Friends Who Lie

by Paul J. Teague

  Caitlen moved past Terry, who barely acknowledged her, and sat next to Harriet. She seemed grateful for the company.

  ‘Sorry Harriet, it must be difficult at times with all these couples.’

  She realised what she’d just said.

  ‘Sorry. Again. I know it’s tricky for you with Matt here. I haven’t really had a chance to talk to you since the meal. Are you okay?’

  Harriet looked stoic.

  ‘I’m fine, Cait. You know how it is. He liked it so he put a ring on it. What can I do about it?’

  ‘But it came out of nowhere, didn’t it? Am I the only one who thinks that was a bit fast?’

  ‘You know what Matt’s like. He’s the marrying kind. We only separated because I asked him to cool it. I mean, I love ... I loved him, he’s a great guy. But it was too fast for me. Becky seems to be lapping it up, though.’

  ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen anybody who was so proud to be engaged. Have you seen the size of that ring? I like Becky, but she can be hard work sometimes. I hope Matt doesn’t live to regret it.’

  Harriet looked as if she was about to say something, but stopped and looked out of the window. They were moving now.

  ‘This place looks amazing, Cait. Thanks so much for treating us like this. I couldn’t have afforded it on my own. I’m really grateful.’

  ‘It’s fine, Harriet. I love being able to do it. You’re my friends and I am making you earn it, after all. You can still remember your two passwords, I take it?’

  ‘Don’t worry, I won’t forget them. It’s a crazy way to keep your money safe, I’ve never seen anything like it. Where do you keep the actual cash – or bitcoin – or whatever it is you’ve got?’

  ‘That’s just it. I’m geeky and even I struggle to get my head around this stuff. It’s all stored on a secure device which is ... er ... let’s just say it’s safely stored where nobody will find it. All I’ve got to do is not die between now and when we move the funds over. Hopefully I can manage that. I know some people say Benidorm is a bit rough, but I think I’ll make it to the end of the week, don’t you?’

  They laughed. The countryside was becoming hillier and more rural, every now and then they’d catch a glimpse of the sea sparkling in the sunshine. The lack of greenery and the burned soil hinted strongly at a blissful week of sunshine.

  ‘I certainly hope so!’ Harriet smiled. ‘Did you give Terry anything to remember? He seems a bit put out about the whole thing.’

  Caitlen felt her face reddening. Had she been that obvious? She lowered her voice.

  ‘Can you keep a secret, Harriet?’

  ‘Of course I can.’

  ‘Seriously? You and I have known each other since secondary school. I trust you as much as my sister, even if she does walk around with a face like she just sucked on a lemon.’

  ‘Yes, Cait. I won’t tell anybody.’

  Caitlen lowered her voice even more.

  ‘I’m not sure if this is going to involve Terry. I think this might trigger the end of the line.’

  ‘Oh Cait, I’m sorry.’

  ‘It’s okay, it’s been brewing for some time – well before the money came along. It’s not that I hate him. I just feel like we’re done. Like it was a just a three-year thing. It’s run its course, I think.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Cait. Terry always seems so much fun to be with.’

  As if on cue, Terry let out a loud guffaw. Wes looked up, startled and not quite sure what was going on. He returned to his conversation with Kasey.

  ‘Well, it gets a bit wearing after a while. You can have too much of a good thing. I’m going to see how things work out on this break. I want to give it a chance, but I honestly think it’s over. Getting this money means I can move on cleanly.’

  ‘Will you give him any of it?’ Harriet asked. Perhaps she should have been the journalist, rather than Emmy.

  Caitlen’s face gave her the answer. Terry was going to see very little of the money.

  ‘I’ll keep my mouth shut,’ Harriet said, squeezing her friend’s hand. ‘I hope you’re alright. I just want you to do what makes you happy.’

  ‘You too,’ Caitlen replied, grateful for the unconditional support. She’d already sensed the change in attitude towards her among her friends. Only Kasey and Harriet seemed not to care.

  ‘Maybe you’ll get yourself laid out here, you certainly deserve it after the drought you’ve been through. I hope it wasn’t too obvious giving you an apartment on your own?’

  ‘Of course not, I’m grateful. I wouldn’t mind a holiday fling. Something completely casual, that’s just what I need at the moment. Do they have Tinder in Spain?’

  Caitlen laughed and stood up to walk over to Terry. She was for real about giving it another try. Terry had the week of the holiday to convince her. He didn’t know it yet, but he was on his yellow warning. She’d picked up that much from his interminable football games.

  The road signs were now indicating that Benidorm was just a few kilometres away and the air of excited anticipation increased. Caitlen’s mobile phone began to ring and she looked for a spare seat to sit in.

  ‘Who’s this, I wonder?’ she said aloud, as she moved along the aisle of the bus. She looked at the screen, as she sat down to take the call.

  ‘Oh, it’s my money guy!’ she announced as she pressed the green button on her phone.

  She only just caught the words from the seat in front of her as the voice of her financial adviser came through the speaker.

  It was Naomi and she was mocking her sister.

  ‘It’s my financial adviser!’ she sneered. ‘Of course it is, Caitlen. Who else would it be?’

