“Lex!” Tarquin followed her through the living room to the bedroom. “Harry had just dumped her. She showed up in tears at my Manhattan flat. I couldn’t just turn her away…”
“Ah, so she’s the flatmate with benefits. Got it!” Alex stumbled into her jeans and threw a t-shirt over her head.
“It was nothing, Lex, we weren’t hurting anyone.”
“What about Harry?”
“He doesn’t know. We only slept together a few times—”
“What’s a few? Twice…? Every day with a Y in it?” She dug in her purse, her shaky hand resurfacing with a compact. She checked her face in its mirror. “Whatever. I don’t fucking care. I’m so out of here. What is it with guys hiding the fucking truth! So sick of it.” She snapped the compact closed and threw it in her bag.
“I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to hurt Harry!”
“If you didn’t want to hurt Harry, you should never have fucked his ex-fiancée.”
“It’s not like that…” he stammered. “Alex, she was mine first.”
“Whatever.” She stuffed her feet into a pair of wedge sandals.
“Me and Olivia, we were together as teenagers—before she dated Harry…and no, Harry never found out.”
She stopped, mid-buckle. “Oh, you’re fucking kidding me! She’s the relationship at Eton?!”
“I met her at a cricket match nine years ago. I was seventeen, very sexually experienced and not after anything serious, but Olivia…changed all that.”
“So, why didn’t you tell Harry?”
“Lex…the girls we met, socialized with—they always preferred him over me. He was this sweet, blond tennis star. I was a skateboarding showoff with a bad faux hawk. Olivia was mine. I didn’t want to lose her. So, I kept her a secret. It was easy to do—she went to Cheltenham Girls, ninety minutes away.”
Alex shook her head and finished fastening her sandals.
“I got the train to see her every weekend, except one in November, thanks to Mum dragging me to a showbiz thing. Olivia went with friends to a school tennis tourney. Harry was there, representing Eton—he won, of course. They met at the banquet afterwards, and Harry was a goner. He texted me on the ride home, wouldn’t shut up about her. He didn’t know she was the ‘girl from the village’ I’d talked about. Sure enough, two days before Christmas, she dumped me and began reeling him in, playing hard to get. I told her we should come clean, but she wouldn’t have it…” He followed Alex across the room to her open suitcase. “Olivia knew the score. If Harry knew that she was the girl, he wouldn’t date her—the bro code, right? And I didn’t say anything because he was completely love sick, acting like she was the one. By spring, they were the golden couple. Harry never found out that the girl who broke my heart was Olivia, or that the bloke who took Olivia’s virginity wasn’t him but me. The hating each other thing was an act to cover our tracks.”
Zzzzzzzip. Case closed, Alex stood up, shaking her head in disbelief.
The alarm on the waffle maker started to beep. Tarquin ignored it. “Olivia would have done anything to keep Harry—you know that better than anyone! And I love him like a brother, but even brotherly love has limits. The longer he was with her, the more determined I was not to tell him I’d slept with his future wife. It had to stay secret, or our friendship would have been toast…”
“Oh, bullshit! You’re a coward! You could’ve said something when he broke off their engagement. Sure, he would have been pissed, but he’s a guy. He would’ve gotten over it—water under the bridge. But, no! She turns up in New York, damsel in distress…” She scoffed, yanking the extendable handle of her suitcase. “Right there, you crossed the line. You never fuck your best friend’s ex.”
Tarquin held his palms up, his posture conciliatory. “In New York, Olivia said she was serious about giving it another go—her and me. I felt flattered. She said we’d tell Harry when the time was right. It was good for a while…until Olivia landed some Wall Street wanker after a few weeks of us shacking up. She moved out, set up her charity. She played me like a bloody fiddle. That’s what Olivia does, she uses people.…come on, Lex, you’ve seen her in action. You know what she’s like!”
Alex stared at the floor.
“Then, these titty texts started out of the blue, a week after I moved back here.” He huffed. “I’m actually the VICTIM here, Lex. I’m being zombied.”
Alex didn’t react.
“Zombieing…it’s when an ex resurrects a relationship from the dead via text…”
“I know what it is, Tarquin.” She turned away from him, checking her purse for her passport.
