by Helen Warner
Amy bit her lip again but didn’t say anything.
‘He almost destroyed you. For God’s sake, can’t you see how dangerous he is? What about the children? Don’t you worry about them? You could be putting them in danger if you got back with him.’
‘No!’ Amy protested, her cheeks now flaming. ‘He would never hurt the kids.’
‘How do you know?’ Sophie thought she might burst with frustration. ‘How do you know for sure? He was quite happy to hurt their mother!’
‘Because he loves them. And he loves me. You don’t know him like I do, Sophie. He’s learnt his lesson. I’m not stupid, you know.’
There was a new spark of defiance to Amy’s demeanour, which a part of Sophie was pleased to see. She had been so broken for so long now that it was good to see her getting some of her old self back. Yet it worried her too. She knew how convincing Nick could be. Once he’d got her back she’d be trapped again, only worse this time because she’d be too embarrassed to ask for help.
‘I know you’re not stupid, Amy. But I also know what Nick’s like. He can be so convincing. I just don’t want you making a huge mistake. And it’s not like you haven’t got anywhere to go – you can stay with us for as long as you need to.’
Amy nodded. ‘I know, and I’m really grateful to you and Steve. But you’ve got your new baby on the way and you won’t want us three here, intruding on your family time!’
‘We love having you here!’ Sophie’s response was as instinctive as it was heartfelt. They had grown so used to having Amy and the kids around, it was unthinkable that they should leave. She had always known that one day, when Amy was back on her feet, they would get a place of their own, but it seemed a long way off. ‘Emma would be bereft without Megan and George!’
Amy smiled. ‘And they without her, but she’ll have a new little brother or sister to play with. She’ll be fine.’
‘You sound like you’ve made up your mind…’ Sophie thought for a moment she might cry. She had grown to love those children almost as much as her own, and Steve definitely had. He had spent so much time with them. He would be devastated.
Amy took Sophie’s hand in hers and squeezed it. ‘Don’t hate me, Sophie. But I do really love Nick and surely it’s got to be better for us to be together as a family, making it work?’
Sophie swallowed back the tears that were gathering in her throat. She nodded. ‘Yes, as long as—’
‘I know,’ Amy interrupted. ‘I know. And we’ll see you all the time.’
Sophie hoped, rather than believed, that would be the case. Nick would hate her even more than before and she knew, with a sinking sense of foreboding, that it wouldn’t be long before he would persuade Amy that it was best not to see her friends. ‘When are you going?’ she asked, holding her breath for the answer.
‘Well, maybe we should go sooner, rather than later…? Give you a chance to really prepare for the baby.’ Amy’s tone was conciliatory, cajoling. It was almost as if their roles had reversed in just a few short minutes.
Sophie’s shoulders sagged but she mentally gave herself a shake. It was Amy’s life and Sophie couldn’t dictate what she did and didn’t do. ‘Well, as long as you know that, whatever happens…’
Amy shook her head with a confident smile. ‘It won’t.’
‘Whatever happens,’ Sophie repeated, ‘you will always have a home here, with us. You must promise to call me if you’re ever in trouble.’
‘I promise.’ Amy squeezed Sophie’s hand again. ‘But I know it won’t come to that. We’re so good together now. He’s a changed man and he’s so lovely to me.’
‘OK.’ Sophie stood up, unable to stomach any more of Amy’s praise for a man she knew to be completely undeserving of her. There was no point in telling her what she point blank refused to hear. And then again, maybe she was wrong. Maybe Nick really had learnt his lesson and they would live happily ever after. But she doubted it.
Although both she and Steve were dreading them going, in the end they didn’t have time to miss them too much as Sophie went into labour just a couple of days after they left. Their son Theo arrived a few weeks early but Sophie joked that he was so big, it was a damned good job he was early or she might have been in danger of breaking a world record for the heaviest baby ever.
All she could think was how different it was to when she’d had Emma. This time, she thought she might burst with happiness that she finally had a healthy little boy who was already the spitting image of Steve. She just wanted to spend all day, every day, staring at him. Steve and Emma were the same. It was as if none of them could get enough of him.
