by Rachel Dove
She sprang out of the uncomfy bed and wrestled against the scratchy sheets wrapped around her, throwing them to the floor and stamping on them.
‘For God’s sake, just leave me alone!’ she said to the empty room. Scowling at the room, she gave the duvet another swift kick before heading to the shower.
Today was the day that the contract would be put to bed, and then maybe she could get back to her own, and put this whole thing behind her. She missed everyone, but it was the thought of Ben that made her stomach flip. She wanted to see him again, just one more time. At least then she could get some sign, some sort of peace, and who knows? Sometime, in the future, they could be friends. Amanda frowned at the thought, seeing Ben date, fall in love, marry? She couldn’t bear it. She had to get sorted, no more living with a foot in two lives, she had to put those feet together and jump right in.
The atmosphere in the offices of Stokes Partners at Law was thick with tension. Vince Stokes was coiled like a cobra, and had been pacing the offices all morning. When Amanda arrived in the foyer, she could sense how on edge people were. Sadie, the head receptionist, was quietly crying in a corner whilst a work experience student, together with college name badge and terrified smile, was doing her very best to man the phones. Amanda was on her way over to see what was going on, when Marcus appeared in front of her. ‘Amanda!’ he said, grabbing her. ‘What are you doing out here? We need to get you into the meeting room.’ He started to push her to the stairs.
‘Marcus, what are you doing? Why can’t we take the lift?’
Marcus froze. ‘Er, it’s out of order, now come on, we need to get ready, the Kamimura meeting is soon.’
Amanda barely got time to put her hands up to open the door as he bundled her through it, before taking the steps two at a time up to their floor. She scarcely had a chance to draw breath before she found herself in the meeting room. Marcus shut the door behind him, hurrying to straighten up the files, which were lying haphazardly on the desk. Amanda looked over at him and scowled. ‘Marcus, what the hell is wrong with you? You damn near broke my neck on those stairs, why are you trying to hide me?’
Marcus stuttered, and Amanda once again felt a ‘what were you thinking’ moment as she looked him over. Shaking her head, she brushed an errant strand of hair back into her bun and bit down the anger she felt. After the meeting, she told herself. After the meeting, she could have it out with Stokes, clear the air, and go.
Marcus was hovering over her now, jumping from one foot to the other nervously as she took a seat and double-checked all the paperwork. Amanda’s nose wrinkled as a waft of stale sweat and bad aftershave slapped her in the nostrils. ‘God, Marcus, you are a wreck! Will you bugger off! Go and get changed before the meeting, you can’t see the other partners like that!’
Marcus sniffed his armpit, pulling a face. ‘Sorry, I didn’t sleep much last night. I won’t be long. Stay here, OK?’ he pleaded.
Amanda waved a hand behind her, eyes firmly planted on the account files.
Minutes later, the door went again. Amanda huffed impatiently.
‘Marcus, there is no way you have showered, go sort yourself—’
‘Amanda,’ a hushed voice said.
She turned to see Elaine standing there.
‘Hi!’ She smiled, happy to see a friendly face.
Elaine came to sit next to her, putting a hand gently over hers.
‘Amanda, I have been trying to speak to you for ages, since you left in fact. We haven’t got long, he will be back soon, but here.’ Elaine passed her a large brown envelope, furtively glancing at the door as she did so. She turned back to look at her former boss and smiled kindly. ‘Read it quickly.’ And with a quick squeeze of her hand, she was gone. What was all that about? Amanda thought to herself. Checking through the Kamimura files for the fiftieth time, she put them in a neat pile and stared at the envelope that Elaine had left. She somehow got the feeling that the contents of this envelope were important, and she braced herself.
Twenty-Three
Vince Stokes was in dire need of a holiday. The strong coffee he was mainlining that morning was making his stomach ulcer sizzle, and his long-suffering wife had told him, in no uncertain terms, that morning, that he had better book them a holiday abroad; an expensive, exotic holiday. When Vince had started to grumble about taking time away from the office, and the expense of jetting off, his wife had pointed out that wherever the holiday might be, it would be a darn sight cheaper than a divorce. Vince had stopped arguing right then and there, and told his wife to go to the travel agent’s, and tell his secretary the dates. So this morning’s meeting had to go well if he had any hope of getting any sleep or peace at all. Marcus, the new junior partner, had been prattling on for the past half-hour about the Kamimura account, and he hadn’t spoken a word of sense in all that time. Vince was just about to tell him to cut to the chase, when the door flew open.
