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  “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she muttered to herself angrily, as she agonisingly threw off the covers. “Can he not even turn off a bloody light?” Hobbling to the door she opened it and, reaching for the landing light, she jumped as Rex looked up at her. He was sitting on the landing outside their bedroom door and he looked terrible. He hadn’t undressed, apart from removing his tie. She wondered whether he had even made it to bed. He’d obviously carried on drinking after she’d gone to bed.

  “Oh my god, what the hell are you doing down there, you stupid bloody idiot? You scared me half to death.”

  Rex looked up at his wife. He felt wretched.

  “Morning darling,” he replied, desperately trying to muster some humour. Rachael stared at him and, for the first time in their marriage, she felt a pang of sympathy. He looked sad, pathetic and unnervingly vulnerable.

  “Can I come in? I’m cold.”

  Rachael looked at him. “Not in that state. How much have you had to drink? For god’s sake, Rex, we’ve both got work to go to. Well I have, you can’t go anywhere until you sober up.”

  She held out her hand. “Come on, get up, I’ll put you into bed.”

  “I don’t want to go in the spare room, Rach, I want to go in our bed. I need a cuddle, Rach, please.”

  “No, Rex, sod off, you absolutely reek. Come on, I’ll help you get into the spare bed.”

  “Oh please, Rach, I love you. I don’t want a divorce, Rach, please can I come in?”

  Rachael didn’t reply. She wasn’t going to give in that easily.

  “Rex, you are extremely drunk as usual and I do not want you in my bed. If you don’t get up now I’ll leave you there. Come on, it’s freezing.”

  Reluctantly Rex held out his hand and Rachael helped him up. He staggered as he stood up and tried to crack a smile.

  “For better or worse, hey, Rachael? That’s what marriage is all about, isn’t it?”

  Rachael felt a pang of sadness as she helped him along to the spare room.

  “I’m still waiting for the better,” she muttered as she unbuttoned his shirt and helped him out of it. The better seemed to have left their relationship a long time ago, as slowly his friends and the pint glass had become more attractive to him than his wife and daughter. When she’d first met him, he’d made her laugh. She tried to remember when she’d stopped laughing. As she undid the belt of his trousers, Rex put his arms behind his head and grinned inanely.

  “Don’t even think about saying anything,” she growled. “I don’t need any of your idiotic comments right now.”

  “Aw, Rach, you’re such a spoilsport. I still love you though.”

  Rachael held her tongue. Dialogue was pointless. And as she covered him up and watched him drift into an instant, alcohol-infused sleep, she realised sadly that Rex might really need her after all. He looked like a small boy and despite being married for nineteen years, he’d never really grown up The responsibilities of life were often too demanding for Rex, although to be fair to him, he had managed to keep his business going and keep a roof over their heads. The booze, however, was starting to become a very demanding mistress.

  CHAPTER 13

  Having opted to take the stairs instead of the lift this morning, Kyle was slightly out of breath by the time he reached his office. He could tell that Kelsey was in; her perfume had already disseminated itself over the third floor. He liked it and found it comforting. He should maybe ask her what it was. Or maybe he shouldn’t. He didn’t want to appear creepy.

  “Morning,” Kelsey chirped, as he walked into the office. “You’re late. Where’ve you been? There’re a couple of parcels on your desk. What’ve you been buying?”

  Mentally arranging Kelsey’s questions into some semblance of order, Kyle responded robotically as he eyed the parcels.

  “Sorry, overslept, I was knackered after that circuits class last night.” He looked at the box. Fair play, that was efficient, he’d only ordered it on Wednesday.

  “Did you go to Thor’s class? Was it tough? I thought about it once, but I’m too scared. What night is it on? How many people go?”

  Kyle’s response was once again selective, as he opened the box.

  “Yeah, pretty tough, but not everyone was fit. I enjoyed it.”

  “I might try it, I need to get rid of my gut.”

  Kyle didn’t think she had a gut, it wasn’t exactly noticeable. As far as he was concerned, she looked like a model.

