Cupcakes At Carrington's Part 17

'Sure. No harm in talking. But not here, what time's your break?'

'Ten thirty.'

'Fine, I'll meet you in the cafe upstairs.'

When I arrive in the cafe, Sam nods towards the booth in the far corner before holding up crossed fingers and mouthing 'good luck'. James is sitting with his back to the cafe. He motions for me to sit opposite him, presumably so there's less chance of us being spotted together.

'James, I know I ruined things between us, but I hate it that we're not even talking. Before ' I hesitate, picking my words carefully 'everything changed, we were good friends, weren't we?' He looks at me; his face gives nothing away. Mentally, I will him to go with me.

'I know. And I'm sorry how things have turned out between us.' My heart lifts. At last! We're talking, and on the same wavelength.

'Me too. But I was hoping that we might at least be friends again. Maybe even work together to scupper Maxine and Tom,' I say, optimistically, thinking how lovely it would be if I was back in favour with him.

'What do you mean?' he asks, his forehead crinkling into a frown.

'Well, I don't think Maxine's makeover is being conducted fairly.' I stare at him, trying to gauge his thoughts.

'But what makes you think that?' He looks at me intently.

'Because they're having an affair. I've seen them together, arm in arm. And Eddie spotted them too, actually snogging.'

He ponders this for a while and then lets out a long whistle.

'So that's her game then.' His jaw tightens.

'You think so too, that they're up to something then?' I feel relieved I'm not the only one who believes something dodgy is going on. It's hard to think straight these days. James nods and reaches for his coffee.

'I knew it. I just knew it. What an idiot I've been.' He shoves a hand through his hair.

'What do you mean?'

'She's been playing us both.' Ha! A little feeling of satisfaction waves through me. I was right about her and Tom all along. I can't believe I ruined everything with James. Kind, decent James. What was I thinking? Men like Tom don't go for women like me. I should have known I'd be just a conquest, at best.

'Georgie, I'm so sorry.' James looks over at me, his eyes full of concern now. My heart drops.

'What for?' The feeling of satisfaction withers and I feel uneasy now. I'm not sure I want to hear his apology if it's something to do with him and Maxine.

'Malikov.'

'Oh, don't remind me, please. And you don't need to apologise, I was the one in the wrong. I should have made sure I updated you straight away,' I say, grateful Maxine hasn't lured him into bed again.

'But I overreacted. And I said some unforgivable things to you.' He pulls his eyes away from mine.

'It's understandable. After everything you've been through,' I say, concerned that he seems to be blaming himself, when it was all my fault.

'No, please hear me out. When Maxine went through my sales sheet she accused me of stealing Malikov from you. Wouldn't have it that I organised his original visit and we had shared the commission. And then when she accused me of dirty tricks, I guess I just saw red.'

'Oh James, I'm so sorry.'

'I know you are, Georgie, but there's something else I want you to know.' My heart starts beating harder and my palms feel hot. I brace myself for what he's going to say next. 'I'm really sorry for what I said ... the stupid Valentine's present thing and comparing you to your dad.'

'But how did you know in the first place?' I ask, bracing myself for his answer.

'Oh, I've always known,' he says, casually. 'Can't remember how. It was in all the papers years ago, wasn't it, and I think I just twigged, but it's no reflection on you. I like to take people as I find them it was just an easy insult to hurl. I'm sorry, really, I am.'

Relief floods through me, quickly followed by sadness that I ever doubted him. He knew all along and never judged me. That's pretty amazing.

'James, I overreacted too.' His eyes lock onto mine. For a moment neither of us says anything.

'You know, she's been at me ever since she came here,' James says, wearily. 'Even implied that I can keep my job ... if I sleep with her.'

I'm stunned.

I don't want to hear any more about him and her, and then I remember Tom and what happened between us and I feel like such a hypocrite. So she's been manipulating James all along. And so much for her female solidarity then, telling me 'us girls need to stick together'.

'What shall we do?' he asks, his voice sounding hollow. I ponder on the situation before replying.

'Well, we'll both work hard on selling as much as we can, and may the best man, or indeed woman, win.' I grin. 'If our sales figures are higher than Tom's well, then she just can't sack us and keep him on, can she? That would be so obvious; the board would never let her do that, would they?' I feel triumphant, and pleased that James and I seem to be friends again. But then I suddenly remember what Maxine told me in my first meeting with her, and my heart plummets. 'Hang on a minute. That's not going to work, unless our sections make exactly the same amount of money, which is pretty impossible to guarantee. One of us will be deemed a loser and she's already told me she doesn't do "losers",' I say, despondently, making a feeble 'L for loser' sign like she did. 'No, we need to get more information on what's really going on, get some proof,' I add, sounding conspiratorial. We both look at each other for inspiration, and then a few seconds later we come to the same conclusion, at precisely the same moment.

'Eddie!'

James pulls out his mobile. There's a brief silence before Eddie answers.