A smartly dressed woman stood there, a sheaf of papers in her hand. She took a breath and walked to the table. Stokes’ face dropped when he registered who she was.
‘Er, Miss Perry, you no longer work here, and we are in a meeting. If you need to discuss something with payroll, go and see them.’
Amanda ignored him, staring intently at Marcus, who looked like a terrified little rabbit, trapped on a moonlit road in the headlights of a truck. She wished for a second that she was a truck, a huge freight-carrying transporter, that could squish him under her wheels like the miserable little piece of roadkill he was.
Stokes stood up. ‘Miss Perry, leave. Now, please, before I call security.’
She waved him away with her hand. ‘I am not here to cause trouble, sir, I just wanted to show you and the other partners this. I have been here for the past two days, working with Marcus to get the Kamimura account ready for today.’
Vince exploded, banging on the desk with his fist. ‘Marcus! What the hell are you doing? We can’t have fired employees working on important accounts! Especially those who screwed them up in the ruddy first place!’ He punctuated this sentence with a hearty jab of the finger in Amanda’s direction. Amanda did not flinch, she kept her eyes trained on Marcus. ‘And why the hell do you need her help anyway, you made partner!’
Marcus was looking from the partners to Amanda, back and forth, back and forth. Amanda took the opportunity to walk up to the table, thrusting the papers into Vince’s hand.
‘This, sir, is the paperwork that I did for Marcus, whilst he was on the golf course. You will see that the paperwork is done correctly, but these aren’t the papers that were filed. The ones at the back are the ones that Marcus mistakenly filed, the ones he did. The ones with the errors on them.’
Stokes looked at the papers, a frown deepening the lines on his face as he flicked through the paperwork.
‘You will see, sir, the mistake was his, not mine.’
She turned to glare at Marcus, who was now sunk into a chair, head in his hands. ‘The truth is,’ she said, addressing all the partners now, who were flipping through the papers with Stokes, ‘I was doing a lot of work for your new partner, because he is, at best, a shitty solicitor and, at the worst, a coward and a liar.’
Stokes looked up at her, loosening his tie as he sat down. ‘Why didn’t you speak up sooner?’
Amanda sighed. ‘Because, sir, I made mistakes myself. One being getting personally involved with this snake,’ she said, pointing at Marcus, ‘and wanting to help him. I didn’t realise until now what he truly was.’
Stokes formed a peak with his fingers, resting them on his nose, and was about to speak when they heard a commotion outside, and a well-to-do voice cutting through the others.
Amanda couldn’t believe her ears. Was that Agatha’s voice? No, she thought, can’t be. The door flung open, and in walked the ladies, Taylor in tow. Amanda scanned the faces open-mouthed, before she realised that the one face she was looking for wasn’t there.
Agatha strode across the room, taking in the scene. Seeing Ama
nda, she walked over to her. ‘Sorry to interrupt, Amanda darling, but we wanted to have a chat with you.’ She came close and whispered to her, ‘Close your mouth, my dear, you are not catching flies.’
The women all stood behind her, waving and looking around the room. Amanda couldn’t quite believe the sight, her two worlds had collided in more ways than one. She was about to apologise for the intrusion when Mr Stokes spoke again. ‘I have no idea what is going on here, but we have a contract to close, and I need my meeting room back in some semblence of order. Ladies, if you don’t mind.’
Amanda went to follow the girls out, together with a very amused Taylor and a very put out Agatha, who was biting her tongue so much it was nearly hanging off, when Marcus whined at her side. ‘I’m sorry, Mandy, I really am.’