“Come on, this is crazy. I never cheated on her or you. Please. Don’t leave like this…”
Alex tossed her laptop bag on her shoulder and pulled her suitcase along, leaving the bedroom. The smell of scorched waffle emanated from the kitchen.
He paced after her. “Look, I get it. You need some space. I’ll call you in a few days—”
“No, you don’t get it, Tarquin.” She jabbed the elevator button and spun around. “Don’t text, don’t call, don’t fly to New York. We’re done. You say you love Harry like a brother? Well, I really do, and the difference between you and me is that I would never betray him.”
He spun the ring on his thumb. “You’re not going to tell him?”
“I don’t know, but the truth will come out eventually. It always does.”
“Seriously, he’ll never trust me again. I could lose my job with Budgie—”
“Good-bye, Tarquin.” She dragged her case into his elevator, closing the door on their relationship.
Forty-Two
Standing on Tooley Street outside London Bridge station, Alex sent a text to Lucy before descending into the hellish heat of the Underground.
Headed to Heathrow early. I finished with Tarq. Don’t worry, I’m FINE. Getting on the Tube. Unreachable until Paddington. xo
Twenty-five minutes later, Alex’s phone erupted with text after text. She ran for the express train to Heathrow, hopping on as the doors slid closed. She plopped down on a seat inside the door, hurried breaths escaping her lips as she checked her phone.
Texts from Lucy, Tarquin, Lucy, Tarquin…
Alex had never been in such demand. What a mess.
She called Lucy—she answered on the first ring.
“You really okay? Your text sounded surprisingly okay.”
“I am. My mascara was never in danger…”
“But…?” Lucy knew her best friend too well.
“I liked him, Lucy—a lot. He was funny and kind. He was here. Maybe that sounds like a stupid thing to list as a positive, but after Mark…”
“Shit, Lex, I’m sorry.”
“We planned things and did them. Tarq said he wanted to fly over early for my birthday—have a weekend away. I bet he would have, too. How’s that for a novelty? Booking a trip with your guy and following through with it. I bet in time I would have fallen in love with him…”
“So, what the hell happened? Had to be major.”
“Is Harry with you?”
“No. I slept at mine last night. Why?”
“Harry’s going to be upset.”
“Well, yeah. That’s the risk, right? When friends date friends.”
“No, Lucy. This goes beyond that. Tarquin dated Olivia in New York.”
“FUCK OFF?!”
Alex told Lucy everything.
“Eww! Tarquin and Olivia? I don’t think Harry will care about her, but he’ll be upset about Tarquin. He might overlook the teenage stuff, but hooking up with her again post-engagement? What best friend thinks that’s okay?”
Alex winced. “Lucy, sorry. I’ll be at Heathrow in five minutes and my phone’s draining…”
“Don’t worry, babe. I’ll bring Harry up to speed. Call me when you’re in the Big Apple, okay?”
“I will.”
“God, what a way to start your trip, eh?”
Forty-Three
The hazy, early evening sun stretched through the large windows of Budgie’s three-bedroom loft in New York’s West Village. Alex picked one of the smaller bedrooms, reserving the large king-sized suite for Lucy and Harry. She turned on the air conditioning, plugged in her dead phone, and started to fill the closet with her clothes.
Her phone came alive like it was possessed, buzzing and then switching to the Sherlock theme and then back to buzzing again.
“Shit. Okay, Lucy, I’m coming!” She hollered over her shoulder, leaving her wrap dress to swing from a wooden hanger in the sizeable closet. She ran around the bed and pounced on her phone, not stopping to read the texts, phone alerts, and FaceTime requests that battled for space on the screen.
She typed quickly and hit send: Sorry! Phone died. Here safe.
Lucy replied within seconds. We’re FaceTiming NOW.
“Wait!” Alex shouted aloud. Tarquin’s escapades must have turned Harry’s world upside down. She didn’t have time to dig out her iPad from her computer bag before the FaceTime request appeared, but it was from…Freddie?
“Lex!” Freddie looked so tiny on her phone’s screen. His chest rose and fell like he had sprinted up the steep escalators at Angel Tube station. “Thank GOD. I can’t hold it any longer.”
