‘What the hell was all that about last night?’
Chloe had just arrived at work and was doing her best to concentrate on her own notes for the day when the door opened. Having spent a sleepless night listening to the rain pounding against the roof while wondering exactly the same thing herself, she was in no mood to listen to a rant.
‘Nice, Mark,’ she began wearily as she saw a couple of colleagues in the corridor turn and look at them. ‘What a great way to bring personal shit into the office.’ She was surprised at the vehemence in her voice – she usually trod cautiously where Mark was concerned.
Mark opened his mouth to continue, then stopped abruptly. He obviously wanted a row, but didn’t know how to get there if she wouldn’t play along. He came into the office, shut the door, and threw himself into a chair that had hosted a whole array of wretched spouses and at least three bigamists.
‘What did Alex say?’ His eyes narrowed as he watched her.
‘Nothing.’
‘So what the hell do you think was going on last night? They obviously know each other.’
Mark’s words were forcing Chloe to think about the exact issue she was trying to avoid dwelling on. Yes, they obviously knew each other. Which led on to How? When? Where?
‘I don’t know. And I really don’t want to discuss it right now – not with you.’
‘So do you think they’re having an affair?’
Behind the desk, Chloe clenched her fists. ‘No, I don’t, but trust you to think that,’ she said firmly, feeling shaken. She glared at Mark but he ignored her.
‘Well, has Alex ever mentioned Julia before?’
Another question Chloe had been pondering hard. And there was only one answer she could come up with. ‘No.’ She’d asked Alex the basic questions one asked when the moment came for them to share the details of their lives before each other, but she hadn’t pushed for information. Besides, she was sure he’d told her his old girlfriends’ names, and she didn’t remember a Julia.
That didn’t matter. Alex’s reaction last night wasn’t one of being reunited with an old, casual fling, and she knew it. And, obviously, so did Mark.
Mark was still watching her, but then gave a frustrated sigh and stood up. ‘Okay, I suppose I’d better get on, I’m due in court in an hour. Just let me know if you shed any light on this.’
Chloe bit back her irritation: he sounded like he was discussing missing paperwork. She had no intention of making this a joint problem.
‘Mmm,’ was the best she could do as he made for the door. She could see Jana, the secretary they were temporarily sharing, trying to peer through the gaps in the inner wall where the frosted glass became momentarily clear. Nosy cow, she thought, irritated.
Her fingers hovered over the phone. Normally if Mark was driving her crazy – as he had a tendency to at times with his infuriating way of speaking to her and his frequent incursions into her office – she’d call Alex, just to hear the sound of his mellow, calm voice on the other end of the line. She often pictured him at home, working meticulously on one of his design projects. However, today the only image she could conjure up as her fingers hesitated on the handset was the look on his face as he’d met Julia’s gaze last night. She quickly moved her hand away from the phone, and bent to her work.