Kitabı oku: «A Walk in Wildflower Park»
A Walk in Wildflower Park
Bella Osborne
Copyright
Published by Avon an imprint of
HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
1 London Bridge Street,
London, SE1 9GF
www.harpercollins.co.uk
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Publishers 2019
Copyright © Bella Osborne 2019
Cover illustration © Kim Leo
Cover design © Cherie Chapman Book Design 2019
Bella Osborne asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Source ISBN: 9780008258221
Ebook Edition © June 2019
ISBN: 9780008258238
Version: 2019-06-14
Dedication
For Patty – with love.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Also by Bella Osborne
About the Publisher
Prologue
Three months earlier
‘Happy pre-versary!’ Anna called from the kitchen.
‘What?’ asked Liam, screwing up one side of his face as he removed his coat. He walked through to where Anna was bouncing on her toes with excitement.
‘One year today will be our wedding day. So, I made you this. Ta-dah!’ Anna stepped away from the table and kissed Liam lightly.
Liam pulled away. ‘Right,’ he said, rubbing his neck. His eyes alighted on the amorphous brown mass behind Anna. ‘What the hell is that?’ He took a hasty step back and stared. ‘It looks like some sort of … demon? Have you been binge watching Game of Thrones again?’
Anna was hurt. She’d spent hours carefully crafting something special for him. ‘It’s a hedgehog.’
‘Made from what? Poo?’
‘It’s chocolate cake.’ Anna put her hands on her hips but, remembering they were covered in chocolate icing, she wished she hadn’t.
‘It’s got teeth?’ he said, peering closer.
‘Hedgehogs have teeth,’ said Anna, feeling defensive.
‘O-kay.’ He didn’t sound convinced. ‘Anyway, I wanted to talk to you.’
‘What about?’ asked Anna, turning her attention to aligning the hedgehog’s wonky eyes.
‘Those teeth are like my granny’s dentures.’
‘You wanted to talk to me about dentures?’ She smiled at him.
‘No. I think we need to take a break.’
There was a pause as Anna frowned. All she could focus on was that maybe she shouldn’t have used glacé cherries for the eyes. They were demon-like. Chocolate buttons would have been better.
‘Anna?’ prompted Liam.
‘Yes, fine.’
‘Really? You agree?’
‘Yes. I think it’s a good idea,’ she said, over her shoulder. ‘You’ve been working crazy hours recently and I could do with a break too. I’ve always wanted to go to New York but I don’t think I could cope with the flight.’ She turned around to see Liam was staring hard at the floor. ‘Did you have somewhere in mind? It’ll be cold and wet wherever we go in this country at this time of year.’
Liam’s eyebrows inched higher with her every word. ‘I don’t mean a holiday, Anna.’ Beads of sweat were forming on his top lip. His voice was gentle, his expression pained. ‘I mean a break from each other.’
And that was it. Her engagement, her future, her neat little life unravelled by one sentence. She hurled the hedgehog cake at Liam’s face and truly wished it had been made of poo.
Chapter One
‘Are you sure about Majestic Mayonnaise?’ asked Sophie, brandishing the tester pot.
‘Well, obviously.’ Anna playfully waved her loaded paint roller at Sophie.
‘Hey, I’m pregnant!’
‘Barely.’
‘Ten weeks actually, which means it’s the size of a large green olive.’
‘Which apparently means you can only supervise the decorating, rather than provide any actual help,’ said Anna, smudging paint across her cheek as she attended to an itch.
‘I’m sorting this out.’ She pointed at the box in front of her, the words ‘Random Crap’ emblazoned on the side in Anna’s handwriting. ‘I’d love to help with decorating but this is about you starting a new chapter without Liam and I don’t want to intrude.’
‘Two years I wasted on him. What is it with me always picking the same sort of commitment-phobe? Liam makes it four in a row. Four!’ said Anna, emphasising her point by holding up four fingers. She was beginning to think she was either a serial monogamist or she was destined never to find the one. She unceremoniously dropped the roller into the paint tray.
‘You’re not entirely over the anger phase yet then?’ said Sophie, blowing out her cheeks.
Anna’s flash of fury waned. ‘That’s two years of my life I’m not getting back. What sort of person dumps someone four months after proposing?’
‘A prize plughole?’ offered Sophie, who only ever used what she felt were child-friendly swear words and frequently resorted to making up her own versions. ‘You need to think about you now. Not him.’
Anna took a deep breath. Sophie was right. This was her new start. She needed to leave Liam in the past and concentrate on her future. She was more cross than she was upset. In fact, she probably should be more upset than she actually was. She spotted one of his books in the random crap box, snatched it out and slammed it into the box labelled ‘Arsehole’s Stuff’. Perhaps it would take a little while longer for the anger to abate.
‘You’re right. A new start in my new flat.’ She wasn’t sworn off men forever; she needed to prove to herself that she didn’t need one, prove she could manage perfectly well on her own. Then maybe if the right person came along she would consider a relationship on her terms, but given how many times she’d been bitten, it would be a long time before she’d feel ready to do that.
‘Have you got any biscuits? I’m Hank Marvin,’ said Sophie.
‘Top cupboard, Hank,’ said Anna, pointing behind her. It felt like a good time to have a break. She’d been decorating the kitchen all morning and the thought of a cuppa and a Hobnob was now dominating her thoughts. She was pleased with how the little flat was shaping up but it would be a while before it’d really feel like home. Anna had been moved in a week but with her dad’s help she was already putting her own stamp on things.
A few minutes later Sophie was thoughtfully dunking her third biscuit in a large mug of coffee.
‘You okay?’ asked Anna.
Sophie pursed her lips as she appeared to carefully consider her answer. ‘I don’t like to complain about this, considering what you’re going through, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m hurtling towards thirty and I’ve not done any of the things I thought I would have by now. I’m fed up with being a general skivvy. I’m bored of having virtually no life outside the kids. I’m sick of washing, ironing and clearing up – it’s relentless. And I’m feeling a bit useless at work too …’ As if highlighting her gloomy state her biscuit dissolved into her tea. ‘Bumfuzzle!’
Anna handed her friend a teaspoon. ‘I meant the pregnancy.’
Sophie briefly screwed her eyes up and then opened them particularly wide. ‘Right. Sorry about the rant. Of course, I’m thrilled. We want lots of kids. The first two took ages to conceive so we thought we had plenty of time but this one must have been the Usain Bolt of sperm.’
