“Arabella, are you there?”
My heart flutters as I hear Anthony calling as he returns home from work. I know he has something to tell me and I steel myself for whatever it is because the last time he had news; it was devastating.
I call out, “I’m in the bedroom.”
I hear him pounding up the stairs and my heart pounds as I wonder what he’s about to say. I pull my satin robe around me as if it will arm me with a barrier of protection against his words, as I prepare for the party in just a couple of hours’ time.
As he enters the room, the look he shoots me is one I haven’t seen for some time. Lust. He crosses the room and takes me in his arms and pulls me tight, saying huskily, “I’m so sorry, my darling, can you ever forgive me?”
Then, without waiting for a reply, he crashes his lips to mine and kisses me so hard I’m sure he will bruise my lips.
He runs his hand underneath my robe and groans. “I’ve missed you so much.”
Feeling a little worried, I pull back and say fearfully, “Forgive you for what?”
He sighs and pulls me next to him on the bed and clasps my hand in his. “I’ve got a confession to make.”
My heart starts thumping madly and I say fearfully, “What?”
He sighs heavily. “I lied to you.”
I say nothing and wait for him to speak because my mind is racing at a million miles an hour as I wonder what I’m about to hear.
“The job - I never lost it.”
I stare at him in shock, and he smiles ruefully. “It was all an act, a pretence, research for a show that’s just got the go-ahead.”
I struggle to understand what he’s saying, and he laughs softly. “I can tell this has come as quite a shock. I always knew it would be but a happy one, I hope. I had to keep you in the dark, as did the rest of the production team, because we weren’t the only ones trialling this. They also went through the same charade with their families and we documented every reaction, every consequence and have made it into the most explosive programme we have ever done. You should be proud, darling, because ‘Living the Dream’ is about to become a reality and make us more money than we have ever had in our lives.”
My heart pounds as Anthony looks at me with so much pride and joy on his face, I almost can’t breathe. Every word he just said races around my head as I try to take them in and make sense of them.
Taking my silence as relief, he says brightly, “You will receive your Porsche back tomorrow and you can resign from that job of yours. I’ve also booked us an all-inclusive five-star holiday to The Maldives to celebrate.”
Finally, I find my voice and say in a whisper, “What about your illness? Was that a lie?”
The expression on his face confirms it, and he appears a little contrite. “I’m sorry - yes. I’ve never been fitter actually and quite honestly, this project has invigorated me and made me hungry for more. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve longed to confide in you, but couldn’t. That’s why I kept my distance for fear of slipping up. It was also the reason I called your parents.” He laughs. “I know you hate them with a passion and it was interesting studying the effect they had on you. I must say, I was proud of you for stepping up and putting them in their place.”
He must see the expression on my face because he says gently, “Don’t you see why it had to be this way? The research we gathered has reinforced the fact this show will be dynamite and once you’ve got over the shock, I’m sure you’ll agree with me.”
I can’t even cry. I can’t even shout and I can’t even speak because I’m not sure what emotion to deal with first. Relief, anger, tears or recriminations. I feel so badly betrayed I am struggling to make sense of my emotions. Anthony just smiles happily and sets about changing for the party tonight and I can tell he’s reverted right back to the man he was before this whole charade.
As if on autopilot, I start getting ready myself and try to process my thoughts because now is not the time to deal with this. I need time to digest what he told me and come to terms with the fact that this whole nightmare was all a pretence.
By the time we head downstairs to make our way across the road to Fleur’s, it’s as if the last few months never happened. Normal service has resumed, at least in Anthony’s eyes, but I see things very differently. I wonder how this will really end because I know I’m not finished with him yet, by a long way.