Looks Unimportant...Sense of Humour Essential

by Evie Evans

  It never rains but it pours, Lucy thought. Where were you last week? You could have come to the wedding and saved me some hassle at work. But she had to admit it had been priceless to see her family’s faces when she arrived with Mr Brooke. Which was a point, she was supposed to be seeing Mr Brooke.

  “Well, um, I’m–”

  “If you can’t make a drink, how about lunch? I can come into the city and meet you? I could really do with asking your advice about wills actually.”

  She considered him for a few seconds. He did look a bit desperate, she knew that feeling. A lunch would be innocuous enough. “Sure,” she told him.

  *

  Lucy returned to the office triumphant after facing Mrs Fryer. At first it had looked like she might end up wearing the flowers she offered her but after a few tense minutes the floodgates had opened and Mrs Fryer had dissolved in tears. After another cup of tea Lucy had provided sufficient sympathy for the woman to admit the threats she’d shouted at Mr Lewis had been empty and unfounded.

  “I just keep thinking about his last days. I didn’t go to him every time he cried like I used to. Your book told me not to,” Mrs Fryer told her resentfully.

  “I know but you were doing the right thing. I’m sure Marcus didn’t think any less of you because of it. He was a happy parrot, and a very lucky one.” Mrs Fryer managed a smile at that compliment.

  “I just hope the next one turns out as happy.”

  “The next one?”

  “I’d like to get a cockatoo this time. They like to be cuddled you know.”

  Lucy hoped Mr Lewis wasn’t celebrating just yet.

  “Well I’ll leave those books with you then. You can use them to help train your next one, if you get it.”

  When she rang Mr Lewis to tell him not to worry about Mrs Fryer’s threats to sue him she left out the part about Marcus’ replacement. Ignorance is bliss.

  An email from Sebastian had arrived when she’d been out. Lucy opened it cautiously wondering what trouble he was likely to get her into now.

  “Hey Luce, how’d the wedding go? Did u like my surprise? Sebbo” he’d written.

  She replied, “That was not funny! Your brother was really not impressed. You shouldn’t go messing in other people’s lives. Lucy”

  Twenty minutes later another message came through from him. “But it went well didn’t it? You were glad I did?”

  It saved my life, she thought but didn’t want to admit. “I’m not saying anything more on the grounds I may incriminate myself,” she wrote and sent it off.

  “I knew it!” came back the reply.

  *

  Dinner with Leander. Lucy never thought she’d be doing that anytime soon but here she was heading down the Strand not sure what to expect. The night of the wedding she’d been full of exhilaration, and a little champagne, but tonight she was cold stone sober. How would the evening go?

  She’d spent ages that morning agonising on what to wear. Again. Her life had been so much simpler before dating. No running around town after work. If it carried on she might have to start keeping some clothes at the office. Tonight she didn’t want to look like she’d made a big effort so she kept to her office suit. Now she was walking down the street she was wracked with doubts that she should have glammed up a bit like his other women. Previous women, she corrected herself.

  Pretty soon she’d reached Fleet Street and St Paul’s cathedral came looming into sight. She’d be there in a few minutes. Her heart started thudding in her chest. What if he was expecting her to go back to his place tonight? What if she found she wanted to?

  A large dark car was waiting outside. The backdoor opened as Lucy approached.

  “Hello.” Leander stepped out looking fantastic as usual.

  “Hi,” Lucy responded, shyly. She stood awkwardly by the door.

  “So, feeling hungry?” he asked.

  “A little,” she lied. It was an hour past her normal dinnertime and she was starving. “Better not make it anywhere too smart, I’m not dressed for it,” she told him indicating the office clothes she was still wearing.

  “You look great to me,” he told her and her heart started racing again. “There’s a sushi place just down the street, will that do?”

  “That’ll be fine.”

  “How has your day been?” he asked as they crossed the street.