Sophie’s husband, Dave, was the polar opposite of Usain Bolt. Dave was to speed what crayons were to fine art – simply not cut out for the job. He was the sort of person most labelled as ‘a nice guy’ but he was a constant source of irritation to Sophie.
‘Still, a new baby will be lovely and now I live seven doors away I’ll be able to help.’
‘Thanks. I’m going to need it.’ Sophie fished out another Hobnob.
‘It’ll be fine. You’re glowing.’ Wasn’t that what you were meant to say to pregnant women?
‘I don’t feel glowing. I feel tired and a little nauseous most of the time. And I’m spotty and fat already! All the pregnant celebrities look stunning and I look like this.’ She pointed in turn at her limply hanging hair, pimply chin and lumpy midriff.
‘I keep telling you the magazines you read are full of rubbish. The celebrities are all airbrushed and styled so much they’d make the Gruffalo look like Kim Kardashian. In fact, who knows for sure that the Gruffalo isn’t Kim Kardashian, I’ve never seen them together.’ Sophie gave a weak attempt at a smile. ‘You’re naturally beautiful.’
Sophie didn’t seem convinced. ‘I’m bloated and I’ve not lost my baby weight from the first two yet. And I really miss proper coffee.’ She peered accusingly into her mug.
Anna wasn’t sure what to say; instead she opted for squeezing Sophie’s shoulder. She didn’t like to see her like this but she knew her well enough to know jollying her out of it wasn’t the answer. They sipped their drinks in silence.
‘Come on,’ said Anna. ‘Let’s go for a walk in the park.’ The novelty of having a private park literally on her doorstep was going to take a long while to wear off. The park was in an area called Walmsley but was known as Wildflower Park because of the many varieties of wildflower that grew there. The history of the park had fascinated Anna when Sophie had first moved there a year before. The old manor house had been demolished during the Industrial Revolution leaving its grounds isolated but surrounded by other large houses, the owners of which were not keen to have their view spoiled by cheap workers’ housing or worse still a factory. They’d clubbed together to buy the gardens and turned them into a private park accessible only by those who had a property backing onto it. Even now keys were held by a select few who had an adjacent property. Anna was incredibly lucky to have been able to buy one of the flats in the small 1970s’ block, which was somehow allowed to be built, backing onto the park and therefore qualified its occupants for access.
‘Okay,’ said Sophie with a groan although Anna knew she loved a stroll around the park too.
Sophie zipped up her hoodie and Anna grabbed her coat and keys. It was early April and the signs of spring were becoming evident as the temperature was starting to feel warmer. Daffodils were everywhere and things were generally greener. As times had changed Anna no longer needed an actual key to open the gate to the park, just a special key fob. She pressed it to the gate, which buzzed in recognition and she pushed it open. Anna felt like she was being transported into the secret gardens of her favourite childhood books.
The park was a good size and must have been magnificent gardens in its day. Now a team of volunteer residents cared for it. A few years ago a community project had set about focusing on the reintroduction of wildflowers to help support bees, butterflies and other wildlife, and it had been a huge success.
Where Anna entered it was sheltered by some conifers, which hid what was once the rockery. A neat path wound its way through budding trees, past some newly sprouted crocuses and down to the pond. Everyone called it a pond, but to Anna, who had been brought up in the city, this was more than a pond. A pond was a thinly disguised plastic shape about four foot round you bought from the garden centre and filled with a few buckets of water; what they had here was more of a lake to Anna. It took up about a fifth of the park and must have been 250 metres across at its widest point. She loved the little island in the middle where the ducks seemed to take refuge at night in case any foxes came looking for an easy meal. But most of all she loved the areas that were given up to wildflowers – they were her favourite.
Sophie glanced at her phone as they walked side by side.
‘Are you going to check they’re all right?’ asked Anna.
‘Who?’
‘Dave and the kids?’
Sophie did some gurning followed by a long drawn-out sigh. ‘If I call I’ll hear chaos and get stressed out and I’ll have to go home and shout. It’s best if I don’t know.’ She gave a wistful glance in her house’s general direction.
‘Dave’s not that bad.’
‘Don’t get me wrong, I love him to bits. He’s just totally useless with the kids … And the house. And the garden.’ Sophie rubbed her middle and sighed.
‘You any nearer to agreeing names for number three?’ asked Anna, keen to cheer up the plunging mood.
Sophie put her phone in her pocket. ‘No, it’s the usual battle. Dave wants something traditional and I want something distinctive. And now we have the added pressure of getting something that works with Arlo and Petal. You know when you send cards and it says “Love from Dave, Sophie, Arlo, Petal and Moby.”’
‘Moby? As in Dick?’
Sophie rolled her eyes. ‘Don’t say that. Moby’s my favourite but I also like Enoch and Thaddeus.’
Anna failed to hide her flinch. ‘So, you’re counting on a boy this time?’
‘No, we’ve already agreed what she’ll be called if it’s a girl – Darby.’
‘As in Derby County Football Club?’
‘No, with an “a”, you muppet.’
Anna nodded her understanding. ‘Still, Dave won’t be happy when he goes to work on a Monday and someone says, “I see Derby got stuffed at the weekend.”’
Sophie took her hand out of her pocket to give Anna a swipe. They walked past the pond with the tall swaying reeds at its edge and headed up towards the largest of a series of oak trees. Anna decided to change the subject completely.
‘I’ve met Mrs Nowakowski,’ she said, with a raise of her eyebrows.
‘Did she ask you millions of questions?’
‘It was like completing a questionnaire.’
‘At least we don’t need surveillance cameras with Mrs Nowakowski about. She’s got more nose than Pinocchio – she doesn’t miss a thing,’ said Sophie.
‘She was disappointed I was single but thrilled I didn’t have a dog or a parrot. She seemed all right though.’
‘She’s not a fan of animals. She’s always reporting dog walkers who don’t pick up their poo.’ Anna gave her a quizzical glance. ‘Not their own poo, the dogs’.’
‘Oh dear. I’m thinking of getting a kitten.’ Anna bit the inside of her mouth.
‘Is this the start of your mad cat lady phase?’
‘No. I’ve always wanted one and Liam was never keen, so this is my opportunity. At least talking to a kitten instead of to myself won’t make me look quite so bonkers and it’ll be company.’ The thought of coming back to the empty flat bothered her. This was the first time she’d lived alone. At university she’d shared with friends, but her time there had been cut short and she’d moved back in with her parents. From there she’d rented places with her first fiancé and subsequent boyfriend with brief stints back home in between. After that she’d bought the cosy two-up two-down she’d shared with Liam for the last two years.