  Chapter Six

  Matt and Harriet: May

  ‘Good morning, beautiful,’ Matt said as he opened up his eyes to greet the new day. The love of his life was beside him. If it could be like this forever, he’d be a happy man. But he’d blown it and it was his fault.

  Harriet smiled at him. It was just like it had been before. Only, he had to go back to Becky now. He’d have to see it through. He was in too deep.

  ‘Make sure that you text Becky. You know what she’s like. She needs to know your every waking move.’

  Matt wasn’t in the mood for it. He’d managed to sneak off for what Becky thought was a night away on a business trip. It had been hard work. She insisted she’d travel with him when they were married. He was trapped and it was all his own stupid, impetuous fault. If only he’d been more patient with Harriet.

  ‘What time are you in work, Harry?’ he asked.

  ‘Ten o’clock, it’s the joy of flexitime. Council wages might be crap but the perks are superb.’

  Matt looked at her, the curve of her breasts barely concealed by the sheets. Their clothes were strewn across the floor, the debris from a frantic, passionate encounter. It had been six months. Half a year of tortuous separation, wound licking and posturing. And an unhealthy rebound relationship with Becky who’d always had her eyes on Matt since the day she met him. But Becky was possessive, erratic and demanding. If he tried to paint her in a more sympathetic light, he might have wondered if there was a history of mental illness there. When he’d realised his mistake, she’d threatened to harm herself – she couldn’t live without him now, she said. And so he was stuck in a crawl towards a marriage which could only imprison him.

  He rested his head on his arm and looked closely at Harriet as she struggled to keep her eyes open. They’d made love three times the night before, once had never been enough for them. With Becky, it was more than enough. She was demanding, fussy, exacting and functional about sex. With her it was like working through a Haynes mechanical manual. The car only ran if the adjustments were perfect.

  With Harriet it was free flow, passionate, urgent and sensual. He could hear the sound of her gentle breathing inches away from him.

  Her long auburn hair rippled over her smooth shoulders, the soft pink of a nipple revealed by the movement of the sheet.

&n
bsp; What had he been thinking of? He’d been so angry with her when she refused to get engaged. Why hadn’t they talked it through?

  ‘I’m so sorry, Harriet,’ he said quietly, not for the first time.

  She stirred, turning to face him now, the sheet moving below her waist and exposing more of her perfect body. Matt wanted to reach out and touch her, to kiss her neck and immerse himself in her beauty. But they had to talk. This might be the last chance they’d get. Like a persistent outbreak of damp rot, Becky was permeating all elements of his life. This would be his last night away from her – she’d made that clear. It was probably his final time alone with Harriet.

  ‘You were an idiot, Matt. What were you thinking? I know you were cross with me, but we could have talked it through.’

  ‘When you handed me back the ring, and said you weren’t ready ... I’d just assumed that you would say yes. I was hurt and confused. I was angry with you. I couldn’t understand why you were rejecting me.’

  ‘I wasn’t rejecting you, Matt. You know I love you, I always have. But you also know how my dad used to beat my mum. I grew up around that. And when the bastard finally did us all a favour by having a heart attack, she moved a pervert in with us. It just made me nervous about marriage. I was happy as we were. I felt that getting married would jinx everything. And I should have told you, I know that now.’

  ‘I had no idea. Yes, you should have told me. If I’d have known what your childhood was like, I’d have waited. I’d have understood why you wanted to take things slow. I can see that you weren’t rejecting me, it was those men that you were pushing away. But I’m not like that. You know that, don’t you?’

  She placed her hand on his face and stroked it gently, enjoying the feel of his stubble against her palm. She wanted him to make love to her and to luxuriate in the feeling forever. But they had to talk and plan. This couldn’t continue, however much they both desperately wanted it to. Becky was a monster, they’d not even realised that until Matt had begun his relationship with her. In mixed company, she was like anybody else, just a little needier. Behind closed doors she was manipulative and demanding. And now she was Matt’s problem.

  ‘You could leave her, you know. It’ll be horrible and messy, but eventually things will return to normal.’

  ‘I just don’t think I have the strength. She’s threatened to harm herself more than once. I couldn’t live with myself if she did that. I have to go through with it, Harriet. I just wish we’d done this five months ago instead of keeping a polite distance.’

  ‘It’s my fault too. When you ran off to Becky, I was furious with you. I know I was cold. But when you made your engagement announcement at Cait’s dinner party, I had to have one last try.’

  The others had noticed that she’d been silent when Becky made her big announcement. It caught Harriet completely off guard. She’d assumed that Matt was only using Becky to get back at her, that it would end and they’d start over again. But unknown to everybody else around that table, Matt had become caught up in a deadly trap. In his mind, there was no getting himself out. He’d convinced himself that Becky would have to leave him of her own accord – if she ever did that. He would never be able to leave her, she wouldn’t let him.

  Harriet had made sure they got a moment in the kitchen alone.

  ‘I’ll make the drinks,’ she’d announced. ‘You sit down, Cait. Enjoy your moment. How many teas and how many coffees?’

