patiently until my tears stopped and asked if he could come and see me. Once again, my tears flowed like a river in flood. With difficulty, I told him I was at Sean’s. I’d made my decision and I was sorry for him. Really sorry.
“Thank you for telling me.” I could hear the disappointment in his voice but no bitterness. I told him about the burglary. I felt his sincerity when he told me how sad he felt for me over it. It was just what I wanted to hear. He understood how I was feeling; the feeling of violation, the double hurt of the funeral and the burglary. Now I was with Sean, he wouldn’t try and contact me but if ever he could be of assistance, I was to contact him. I cried again when he ended the call.
An hour later, I’d phoned both Jane and Neeta. Both were sympathetic about the burglary. I also told them about Sean. “Great,” Neeta oozed. “I always knew he was the one for you.” Jane was pleased for me but was also concerned for Oliver. She wasn’t surprised when I told her he had taken the news really well.