‘Kittens are manic and there’s the cost of stuff like vet’s fees and injections. It’ll wreck your curtains and scratch your furniture,’ said Sophie, with a knowing look. ‘But then the kids cost us a small fortune and they pretty much wrecked all our furniture. I’ve never been able to fix the bathroom blinds after Arlo used them as a parachute. On the plus side, I guess you don’t have to potty train a cat.’ Sophie looked thoughtful. ‘Maybe we would have been better off with kittens instead of kids …’
‘No, way. Your kids are gorgeous,’ said Anna and Sophie tilted her head questioningly. ‘Okay, they’re both proper bonkers but they’re still gorgeous.’
‘I know, but I feel like I’m doing a rubbish job in the office and a rubbish job at home. I can’t win.’
‘I don’t know how you do it all,’ said Anna. She was knackered when she got in from work and some nights was barely capable of heating a ready meal; how Sophie turned around and took care of three other people amazed her.
Sophie shrugged. ‘Anyway, how are you feeling about tomorrow?’
Anna gave a pout worthy of a sulky teen. ‘It’s not ideal, but I guess it’ll be okay.’ Anna and Sophie worked for the same insurance company who had recently taken over another company and Anna had banked on getting the job of managing the integration. However, the other company had negotiated hard and she now found herself in the odd situation of having to jointly manage the project with whomever the other company appointed. ‘To be honest, as they’re integrating into our processes I’ll be leading it by default.’
‘As long as they see it like that,’ said Sophie.
Anna badly wanted a big project on her CV, and she was willing to ruffle a few feathers to get it. ‘Yeah, let’s hope they’re a reasonable sort of person. But before that I’ve got Liam coming round to collect his stuff.’
Sophie pulled a face. ‘You know it’s times like this you really should give alcohol another go.’ Anna chuckled but there were too many demons guarding the reasons why she would never touch a drop again.
They followed the path silently until they reached the furthest oak and then turned around. From here they had a great view of all of Wildflower Park. There were a few dog walkers crisscrossing the large expanse of green in the middle and a jogger in a bright orange top circling the pond, but other than that it was just them. The sky was the palest blue edged with pearly grey clouds – like a scene escaping from an open book. It was the prettiest place and a stone’s throw from Birmingham, making it an oasis of colour on the edge of the Black Country. Anna felt a sense of calm wash over her and she knew moving here had been a good decision.
Chapter Two
Liam was never going to be her first choice for a fun evening but he needed to pick up his stuff and she would be as amicable as she possibly could. She plonked the box marked Arsehole’s Stuff onto the sofa and noticed the velvet ring box perched on the top. She gave it a hard stare before picking it up; it had promised so much and then let her down so badly. She thought of the moment when Liam had unimaginatively pushed it across the breakfast table to her. At the time she’d hoped it would be a story she would tell her children and grandchildren – how she’d asked what it was but secretly had guessed, and how she told him he needed to be on one knee and he’d laughed at her because that was what they did in the schmaltzy films she watched but he’d done it anyway. She now remembered the begrudging look in his eyes as he did so and the lack of any romantic precursor to his offer of ‘Let’s get married.’
She realised now it hadn’t even been a question. He hadn’t asked her as such, just merely suggested it as he would a casual trip to the cinema. Yes, this box had a lot to answer for. Anna didn’t open it; she knew the ring inside. It was the classic claw setting – the ring she had always wanted, the one she had dropped into conversation with Liam many times. Seeing it again was not going to help.
Seven o’clock came and Anna checked her mobile. She wanted this to be over. She wanted Liam to come in, take his things and go with as little small talk as possible. She was moving on with her life and this was a key milestone along her journey. The knock on the door made her jump and she shook her head at her own silliness.
‘Hi,’ she said, opening the door. Liam appeared relaxed and casual, the polar opposite of how she was feeling. ‘Come in.’
They walked through to the lounge and Anna pointed at the box of random items. ‘Here you go. I think that’s everything.’
‘This is nice,’ said Liam, having a good gawp around the room.
‘Thanks,’ said Anna. She wanted to pick the box up and thrust it at him but she wouldn’t be so rude.
‘So,’ said Liam, rubbing his hand across his chin. ‘Have you been okay?’
‘Yes, terrific, thanks.’ She said it too enthusiastically and Liam looked a little taken aback. Or was that hurt?
‘Oh, that’s good.’ He pursed his lips. Liam wasn’t paying attention; he was still inspecting the room and it annoyed her.
She wondered why he wasn’t just taking the box and leaving. He sat down on the sofa. Her sofa. Anna folded her arms. ‘Did you want a coffee or something?’ she asked out of politeness, which irritated her further. She was so British.
He smiled and she wondered why. ‘A coffee would be great – or something stronger. Have you still got the bottle of Châteauneuf you took?’
Anna knew her annoyance was disproportionate but really – how rude was Liam to walk in and think he could dictate to her in her new home! ‘No, I gave it to Dad. I’ll get you a coffee.’
Anna was standing next to the kettle and boiled inside as the plumes of steam escaped around her. She only put one sugar in his coffee when she knew he liked two – it was a silly thing but it made her feel a little better, until he tasted it and asked for more. Then she really could have screamed at him.
Finally, they were sitting next to each other – well, on separate ends of the sofa, which showed how much things had changed, and how uncomfortable they both now felt. Anna looked at Liam in a similar way as she had the ring box. He had once held so much promise too. Everybody liked Liam with his boyish good looks and confident air. Her mum had been particularly fond of him. Who could have known that proposing was going to be the trigger to make him question their whole future?
‘I wanted to talk to you about how we decide who gets which of our friends.’ This was all he said that started it off. Such a simple sentence, and yet two hours later they would still be locked in a head-to-head battle …
Anna looked up. ‘I’ll give you Tom and Alice for Darnell and Shanice.’
Liam shook his head. ‘Tom was my friend from uni and you never really liked Alice, so that’s not giving me anything. How about Matthew and Matt for Darnell and Shanice?’
‘Don’t be ridiculous. No way! The two Matthews are worth ten Darnell and Shanices. And you hate it when Matt beats you at Ping-Pong – you get all stroppy,’ said Anna, knocking back another gulp of coffee. It had taken a lot of caffeine to get through this evening and she knew she’d have even less chance of sleeping tonight now.
