“I’m not here on Charlie’s orders,” Claire said looking disgruntled. “She’s already made the decision not to tell him. She made that decision when she got her dad to drive her away from Birmingham.”
“Then leave it alone,” Rich said.
“I can’t. He should know. Surely he’s got the right to choose who he wants to be with,” Claire said. “If he decides that he wants to stay with Emily then that’s his right, but maybe he’ll…”
“Choose Charlie?” Rich finished for her.
Claire nodded and asked; “does he hold her round the waist and kiss her neck?”
Rich looked up at Claire, and he knew that if Matt knew the truth he’d choose a life with Charlie every time. Yet he worried that he couldn’t watch Matt go through all of what he’d just been through again, if a second chance with Charlie did not turn out to be all that he’d hoped for.
“Yeah,” Rich lied; “he does.”
Claire looked shocked for a couple of seconds and then asked; “so he’s really moved on then?”
Rich nodded, and Claire got up off the stool.
She hadn’t told Rich that she’d come to Birmingham to see Emily, and seeing his reaction and hearing his version of events she decided that it was best not to. She’d watch Matt and Emily for herself at his and Bex’s wedding, and then she’d decide whether or not to tell Matt the truth. Yet whilst she was here, it couldn’t hurt to put the fear of god into Saint Emily she thought.
“Right,” she said; “well I’m going to head back down South then. I won’t say a word to Matt, and Charlie doesn’t need to know that I was here either.”
“No one needs to know,” Rich replied.
Claire kissed Rich on the cheek and said; “I’ll see you in a couple of months at your wedding then. Take care.”
“You too,” Rich said.
***
Claire was sat at the Starbucks in the Palisades shopping centre waiting for Emily to show up. This was an easy place to meet, as it was in the centre of town and directly above the train station where she needed to get her train back down to London.
She saw Emily approach her table and she eyed her warily. She had to admit that she had forgotten how pretty she was. She was thin and blonde with a pretty face, and Claire remembered disliking her on those qualities alone when they’d first been introduced. She hated anyone who shared any of her own characteristics.
“Hello,” Emily said coolly. “Do you want another coffee?”
“Let me get them. What are you having?” Claire asked standing up and smiling at Emily. She was pleased to see that by wearing her ultra high heels she was taller than Emily, whom she’d correctly remembered as being roughly the same height as Charlie.
“A cappuccino please,” Emily said sitting down and then cursing herself for not having worn high heels.
Claire returned with the coffees and sat down. Yet just as Emily was about to say something to her, she decided to speak first. She wanted to take control of this conversation from the outset.
“I’m sorry about the call the other night. I was completely out of order. I was just a little shocked when I learnt from a friend at home that you’d moved in with Matt,” Claire said.
She saw that she’d thrown Emily instantly, and she resisted the urge to smile. “It was just really weird for me,” Claire continued; “as Charlie’s best friend that is, to hear about him living with someone else. But I know that’s not really a very good excuse for demanding that you meet me.”
“That’s okay,” Emily said cautiously. “I suppose I can understand the reaction.”
Claire smiled sweetly.
“If you’ve realised that you over reacted, why did you still want to meet me?” Emily asked shrewdly.
Claire respected this straight approach and said; “it’s a bit difficult to explain actually, and to be honest I’ve been changing my mind ever since I arranged to meet you about whether or not I should’ve cancelled.”
Emily continued to watch her suspiciously, but she didn’t say anything.
“When I found out that you were living with Matt,” Claire said; “I happened to be privy to some other information that only I and four other people know.”
Emily remained silent.
“Charlie has her memory back,” Claire said matter of factly. She was also pleased to see shock show instantly in Emily’s face, and then be replaced just as quickly by a look of anxiety.
“Who are the four people?” Emily asked quickly.
“Matt’s not one of them,” Claire said; “and Charlie doesn’t want him to be added to the list of people who know.”
She knew that her answer had answered the question that Emily had really wanted to ask her, as well as the one that she would’ve wanted to ask her next. “No one that knows,” she continued; “including me, is going to tell him or anyone that might tell him.”
“So why have you told me? I might tell him,” Emily said.
Claire laughed maliciously and said derisively; “yes, you’re likely to tell him.”
“And what do you mean by that?” Emily asked defensively.
“Are you looking for him to leave you?” Claire asked coldly.
“He wouldn’t,” Emily said.
“Okay,” Claire said in an unconvincing tone.
“Why have you told me? Do you expect me to feel bad, have a problem with my conscience and go home and tell him?” Emily asked.
“No. I’ve told you because I think you deserved the right to know as part of the full explanation of why I called you. I didn’t want you to think that I was a crazy person,” Claire said.
“I don’t believe you. Is Charlie planning on coming back to Birmingham?” Emily asked.
“No, she’s not. I promise you,” Claire said; “no one is planning on telling Matt.”
They sat in silence for a while, both of them sipping their coffees and eyeing each other warily, but Claire finally broke the silence and said; “I wish I hadn’t come now. I’m sorry that I told you. Look, my train’s in ten minutes so I’m going to go. You won’t have to see me again, except for at Rich and Bex’s wedding of course. You should probably also know that Charlie’s going to be there as well.”