  She’d looked at Matt directly when she spoke. It was probably the first time their eyes had met since he’d stormed off in a huff. It had been six months of avoidance, evasion and polite greetings at occasional social events. When she looked directly into his eyes, she wondered if they were the only ones that could see the spark that had just shot across the room.

  After Harriet had gone to make coffee, Matt gave it a moment, then made an excuse.

  ‘I’ve changed my mind. Actually, I think I’d prefer a filter coffee. I’ll go and tell Harriet.’

  He’d stood up to walk through to the kitchen and Becky’s hand – the one sporting her new engagement ring – shot up to stop him. Caitlen sensed what was happening and distracted Becky with some wedding talk. Matt sneaked into the kitchen. As he walked up to Harriet, she spun around and they began to kiss. It was deep, passionate and urgent. Their bodies pressed close together, comfortable and familiar in spite of what had happened. They were going to make love there and then in the kitchen. Matt pushed Harriet up to the worktop, she hoisted up the bottom of her dress and parted her legs as Matt’s hand worked its way towards her panties. His other hand knocked a cup which went crashing to the floor.

  Like an alert guard dog, Becky’s voice could be heard shouting through from the dining room.

  ‘Everything all right in there?’

  ‘Sorry, Cait, I just dropped one of your mugs!’

  Matt moved away, Harriet hopped off the worktop and smoothed her dress. Their faces were red, it was obvious what they’d been doing.

  ‘We have to speak, Matt,’ she whispered. ‘You can’t go ahead with this.’

  Even as she said the words, he knew there would be no way out. But he had to see her, one more time. He had to try to tame the fire that Harriet had lit within him.

  ‘I can get away Wednesday. The King’s Hotel on Warwick Road. I’ll book a room. I’ll tell Becky I’m away on business.’

  Matt looked behind him to make sure the coast was clear. He kissed Harriet one more time, then made a commotion about heading up the stairs to the bathroom. He was hard and aroused, there was no way he could join them in the dining room, not until he’d had some time to cool down.

  And so there they were, sharing a bed together for what was possibly the last time. Matt needed time to stand still, he wanted to be stuck in that moment forever.

  ‘If I’d come into some money like Caitlen, perhaps we could make this all work. We could just run away, disappear and never see her again. In many ways I think it would be better for Becky that way, to completely vanish and never be seen again. I think that’s the only thing she’d accept.’

  ‘But we don’t have Cait’s money and we can’t just walk away. I have my mum to visit in the home and how would we make a living if we went to another country? I just shuffle papers for the council. You’re a sales rep, although I suppose that might be useful abroad – if you can find something that you can sell.’

  ‘I hate what I’ve done. I despise the way she’s cornered me like this. If we had that money, we could dig ourselves out of this hole. I could get away from her poison.’

  ‘We don’t have her money and we never will, Matt. You’ve made your bed and you’ll have to lie on it now if you’re not prepared to end it with her. I know about people like Becky. It can only end in death. Either her death or the death of the person whose life she’s ruining. It’s how my mum escaped from my dad. If you can’t end it now, if you don’t have the guts for the shitstorm, you’re going to have to see it through to whatever bitter end it comes to. And you and I will have to try our best to walk away from each other.’

  Harriet moved closer towards him. Her breasts brushed across his chest and he could feel her breath on his face. He could wait no longer. He pulled her close into him, his hand touching the small of her back and they made love until Harriet had to leave for work, her face flushed and her hair dishevelled. As Matt watched her walk through the door of the hotel room, he vowed that some way and somehow, they would be together again. Whatever power she held over him, Becky had to go. Whatever it took, he was going to be with Harriet.

  Chapter Seven

  Benidorm: June

  ‘Sorry, Caitlen, she’s insisting that the booking is only for five rooms. Two singles and three doubles. They must have mixed it up.’

  Wes was letting her save some face. He was the only one who spoke any Spanish, and he was being very generous with his translations. It was Caitlen who had messed up the booking, Apartamentos Tres Torres was full because of some event th
at was taking place in the town and somebody was going to have to share a room. The look on Naomi’s face told her that at least one member of the party had managed to figure that out for themselves already.

  ‘They’re sure that they haven’t got any more rooms? What about after the weekend? Will people check out then?’

  Wes spoke to the man at reception. Caitlen didn’t need to understand the words, she picked up on the sentiment.

  ‘He says it’s possible, but it’s a busy time of year. You’ve paid for the apartments in full and he says that you can move everybody around as you please.’

  Caitlen was too hot. The shuttle bus had been refreshingly cool, but she’d become overheated and sweaty dragging the suitcase along the path up to the entrance of their block. At least it looked nice. There was a lovely pool, the other residents looked civilised and it had a plush, modern interior. The online blurb had said that it been given a full makeover for the new season and it looked like they’d been telling the truth. It was time to bite the bullet.

  ‘Thanks Wes, I’d better see if we can shuffle these rooms without pissing off anybody too much!’

  As Caitlen walked over to the group of chatting friends, she ran through the configurations in her head. She thanked her lucky stars that none of them had kids – that would make what she was about to do even more combustible.

  ‘Okay everybody, sorry to keep you waiting. They’ve cocked up the booking, I’m afraid.’