‘It’s called table tennis. Only children call it Ping-Pong.’
She liked it when he got all picky because it made her loathe him a little bit more, which made things easier. ‘The two Matts are non-negotiable.’ They had been totally brilliant since the split and were definitely in her camp. Camp being the operative word.
He sighed deeply and crossed them off his list. ‘Any other non-negotiables we should get out of the way?’
Anna scanned her list quickly. ‘Stacey and Paulo?’ She bit her lip because they were the coolest couple they knew, and she knew Liam would want them. They had the best jobs, the jet-set lifestyle and the most amazing dinner parties. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t want to lose them as friends but as the antidote to her small simple life they were an addiction she wasn’t ready to kick.
He shook his head and gave her a pitying smile. ‘Yeah, okay. Tabitha isn’t keen on them anyway.’ As soon as the words were out Liam looked like someone had stuck a pin in his genitals, which was something Anna would have relished doing at that precise moment.
Before she could stop herself, she’d already asked the obvious question. ‘Who’s Tabitha?’
Liam rubbed his chin again. ‘She’s just someone I’ve started seeing.’
Anna felt her stomach drop and started to bob her head far more vigorously than was necessary. ‘Right. Good. That’s good. I’m pleased for you.’ No, she wasn’t. She was wrong-footed, vexed and, above all else, hurt.
An hour later they had been reduced to pulling the final few names out of a mixing bowl. There had been no other way when they had reached a stalemate. Who knew dividing up eleven couples could be so hard?
‘Yes! Charles and Lydia,’ whooped Liam, as he opened his piece of paper.
‘Crap,’ said Anna with feeling. She loved Lydia, so maybe she could find a way to see her on the sly. Getting up off the sofa, Anna held her head high. ‘Now bugger off out of my life … Please.’
She glanced at the list of rules they’d created. Despite it being a difficult moment, Anna smiled to herself, thinking: ‘This is what happens when you get two change professionals together.’ Liam stood up and pulled his box of stuff up into his arms. ‘You have to be proactive with those on your list and contact them. No need to tell them about the segregation,’ he said, letting himself out.
‘Shit weasel,’ said Anna, and she had another large mouthful of cold coffee.
Walking into the office, Anna thought about how Liam had annoyed her on two levels the previous evening: one with the whole dividing up their friends, and secondly by the mention of Tabitha. Not the mention of her alone but the fact he had moved on so effortlessly. Anna was a long way from moving on – she was still at the licking her wounds stage, which was why she was sworn off men for the time being. Perhaps men were designed differently? Maybe they were meant to switch to the next available female. It didn’t seem right that she had been so easily replaced. She hoped that said more about him than it did about her or their relationship, but she wasn’t sure. When Liam had dumped her she’d thought her world was caving in but she’d quickly realised her relationship with him had been much like Gruyère cheese – harder than it needed to be and full of holes.
It worried her that she’d not noticed how Gruyère he was before this point. What she needed was something more reliable. Cheddar, perhaps? She wanted something a bit more exciting than Cheddar. Cheshire? Too flaky. Maybe she’d hold out for a nice Brie: soft on the inside with a touch of decadence. But Brie could be smelly and a little crusty. She’d got it! White Stilton with apricots: simple but interesting with an edge of sophistication, which always felt special. How had she got on to cheese? All she’d done was make herself hungry.
When she was a little girl she remembered telling everyone she was going to marry her daddy. Her mother had had to sit her down and explain it really wasn’t an option and she had been quite upset at the time. Her very first life plan had been blown out of the water with one easy strike. She knew she had her parents up on a pedestal; their relationship wasn’t perfect but it was one born out of total love and care for each other and had stood strong for almost thirty years. Perhaps she was searching for a man to love her the way her father adored her mother – but was that so wrong?
Anna knew she had partly ignored the niggles in her relationship with Liam because, at twenty-eight, she was worried about veering off her life plan. But now they’d split up, she was totally off plan and way out of her comfort zone. She hadn’t only lost Liam; she’d lost her wedding day and her beautifully mapped-out future too.
Anna had always been conscientious and focused in every job she’d had since university; she was keen to establish her career before she started a family. She had always expected to have been married with children and well settled by the time she was thirty, based on the fact her parents had married quite young and she’d been born within the year. Her sister had followed shortly afterwards.
Anna’s thoughts were miles away as she pulled her security pass from the side pocket of her bag. It caught on the zip and she stopped to try to free it. Someone appeared, as if from nowhere, at her side.
‘Hi, can I get in this way?’
‘Ooh, you made me jump,’ she said, catching a quick look at the man. ‘You’ll need one of these,’ she said, wrestling her lanyard free, which bungeed the pass card out of her bag and whipped into the face of the stranger.
‘Ow!’ He clutched at his eye. ‘Damn it.’ He couldn’t have sounded more American if he’d tried.
‘I am so sorry,’ said Anna, profusely British and mortified at what she’d done. He staggered a little on the steps, his eyes tight shut. ‘Come over here,’ she said, taking his arm, noting the muscle definition through his jacket sleeve, and guiding him away from the flow of people coming up the steps. ‘Are you okay?’ she asked, hoping he was going to say yes.
‘Do I look okay?’ he snapped but at least he opened his good eye to survey his aggressor. He definitely had an American accent.
Anna gave an apologetic smile. ‘I am really very sorry. Shall I take a look?’ She pointed at his eye and he flinched.
‘No, thank you. Can you just tell me how to get inside the building?’ He gave her a look that implied he doubted she had the ability.
‘This is a staff entrance. You need …’ she thought better of showing him her pass again ‘… a staff security pass to get in this door. Shall I show you?’
‘No, I think you’ve done enough.’ His sarcasm wasn’t lost on her.
‘Okay, right, yes.’ You couldn’t help some people. ‘Have a nice day,’ she said, and she waltzed up the steps. There were a few people in front of her. When they shuffled forward she swiped her card and followed them into the revolving door. She glanced over her shoulder. He was still watching her. Perhaps he was trying to get in illegally, although she couldn’t think why. Suddenly the door stopped revolving but Anna carried on, banging her head on the glass. ‘Ow!’ She rubbed her forehead. That’d be a bruise later. The door then proceeded to go in reverse and spat her out into a queue full of tutting people. This happened every so often when your card hadn’t registered properly. Anna apologised to the queue, firmly reswiped her card and gave a quick glance at the American who was smirking broadly with his eyebrows raised in amusement. Great.