“But she’s not going to talk to Matt?” Emily asked nervously.
“I can’t guarantee you that they won’t speak, but I can promise you that Charlie will never tell Matt the truth. Charlie knows that she hurt him too much in the months after the accident for them to ever get back together,” Claire said knowing that what she’d just said was the first honest thing that she’d said to Emily since she’d arrived.
Emily looked at her but didn’t say anything, and Claire turned on her heel and walked away without saying another word. She knew that she’d done what she’d come to Birmingham to do. She’d put the fear of god into Saint Emily, and she smiled
Charlie
Life in London was different to what she’d expected, but it had also been exactly what she’d needed. She loved the obscurity of life in the capital. It was big and noisy and obtrusive all of the time, and she found that it was in the noise and general bedlam that she was able to lose herself. No one knew who she was, and no one had even bothered to try and get to know who she was.
Having lived under a constant spotlight for almost thirteen months, Charlie found the sense of being inauspicious soothing and strangely a little comforting. No one knew that she had suffered from amnesia, and better still Charlie was fairly certain that had people known they wouldn’t have cared. Everyone in the capital was too wrapped up in their own lives, and in their own problems.
Charlie had interviewed at three law firms and had been offered positions at two of them. She’d chosen the smaller of the two firms that had offered her a position, and although it had been a slight step down in title compared to her previous role the money had actually been better.
She had known before her accident that she’d been at a point in her career where she’d already started
contemplating changing direction. She had therefore hoped that by choosing the smaller of the two law firms that had offered her a role, she would have a more rounded career and would not be pushed again into working in a specialised area.
The firm was based by London Bridge, and the commute from Claire’s was relatively short. From her flat just off Battersea Rise, in between Clapham Junction station and Clapham Common tube station, the journey simply entailed a quick bus ride to Clapham Common and then a few stops on the Northern line to London Bridge. Once there, it was then less than a five minute walk to her offices.
Everyone at Angershore, Fortly, and Jarvis, were friendly and welcoming, and Charlie had after just a couple of weeks felt completely at home there. She also enjoyed her commute, but then she knew that it helped that she worked long enough hours to rarely have to experience the rush hour crush.
Thanks to Claire, Charlie had also been ingratiated into a circle of friends that Claire had already made after having moved to London from Bath. All of the women were really friendly, and most of them were solicitors too which made it easy for Charlie to fit into the group. She’d thought that it had also helped that they too had all enjoyed a night in or out with a few bottles of wine.
None of these women knew the first thing about Charlie, which was another relief. They didn’t know about her accident. They didn’t know about the amnesia, and best of all none of them knew anything about Matt. This meant that she’d been able to start completely afresh, and she’d never had to field any awkward questions about him.
The subject of her having been married though had come up once when Jenny – one of her new friends, had noticed that she wore both an engagement and a wedding ring, but Claire had quickly and craftily navigated the conversation away from Charlie. She’d explained that Charlie’s marriage was a dull story, and ended the way that they all do with her husband having an affair with a younger woman.
Charlie had raised an eyebrow at this version of the story, but she’d been thankful to Claire for her quick thinking. It had led the conversation away from her, and they’d instead talked about the way that modern society forced women to try and stay younger looking.
That night Charlie had removed her rings, but she hadn’t known what to do with them. She hadn’t been able to bear the idea of putting them in a drawer, or heaven forbid having thrown them away, so in the end she’d put them in her purse. She’d liked that they were still near her, but Claire had mocked her and had been adamant that men would find it strange.
The topic of men was still a strange one for Charlie. She wasn’t shy around men, but she just wasn’t sure how to be around them in a non platonic way. She’d spent half of her life, and all of her adult life with the same man. She’d also grown up with him, and had been friends with him before they’d gotten together. The idea of talking to men in an attempt to get a date, or find a new boyfriend made her feel nervous. She also wasn’t sure that she was ready to replace Matt.
In the past she’d never bothered or thought much about her flirting, she’d known that it wasn’t leading anywhere and this had made her feel very relaxed. Now though she felt tense all of the time, and she was constantly worrying about coming on too strong or not strong enough.
Claire had set her up on a couple of dates, but they’d gone awfully and Charlie had been thankful to Adam when he’d told Claire to stop pushing her.
Charlie had been impressed by Adam. She had been unsure about what to make of this so called high flying investment banker, and she’d felt protective over Claire when they’d first been introduced. She had been expecting a bit of an ego has landed encounter, but Adam didn’t have an ego at all. He was kind, funny, and most importantly to Charlie he looked after Claire. Yet he still kept her on her toes, which Charlie knew that she needed, by teasing her mercilessly.
She’d seen instantly what had drawn Claire to him. Adam was tall, dark haired, obviously handsome, and wealthy. He was certainly a catch, but then Charlie knew that Claire was too. She’d always been stunning, and had always been an obvious blonde haired beauty. So it was no mystery how she’d managed to attract a man of Adam’s stature. Yet Claire had rarely kept the men in her life around for long, and she’d openly admit that she was high maintenance.
