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OLIVIA EDGED OPEN HER eyes. Her mouth tasted as though something had died in it while she slept, and her temples pounded. The familiar contents of her bedside table and the chest of drawers on the wall adjacent to her bed slowly began to take shape. She was relieved to discover she was in her own bed. At least she’d made it home last night, though she had no idea how she’d managed it.
A sudden dart of panic shot through her, and she froze. Was she alone? She’d been out on a date with Michael, and the last thing she really remembered was walking along the street, arm-in-arm with him, giggling about something. Had they come back here, and something happened between them? Was he in bed beside her? Lifting her throbbing head cautiously from the pillow, ignoring the little puddle of dribble she’d left on the material, she twisted her head and peered over her shoulder.
Liv exhaled a sigh of relief and dropped back down into the bed. She didn’t know what had happened, but she was definitely alone. She would have hated for her first time with Michael to be some drunken romp she couldn’t even remember. Ugh. What must he think of her? Had he drunk as much as she had, or had he been sober and she’d just made a complete idiot out of herself? She was normally so conservative with the amount she drank, but the double shots of gin, together with getting too comfortable with Michael, obviously had meant she’d got carried away.
She reached down beside the bed and scrambled around for her phone. Checking the screen, she hoped to see a message from him, perhaps something sweet and funny to put her mind at rest, but the screen was blank. Her stomach swirled nauseatingly, but it wasn’t just the effects of the alcohol—though she didn’t think she’d even drunk that much, a gin and tonic at home, and a couple more at the bar when they’d met. She must have had a ton more afterwards to not even remember getting home.
No, the uncomfortable feeling wasn’t from the alcohol—it was from not being able to remember. She’d had blackouts before, but not for a long time. That had been a dark point in her life, something she thought she’d left behind. The last thing she wanted was to return there. She’d done everything she could to put that side of her behind her.
With her phone still in her hand, she tapped out a quick message to Michael.
Thanks for getting me home last night. Sorry if I did anything embarrassing! Too many G&Ts. X
He might not even reply. If she’d made a complete fool of herself, he probably wouldn’t want to see her again. He was a reserved kind of guy, not the sort who would want some drunk woman on his arm.
She groaned and covered her face with her hands. She needed water and painkillers, and then some more sleep.
Oh, shit.
She sat up, her stomach lurching. It was Thursday today, and she was supposed to be working. Snatching up her phone again, she checked the time. Quarter to nine. She was supposed to be in the office in fifteen minutes.
Well, that was never going to happen.
Guilt swamped over her as she swiped the phone for the number for her office. She put on her best croaky voice, which wasn’t too hard considering how dehydrated she was.
Callie picked up the phone. “Blue Scene Agents,” she chirped down the line.
“Callie, it’s Olivia. Could you put me through to Tony?”
“Yeah, of course Olivia. Are you okay? You sound horrible.”
Her guilt intensified. “No, not really. I’ve picked up a bout of food poisoning, or possibly even Norovirus. I’m not sure which, but it isn’t pretty. You guys definitely don’t want me in today.”
“Oh, no. That sounds horrible. Please, stay away. No offence.”
She managed a smile, though Callie couldn’t see it. “None taken.”
“Okay, I can see him in his office. It looks like he’s free. I’m putting you through now. Feel better soon!”
“Thanks.”
The phone beeped a couple of times and then her boss picked up. “Good morning, Olivia. Callie says you’re not well.”
“Yeah, I’m so sorry to let you down, but there’s no way I can come in today, not unless you want me infecting the entire team.”
“Oh, God, no. That’s the last thing we want. Take tomorrow, too, if you need it and come back in healthy on Monday. I know how these things can spread.”
“Thanks, Tony. I appreciate it. I do have my laptop here, so if anything urgent comes up, just shoot me an email.”
“I’m sure we can survive a couple of days without you, Olivia, but thanks for the offer.”
“Sure.”
The phone buzzed against her ear, indicating a message had come through, but she couldn’t check it while she was still on the phone with her boss.
On the end of the line, Tony hesitated as though he wasn’t sure what else to say. “Well, plenty of water and dehydration salts,” he finished, “and we’ll see you Monday.”
“Okay, bye.”
Relieved, she hung up. She hoped he hadn’t noticed the long lunch she’d taken on Monday as well. The last thing she wanted was for her career to go down the pan. It was the one part of her life she thought she was doing well at.
Her stomach twisted, wrung out. She remembered the message and checked the screen. Michael had replied.
Not at all! You were fine when you got in the taxi. Had a wonderful evening. Looking forward to seeing you again soon. X
Olivia frowned at the message. He must just be being polite. How could she possibly have been fine when she felt this bad the next day and couldn’t even remember getting in the taxi, never mind coming home? Had she gone somewhere else after getting in the taxi and drunk some more? No, she wouldn’t have done that, she was sure. Well, almost sure. She couldn’t remember, so she couldn’t be completely certain of anything. The most rational explanation was simply that Michael was being polite, or perhaps he hadn’t even noticed how drunk she was. She wished she could remember getting in the taxi; at least then she’d have an idea of how much she drunk before that. It was the not knowing that was the frustrating part. But at least he’d messaged her back and said he wanted to see her again, so she figured she hadn’t done anything too bad.
Olivia reached to her bedside table and picked up the glass of water sitting there. She drank the entire thing down in several gulps, the liquid sitting loose and uneasy in her belly. She stared at the empty glass. Had she managed to get herself some fresh water when she’d come in, or had someone else poured the glass of water for her? Her thoughts went to her flatmate. Perhaps Tammy had seen her come home last night. She’d warned Liv not to wake her up, but if Tammy had seen her arrive in a drunken mess, she might have put her to bed. Olivia might have said or done something that would give her an idea of what had happened.
Quickly, she swiped her phone on again and sent out a message to Tamsin. The other woman would be at work now, but she always had her phone on her.
Hi. Did you hear me come in last night? Sorry if I woke you.
The reply came back almost immediately.
Nope. Slept like a log. Take it you had a good night then! See you later.
Olivia didn’t know which other way to turn. What about her medication? Had she forgotten to take her pills, or perhaps had taken too many? She thought she had a pretty good balance now and was on an even keel. Perhaps the extra drink had reacted badly with the meds. Strictly speaking, she wasn’t even supposed to drink, but a couple was normally fine. She’d have to be more careful in the future.
She crawled out of bed and took a quick shower and brushed her teeth to try to make herself feel more human, then put her pyjamas and dressing gown back on. She had no intention of going anywhere today, and anyway, she was supposed to be sick, and the last thing she needed was someone spotting her and reporting back to her boss. In the kitchen, she made tea in the largest mug she could find, and managed to get some toast and marmalade inside her to settle her stomach.
She intended on spending the rest of the day dozing and watching Netflix, and trying not to think about what might have happened the night before.