She took the stairs to the second floor and scanned the office for any new faces in their area; she was keen to meet the person who she’d be working closely with over the next year. The company operated a hot-desking policy, which was a bone of contention with everyone. A few people had allocated desks for a variety of valid and spurious reasons, leaving the rest of them to fight on a first-come, first-served basis. Anna was in luck as her favourite desk was free. It was a little like an old folks’ home in that they didn’t have their own seat but they all liked to sit in a certain one – and woe betide anyone who sat in a different seat.
She plugged in her laptop and while it fired up she went to get coffees for her, Sophie and their lead designer, Karl. Anna, Sophie and Karl had met when they’d been put on the same special project a few years ago and had quickly bonded over long days, a shared sense of humour and a love of good coffee. When she returned, Sophie and Karl were behaving like a pair of snooping meerkats, both on tiptoes peering over the filing cabinets towards their boss’s office.
‘What’s going on?’ asked Anna, handing out the coffees.
‘Venti, Americano, with hot milk?’ asked Karl, not averting his eyes from his surveillance operation as he took the cup.
‘Yep,’ said Anna, trying to see what they were watching.
‘With an extra shot?’ added Karl.
‘Yes, of course. What’s going on?’
‘And the cute brunette’s phone number?’
‘Y … No!’ Anna gave him her best withering glare and he replied with a wink. Karl was incorrigible; one of the last non-PC people she knew and also the gayest straight man she’d ever encountered.
‘We think Roberta’s meeting with the project manager from West Midlands Insurance,’ said Sophie.
Anna went up on tiptoes herself but it did no good – she was already in very high heels and still too short to be able to see anything. Her mobile trilled into life: it was Roberta.
‘Anna, could you come to my office right away? I’d like you to meet the new PM.’
‘On my way,’ said Anna, but Roberta had already ended the call.
‘Cover me, I’m going in,’ said Anna, picking up her trusty project folder and coffee.
Anna knocked on the glass office door. Office was too grand a term for the small corner sectioned off with boards and a sliding smoked-glass door but Roberta was very proud of it, having battled tooth and manicured false nail to get the ‘office’ she deserved.
‘Come in,’ said Roberta. ‘Ah, Anna. You took your time.’ Anna ignored her. Roberta was an odd sort and it was best not to challenge her. ‘I’d like you to meet Hudson Jones.’ What sort of name was that?
The person sitting with their back to the door stood up and turned around. Anna noticed he was rather tall and slim in his trendy suit, good-looking in an obvious way, and unnervingly familiar. When she saw one of his eyes was swollen it all clicked into place.
‘Hudson, this is Anna Strickland, our lead PM.’
‘You?’ said Hudson, blinking with his good eye, which she noticed was a beautiful shade of blue.
She gave a nervous laugh and extended her hand. ‘Yes, it’s me. Lovely to meet you. Again.’ She gave a little nod with the last word but had no idea why.
‘Oh, you already know each other. That should speed things up. Hudson has some excellent suggestions for project team structure, operational integration and …’ Roberta was checking her notes.
‘Project approach,’ said Hudson, sounding confident.
‘That’s terrific,’ said Anna, thinking the opposite. ‘I’ll walk you through what I already have in place.’ Hudson didn’t look pleased. They had both quickly picked up on the other’s frostiness.
‘Anna will bring you up to speed. I have a very important meeting to go to,’ said Roberta, squeezing her ample form from behind the largest desk the company could provide.
‘I think we’re all in that meeting,’ said Anna, giving her printed calendar a quick check.
‘Then I’ll follow you,’ said Hudson. ‘From a safe distance,’ he added for Anna’s benefit.
Chapter Three
It was a day of back-to-back meetings, never her favourite thing and even less so as she’d found herself going head-to-head with Hudson in the last two sessions. He was overconfident – or cocksure, as her grandad would have called it – and so far he had challenged everything Anna had raised. He had a bunch of ideas he seemed to think he could apply without knowing the first thing about their company processes and it was already starting to infuriate her.
She had a long list of things she would need to explain to him when she got the chance. The next meeting was with Karl, so Anna hoped that would offer a little light relief. She headed off to the room she’d booked, which she knew was barely more than a cupboard. When she got there the blind was down and the ‘In Use’ sign was on, so she waited. She was mulling over what to have for tea when she recognised the voices giggling inside as Karl and Sophie. She opened the door expecting to be greeted by friendly faces rather than a shifty duo caught in the act of something they shouldn’t have been doing.
Anna stared at the small table where Karl had two teaspoons and a small pile of white powder. She gazed disbelievingly at the guilty-looking pair and hastily shut the door behind her. ‘What the hell are you doing?’ asked Anna. Sophie stepped forward but erupted into giggles. ‘OhMyGod. Have you taken some of that?’ Anna was beyond shocked. She looked to Karl for an answer. They would all be instantly dismissed if anyone saw this.
‘It’s not what you think,’ said Karl, before joining Sophie in hysterics.
‘For goodness’ sake – shhh. And pull yourselves together,’ snapped Anna, anxiety coursing through her at the thought of being caught in this situation. ‘Get rid of it!’ Anna stabbed a finger at the white powder.
Sophie paused her giggling to sweep the white powder into a plastic cup of what looked like water. The liquid fizzed. Sophie gave it a swirl, lifted it to her lips and to Anna’s horror drank it down. Anna dropped her notebook and papers as her hands flew to her head. Was Sophie trying to get rid of the baby?
‘Whoa. It’s okay,’ said Sophie, seeming to realise Anna’s distress was very real. ‘It’s only paracetamol.’
Anna didn’t believe her. Paracetamol came in tablets not white powder. ‘You’re mainlining paracetamol?’
She glared at Karl. ‘Sophie’s got a headache and I read somewhere it acts quicker if you crush the tablets and take them in lemonade,’ he said.
Sophie was nodding. ‘I had a wicked headache and I don’t like taking anything when I’m pregnant. I thought I’d try a single crushed paracetamol and see if it worked. It’s probably hokum.’
Anna was shaking her head. ‘I thought it was … It looked like … Bloody hell, you scared the life out of me.’
‘Did you think we had a crack den going in here?’ Karl looked amused.
‘No … well, possibly. What on earth was I supposed to think?’