  “Oh, a bit different. I thought one of my clients had died but it turned out to the parrot.”

  “Sounds interesting,” he laughed.

  “It was. How was yours?”

  “A bit full on. I’ve got a big deal going on this week. In fact, if you don’t mind I won’t be able to stay too long. I have to go back to the office afterwards.”

  They’d reached the sushi bar and Lucy stopped outside before going in. “If you haven’t got time, that’s fine. We can make it some other time.”

  Leander reached for the door pull. “No, I want us to have dinner, I just won’t be able to linger afterwards, that’s all. Besides, I have to eat sometime.”

  Lucy suddenly relaxed a little, at least she wouldn’t have to worry about how they would end the night now.

  “Have you spoken to Sebastian?” she asked after they’d ordered their food.

  “Yes, not only have I had a word with that young man I’ve sorted him out a holiday job.”

  “Oh?”

  “He told me he was keen to be an intern for me and I thought maybe it was a way of keeping him out of mischief.” Leander saw Lucy’s raised eyebrows. “I know, some hope.”

  “So what’s he doing?”

  “Well, not quite the glamorous city job he envisaged. He’s washing dishes in the kitchen of a bar I know.”

  “Don’t they have dishwashers to do that nowadays?”

  “Exactly what Sebastian asked. For some amazing reason theirs doesn’t work whenever he’s on the premises so he has to roll up his sleeves and get stuck in.”

  Lucy chuckled. “That’s mean.”

  “Yes it is, isn’t it?” Leander told her wickedly before taking a swig of his drink.

  Sitting with her major client wasn’t as strange as she’d imagined. Leander’s life looked glamorous from the outside but at the end of the day he was an ordinary person who ‘still went to the loo like everyone else’ as her dad would say. Enjoying a meal with a gorgeous man who seemed to be as keen on her as she was with him wasn’t something she’d done often. Life didn’t get any better than this.

  “What?” he asked, noticing her stare.

  “Are you going to share those noodles or what?”

  “Christ, you’re worse than Sebastian. Give me your plate,” he told her resignedly. “I never get to finish a meal with him around either.”

  Later, after they’d said goodbye at the restaurant and she’d watched him leave, she’d hugged herself all the way to the tube station. Despite her fears it had all felt so right.

  That’s when she should have realised it was all about to go horribly wrong.

  *

  To begin with, Mr Lewis’s grandson, David, rang to arrange their lunch meeting. He sounded a lot keener on their date than Lucy liked. That always seemed to be the problem when she tried to be just friends with the opposite sex, they didn’t always see it the same way. She hoped he wasn’t going to be a problem. She did enjoy the moment though, practically beating men off with a stick where a month ago she couldn’t get a date to save her life. She hadn’t seen Leander since their dinner because he was stuck at work but they’d spoken on the phone. It gave her a warm feeling to know they were dating even if she wasn’t exactly calling him her boyfriend. Yet.

  Next she had Jimmy’s appeal to deal with. Their application to appeal was turned down. She knew he was going to be very upset. She wasn’t looking forward to this visit.

  Today the security line sped by. Typical, she thought, the day I wouldn’t mind a delay. Jimmy was waiting in the interview room again when she arrived.

  “Hi.” She smiled at hi
m but knew it probably looked really false, she really didn’t feel happy at the news she was about to deliver. Jimmy just looked at her in his reserved way.

  “I have some good news and some bad news,” she told him. He rolled his eyes as if he were expecting it. Perhaps it wouldn’t be that much of a shock. “The bad news is, they’re not letting us appeal your conviction or the sentence.”

  “What!” Jimmy jumped in his seat. Lucy thought for a minute he was going to leap up but luckily he managed to remain seated. “Ohmygod! That is so unfair. So I just have to stay in here?” he practically shouted at her.

  “No, that’s the good news. I’ve got you transferred to an open prison. They have a lovely garden there, you’ll be able to spend time in it. You can even train to be a gardener.”

