When Tess got the text message, she was still in the office, papers splayed out on her desk. Her computer screen glared at her. Outside, on the main floor of the office, many of her junior colleagues were still at their desks.
Britney had just arrived with another double espresso. She tapped her knuckle on Tess’s door, then brought the coffee over.
Tess remained stony-faced.
She noticed how Britney’s make-up still looked perfect, though she’d been working since dawn. No bags under her eyes, either. Ah, the joys of being twenty-something. And she smelled good. What perfume was that? It was a crime when your assistant wore a nicer perfume than you.
After talking to Kate, Tess had dissolved into a distracted mess. It was impossible to pay attention to her work, and Tess hated that.
She could only think of Gareth.
Would her boyfriend fail the test? Would he succumb to Kate’s charms?
As Britney set the cup down, Tess saw that she’d put a heart-shaped chocolate on the saucer. Typically thoughtful and affectionate of her.
“Do you need anything else, Tess? A glass of water?”
“No.”
“I hope I’m not overstepping,” Britney said. “But is everything okay? You look a little – off?”
“Off? I look a little off?”
Britney recoiled. “I’m sorry, I—”
“Do I comment on your appearance, Britney? This firm has a policy when it comes to personal remarks.”
Which everyone ignored. Especially the partners. But so what?
Britney’s face fell. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean anything. I just— I was concerned. Forgive me.”
Tess decided she’d make her work all night, every day this whole goddamn week.
“I need you to go over the Maxwell file. Summarise where we stand on it in a memo. Be sure not to miss anything.”
Britney nodded slowly.
This was a horrendously complicated corporate restructuring that Tess had been meaning to untangle for weeks. Well, now was as good a time as any to make some progress.
“Sure. I’ll get right on it in the morning.”
“I need your memo for 8 am.”
Suck on that.
Tess’s assistant didn’t let her dismay show. She even forced another smile.
“Absolutely. I’ll get right on it.” She gave a laugh. “I might need some coffee myself.”
With that, she turned on her heel and strode out. Her nonchalance made Tess even angrier. Women like Kate and Britney drove her nuts.
When Britney was gone, Tess returned to her own work. At least, she tried to. She had been gazing at the same documents for two hours. She’d read the same few words a hundred times and they still weren’t soaking in.
Her phone pinged. Tess snatched it up at once, gripping the device tightly in her clammy hands.
The fate of her future with Gareth was on the line.
She swallowed and read Kate’s text.
I’ve got an answer for you.
Tess waited for another message. Why didn’t Kate say what the answer was? What good was a message like this?
She downed her espresso and threw the chocolate in the bin. Then she waited. She stared out the window.
The lights of a plane moved slowly across the sky, going in to land at the airport. A plane full of families, maybe. Coming back from holidays in the sun.
When was Tess’s day in the sun? When was her family time?
After five minutes, she couldn’t stand it anymore. Out of patience, she dialled Kate’s number. Waited while it rang. One, two, three rings. No answer.
Was Kate’s phone on silent? Or was it buried in her handbag, ignored while she and Gareth got down to business?
She dialled Gareth next. His phone didn’t even ring, just went straight to voicemail.
Were they in bed together? Tess hadn’t asked Kate to go that far. But Pandora’s box and all that. Kate might have started flirting with Gareth only for it to get out of hand.
Tess’s mouth flooded with bile. She bent over the bin and puked into it.
Gareth had been so distant lately. And he seemed… resentful?
She wiped her mouth and checked the time. She had to find out what was happening. Rising from her chair, she turned off her PC and flicked off the light, then put on her long black coat before walking out.
Tess caught the sideways glances her colleagues threw at her. Leaving so early was unlike her. She knew that. But so was asking someone to seduce her boyfriend. Sometimes you had to take a chance.
*
At home, Tess parked in the driveway behind Gareth’s car and hurried up the steps to her door. The drive had seemed interminable. Tess had heard nothing further from Kate, and her calls had gone unanswered.
Was Kate in the house? Had she really got an answer? What if the answer was yes, if Gareth was distracted because he no longer loved Tess? Was he ready to move on to the first woman who fluttered her eyelashes at him?
Maybe he already had.
Tess’s hand shook, making getting the key in the lock difficult. She ground her teeth and finally managed to get the door open.
The light in the hall was on.
“Gareth?”
Only silence greeted her. She stepped into the sitting room. There was no one there.
A first aid kit sat on the coffee table. Was Gareth hurt? Tess felt more freaked out by the minute.
“Gareth? Are you there?”
She walked through the whole ground floor.
Nothing. No one.
She went upstairs. There was no sign of anyone there either.
In the bedroom, Tess scrutinised the bedsheets. Were they tussled more than normal? Was that a hint of perfume Tess detected? She didn’t know anymore.
She took out her phone and called Gareth again.
He picked up on the fourth ring. Tess could hear ambient noise in the background. Faint music. The murmur of voices. The clink of glasses.
“Hey. Tess.”
“Where are you?”
“I decided to pop into Fitzgerald’s.”
“You’re at the pub? Why?”
A pause. “Just, you know, felt like it. You don’t mind, do you?”
What she minded was the false cheerfulness in his voice. It was completely unconvincing.
“But why?” she said.
“I just fancied a drink.”
“We have drinks. We have plenty of drinks at home.”
“I wanted to get out of the house.”
The bonhomie was gone from his voice now, replaced by irritation. Tess felt like she was about to puke again.
“Are you alone?”
“Well, the bar isn’t empty.” Before Tess could ask what that meant, he said, “You’ve got your book club tonight, haven’t you? I didn’t think you’d mind.”
“I don’t.”
“Okay. I’ll see you later then.”
The line went dead.
Was Gareth drinking away his guilt?
Tess took a breath and headed for the door. She’d have to go to Louise’s house. Hopefully Kate would turn up there and Tess could soon find out just what she had done.