Читать книгу Freya North 3-Book Collection: Love Rules, Home Truths, Pillow Talk - Freya North - Страница 37

Loggerheads

Thea was appalled, incensed and insulted. Poor Peter Glass received a massage so vigorous he was virtually winded and Thea’s final client was given a perfunctory forty minutes before being told he was much better despite leaving her room with the stilted gait he’d entered with. Later, Thea snapped at Saul, ‘Tell them this is our final offer and they can take it or fucking fuck off.’ And then, when she saw she’d missed a call from Mark, she burst into tears.

‘Baby,’ Saul tried to soothe her, ‘baby, what’s up?’

‘Nothing,’ Thea cried.

‘Tell me,’ Saul said, through lips pressed to the top of her head.

‘Alice,’ Thea sobbed.

‘What’s wrong with Alice?’ Saul asked, remembering he hadn’t seen her in the office that afternoon. ‘Is she OK?’

‘We’ve fallen out,’ Thea whispered. She felt a sudden stab of acute loneliness at the fact that Alice was actually very happy and utterly unaware that they’d fallen out.

‘About what?’ Saul said, wiping Thea’s nose for her. But Thea didn’t want to tell him. She’d been sworn to secrecy, after all. And a part of her could not betray trust placed in her. Another part of her simply didn’t want to reveal the crime, the sin, to Saul. He liked Alice. He worked with her. He liked Mark too. It was so hideous she didn’t want to talk about it. She didn’t want to say out loud that she hated her lifelong best friend for behaving in a manner which threatened to undermine all they were meant to hold sacred, all they were supposed to be striving to achieve. This wasn’t playground gallivanting or youthful experimentation. It was full-on promiscuity. It was dangerous and deplorable and Thea didn’t want it to be happening. It made her feel unsafe. Why wasn’t Alice behaving?

‘What about?’ Saul repeated.

‘Just stupid,’ Thea said, wiping her nose gratefully against Saul’s shoulder, ‘nothing.’

‘It’ll blow over,’ Saul said, kissing her forehead, ‘these things always do. She’s your best friend. I bet you she texts you before she goes to sleep tonight. Now, am I really phoning the estate agent declaring our final offer or the vendor can fucking fuck off?’

Thea smiled. ‘I love you Saul,’ she said with a crackling sniff. ‘I’d never do anything to hurt you – even if you might never know about it.’

Saul gave her a puzzled smile. ‘Thanks, baby,’ he said, ‘ditto.’ Thea leant towards him and cupped his face in her hands, kissing his mouth with tenderness. ‘I’m going to phone the agent,’ he said, kissing her back. ‘Are we agreed this is our final offer then?’ Thea had her eyes closed. She nodded. She did so love Saul. Her home was with him, wherever that might be.