  “What am I, Alan bleeding Titchmarsh?”

  “Jimmy! This is the best deal we’re going to get. I’m sorry you’re not getting your appeal but we didn’t have any new evidence. This new prison will be a lot better than here. You’ve only got two months left if you don’t get into any more trouble.” She could see he wasn’t going to see reason no matter what she said.

  He gave her a black look to confirm it.

  “Oh and another thing”. She pulled a small packet from her pocket and passed it over. It was already open after being inspected by the guard so Jimmy just had to tip it up to reveal the contents. A date stamp dropped onto the table.

  “Thanks,” he said sarcastically. “That makes everything alright.”

  Well you can please some of the people all of the time or all of the people some of the time, she thought as she travelled back to the office. Jimmy was lucky to get the transfer to an open prison with such a short sentence left to run but he wouldn’t see it like that. The fact he’d been part of a gang that had mugged someone also passed him by. Lucy had a feeling this wasn’t going to be his only time in prison.

  She’d just settled back at her desk when Katherine appeared at her office door. She didn’t look very happy.

  “Has something happened?” Lucy asked.

  Katherine looked down at the newspaper she was carrying then looked at Lucy uncertainly. “Perhaps you’d better see this,” she said and handed her the folded newspaper. It was open on the gossip page. A large photo of Leander caught her eye. He was coming out of a hotel with a beautiful blonde draped over him. The accompanying story read:

  “Man about town Leander Brooke has been reunited with former fiancée Melanie Golding. Emerging from their hotel suite last night super-rich businesswoman Melanie told reporters they were ‘as much in love as ever’. Girls all over London will be heartbroken to hear Leander is leaving Brooke & Son to join Melanie’s New York firm. The couple refused to comment whether an engagement is imminent but Leander Brooke will be keen to play down his part in saucy Torey Lincoln’s marriage breakup.”

  Lucy’s head spun as she read it. How could this be? What happened to the one woman at a time edict he’d regaled her with?

  “It’s in some of the other papers as well,” Katherine told her gently.

  “Right.” Lucy didn’t know what to say, she was in a daze. How could he have done this to her?

  “This isn’t going to help with his case,” Katherine commented.

  “No,” Lucy replied, still staring blankly at the page.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” Katherine told her, seeing Lucy had taken the news hard, and left.

  Lucy got up behind her and closed her office door before returning to her desk and studying the newspaper more closely. How long had this been going on? Had he been seeing this woman when he came to the wedding?

  She looked at the photo with the hotel in the background. That was something she could check up on. Picking up the phone with a shaky hand she got the number for the hotel. “Mr Brooke’s room,” she requested when the receptionist answered, her heart pounding. The receptionist didn’t question it and within seconds the phone rang again as the call was diverted. He obviously did have a room at the hotel.

  “Hello?” a female voice answered.

  Lucy’s heart sank. “Mr Brooke please,” she managed to ask, stumbling over the words.

  “He’s not here right now,” the woman replied in an American drawl. “Can I help?”

  “Uh, who are you?” Lucy asked feeling a little sick.

  “Miss Golding. Are you the press?”

  Lucy hung up.

  21 Aftermath

  Deep down she’d known it was too good to be true. He was a good looking successful businessman for god’s sake, and what was she? A junior lawyer from nowheresville. It was a couple of minutes before she realised she was still holding the phone and put it down. Even after Simon she was still being too naïve and she’d been caught out again. Leander Brooke was never going to give up playing the field for her and she’d been an idiot to think he would.

  Serves me right for getting involved with a client, she thought, allowing herself a few moments of self pity. At least Katherine was nice enough not to say I told you so. It was a bit of a shock though, he’d seemed on the level.

  “Come on Lucy,” she told herself, “pull yourself together.” It wasn’t as if he was her boyfriend or anything. They’d had one date and one night together. That was probably a long term relationship to him. These things happened all the time didn’t they? On the bright side, she’d gotten a date for the wedding out of it. That had been her main goal after all. Things didn’t look very bright though. They looked pretty bleak.