She froze, setting her shoulders tight. Turning to look at him, she clenched her teeth, drew her fist back and punched him square on the nose. The room exploded. The partners were shouting for security, Taylor was bent in half on the floor, slapping his thigh with shaking laughter, and Marcus screamed. The man actually screamed as he hit the deck. There he lay, a crumpled, sweaty, stinky wreck of a man, bawling like a baby and clutching his bloody nose. The ladies all laughed and left the room.
Agatha tapped Amanda on the shoulder and whispered, ‘Well done, dear, nice right hook too, I must say.’ She grabbed Taylor’s arm with a good-natured tut and stood by the open door.
Amanda took one last look at the man who had haunted her dreams, and squashed down the laugh that bubbled deep inside her. Instead, she smiled at him. He looked even more terrified as he registered the fact that his attacker was now grinning down at him like a maniac.
‘I just want to say, Marcus,’ she said, smoothing her hair back, ignoring the pain in her hand as she did so, ‘thanks.’
Marcus whimpered. ‘Thanks?’ he echoed, confused.
‘Yes,’ she said, smiling serenely now. ‘I owe you thanks. If you hadn’t tanked my career to further your own, or cheated on me with that stick insect airhead of a secretary of yours, then I never would have left. I never would have left London, started a new life and made these friends.’ She pointed with her good hand at the people watching over her at the door, and they all smiled supportively back. Marlene gave Marcus a sarcastic wave; Dotty and Hetty ignored him. Grace gave him the finger, which made Amanda giggle. ‘These people are more genuine and caring than I ever thought possible, and I thank you for being such a git that I left, and met them.’ Her smile faded a little now, thinking of Ben.
Unseen by her, Dotty moved away from the group and pulled out her mobile.
Amanda turned to the room. ‘I thank you, gentlemen, for the opportunity you gave me working here. Goodbye,’ she said, closing the door behind her.
‘Well done!’ Taylor said as soon as the wood connected. ‘That was bloody brilliant!’ He grabbed her arms and did a little jig with her.
The women all spoke at once, asking questions, messing with her hair (Hetty), and telling her how much they had missed her. Amanda laughed, trying to take in all the voices and excitement. The door opened again and suddenly Vince was in front of her. Amanda grimaced as security also came from the lift, and she prepared herself for the embarrassing walk of shame to the foyer. At least this time she had no desk to clear, she thought to herself.
‘Miss Perry, I feel I owe you an apology,’ Vince said, putting a hand out to the security guards to halt their progress. Amanda’s jaw dropped, and Agatha quickly pointed a slender finger and closed it again, chiding her with her eyes. ‘We were misled with our choice, and we won’t be making that mistake again.’
He motioned again for security to come, and after a whisper in their ear, they were dragging a bloody, snot crusted, snivelling Marcus to the stairs. Marcus didn’t even resist, he just sobbed, so loud he could still be heard several flights down. Stokes focused his eyes back on Amanda. ‘We have a deal to finish, Miss Perry, and the clock is ticking. Help us finish what we started? I will pay you, of course.’
Amanda nodded. ‘Yes, Mr Stokes, I will be in shortly.’
Mr Stokes nodded, glancing at the women behind her and giving a barely perceptible nod. ‘Excellent swing by the way,’ he muttered, as he closed the door.
Amanda fist bumped the air. ‘Yes! Did you hear that, girls? I get to finish this whole thing, put things right!’
She grinned at the women, who grinned back weakly. Agatha, never one to beat around the bush, asked what the group was all thinking. ‘Is this what you want, Amanda dear, to come back and live here?’
Amanda thought for a moment, and took a seat on one of the chairs nearby. The women all moved in close, eager to hear. Did I want all this back, she thought to herself. I could work in law again, now my name is not mud. I could just come back, slot right into my old life. My parents would be over the moon.
She looked at the faces of the people she now considered family, and shook her head. ‘No.’ The girls all looked so relieved, it tugged at her heart strings to think they cared whether she stayed in their lives. Taylor whooped for joy, grabbing Agatha by the shoulders and kissing her passionately. Agatha swiped and batted at him a couple of times, but then kissed him right back, just as passionately, raising one leg behind her demurely.
Amanda motioned to Hetty, astonished. ‘What have I missed!?’ she said.
Hetty rolled her eyes and put a finger to her lips. ‘Secret, remember?’ she whispered as the couple smooched on unawares.