‘This was totally innocent. If you’re after the real crack den, it’s in the stationery cupboard up on the fourth floor,’ he said, with a tap of his nose.
‘You are a pair of idiots. Anyone would have thought the same as me. Now clear away any trace of that stuff,’ said Anna, picking up her things from the floor.
‘Sorry,’ said Sophie. ‘We didn’t mean to freak you out.’
‘We’d have been snorting it through ten-pound notes if we did,’ said Karl, with a chuckle.
‘I hope your headache goes,’ said Anna, as Sophie left the room.
‘Right, Karl, let’s talk Design Architecture,’ said Anna, turning back to him.
Karl narrowed his left eye and pouted. ‘I’m guessing you’ve not spoken to Hudson then?’ Of course Hudson had jumped the gun and spoken to Karl already, without her. Anna felt an involuntary sigh escape. She was feeling less and less guilty about whacking the guy in the eye.
After the day from hell Anna was in need of a strong coffee and a good old moan but what she opted for was a trip to the cat rescue. She didn’t like going home to an empty flat and it was a small stand for something she wanted and Liam had never let her have. And moaning to herself was never any fun, but with a cat at least she’d feel like someone was listening. As she had suspected they had lots of kittens and any one of them would have been perfect. They were all cute and all she had to do was choose one. She liked the one with the black patch over its eye and the one who looked like it was wearing a dinner jacket.
A young couple with two small children were looking at the same litter of black and white splodges. There was only one volunteer who was clearly rushed off her feet and was being continually harassed. Anna moved out of the way and went to peruse the pens at the other end away from the kittens whilst she waited for her turn. Each cage had a jolly write-up of its occupant. A very noisy Burmese called Sasha focused his elongated meow at her until she spoke to him. Anna moved out of Sasha’s field of vision and was watching Bill and Ben, two ginger and white males, who were peering over a sign on their window that said ‘reserved’ when there was a thud behind her. Anna turned around to see an exceptionally large tabby cat with both paws on the glass window of his pen. Clearly happy he’d attracted Anna’s attention, he started to parade up and down in front of the glass with his fluffy tail held high. Anna smiled and went over.
His bio said his name was Maurice and he was nine years old, though when Anna peered closer, he didn’t look like an old cat. The dark, long-haired tabby was now sitting, staring directly at Anna. He seemed to fill most of his pen. Anna didn’t think she’d ever seen a cat that big before that wasn’t in a zoo.
‘Sorry, were you next?’ asked the volunteer.
‘Yes,’ said Anna. ‘Is he really nine?’
‘Maurice? Yes, he is, but there’s plenty of life left in him,’ said the volunteer, reaching to open the pen so Anna could meet the cat.
‘It’s okay. I was really after a kitten.’ Anna felt instantly guilty. She sidled away so Maurice wouldn’t hear, which she knew was a bit crazy.
‘We have plenty of kittens. Let’s fill the form in and you can tell me which one you’d like.’ Anna relaxed and followed the volunteer back to the kitten section. She glanced over her shoulder. The big fluffy cat was watching Anna intently. The volunteer went through the questions but Anna’s mind kept going back to Maurice.
‘Has Maurice been here a long time?’
‘A couple of months. He’s got a lovely nature but very few people want the middle-aged ones. Is your property rented or owned?’
‘It’s owned. Where did he come from?’
The volunteer stopped filling in the form and looked at Anna. ‘It’s a bit sad really. His owner had a fall and had to go into a nursing home and they couldn’t find anyone to take Maurice so he came here. He’s struggled to settle into life at the centre. He’s been used to the same lap to sit on for nine years and a garden to wander around in, so it’s a bit of a shock for him. That’s why he doesn’t interact much.’ She sighed. Back to the form: ‘Any other pets?’
‘Err, no. Poor thing, he seemed quite friendly.’
‘Did he? You should be honoured. He ignores most of us.’ She scribbled her initials at the bottom of the piece of paper. ‘Right, we’ll pop over one evening and do your home check, and then you’ll be able to come and collect your kitten. Which one was it?’
‘It was … um …’ Anna had to think hard as both the kittens she’d liked had slipped from her mind and all that was there was a picture of Maurice. ‘Actually, could I have another look at them please?’
Sophie kissed Arlo’s forehead and smoothed his hair to one side. It was wayward like his father’s. ‘Night, sweetie. Straight to sleep now.’
‘I don’t see why I should when Petal is still up,’ said Arlo, folding his arms indignantly over his Star Wars pyjamas. ‘She’s younger than me!’
Tiredness had claimed most of Sophie’s body and it felt like she was sinking. Sophie sighed and adjusted the grumpy jiggling mass on her hip that was Petal. She’d forgotten how tired she got when she was pregnant. It went beyond the usual levels of yawning and looking forward to bedtime and was more a sensation closer to lapsing unconscious.
‘Sweetie, Petal’s going to bed now too. Night, night.’
‘But it’s not fair!’ he said, his bottom lip starting to quiver.
‘Sweetie, please, Mummy is tired. Please go to sleep.’
‘Everyone in my class stays up late. Why can’t I?’
I can’t have this conversation now, thought Sophie as Petal’s wriggling increased and was now accompanied by whining.
‘We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Night, night.’ She switched the light out and shut the door.
‘I don’t like the dark!’ shouted Arlo. Sophie closed her eyes, and tears tumbled silently down her cheeks. The clunk of the key in the lock announced that Dave was home.
‘Hiya,’ he called into the hall. Sophie briskly wiped away the tears, sniffed and headed downstairs.
‘Hello, gorgeous,’ said Dave to Petal who reached out for him. ‘You should be in bed by now – it’s late.’
‘Give over, Dave. I’ve not stopped all day so please don’t walk in and start criticising my parenting.’
‘Hey, it wasn’t a criticism. Tell me what you want me to do and I’ll do it for you.’
Sophie huffed. ‘But that’s the thing, you’re not doing it for me. These are your children too!’
‘Blimey, who’s upset you today?’ He headed upstairs with a happily dribbling Petal.
‘You,’ said Sophie, but he was out of earshot. ‘It’s always you.’
When Dave came back downstairs Sophie was plonking dinner on the table.
‘This looks great. I think I’ll have a glass of Merlot with it,’ said Dave, diverting to the wine rack. Sophie glared at him. She needed a glass of red wine far more than he did but she wasn’t allowed one – pregnancy was so unfair.