Nick had been her longest relationship, but Charlie had always known that it wouldn’t last. She hadn’t said this though as he was one of Matt’s oldest friends, and she’d known that had she said it she’d have been accepting that some of the things that Matt had said about Claire were true.
The problem had always been that whilst Nick was a nice guy, he’d never had that something special about him that Charlie had known that her best friend had needed to keep her interested. He had however been dependable, and this was something that Charlie had known had drawn Claire to him.
Adam on the other hand was not dependable in the slightest, and this was plainly obvious to see, but he did have that something special and Charlie was impressed with how he seemed to have managed to calm Claire. At times when it was just the two of them, and they thought that Charlie wasn’t around, they were also really affectionate with one another.
Charlie was happy for Claire, and she was pleased that she finally seemed content with someone. She was also pleased that she liked Adam, and that the two of them got along. She had after all known the difficulties of best friends and partners not liking each other. Yet just as everything in her new life in London seemed to be on the up, as was always the way there had to be something on the horizon to act as a dampener. It was now less than two weeks until Rich and Bex’s wedding, and she was dreading the moment that she’d have to see Matt again.
The worry of seeing him again had been keeping her up at night, and had been making her feel nauseous all of the time. The one positive side effect of her worrying was that she had all but stopped eating, and as a result she had lost a fair amount of weight.
Charlie knew that she didn’t really need to lose any weight. She’d always had a good figure – she was athletic and well toned, but as with most women she hadn’t minded discovering that her clothes were less snug.
Claire also noticed the weight loss, and when they were shopping for dresses for the wedding she said; “this worrying is worth it, you look great. What size is that dress?”
“A six,” the shop assistant said from behind Claire.
“Nice!” Claire said appreciatively. “Now we can finely share wardrobes.”
Charlie laughed whilst pulling at her hair and looking at her reflection in the mirror, and she said to Claire; “do you think I should get my hair cut?”
“Yes,” Claire said; “and I know just where to go. In fact I may have already booked you an appointment, but Adam forbade me from making you go unless you asked.”
Charlie laughed and said; “thank god for Adam.”
“Hallelujah to that!” Claire said laughing and winking cheekily at Charlie.
“Seriously,” Charlie said laughing again and shaking her head at her best friend.
“Come on. We don’t want to be late,” Claire said unzipping the back of Charlie’s dress for her.
***
Charlie had looked in the mirror at her hair, and she’d been impressed with what the stylist had done. She’d always had rich thick brown hair, but she’d never done much with it. She’d worn it long for as long as she could remember, and aside from having had some layers cut into it a few years back she’d never really done anything more adventurous. She’d just never felt the need to.
The hairdresser had cut her hair short at the back, cutting the hair right into her neckline, and had then shaped the rest in a short style that was feathered and shaped round her face. The style included a fringe, which Charlie had never had before and had been nervous about. Yet the effect of the fringe and the style the hair dresser had chosen for her was impressive, and according to Claire she looked more beautiful than before and she only hoped that Adam wouldn’t agree with her.
Char
lie had found herself looking at her reflection wherever possible for the remainder of the day, finding it strange each time that she did she didn’t instantly recognise herself.
The hair style was definitely worth it Charlie had decided, after receiving her fourth or fifth compliment after having only been in the office for twenty minutes. She’d also thought that if the looks that she’d been getting from some of the men in her office were anything to go by, then she must’ve been looking okay. She’d only hoped that Matt would agree with their assessments.
Charlie didn’t know why she wanted Matt to see her as attractive at the wedding. She knew that he would be there with Emily. Yet for some reason she did, and she knew that he was the reason why she’d had her hair cut in the first place. She also knew that he was the reason why she’d bought a ridiculously expensive outfit for Rich and Bex’s big day, and why she wasn’t sleeping.
The night before the wedding, Adam assured her that it was natural to want your ex to see you and be filled with remorse at ever leaving you. As he said this though, Charlie looked across at Claire. Claire avoided her gaze, and Charlie couldn’t help but wonder what she’d said to Adam. Not wanting to go into it, she said nothing and Claire quickly changed the subject. Charlie only hoped that this topic of conversation didn’t come up at the wedding.
She went to bed early to pack, and to try and get some sleep. They were driving up to Worcester for the wedding first thing tomorrow morning in Adam’s new jag, and she knew that once they arrived she would inevitably at some point see Matt. She’d then have to speak to him, and probably also to Emily.
Matt
The lead up to Rich’s wedding had been strange to say the least. Everything in his life had been going well up until about two months ago. Work was good, he was out of rehab, and life with Emily was okay. For the first time since Charlie’s accident, he’d begun to feel happy again. A feeling that he had at his lowest points thought that he might never experience again. Yet for the past couple of months something had been off, and he could only attribute this to Rich’s upcoming nuptials.
Splintered Memory Page 17