  “Well this might help,” he said triumphantly, as he removed the Nutri Bullet from the outer box and placed it on her desk. Kelsey looked at him. He felt himself blush.

  “Is that for me?” she asked, picking up the box.

  “Well sort of,” he replied. “You said you wanted one, but I thought we could keep it in the office and use it for making healthy stuff. I thought you could help me try and lose weight.”

  “Me?” she giggled. “I don’t eat anything healthy, you’ll have to help me. Oh, what a laugh. Thanks, Kyle.”

  “I bought some stuff in, Thor told me what to get.”

  Kelsey opened the box and took out the instruction book. “I’m getting worried about you and Thor, you’ll be after Yoga Debbie next.”

  Kyle didn’t respond. Yoga Debbie, by the sound of it, was way out of his league, as was Kelsey. His goal at the moment was simply to get fit, to find the Kyle that had somehow got lost and give himself the opportunity to have a decent crack at life.

  “Shall we try it at lunchtime?” grinned Kelsey. “Oh I can’t wait. Thanks again. That’s really kind.”

  And as Kyle returned to his desk, his heart felt just a little bit lighter.

  * * *

  With the house to herself, despite promising Rachael to stick to the detox, Maggie guiltily poured a strong black coffee and, sitting at the kitchen table, flicked through the post. As usual, there was nothing interesting, just junk and bills. She would need to have a word with the postman. He seemed to be completely ignoring her “No Junk Mail” notice. She looked at the clock. 9.15. It seemed like she’d been awake for hours. Callum had left early this morning and there had been no further discussion after he’d locked himself in his study. She had no idea what was on his agenda today, although being a Friday, he usually met the golf boys for lunch. Or at least he said he did. Maggie picked up her phone. She hadn’t spoken to Myles for ages. She’d banned him from calling her, but he’d braved a few messages. She missed him, and this morning she needed to speak to him more than ever. This morning she felt vulnerable. Finding his number, she called him.

  “Well this is a nice surprise on a Friday morning,” he answered. Maggie loved his slightly arrogant drawl.

  “Good morning, Myles,” replied Maggie. “Sorry, are you working? I can call back later.”

  “Don’t worry, I’m all alone. Are you OK? You sound a bit down.”

  Maggie tried desperately not to cry. She hadn’t anticipated feeling so emotional.

  “Oh, I’m fine, sweetheart. I just thought I’d better let you know that Callum’s getting suspicious. He asked me last night if I was having an affair, which is a bit rich coming from him. I think he’s planning divorce too.”

  “And what did you say? Does he suspect it’s me?”

  “Good god, no. I denied it, of course, and when I asked him if he was seeing someone, he denied it too. It’s going to be hell when he finds out about you, which he will, sooner or later. I just wish I knew how long he’d been seeing her.”

  “Have you checked his emails?”

  Maggie was shocked. “Of course not, Myles, I couldn’t do that.”

  “Why not? Everyone else does, you don’t have to read them if it makes you feel uncomfortable, you just need to get a timeline. If he’s started to make a plan, you need to get prepared. Trust me, I’ve been through two divorces and, quite frankly, my darling, you are currently being very honourable. My ex-wives would have put MI5 to shame. They fleeced me with military precision.”

  “Did you deserve
it?”

  “Probably.”

  “You’re not selling yourself very well.”

  “I’m a changed man, you’ve made me see the light.”

  Maggie smiled. She hoped so but she wasn’t completely naive.

  “Oh, I’m not sure. Anyway, I don’t know his password.”

  “Well I might. Well I know how to get into his phone, so if you could get hold of it, you could look at his emails on his phone.”

  Maggie was shocked. “How on earth do you know?”

  “Because when he tried to kill himself in Portugal, we had to get into his phone a couple of times. I remember it because, quite frankly, it was stupidly memorable. It was six sixes which I thought was a bit demonic. He might have the same code on his computer.”

  Maggie was silent. This was all getting very serious. She hadn’t planned on becoming the crazed wife. “Well I’m not sure how I’ll manage that, he’s joined at the hip with the dammed thing these days. I’ll see and, anyway, I thought I might do a bit of sleuthing at lunchtime, see if he meets her for Friday lunch. He used to meet Steve and Mike, but I don’t like to drag them into it to see if he still does.”