Dave merrily loaded his fork with spaghetti bolognaise and took a large swig of wine as he read an email on his phone. Sophie sipped her glass of water and stared at him. He’d hardly said anything since they’d sat down to eat aside from imparting that the irritating dry skin patch had returned to his elbow.
‘Dave, I want to go on holiday.’
‘Hmm.’ He eventually pulled his eyes away from his phone. ‘Maybe next year.’
‘Next year we’ll have three kids to contend with. That’s no holiday, plus it’ll cost more.’
That seemed to grab his attention. Dave loved to save money. ‘I guess we could take Arlo out of school, which would make it a lot cheaper. It’s a right rip-off that the travel companies hoik up the prices because of the school holidays.’ He shook his head.
‘Okay, great.’ This was a lot easier than she’d anticipated. Of late Dave seemed to be displaying many Scrooge-like qualities so this was a pleasant change. ‘I’m thinking somewhere in the Caribbean. Nothing too touristy but somewhere like Anguilla might be nice.’
‘We can’t afford … where was it again?’
‘Anguilla. Beyoncé and Richard Gere holiday there.’
‘Together?’ asked Dave, through a mouthful of spaghetti.
‘Don’t be daft. Or Bora Bora, that looked amazing on Keeping Up With The Kardashians.’
‘Sophe. That sort of holiday costs thousands and the kids would be a nightmare on the plane. How about a few days at Butlins?’
‘Butlins?’ Sophie almost shouted.
‘What’s wrong with Butlins? The kids would love it.’
Sophie was shaking her head. ‘Plugging hell, Dave. I don’t work my bum off to have a few crabby days in Butlins. I thought it might be nice to have some time just the four of us before the new baby arrives. Have a proper family holiday.’
‘I had proper family holidays at Butlins as a kid and loved it.’
‘Your mum went to Butlins?’ Sophie found this hard to believe as her mother-in-law, Karen, was the stuck-up sort. She was also a force to be reckoned with, which had earned her the nickname the Kraken – though it was mainly Sophie who called her that.
‘No, our grandparents took us. But we had the best time. I think it’d be great. We could do a weekend and see what we think?’
‘I am not going to fuzzing Butlins.’ Sophie went to pick up her glass but realising it contained water she slapped her hand on the table, making them both jump.
Dave’s mouth drooped at both edges. ‘Sophe, do you remember the conversation we had when we bought this place?’ Sophie gave a twitch of her head and tried hard not to pout. ‘We agreed this was our forever home but to be able to afford it we had to give up all the other stuff for a while, including big holidays.’
At the time Sophie would have agreed to anything. She’d fallen in love with the house and Wildflower Park, and she knew she had to have it. Even if it had meant selling a kidney, she would still have given it serious consideration.
‘And you’ll get a break when you’re on maternity leave,’ he said, spearing his dinner with his fork. Sophie had to stop herself from spearing him with hers.
Chapter Four
Sophie was deep in conversation with Roberta’s PA, Priya, when Anna emerged from the stairwell soaked to the skin and thoroughly fed up that her bus had been late and she’d got caught in a torrential April shower. She scanned their area but all the best desks were occupied.
‘Where can I sit?’ asked Anna, trying to avoid looking at the dark side of the office.
‘Peter is out today, you can sit there,’ said Priya, pointing at the desk behind her that was strewn with photographs of two small blonde children and a selection of pictures of stick people. Anna dumped her stuff on the desk and instantly felt like a squatter as she moved the ‘Best Daddy in the World’ mug to one side.
‘I think he must have had his teeth whitened,’ said Sophie, running a tongue over her own.
‘You’d be able to find him in the dark,’ giggled Priya. ‘He is gorgeous though.’
‘Who’s this?’ asked Anna, switching on her laptop.
‘Hunky Hudson,’ said Sophie, widening her eyes.
Anna’s interest waned. ‘Do you have to call him that?’
‘He’s gorgeous! How can you not fancy him, Anna?’ asked Priya, looking genuinely surprised.
‘Meh?’ was all Anna could manage. His domineering attitude had completely deleted any alluring quality he may have displayed.
‘I think he’s totally fit and—’
‘Who’s fit?’ asked Roberta, emerging from the lifts and Anna made a mental note that she clearly had bionic hearing.
‘Hudson,’ said Priya, as she shuffled some papers to make herself appear busy.
‘Fit and very gay, I’m afraid,’ said Roberta. Anna and Sophie became interested again.
‘He never is?’ said Sophie dismissively.
‘I think his life partner would disagree with you,’ said Roberta, radiating smugness as she took her list of meetings from Priya.
‘His shirt yesterday was very fitted,’ said Priya, emphasising it by running her hands over her own body.
‘Have you met his other half then?’ Anna’s usually strong gaydar abilities had been called into question.
‘I spoke to him on the phone when I rang to discuss the job with Hudson.’
Priya looked thoroughly disappointed ‘That’s ruined my day that has.’ Roberta headed off to her first meeting and Priya followed at a trudge.
‘Because otherwise, she would have been well in there,’ whispered Sophie to Anna who shooed her back to her own desk. The last thing Anna needed was to get into office backbiting. She checked her watch: two minutes to the start of the project meeting and no sign of Hudson or Karl. She gathered up a pile of Post-it Notes and a roll of brown paper from the stationery cupboard en route, and felt a spring in her step as she strode off to the meeting. This was where she took control and Hudson would have to acknowledge her project management prowess.
Anna heard laughter as she approached the room and tried hard not to look shocked as she saw Hudson, Karl, and a variety of others sipping coffee and munching on croissants.
‘Morning, Anna! Help yourself to breakfast. We’re about to kick off,’ said Hudson, taking off his jacket to reveal a distinctive pale pink shirt with shiny spots woven into the material, which was a perfect, although somewhat snug, fit.
‘Nice shirt,’ said Sophie, taking a seat and giving Anna a knowing look. Anna offloaded her stationery cargo to the floor. She decided she would see what he had planned before she dived in.
Sophie leaned over conspiratorially. ‘I don’t care if he is gay, he’s still gorgeous.’ Anna shook her head at Sophie, who stuck her tongue out playfully.
‘Our goal today is to get a common understanding of the project end state,’ announced Hudson. ‘You are all absolutely key to its success but only if we are all focusing on the same thing.’ She had to admit he was quite charismatic but already she hated herself for being passive and letting him lead. This was exactly what he wanted and she needed to fight back.