'Ed. James here. Can you talk?' James pulls his mobile back from his ear and leans into me so I can hear too.

'Briefly. Maxine, or "Cruella De V-i-l-e", as I've renamed her, is in the kitchenette ... purring to a phone s.e.x client, no doubt,' Eddie hisses, and I giggle.

'Well, how would you like to get your own back on her?' James glances at me, a grin forming on his face. My heart pounds; it's fantastic that he doesn't think badly of me any more.

'I'm listening ...' Eddie says slowly, his voice perking up.

'I've got Georgie here with me.' James smiles at me, and I instantly feel happier, glad I made the effort to make things right between us.

'h.e.l.lo,' I say, into the phone.

'Hi girlfrieeend.' I laugh.

'We're in the cafe,' James tells him.

'I'm there.' And before James can say any more, the line goes dead.

A few minutes later, Eddie appears. He throws himself into the booth next to me.

'Got here as fast as my little trotters could carry me,' he pants. James and I laugh at the state of him. Eddie looks as though he's practically launched himself down from upstairs. His face is flushed and he can hardly breathe, he's that eager to get one over Maxine. We quickly bring him up to speed, telling him about the mind games she's been playing with each of us.

'And she's having an affair with Tom,' I end. Eddie throws me a confused look, but I know my secret is safe. Then he flings his hand up theatrically and quickly gasps in horror.

'Weell. Calm now, children. I can raise you on that one.' A cheeky smile unfolds across Eddie's lips. He flings one leg over the other and, after leaning forward, he rubs his hands together, savouring the antic.i.p.ation. James and I stare at him. 'Oh yes, Madam Fifi is having an affair all right.' He pauses to look at each of us in turn. I can feel my cheeks burning so Tom was just playing with me after all. This confirms it. I allow the last little drop of hope, that our moment of intimacy was something more, to trickle away. '... But it's not with Tom.'

Whaat! My heart feels as though it's going to burst right out of my chest.

'But you saw them snogging,' I gasp, 'and I saw them with my own eyes, in the corridor. And he phoned her. On a Sunday. Why would he do that?'

'Who with, then?' It's James who asks.

After a furtive look around the cafe, Eddie whispers, 'Only ...' His eyes dart from side to side. '... The Heff.'

'Walter?' James and I say together in disbelief. There's a stunned silence. I can't believe it.

'Hush now, we don't want all and sundry to know ... at this stage,' Eddie sn.i.g.g.e.rs, with an evil glint in his eye.

'So that's how she w.a.n.gled the job here then,' I say, mulling it all over.

'Of course. Oh, and that's not all. We're talking the Audi, the stratospheric salary. I mean, I know she's a retail consultant, but come on,' Eddie sniffs, before pulling a haughty face. 'Anyway, she's working me like some Vaudeville circus act and coming and going as she pleases, and wearing that s.l.u.tty perfume and flinging her fur coat around and practically running her phone s.e.x line out of her office,' Eddie continues, counting out the misdemeanours on his hand as he reels them off one by one. 'Yes, she's so smug she's practically licking her own a.r.s.e.' He crosses his arms with indignation. I stifle a sn.i.g.g.e.r and James shakes his head at Eddie. 'Oh, and not forgetting the pied-a-terre secret mews house in London.' Eddie's eyes dart around the cafe. 'They spend practically every weekend there, you know,' he mouths, with a look of disgust on his face.

'Really,' I snort.

'You know, I even overheard Walter lying to Camille, telling her he was attending the team-building event just so he could stay at the house last weekend.'

My brain instantly goes into overdrive. So Tom must be in on the secret then. I wonder whether Walter knows about her and Tom maybe it's a love triangle. My head is spinning. And, come to think of it, I wonder if Walter knows about her trying it on with James as well.

'How do you know she isn't sleeping with Tom too?' I ask, trying not to sound too bothered about it. Eddie flashes me another look.

'Well, she may well be ... but if she is, then Walter won't be happy. No, he likes his affairs to be exclusive,' Eddie says, nonchalantly, before inspecting his nails.

'Maybe we should tell him,' I offer, eager for the pair of them to get their comeuppance.

'Tell Camille, more like. She's the one with the money, after all. Serve the old b.a.s.t.a.r.d right for shafting me into a life of slavery,' Eddie snorts.

James shakes his head.

'No, we need to come up with something more concrete. We don't even know for sure she's sleeping with them both,' James says, distractedly. His forehead creases as he tries to formulate a plan.

'Leave it to me,' Eddie says, leaning back and spreading his arms along the back of the train seat like some Mafia mogul planning a hit. 'Madam deserves everything she gets. You know, she told me to go and find a job in Poundland if I didn't like it, when I dared to voice an opinion about my disgusting workload the other day. No, by the time I've finished with her she'll be spending the next ten years to her retirement date examining her own backside and wondering where her career went. I'd love to see her face when I tell her to go and get a job in Poundland.'

I laugh out loud, imagining Maxine stacking the shelves and scaring the customers away.