  “I’ll give Steve a ring,” replied Myles. “See if I can get any info.”

  “Maybe it’s better to phone Mike. Steve knows about you, I don’t think Mike does. Christie swore she wouldn’t tell him.”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  Maggie sighed.

  “I miss you, Myles. I wish you weren’t so far away.”

  “I miss you too, Mags, but I’m coming north in a couple of weeks, fancy a little rendezvous? I’ll rub your back again.”

  “Oh that would be just perfect, my darling, but give me plenty of warning though. I’m sure he’ll be watching me like a hawk, I’ll have to outmanoeuvre him.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll sort something out and I’ll get back to you if I find anything out from Mike. Chin up, Mags, it’ll all work out in the end.”

  “I hope so, Myles,” replied Maggie. “I do hope so.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Thor heated his sweet potato soup in the microwave and poured himself a glass of iced water. He hadn’t slept well last night. Jess had really got to him. He was usually pretty good at putting things to the back of his mind and moving on but, for some reason, she’d unsettled him. Every relationship he embarked on seemed to end before it had even got going. Girlfriends were always so jealous; they never trusted him, nor appreciated how hard he worked. Maybe she’d cool down if he gave it a day or two, but then again, what was the point? If she didn’t trust him now, it wasn’t the best foundation for a healthy relationship. He was obviously going for the wrong type, although what the right type was, he had no idea. Relationships were so damn complicated these days, all the women he’d dated recently were so needy. If he wasn’t texting them fifty times a day and telling them how gorgeous they were, they thought it was over. Reality TV had a lot to answer for. They were all so insecure. What he needed was a younger version of Maggie Dunbar, she definitely wasn’t needy. He wondered whether she had a daughter.

  Thor looked at his phone. No messages from Jess. Briefly, he thought about calling her but then, recalling their last conversation, he changed his mind. He only had fifteen minutes before the next client. In all probability it would end in disaster. Turning his attention back to his soup, he put the phone in his rucksack. It was Barbara next, seventy-five, ex-military nurse, strong as an ox, and in Thor’s mind, the closest thing he had to a substitute granny. He would never tell her that, but Barbara was solid. In the old days she’d have been the wise woman of the village. Maybe he’d run the Jess thing by her and see what she had to say. He had a feeling she’d tell him to run a mile, but Barbara surprised him sometimes. Thor sighed and, realising that he was probably clutching at straws, he finished the soup and placed the bowl in the sink. Barbara would be on time. He needed to get organised.

  * * *

  In the staff canteen Rachael dunked her peppermint teabag in a mug of hot water. She was desperate for a coffee, but she’d promised Maggie she would stick to their detox. The banana and bag of nuts didn’t look very fulfilling either and she was starving; the slice of toast that she’d thrown down her throat as she’d rushed out of the door hadn’t really hit the sides. Rex was such a useless bastard; a selfish, useless bastard, but as she’d picked him up off the floor last night, she’d suddenly seen him for what he’d really become. If she was honest, alcohol had always been an issue in their relationship, but last night she realised that Rex might actually be losing his battle with it. Drinking with your mates was one thing but carrying on when you got home was another. But once again his timing was perfect; he’d made stuffing up any plan she’d ever had in her life into an art form. Could she leave him now when he obviously needed help? She really didn’t know.

  As she sat down at the table, she took her phone out of her handbag. Unusually, there was a message from her daughter Amy, asking her to call. God, what now? Dialling her number, she peeled her banana as she waited for an answer. Unusually, Amy was quick to pick up.

  “Hi, Mum.”

  “Hi, pet, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, why do you always think something’s wrong?”

  Because it usually is, or you want some money, thought Rachael to herself. The way her life was going at the moment, nothing would surprise her.

  “I don’t, it’s just you don’t usually ask me to call during the day. Haven’t you got lectures?”