‘He’s so beautiful, Sophie,’ said Melissa, cradling him in her arms. It always took Sophie by surprise just how good Melissa was with babies. She always imagined she wouldn’t want to get puke on her designer jeans and would be repelled by the thought of changing nappies but she was exactly the opposite. She was a real natural and in return, children seemed to love her too.
‘Well, I’m biased, but yes, he is. I feel so different to when I had Emma. God, it makes me feel terrible to look back at what a mess I was.’
Melissa put Theo over her shoulder, his mouth dangerously close to her pale green silk top, and rubbed his back tenderly. ‘Yes, well, you had your reasons. Now you need to put all that behind you and enjoy both of your gorgeous kids. Has Amy been to visit?’
‘Yes. She brought Megan and George with her.’
‘Not him?’
‘Nick? No, thank God. I have to admit I was slightly surprised she came. I was convinced he’d have persuaded her to stay away from us.’
‘Well, they’re still in the honeymoon period, I guess.’ Theo started to cry half-heartedly so Melissa handed him back to Sophie with a laugh. ‘Back to Mummy, I think…’
‘Maybe he really has changed, Liss. Maybe it’ll work out for them.’
‘I hope so but I can’t believe it, can you? We need to keep a close eye on her.’
Sophie nodded. ‘So, how are you getting on at Merlin?’ Melissa had recently started working at Mark Bailey’s company, after Sophie persuaded Mark that she would be a real asset with her experience in the record industry. Mark had remembered Melissa with a definite glint in his eye and didn’t take much convincing.
Melissa grinned. ‘A-m-a-zing! Honestly, Soph, I totally love it.’
‘And how are you and Mark getting on?’ Sophie raised a mischievous eyebrow.
Melissa shook her head decisively. ‘Not gonna happen this time. He’s got his pick of glamorous women. Why would he be interested in me?’
‘Because you’re gorgeous, glamorous and really, really fun?’
‘Yeah, well, look where’s it’s got me. Thirty-three and single.’ Melissa pulled her beautiful, full mouth into a fake pout.
‘Is there no one on the horizon?’
‘Not at the moment. But who knows what the future holds? Maybe now that I’ve stopped looking, that’s when I’ll find someone. ‘
Sophie certainly hoped so. Melissa had really turned her life around from her wild younger days and she deserved some happiness.
The next couple of months passed by in a blur. Unlike the first eight weeks of Emma’s life, Theo’s whizzed by. Sophie wanted to grab the hands of the clock and make time stop, so that she could hold her life exactly where it was. She and Steve were besotted with the children and each other, all the pain of the past now melted away, hopefully to be forgotten for ever.
All too soon, Sophie was expected back at work. She could have taken a lot longer on maternity leave but Mark had made it clear that he wanted her back as quickly as she could manage, with the company growing so fast. She loved her job but it was still a wrench leaving Steve and the kids on her first day back. ‘They’ll be fine,’ Steve told her, kissing her tenderly over the top of Theo’s head as he cradled him in his arms.
And although it was hard work, being back was also great fun, especially now that Melissa was working for the same company. A
s a result, it was several weeks before Sophie noticed that Amy hadn’t been in touch and then it was only because Steve mentioned it.
‘Oh!’ Sophie said, climbing into bed and snuggling up to him. ‘I hadn’t thought about it, but yes, it’s been ages.’
Steve kissed the top of her head and pulled her into his arms. ‘Have any of the others heard from her?’
‘I don’t think so or I’m sure they’d have mentioned it.’
‘You should call her, make sure she’s OK.’
Sophie immediately felt a swirl of guilt. What if Amy was in trouble again? She hadn’t even given her a second thought recently. ‘I will. I’ll also call Emily to check if she’s been in touch.’
The next morning, she called Emily on her way to work. ‘No,’ she said. ‘I assumed she’d have been in touch with you.’
Sophie furrowed her brow in concern. ‘I’ll call her.’