Amanda laughed out loud, till she caught sight of Dotty, who was lingering in the back.
‘Dotty,’ she said, cuddling her. ‘Er … how is Ben?’
Taylor and Agatha stopped puckering up abruptly. Dotty smiled thinly, and Amanda suddenly had a bad feeling.
‘Has he not been in touch?’ Grace asked. ‘Have you not seen him in London?’
‘In London?’ Amanda echoed. ‘No, I haven’t spoken to him, why would he be here? Did he …?’ Had he come to London to find her, bring her home? She wished that were true. Dotty took her arm, sitting in the next chair to her.
‘We thought he was coming to London to see you, but I just spoke with him on the phone.’ Dotty smiled sadly. ‘He is in London, but he isn’t coming here. He didn’t mention it, and he doesn’t know that we were coming. He is at a veterinary conference somewhere.’
Amanda’s heart dropped through her feet. That was it then, she admitted.
She couldn’t blame him really, he was pretty clear the morning after the night they spent together, he wasn’t interested. This shouldn’t even come as a surprise to her, but it still felt like a sucker punch to the gut. She had hotfooted it to London with another man, and instead of being fit to be tied in a jealous rage, riding his horse—or jeep—to London and staking his claim on his true love, Ben had gone to a convention for vets, a work event. Amanda nodded to herself, and stood up.
‘I have to go. I have the Kamimura account to finalise, and Stokes will be back out in a minute to chivvy me along.’ She looked at the carpet, willing her cheeks to stop flaming with the hurt and embarrassment she felt. She was not going to cry, not here. She had a job to do. Heading for the doors, she waved behind her. ‘I’ll see you soon, OK?’
Agatha stepped forward from the others, looking as forlorn as Amanda felt. ‘We are due on the six o’clock train back to Westfield. Are you coming with us?’
Amanda nodded. ‘Yes, Agatha, I am coming home.’
Ben felt just about as comfortable as a canker sore on a donkey’s bottom. He was miserable, and having to put on a happy smile for a room full of people all day and all night was stretching the limits of his easy-going country manners. He stuck his finger discreetly into the neck of his silk tie, pulling it looser. He looked at the huge crowd of people, who were mostly unfamiliar faces in the great hall of the hotel, and asked himself for the fiftieth time why he was even there. A waiter passed and he grabbed at a glass of champagne, tipping most of the contents down his throat in one gulp. He adju
sted his cuff for something to do, and was just debating whether to slip out when he saw them. Or rather he saw her first. She was hard to miss, with her Day-Glo fake tan and over-the-top white dress. She was sashaying around the room, talking to small groups of people, one hand resting on the forearm of her companion. Steeling himself, he drank the rest of his glass before dumping it on a side table and walked over. She saw him then, and whispered into her partner’s ear.
He walked up to the duo and smiled. ‘Hello, Tanya.’
Tanya grinned at him nervously, and he noticed how she squeezed her hand tight around her companion’s arm. ‘Hello, Ben, we are so glad you could make it.’
He nodded, noticing that their exchange was attracting some attention. ‘I wouldn’t miss it. You look lovely, by the way,’ he said, nodding at her over-the-top pouffy wedding dress. She actually looked like one of the knitted dolls his mother used to make from old Barbies, the ones that sat on toilet rolls as decoration, but he kept that thought to himself. He reached out a hand and offered it to the man beside her.
‘Adam,’ he said, shaking the hand of his ex–best friend, the one who his wife had left him for. ‘Congratulations to both of you.’
Adam looked shocked, and took his hand, shaking it eagerly. ‘Er, thanks, thanks a lot,’ he said, still shaking his hand fervently. Ben laughed and pulled his hand away. ‘Thanks for coming, Ben, it really means a lot that you came.’
Ben shrugged. ‘Hey, water under the bridge, right?’
Tanya and Adam looked at each other. ‘We are sorry, we want you to know that,’ Tanya said, looking a little green, although it could have been the effect of the heavy tan under the lighting.
Ben nodded again, and smiled. ‘I came here to tell you it’s all forgotten, and to wish you all the best.’