  “Just one, and I’m rushing, so I’ll have to be quick. Are you home this weekend? I’ve got nothing on and a few free days next week, so thought I’d pop home.”

  In other words, you’re broke.

  “Of course, I’m always home, when do I ever go anywhere? What time will you be back?”

  “About 7.30 hopefully, can you pick me up from the station?”

  “Probably, or your dad will.”

  “Is he home? He told me you’d chucked him out.”

  “Oh, did he now? Yes, he’s home.” Unfortunately, she muttered under her breath.

  “Good. Well, I’d better dash. I’ll phone you if the trains running late.”

  “Yes, please do, because parking is a bloody nightmare at the station at the moment with all that building going on.”

  “Ok, I will. I’ll see you later…Oh and, Mum?”

  “What?”

  “I’m now vegan, so you’ll need to get some vegan stuff in for me.”

  “What’s vegan? Do you mean no meat?”

  “God, Mum, keep up, that’s vegetarian. Vegan means no animal products, no meat or dairy.”

  “No milk?”

  “Nope, no milk, butter, cheese or eggs.”

  “No eggs? What the hell do you eat?”

  “Oh loads of stuff! Look, got to dash or I’ll miss my bus. Just Google it. Bye, see you later, love you, bye.”

  And as Amy hung up, Rachael wanted to bang her head on the table. Some bloody weekend this was going to be, hanging out with an alcoholic and a bloody vegan. “For fuck’s sake,” she whispered under her breath.

  “You alright, hen?” asked Marnie chirpily, as she joined Rachael at the table, the smell of her cappuccino only adding to Rachael’s misery. “Bad news?”

  “That was Amy, my daughter, saying she’s coming home for the weekend.”

  “Oh, that’s nice isn’t it? A bit of girl time.”

  “She’s turned vegan.”

  Marnie looked confused.

  “Is that a cult?”

  “Might as well be, I think it’s like being a vegetarian but ten times worse.”

  Marnie still looked confused.

  “What, like no meat?”

  “No meat, no milk, no cheese, no eggs, basically anything that comes from a bloody animal.”

  “Does cheese come from an animal?” asked Marnie, tucking into her blueberry muffin. Rachael looked at her. Her face was deadpan.

  “Are you winding me up?”r />
  “Well I don’t know where it comes from, I’ve never thought about it.”

  “Cheese is made from milk, Marnie, and milk comes from a cow. Butter is also made from milk. Have you never noticed the cow on that bloody cheese spread you eat every day?”

  “Not really, I just thought it was a nice picture. Looks more like a bull to me, reminds me of going to Spain. Oh well, you learn something every day, don’t you? So, what does she eat, then? Have you got to make her dinner? If she was my daughter, I’d tell her to bugger off. If she wants to join this vegan cult you should tell her to cook her own dinner. I couldn’t be doing with all that.”

  Rachael sighed, staring longingly at Marnie’s blueberry muffin. “God, I hate my life sometimes.”

  “Oh come on, cheer up, it’s not that bad, we’ll have a laugh at circuits in the morning. Is your friend going again?”

  “Who, Maggie?”

  “Yeah, the posh one, she’s hilarious, she’s like the girl at school who was always at the front of the class trying to impress the teacher.”

  “Yes she is a bit posh and a bit bossy, but she’s a good friend; she’s the only one keeping me sane at the moment.”

  “I bet she’s after Thor,” continued Marnie, nodding her head knowingly. “She looks the type.”

  Rachael looked at Marnie in disbelief. “Maggie and Thor? Hardly, she’d eat him for dinner.”

  “She’s obviously not vegan then,” replied Marnie.

  Finally, Rachael laughed. “No, she’s not vegan and she’s definitely not after Thor. Anyway, I’ve got to get back to work. Do you fancy coming out at lunchtime? I need to go bloody vegan shopping now.”

  “Don’t ask me to look at vegetables though, I hate vegetables, some of them give me the creeps,” replied Marnie, getting up from the table and brushing the muffin crumbs out of her lap. Rachael was tempted to try and catch them before they hit the floor. “But yes, I’ll come. I need some loo rolls.”