With shaking hands and a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach, she dialled Amy’s number. Amy answered after three rings. ‘Hi, Sophie!’ she said brightly.
Relief flooded through Sophie. ‘Hi! I’m just calling up to see how you are. I haven’t heard from you in ages.’
‘No, sorry. I haven’t called but I thought you’d be up to your eyes. How are the kids?’
Sophie beamed, even though no one was watching her. It still gave her a thrill whenever anyone asked about ‘the kids’, rather than just Emma. ‘They’re fantastic. We miss you guys, though. How are you all?’
‘Good! How’s it been going back to work? Was it a wrench?’
‘God, yes. But it’s getting better. It really helps that Melissa works there now.’
‘I bet it’s a hoot.’ There was a wistful note to Amy’s voice. ‘How is she?’
‘She’s great. She’s settled in so well at Merlin. I’m slightly worried she’ll nick my job next! Why don’t you come over one evening and I’ll invite her and Emily so that we can all catch up?’
‘Um, yes, that would be lovely. How is Steve?’
A prickle of concern began to niggle at Sophie. Amy was deflecting everything away from talking about herself. ‘He’s good. But, more to the point, how are you?’
‘I’m well. Really well. How’s Emma getting on at school?’
‘Yes, she loves it, although she hates leaving Theo…’
‘I bet.’
There was an awkward pause while Sophie waited to see if Amy would add anything further about herself or the children. When she didn’t, Sophie couldn’t help herself. ‘Why don’t you tell me how you really are, Amy?’
‘I’ve told you.’
Instead of the indignance Sophie would have expected, there was a fearful quaver to Amy’s voice, immediately making Sophie feel guilty. ‘I know, I’m just worried about you. Are you sure everything is OK?’
‘Yes, yes! Absolutely. It’s all going brilliantly.’
‘OK, well, that’s good to hear.’ Sophie could tell that Amy was putting on an act for the benefit of someone who was listening. It wasn’t difficult to guess who. ‘So, let’s make a date for you guys to come over. When would suit you?’
‘Um, I’ll check my diary and get back to you if that’s OK?’
The sudden brightness in her voice confirmed for Sophie that Nick was not only listening, but telling Amy what to say. She could tell that she was desperate to get off the phone and end the conversation.
‘Can’t you check it now?’ Sophie wanted to do anything to keep Amy on the line There was something going on and she didn’t like the feel of it.
‘No, I have to go now, but I’ll call you back.’
‘Promise?’
There was a moment’s hesitation before Amy spoke. ‘Yes. I promise. ‘Bye now.’
The line went dead and Sophie stared at her phone with a mounting sense of unease. Amy wouldn’t be calling her back.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
‘So what do you suggest we do?’ Melissa took a large slug of her wine and looked from Sophie to Emily. ‘We can’t kidnap her again.’
‘Well… we could, actually.’ Emily raised her eyebrows. ‘We did it before.’
‘I know,’ Sophie butted in. ‘But we had more proof then. You had actually seen him in action, Em. This time she insists everything’s fine, so it’s just a hunch. Maybe she wants to focus on putting her family back together and doesn’t want to rock the boat by seeing us.’
‘But don’t you see how screwed up that sounds?’ Emily’s face darkened. ‘No normal relationship would suffer just because someone wanted to see their oldest friends. If he’s stopping her from seeing us, he’s right back to where he was before – controlling her… And God knows what else he’s doing.’
The three of them lapsed into a gloomy silence. Emily could feel a fountain of frustration bubbling up inside her. She had always felt mainly responsible for their intervention with Amy and even more so when Amy got back together with him. Had she been poking her nose into something that didn’t concern her? Had she got it wrong? At the time, she had been entirely convinced, but the months that had elapsed since had made everything blurry. She didn’t want to abandon Amy to her fate, yet part of her felt angry with her for putting herself in that situation again. Last time, Emily had been more than ready to take Nick on, but this time she wasn’t sure she had the stomach for the fight. ‘Well,’ she said, taking a sip of wine and shrugging her shoulders, ‘I guess we just wait until she contacts us.’