Simon squeezed in from Freddie’s left. Lucy was sat on an armrest. Harry was…missing.
“Where’s Harry? Is he okay?”
Lucy nodded. “He’s on his way back from Tarquin’s.”
Alex bit her nails. “Guys, what happened?”
“Lex!” Freddie leaned forward, hogging the entire screen. “Are you sitting down?” He was on the verge of hyperventilating.
She sat on the edge of the bare mattress. “Freddie, take a breath…you’re scaring me—”
“Lex…” Simon yanked Freddie back. “New Year’s—it never happened.”
Alex’s brain had to backpedal. New Year’s…? “What?”
“Mark didn’t have sex with Fallon in Dublin!” Freddie yelled, bouncing up and down on Lucy’s loveseat.
Forty-Four
Alex struggled to catch a breath, this emotional wallop sucking all the air from her lungs as time slowed to a crawl. “Wh-Wh-What?” Her eyes bore into her phone.
Lucy’s smile ran riot across her face. “Simon overheard Fallon and Wink last night at the TV thing. It’s true—Mark didn’t cheat on you.”
Mark didn’t cheat. Lucy’s words echoed in Alex’s mind, overtaking the heart-pounding thump-thump-thump tormenting her ears. Mark didn’t cheat. Three words she never imagined could be spoken, least of all by Lucy. A shaky hand rose to her mouth. “But how?”
Simon nodded. “The dancer I was wrangling last night was in makeup for ages. I was waiting in the hallway just across from a small greenroom, so, I did a Freddie—”
“Hey!” His fiancé scowled.
“And aren’t you glad I did?” Simon squeezed Freddie’s knee. “I’ve never been around so many celebs before, so I earwigged. I wanted to hand out a business card or two for the boutique and thought maybe—”
“Si, get on with it!” Freddie jittered like he had downed a dozen espressos.
“Anyway, I hear a girl with an Irish accent, and thought, Shit, is that Fallon? She’s talking to a guy, loud voice, definitely American. I hear her laughing, glasses clinking—sounds like they’re celebrating. The Yank congratulated her on a wonderful job—he used her name then, so I knew it was definitely Fallon. I thought he was talking about her movie or something, but then I heard him say ‘Alex’ and ‘New Year’s’ so I moved closer to the door. Fallon thanked him—for everything—and called him Wink.”
Simon caught his breath. “Wink then said something like, ‘I told you, didn’t I—you’d get it ALL doing things my way? I never expected losing the deadweight writer to be THAT easy…”’
Alex sat open-mouthed.
Simon continued. “He said you getting wasted did them a huge favour, and I remember this part clear as day: ‘Mousetrap snaps, girlfriend out of the picture.’ I couldn’t believe my ears.”
Wide-eyed, Alex slowly rocked back and forth. “Fuck! I got the feeling Wink resented me but…” Her voice faltered.
“I could strangle the bastard.” Lucy’s nostrils flared.
Simon scratched his beard. “It went on from there. Wink laughed about plying Mark with booze and offering him an E just gone midnight. Apparently by one-thirty in the morning, Mark was so trashed, he was barely standing—”
“Putty in Wink’s hands,” interrupted Freddie.
Alex stared at the screen, dazed. “But how…do you know that Mark didn’t…”
“Fallon’s rugby bloke left after you did, so she was free to ‘look after’ Mark.” Simon shook his head. “I’ll never forget what Fallon said: ‘It was the best sex I’ve NEVER had.’ I didn’t catch anything after that as my dancer came out of makeup and I had to escort her to the stage area.”
Alex slumped in her chair. “It was all a lie…?”
“A complete setup by the sound of it,” said Simon.
“Wait—does Mark know?” she asked.
“He does now!” said Freddie, his face filling the small screen once more. “I couldn’t tell him last night because his mum was staying over, but when he came back from taking her to the airport, I sat him down with a full English and told him. Lex, he wept like a lost little boy. It broke my heart.” Freddie sat back.
Simon shook his head. “I feel bad. I totally misjudged the guy.”
“Me too,” said Lucy.
Tears began to pool in Alex’s eyes. She blinked quickly, halting their progress. “Where is he now?” Her voice broke.