'Whaat?' Eddie says, trying to look all innocent.

'You are so outrageous,' I say.

'Weell ... she must be pushing fifty-odd at least,' he snorts. James and I laugh as Eddie frivolously adds at least fifteen years on to her.

'But what are you going to do?' I ask, desperate to know what Eddie has in mind.

'I'm not sure yet, but I'll think of something. I've already been fantasising over a few options during the darker moments of the last few weeks, and now I know that I'll be shoving her comeuppance down her throat for all three of us ... well, it'll be all the sweeter.'

'Just be careful,' I reply, getting up to give Eddie a hug, and James shakes his hand.

'Oh I will. And believe me, the pleasure is going to be all mine,' he says slowly, winking at us both.

28.

Sam glances over in my direction and, catching my eye, we share a knowing look. The hen party has only been going for an hour or so and already I just want it to be over. Tina hasn't stopped telling us how much Ciaran loves her and how he's proved it by spending so much money on the wedding and how romantic it's going to be blah-blah-blah. And she must have already reminded us, a trillion times at least, that she's getting married on Valentine's Day. It's not even ten o'clock. This is going to be a long day. I just hope she doesn't ask if I've found a date yet, which I haven't, of course, so I'm trying not to think about it.

We're all in the chill-out room and Tina is sitting on a big taupe-coloured leather beanbag in the middle, surrounded by the girls from Lingerie. Lauren is here, Tina's carbon-copy-looking friend Karen, and a couple of girls from the hairdresser's next door are milling around the heaving buffet table looking uncomfortable and muttering about why they've been invited.

'So, Georgie, tell us all about the team-building event. It must have been so much fun,' Tina prompts, her jaw muscle flexing. My heart sinks.

'Not really; in fact it was pretty dull,' I mutter, leaning forward to take a handful of kettle crisps, hoping she'll get the hint.

'Oh, I bet it wasn't. Ladies, who wants to hear all the gossip?' Tina flashes a look around the room, hoping to drum up some support for her request. Sam, who's now hovering nearby, and out of sight of Tina, makes big warning eyes at me.

'Really, it was actually quite boring. You know, the usual thing.' I grin and push a few more crisps into my mouth. I wish she'd drop it.

'Oh, something must have happened. Come on, we all want to know.' Tina's eyes dart around the room again, provoking a half-hearted mumble of encouragement from the Lingerie girls. My face flushes. I've been dreading this moment. Ever since she squeezed out the reluctant invite in the lift, I've been intrigued to know the reason behind it, and now I know. She's obviously decided on the 'keep your enemies closer' approach, thinking we're friends somehow because I'm at her hen do, and I'll spill the beans about Ciaran's night away from her. Not that he got up to anything that I know of, but I don't know what he's told her, or more importantly what he hasn't.

'Tina, I'd much sooner hear about the wedding. Have you got a picture of your dress?' It's Lauren who rescues me. Tina, taken aback by the normally una.s.sertive Lauren's request, stares at her for a second. I want to hug her for taking the heat off me.

'Of course not, it's a surprise. But I can tell you that it cost almost two thousand pounds. Can you imagine that, Lauren?' The girls all stare at Lauren, who's fidgeting uncomfortably. Tina is glaring at her and I can't help thinking what a pity it is she can't even enjoy her own hen party.

'Wow, it must be fantastic, is it a designer dress?' I ask, eager to ease Lauren's embarra.s.sment and steer the conversation away from the weekend.

'Of course,' she snorts.

Caroline, the salon owner, closes her eyes for a second, and then, drawing in a deep breath, she marches into the middle of the floor and smooths down her black tunic top.

'OK ladies, if you could finish up now, we need to get started on the treatments,' she says, brightly, rubbing her hands together in an attempt to chivvy everyone along and bring a halt to Tina's incessant drilling for information.

Tina grabs the treatment schedule handed to her by one of the therapists, and I let out a little sigh of relief as she scrutinises it, appearing to have forgotten about interrogating me.

'Only a few more hours to go,' Sam mouths from behind the multicoloured macaroon mountain, as I glance over, roll my eyes and bite down hard into a stuffed olive.

The therapists are handing out thick white towelling robes for each of us to wear. The Lingerie girls jump up and rush towards the changing rooms. I glance at my schedule and see I'm having a pedicure at four thirty, but Tina and the Lingerie girls are having the works full body ma.s.sages, facials, gel nails and vajazzles.

'Ladies, before you all go and get changed, I've bought a little present for each of you.' The girls hurtle back to their seats. Tina is standing up now and motioning over to a huge cardboard box that's sitting in the corner underneath the window. Then she skips over to it and flings open the lid.

'Da-daaa,' she squeals, like a magician's a.s.sistant, before pulling out the handbags, each one in its own black-and-white striped Anya Hindmarch dust bag. My pulse quickens. I've wanted one for ages, but they're way out of my price bracket, even with my staff discount card. Tina starts taking a bag to each girl.