‘But that might be never!’ Melissa looked shocked. ‘What if she’s too embarrassed to admit she’s made a mistake and ask for help?’
‘You can go round there and check on her if you like?’ As soon as she said the words, Emily felt mean. Melissa had her own reasons for wanting to keep away from Nick. And the truth was Amy had probably never mentioned to Nick that she was still in contact with Melissa. He would naturally have assumed that they would have fallen out over Melissa’s dalliances with him.
‘You know I can’t do that. But I do think one of you should…?’
‘Last time I came face to face with him, he knocked me out. Funnily enough, I don’t fancy a repeat performance.’ Emily finished her glass of wine and stood up. ‘It looks like it’ll have to be you, Soph. Sorry, guys, I have to go.’
‘Where?’ Sophie looked at her watch, then narrowed her eyes at Emily. ‘I thought you said Jack was staying with your parents tonight.’
Emily grinned. ‘He is. See you.’ She walked out of the bar feeling as though she had just scored a tiny victory over Sophie, who was expert at extracting information. She didn’t want to tell anyone yet. It was too soon.
She couldn’t believe it when he got in touch through Friends Reunited. The general catching-up questions had quickly moved on to deeper conversations. He was working in London, had split from his wife and had apparently never stopped thinking about you and that amazing night we spent together. Well, she could certainly understand that because she had never stopped thinking about him or that night either.
He wanted to meet. Wondered how much she would have changed in the twelve years since they’d last seen each other. In his profile photo, he was side on to the camera, part of his face in shadow, but he still looked every bit as beautiful as she remembered. The thought of him caused her stomach to flip over. Yes, there had been plenty of other men over the years. But none had ever lasted beyond a brief affair and now she understood why. None had ever come close to him.
‘Emily?’ His voice hadn’t changed at all – it was still that mix of gravelly and melodic that she had always loved listening to. She smiled to herself before she looked up at him. He had aged well. Almost fifty, he looked at least a decade younger. His hair was still blond with tiny flecks of grey starting to show through, and his tanned skin was a little more weathered, but the blue eyes still glittered and the smile was as slow and sexy as ever.
As he leaned down to kiss her, the years rolled away and she was instantly transported back to that bedroom. ‘Hello, An
ton.’
He sat down in the chair opposite, his eyes never leaving hers. ‘My God, I had forgotten how lovely you were.’
Emily smiled at the cheesiness of it all. With anyone else she would have laughed in his face and told him to practise his chatup lines. But out of Anton’s mouth, they were the only words she wanted to hear. It was what she had dreamed of for all these years. And now that he was here, she realized she had known all along that he would come back for her. She had expected it and she had been waiting for him.
As they left the bar together, there was no discussion about where they would go. They hailed a cab and held hands chastely as it sped through the streets back to her flat. As soon as the front door closed behind them, his mouth was on hers, pulling at her jacket, her dress, kissing her whole body as if he wanted to devour every part of her.
Emily steered him towards her bedroom, undressing him as she went, dropping his clothes in a trail behind them. All she could think about was fulfilling the desire that had been pent up inside her for all these years.
They fell onto the bed in a tangle of naked limbs, kissing each other hungrily. Emily lifted herself up and slid him inside her. As she rocked back and forward, he cupped her breasts and held her gaze with his, watching with liquid eyes as she gave a moan of pleasure. ‘I have waited so long for this,’ he gasped, rolling her over onto her back and thrusting into her in one fluid movement.
Emily arched her back towards him and her whole body exploded with an orgasm. Anton continued to thrust into her, kissing her neck and setting her alight again until he came with an almighty groan.
Lying down beside her, Anton picked up her hand and placed it flat against his chest. ‘Can you feel how hard my heart is beating?’ he grinned. ‘That was incredible.’
Emily sighed with happiness. This was truly her perfect moment with the man she loved. The man she had always loved. ‘It was. Just as I knew it would be.’
Anton nodded and traced his thumbnail over her flat, brown belly. ‘I can’t believe that you were still here. I was so sure you’d have been married with God knows how many kids by now…’