Читать книгу She - HC Warner - Страница 17

Charlotte scanned the busy, dimly lit bar, her eyes hunting out Matt and Freya. Finally, she spotted them at a table in the corner, deep in conversation. ‘Hey, guys!’ she said, dumping her huge grey leather tote bag down on the floor and slumping into the seat they were zealously guarding for her. ‘Matt, be a love and get me an enormous glass of white wine, will you?’

Matt beamed at her fondly and stood up. ‘Your wish is my command, Lady Charlotte!’ He planted a kiss on top of her head as he squeezed past her and disappeared into the crowd towards the bar.

Charlotte smiled at Freya, holding her gaze as she acknowledged the familiar tug of longing that she felt every time she saw her old friends. She missed them so much. Missed the closeness and the laughter they used to share as a foursome, before she made the biggest mistake of her life by breaking up with Ben and blowing it all apart. ‘So … how are you, my love?’

Freya stood slightly and reached across the small wooden table to hug her, holding on for just slightly longer than normal. ‘I miss you.’ There was a slight tremble in her voice as she spoke.

Charlotte tilted her head and examined Freya’s face. She looked strained and tired. ‘What’s wrong? Is it work?’ Her job at St Thomas’ hospital was enormously stressful.

Freya shook her head and pushed back her blonde hair nervously. ‘No, work’s OK. It’s … well, it’s Ben, actually.’

Charlotte’s stomach plummeted with fear. ‘Ben? Why, what’s happened? Is he all right?’

Freya’s grey-blue eyes locked onto Charlotte’s. ‘Yes, as far as we know, he’s fine. It’s just that Bella’s had the baby. A girl.’

Charlotte’s mouth dried instantly. She nodded, trying to digest the news, wondering why it was such a shock when she had known it was coming for months. ‘Well, that’s good, isn’t it?’ she managed.

‘Yes, I suppose it is.’ Freya shrugged.

‘What have they called her?’

‘Elodie.’

Charlotte nodded again and attempted a smile. ‘Elodie. That’s a pretty name. And is everything OK? How are they managing?’

Freya made a ‘pfff’ sound and rolled her eyes. ‘That’s the thing …’ She picked up her glass and took a large sip of wine. ‘We don’t know. We haven’t seen them.’

At that moment, Matt arrived back at their table and put a large glass of chilled white wine down in front of Charlotte. She gave him a quick smile, before turning her attention back to Freya. ‘Thanks, Matt. Why haven’t you seen them?’

Matt looked at Freya and threw his hands up helplessly. ‘We’ve got no idea. She just doesn’t seem that keen on us.’

‘Have you spoken to Ben?’

‘Yup, briefly, when he called to tell me about the baby being born.’ Matt looked slightly crestfallen as he spoke. ‘But I think she might screen his calls. I rang once and obviously my number was displayed, so they didn’t answer. But when I blocked my number and rang back, she picked up.’

‘Well, call his mobile then?’

Matt scratched his cheek. ‘Nope. Tried that. He must have changed his number.’

Charlotte frowned. ‘How weird. Why would he change his number and not let his friends know?’

‘Because his fucking bitch of a wife told him to?’ Freya cut in, shaking her head in disgust.

Charlotte’s stomach churned with a dozen different emotions. Knowing that she no longer had Ben’s mobile number unnerved her hugely. Made her feel as though she had been cut adrift from her anchor. And hearing Bella described as his wife was like a punch to her kidneys. It was ridiculous, of course, but she couldn’t stop the feelings that were coursing unstoppably through her. She gave herself a shake. She needed to get a grip.

‘And how was she? Bella, I mean, when you spoke to her on the phone?’

Again, Matt glanced at Freya and gave a resigned sigh. ‘Frosty, I suppose, is the best way to describe it. Very offhand. Made it clear she didn’t want me calling.’

‘I hate her,’ Freya said suddenly.

‘Freya!’ Matt shot her an appalled look. ‘That’s a bit strong. We don’t even really know her.’

Freya shrugged apologetically. ‘I know, I know …’ She turned towards Charlotte. ‘But it feels a bit like a bereavement, except that he’s still alive and well and living just a mile or so away.’ She bit her lip and glanced at Matt. ‘And he wouldn’t say so but I know how hurt Matt is. Ben is his oldest, closest friend and yet he doesn’t even hear from him anymore.’

Matt’s eyes clouded slightly and he picked up his bottle of beer. ‘That’s not strictly true. He calls sometimes when she’s out.’

Charlotte tutted, infuriated and unnerved by what she was hearing. ‘But why would she not want him to speak to you guys?’

Matt and Freya both shook their heads. ‘No idea. Control, maybe?’ Freya said at last. ‘She does seem very possessive and domineering.’