  *

  Leander was waiting for his prospective clients to arrive for that morning’s meeting. The previous day had gone well he thought, they just needed everything to go equally smoothly today and the contract might be theirs.

  His mobile phone went off. Sebastian. Not bunking off again I hope, he thought as he answered the phone.

  “Aren’t you at work?”

  “Why didn’t you tell me you’re back with her again?”

  “What? Who?”

  “Her, cowface, Melanie. I can’t believe you’re back with her again after what she did to you–”

  “Hold on, what are you talking about?”

  “It’s all over the newspapers. Photos of you and her, all lovey dovey. I can’t believe you after that lecture you gave me about that girl in chemistry–”

  “Oh hell! You’re kidding? What paper?” Leander asked rushing out to reception.

  “The Globe.”

  Leander found the newspaper and flicked through.

  “When were you going to tell me? I’m only your broth–”

  “I’ll call you back later,” Leander told him and hung up. He looked at the photos again. This was a disaster.

  *

  The phone was ringing for a while before Lucy registered it. The caller id read ‘Leander Brooke’. Her heart started thumping in her chest. This was a conversation she wasn’t looking forward to, no doubt he’d try to palm her off with a load of old flannel. She was going to have to talk to him, he was a client and she was at work. What a brilliant idea it had been to get involved with a client.

  She took a deep breath. “Good morning Mr Brooke,” she started, her voice hard.

  “Lucy, have you seen the papers this morning?”

  “Yes, I have.” She was surprised how calm and steady her voice sounded.

  “So you saw the photo of me?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “It’s all a mistake, there’s no truth in it.”

  “You’re saying you’re not an item with this woman?”

  “No! It’s ridiculous.”

  “Oh? I rang the hotel. They put me through to your room. She answered the phone.”

  “What?” His denials reminded her of the divorce cases she’d handled. People would swear blind they hadn’t had an affair even when there was photographic proof. “What hotel? I don’t have a room in a hotel.”

  “The one you’re photographed coming out of. I thought you were too busy to go out.”

&n
bsp; “I am, I was.” Her comment seemed to have flustered him. “It was a business thing.”

  A likely story. She’d heard that in court before as well. She was going to comment that they didn’t looked very business-like in the photo but decided not to bother arguing any further. What was the point? “It’s really no business of mine who you’re seen with Mr Brooke. Was there something to do with your case you wanted to discuss?”

  “Lucy, don’t be like this. It’s all a mistake. You know how the papers jump to make up a story.”

  “No, I’m afraid I don’t move in those kinds of circles. Your circles. If you don’t want to discuss your case I’m going to have to go, I have a lot on today.”

  “Lucy–“

  “Goodbye Mr Brooke.” It felt good saying goodbye, like cutting free something rotten, but she knew it wouldn’t be forever, not when he was a client. How awkward was this going to be? Uncomfortable awkward or take me off the case awkward? She sat mulling it over for some time. So long in fact that she forgot about her lunch date with David.

  Reception buzzed through. “There’s a David Flynn here for you.”

  Crap. She’d totally forgotten about him. She looked at her watch. 12.50 already, she should have met him twenty minutes ago. If only she’d thought to cancel him, it was too late now. Running a brush through her hair she pulled her jacket on hoping she could get this over with as quickly as possible. She really wasn’t in the mood for chatting over lunch, more like crawling under a rock. She’d have to make an excuse to get back early.

  She felt guilty when she saw how pleased David was to see her.

  “Hi, how are you?” he asked.

  “Great,” she lied. “Sorry I’m late.”

  “No problem, I figured you’d overrun with a meeting or something.”

  “Yes. In fact I won’t be able to be away too long, sorry. There are a couple of places around here, could we just get a sandwich?”