‘If you’re ready to map out that end state and how we get there, I’ve brought the tools,’ said Anna, casually indicating the brown paper and sticky notes.
‘Thanks, but the whiteboard will be fine,’ said Hudson, barely glancing over.
‘But you can move the sticky notes about … and there’s a different colour for each workstream.’
Hudson’s expression was disparaging. ‘I prefer the whiteboard and I can just take a photo at the end when we’re happy with it. Anyway,’ he said, clasping his hands together and focusing on the smiling Sophie. Traitor, thought Anna. ‘I’m really keen that we work together as a cohesive team.’ Sophie nodded vehemently and Anna rolled her eyes.
‘In which case we need to be clear on roles and responsibilities within the programme,’ stated Anna, leaning forward in her chair and starting to feel ready for a fight.
‘I disagree,’ said Hudson. ‘We don’t need defined roles, we just need to utilise everyone’s skills.’
Anna felt as though she were on the centre court at Wimbledon as the heads spun back in her direction in anticipation of her response. She wasn’t backing down now. A voice in her head said ‘Deuce’.
‘And the easiest way to understand each other’s skills is to assign everyone a specific role on the project …’ Hudson opened his mouth to butt in but Anna continued, ‘to ensure we maximise resources and don’t have any duplication of effort.’ Advantage Strickland.
‘I really don’t want to waste anyone’s time this morning, so let’s focus on the end state for now and we can have a discussion later about roles and responsibilities. Offline.’
Deuce.
Anna hated office speak or Corporate Bollocks and she had a feeling Hudson was going to be fluent in it.
‘Okay,’ said Anna, and Hudson let out a sigh. ‘But we are all going to have a slightly different view of what the end state is—’
‘Which is the whole purpose of this meeting,’ said Hudson, the agitation in his voice apparent. ‘Let’s spend what’s left of this session coming to a consensus on what that end state looks like.’ Advantage Jones. ‘Is everyone happy with that approach?’ Everyone nodded except for Anna. Game Jones.
Hudson swept away the writing someone had left on the whiteboard with a few broad strokes of the board rubber, his toned muscles flexing under his well-fitted shirt. He had no need to go up on tiptoes to reach the top edge or jump up and down like an untrained terrier as Anna always had to do. She was really beginning to dislike him.
Anna was beavering away at her computer, trying to ignore the laughing coming from the other side of the office. She gave a cross glance in their general direction and paused. Hudson was sitting nonchalantly on the corner of his desk holding court as the others all gazed at him adoringly. Anna slumped back in her seat – it was like being back at school and being up against Chloe Buglioni for Head Girl all over again. Just like Chloe, Hudson was taller, more attractive, funnier and more confident than her. Unlike Chloe, he wasn’t promising to kiss anyone who voted for him, although from the looks on their rapt faces they would probably have liked him to. Another guffaw of laughter and head-shaking seemed to signal the end of Hudson’s story and everyone started to disperse. Anna gritted her teeth – he wasn’t Chloe, and this time, she wasn’t going to lose.
‘You coming to the pub?’ asked Sophie.
Anna stretched her neck and it clicked. She checked her watch. ‘Yeah, go on then – just for half an hour and then I need to get home for my home inspection from the cat rescue place.’
‘Hudson’s paying,’ added Sophie, turning to watch him bend over to pick up his laptop bag.
Anna was instantly no longer keen. ‘Actually, I’ll finish this.’ She angled her head towards her screen.
Sophie pouted. ‘Come on, don’t be like that. It’s not his fault you’re doing a job share.’
‘He could back down.’
‘But you’re not,’ said Sophie, with a knowing look. She had a good point.
Anna was trying to think of another excuse when Hudson strode over with his bag slung casually across his body. ‘You coming, Anna?’ He had one of those smiles she’d only seen previously on film stars. All perfect white teeth and twinkling eyes.
‘Yes, she’s just packing up,’ said Sophie, before Anna could form her excuse.
‘Awesome, see you both over there,’ said Hudson, and he strode off.
Anna slumped back in her chair. ‘What did you do that for?’ Her voice came out whinier than she’d have liked.
‘Because you and Hudson have to find a way to get on and if this is him offering an olive branch …’
‘I’d like to shove it up—’
‘Uh-uh,’ said Sophie leaning over and unplugging Anna’s laptop. ‘Play nice.’
The pub was noisy and busy and Anna was regretting agreeing to go but she had a plan: she’d have one Coke then she’d slip away without anyone noticing. She spotted the usual suspects at the far end of the bar, and with lots of apologies she weaved her way through.
‘Anna,’ called Hudson, beckoning her over.
As she and Sophie reached him, he produced two filled champagne flutes. ‘Here you go, ladies.’
‘Thanks, but I’ll just have a Coke,’ said Anna, getting out her purse.
‘Me too,’ said Sophie, gazing longingly at the glass of fizz.
‘Come on, who doesn’t like champagne?’ asked Hudson, raising both the glasses temptingly.
‘I don’t,’ said Anna.
Hudson proffered a glass to Sophie. ‘I’m on antibiotics,’ she lied. She wasn’t ready to share her baby news yet.
Hudson insisted on paying for their soft drinks and they moved away from the bar to a marginally quieter corner. ‘I need the loo,’ said Sophie and she selfishly disappeared, leaving Anna with Hudson. As if I don’t get enough of him at work, Anna thought.
‘I’m excited about working with you Anna.’ He actually sounded genuine but Anna’s bullshit monitor went into overdrive anyway.
‘Why’s that?’
‘You know so much about the company. You know the right people to engage with and they like you.’
He had clearly been doing some snooping around to find out about what people thought of her. She wasn’t sure if she felt flattered or intruded upon, but she definitely didn’t want to talk shop at the pub.
‘Thanks. Let’s not talk about me. What’s your story?’
He took a slow draw of champagne. He had attractive lips, plump and pink.
‘My dad’s American, my mom’s British. I was born just outside New York in a village called Port Chester. My dad worked in Manhattan. Shortly after 9/11 we moved to England. I went back to the US for university and I’ve been working in the UK for a few years now.’
He had a way of holding her attention and she wanted to know more but didn’t want to appear keen. ‘You’ve not lost the accent.’
‘I’ll let you in on a little secret.’ Without realising it she was leaning closer. She detected a hint of aftershave. ‘I think it’s you who has the accent.’
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