“I told you it’s all written in the stars,” Bonny said as the three young women met up at Friend’s Café, their local hang-out in PE. “I’m just thrilled for you, girl. I know this job is everything you wanted.”

“What’s wrong, Precious?” Juliet asked. She had noticed the sad expression that had crossed her other friend’s face.

“I didn’t want to say anything to spoil your moment, but it’s – Marcus.”

“What’s he done?’” Juliet asked. She had nearly added ‘this time’, but stopped herself. She’d never got along with Marcus.

“I phoned him and told him I’d been shortlisted for the sub-editor position.” Precious was a journalist at The Herald. It was the daily newspaper in PE.

“I take it he wasn’t too happy to hear your news? I think it’s a fantastic opportunity for you. Well done!” Juliet added.

Precious slowly nodded her head. “He said he thought that I was being far too ambitious. He said that ‘a woman should not aim to get higher in her profession than her boyfriend’. The nerve of him!”

“Sounds like he’s jealous,” Juliet said. “He knows very well that you’re far smarter than he is. He’s trying to undermine you.”

“Don’t let him hold you back,” Bonny added.

“I told him to get lost.”

“I just knew something was going to happen!” Bonny squealed, pointing at her newspaper. “Your horoscope for today says that ‘your luck is about to change on the twentieth’. There’s also terrific news for singles, because on the twenty-third ‘Venus makes you feel more beautiful than ever’.”

Bonny was a keen horoscope reader. Juliet’s birthday was on the twenty-fourth of July so she was a Leo. Juliet and Precious just let Bonny ramble on. Once she started talking about star signs there was no stopping her.

“What did Marcus say when you told him to get lost?” Juliet asked.

“He was shocked at first. He actually thought I was going to hold myself back because of him. When he realized that I was serious he started begging me to reconsider. It just made me certain that I was wasting my time with him. It feels strange to be single again though.”

“And listen … ‘on the twenty-third, time spent outdoors – possibly on a nature walk – will re-energize you from head to toe’,” Bonny read.

“You know I’m allergic to being outdoors for too long. I’m bound to get a rash of some kind or another,” Precious said and pulled a face.

Juliet laughed. “You may find that some fresh air might actually make you feel good. There’s nothing like a good brisk walk or a run outdoors.”

“Oh, you would say that,” Precious teased. “Just because you’re an exercise freak, doesn’t mean we all are.”

“OK, point taken,” Juliet smiled. “I won’t mention again how exercise makes you feel so good. Not to mention the calories you use up. There’s no better way to stay in shape.”

“I need to hear something more romantic than taking a hike out in the bush.” Precious shook her head in frustration. “Doesn’t it say anything in there about running into sexy, good-looking men? Having pots of money would also help.”

“I saw this incredibly sexy man today,” Juliet announced.

“Where? Is he here?” Precious looked around the coffee shop.

Juliet chuckled. “I didn’t say he was here.”

“Dammit!” Precious sighed. “I need to get back into the dating game as soon as possible.”

“Nymphomaniac,” Juliet teased. “It hasn’t even been six hours since you broke up with Marcus.”

“What’s time got to do with it?” Precious countered.

“I actually saw this guy at the flower shop.” She told her friends what she had witnessed.

“I bet he has a girlfriend. Or perhaps a girlfriend and a wife. Maybe Mama Pinky sent the wife flowers instead of the girlfriend, or vice versa. Are all men cheaters?”

Juliet suppressed a sigh. She wondered why all of a sudden she was having erotic thoughts about a man she had barely seen. She didn’t even know his name. She knew absolutely nothing about him except that he drove a dark blue Polo. And that he had a vile temper.

* * * * *

It was Saturday evening and Juliet and her two friends were going out for a night on the town. They often did it and had a great time.

Juliet was twenty-four years old and had never been totally smitten by any man. She’d had a few boyfriends but nobody that made her weak at the knees. She was still a virgin, though it wasn’t something she liked to boast about. Some things were just private. And Juliet was one of those young women who didn’t feel the need to sleep with a man, just to feel complete.

As soon as she stepped inside the club, into the music, the lights, crowds of young people milling about, Juliet felt exhilarated. She adored parties and the buzz that they generated.

After one quick scan over the crowds, Juliet recognized at least a dozen people that she knew. The three friends went off in different directions as they each spotted somebody they wanted to say hello to.

It seemed to Juliet that everybody was talking at once, all raising their voices to be heard over the sound of the music beating out from the speakers placed strategically throughout the club.

“Juliet. Hi. Good to see you.” Winnie, a girl from her varsity class, came up to her.

“Hi Winnie,” said Juliet and gave her a warm hug. “Long time, no see. We must get together some time.”

“I’d like that,” Winnie said, returning her hug. “You look stunning by the way. How on earth do you manage to stay so slim?”

“I jog a couple of times a week. I also lift weights. That way I can pretty much eat what I want.”

“I hate exercise.” Winnie pulled a face. She sounded just like Precious. “I wish there was a pill I could take instead.”

Juliet lifted her face from Winnie’s – and froze. The angry guy from the flower shop had just walked in the door of the club. A thrill raced down her spine. He was on his own and he was drop-dead gorgeous. There he stood: tall, well-built and with a dimple on his right cheek. She hadn’t noticed it before.

Juliet couldn’t take her eyes off him. She could not believe her luck in him coming to the club.

* * *

Tell us: What’s your opinion of Juliet’s two friends? Do you gossip and chat like they do at a favourite place?