Charlotte nodded, feeling guilty. This was all her fault. If she hadn’t broken up with Ben, he would never have met Bella and maybe it would be the two of them celebrating the birth of their first child. There was no way she’d have allowed Ben to shut out his oldest friends. They would have been with them every step of the way. ‘What would happen if you ignored the way she’s been behaving and just acted the way you always did? Why don’t you just go round with some flowers and a present for the baby? You used to pop by all the time, so it wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary.’

Matt recoiled in horror. ‘It would now! Honestly, Charlie, you have no idea how different things are to when you two were together. She’s so cold towards us. She would make it clear we weren’t welcome.’

‘So what?’ Charlotte looked from Matt to Freya defiantly. ‘You aren’t there to see her, you’re there to see your friend and his new baby daughter. If she doesn’t want to see you, she can always go out.’ She could feel the anger bubbling up inside her and knew it was borne out of guilt. But on the other hand, they couldn’t just accept that a lifelong friendship was over because Bella wanted him all to herself. ‘And I’m sure she’s not that bad?’

‘She is!’ Freya shot back. ‘Matt’s not exaggerating when he says she’s really off with us. She just has this way of making you feel so unwelcome, even when we’re not at their flat.’

Charlotte tried not to feel hurt at the description of the flat as ‘theirs’. Yes, Ben’s parents had bought it for him but it was she who had helped him choose it and furnish it, back in the days when she and Ben were so happy and excited about the future. But it was also she who had walked away from it, leaving Ben battered and broken, and vulnerable to the attentions of someone like Bella. ‘Well,’ she said at last. ‘I think you should just turn up and act like nothing’s wrong. Buy something lovely for the baby and behave as you normally would. You owe it to Ben …’

Matt stood up suddenly. ‘Just going to the loo,’ he said, by way of explanation as he strode off.

Charlotte and Freya watched him go. ‘He’s taken it quite badly,’ Freya began. ‘I think he’s just so unbelievably hurt. He and Ben have been inseparable since primary school. It just seems so unfair that this … this bitch, can have got her claws into him so quickly and so bloody effectively.’

Charlotte shifted in her seat uncomfortably. ‘It does,’ she agreed. ‘What if you were to speak to him? Alone.’

‘How?’ Freya looked gloomy. ‘She never leaves him on his own for a minute.’

‘She’s not with him at work. You could go and wait for him outside his office.’

Freya smiled slightly, as she digested the idea. ‘What? Ambush him, you mean?’

Charlotte picked up her glass and took a large slug of her wine. ‘Well, yes, I suppose that is what I mean. But at least Bella wouldn’t be there and you could ask him outright why he’s shutting you and Matt out all of a sudden.’

Freya squirmed in her seat and worry lines creased her brow. ‘I don’t know … what if he gets cross with me?’

‘Why would he? You haven’t done anything wrong. And you know Ben – he absolutely adores you.’

‘Do you think so?’

‘Yes, absolutely!’ Charlotte could feel herself warming to her theme. ‘And you never know, he might have a perfectly rational explanation that will put your mind at rest and then you can reassure Matt that it’s just a temporary blip and things will be back to normal soon.’

Freya reached across the table and took Charlotte’s hand in hers. ‘Oh God, I miss you so much, Charlie. We both do.’

‘I miss you guys, too.’ Charlotte swallowed hard, afraid she might cry.

‘Is there anyone on the scene at all?’ Freya dropped her hand and changed the subject, as if sensing that Charlotte might be wobbling.

Charlotte wrinkled her nose and shook her head. ‘No, not really. I don’t think I’m in the right frame of mind to have a relationship at the moment, anyway, so it’s probably no bad thing.’

‘No, maybe not.’ Freya looked suddenly wistful and smiled. ‘Although it would be great if you could find someone nice and we could have a whole new foursome.’

Charlotte tried to smile, but found that the corners of her mouth refused to turn upwards. ‘The trouble is that I found someone nice and dumped him, like the complete bloody idiot I am. Now all I can think is that there’ll never be anyone as good as him again.’

Freya shook her head. ‘I’m not going to say that I always thought there was something lacking in your relationship with Ben because I didn’t. But for you to have broken up with him when you did, when he was on the verge of proposing …’

Charlotte spluttered on her wine and her eyes widened. ‘What?’

Freya’s cheeks flushed slightly and she nodded. ‘Yes … I thought you knew? He didn’t exactly make a secret of it.’

Charlotte looked away, thinking. Yes, she probably did know, and maybe that’s what had made her get cold feet so suddenly. It was the enormity of it all.

‘So, what I’m saying,’ Freya continued, ‘is that you obviously did think there was something not quite right. Don’t be too hard on yourself, Charlie, because maybe, just maybe, you did the right thing for you.’

Charlotte so wanted to believe her. To think that she had been unhappy and that the relationship had run its course. But she knew deep down that it hadn’t and that she had just had a panic about the future and wanted to clear her head. Now it was too late and whatever she did, she couldn’t turn back time and make everything right again.