“It took him a while to compose himself,” said Freddie. “Then, he got PISSED. I’m talking, Irish-temper-I’ll-skin-you-alive furious. He was pacing, swearing, muttering under his breath. Around nine tonight, he reached Fallon on her cell and told her he was coming over. I said to text when he was on his way back, but I haven’t heard a peep since.”
Simon tilted his head. “You okay, Lex? You look shaken. Aren’t you…happy? Maybe now there’s a chance…”
She dabbed at her eyes. “I’m relieved he didn’t cheat, but it doesn’t fix what was broken between Mark and me. He’d changed a lot. Besides, it’s too late, anyway.”
“Too late? Whatcha on about?” Freddie frowned.
“They’re engaged.”
Freddie burst out laughing. “No, they’re not!”
“I saw the ring, Freds. Fallon was wearing it last night.” Her sad eyes darted to her best friend. “Lucy, the one I told you about? His mum’s ring?”
Lucy raised her eyebrows. “The backpack ring?”
Freddie scrunched up his nose. “Bullshit. Mark has never mentioned getting engaged!”
“See for yourself.” Alex sighed. “Check the Mail website, their gossip column from last night.”
Simon handed Freddie his phone. He tapped and scrolled the screen. “What? Okay, THAT question tops my list when I hear from him! You can’t believe anything in these tabloids, Lex, you know that!”
She shrugged. “Freddie, it won’t change anything.”
“But do you want it to change things?” asked Simon.
“Of course she does.” Freddie rolled his eyes. “She still loves him—”
“Freddie, stop—” Alex protested.
“The truth might change more than you think. The mood Mark was in, I was certain he was going to dump her!” said Freddie.
Alex shook her head. “He’s been gone two hours? It’s just past eleven P.M. there, right?”
“They’ve got a lot to discuss,” said Simon.
“Or they’re making up.” Alex looked away.
Lucy smiled kindly. The lock on her front door clicked open. She leapt from the armrest and disappeared from the screen. Alex could hear Harry in the background.
Simon stood up. “You look shattered, mate. Have a
seat.” He walked off screen.
Harry dropped down beside Freddie and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands. Lucy reclaimed her spot on the armrest, and Simon pulled up a chair.
Harry waved at the screen. “Hey, Lex.”
“How did it go?” she asked, Freddie’s big announcement still sinking in.
Harry tugged his hand through his hair. “So, I saw Tarq. I can forgive the teenage relationship…I mean, he did date Olivia before me, so I’m the one who broke the so-called ‘bro code’—although I had no clue I was breaking it.” His eyebrows furrowed. “But sleeping with her straight after I ended our engagement? He crossed a massive line. Maybe down the road we might be able to laugh this off, but I doubt it…”
“What about his job?” asked Lucy.
“That’s Dad’s call, not mine. I don’t think Tarq’s extracurricular activities interfered with his job performance.” He grimaced. “Lex, I’m so sorry…if I hadn’t introduced you to him—”
“Harry, don’t. I can’t be with someone who would betray you. It’s for the best. My heart…is still bruised, anyway.”
Harry balled his hands into fists. “Fuck! I’m so pissed at him.”
Freddie’s mouth opened into a huge molar-exposing yawn. He slowly stood up, his head and shoulders disappearing from Alex’s phone screen. “Si…time to go…let’s get back, see if Mark’s home.”
Lucy stole Freddie’s place on the loveseat and nuzzled into Harry, trying to cheer him up with soft kisses.
Freddie’s face filled the screen. “Lex, text ya when I hear.”
“Hear what?” asked Harry.
Freddie yawned again. “About Mark’s convo with Fallon—she made it all up. Mark didn’t cheat on Alex!”
Harry’s eyes bulged. “What!?”
“I’ll fill you in.” Lucy’s hand stroked Harry’s loosened tie.
“I’m texting Lex as soon as I hear.” Freddie looked pleased with himself.
“Freds, no rush. It’s late for you. I’m gonna turn in…” Despite Alex’s outward resolve, thoughts of Mark flooded her mind, pushing away Tarquin and everything else. She stifled a yawn. “I’ve been up since five A.M. London time—”
London, Can You Wait? Page 31