Page 54 of Now and Again

The party was called off, and everyone had gone home. They were too wet to continue. Mia couldn’t have cared less; she was currently tooling around the back garden in her new little car, having the time of her life, blissfully unaware of the consequences of her little impromptu dip. Amanda was watching her from a lawn chair, soggy and tired. She wasn’t fighting this battle with her husband; Riley was disappointed to see. Then again, Riley sort of got it. You had to pick your battles with her dad. Maybe this was a battle too far for Amanda.

‘How much money did this party cost? Total waste,’ Mike said, pouring himself a drink in the kitchen while Riley watched him. He was doing his fucking stupid thing with the whisky and the two drops of spring water. He took a sip as though it gave him life.

‘Dad, it wasn’t her fault,’ Riley said, but her dad didn’t hear. ‘I knew that girl was going to be a problem. All that stuff on the first day, I should have listened to my instincts. But no. Mike’s the bad guy. And now look. I had work colleagues here. Chris Billings had to jump in the pool in his TAG Heuer.’

Riley didn’t know what the hell he was talking about. ‘His what?’

‘It’s an expensive watch, Riley. Don’t pretend you don’t know that.’

That pissed Riley right off, but she was trying not to get waylaid on the point. ‘I don’t know shit about watches. And what does that have to do with Juliet? It wasn’t even her fault—’

At that moment, Juliet, case in hand, popped her head around the door. ‘Riley, don’t bother. I’m just gonna go.’ She sped off before Riley had a chance to respond.

Riley looked back at her dad, but there was no remorse there. ‘You know what? The way you treat people, I can’t take it anymore. Don’t expect me to come back here again.’

Her dad smirked. ‘Sure. Until the next time you need a handout.’

That was Riley’s limit. She’d finally had it with him. She’d always known one day there’d be an eruption. This was the moment. She went for the nuclear option. ‘I know you think you’ve got a second chance with Amanda and Mia. But you haven’t changed at all. And you’ll fuck it up the same as you did with Mum and me. Amanda’s gonna get sick of your shit. And Mia? She’ll end up like me. Hating everything you are.’

The smirk dropped off Mike’s face, and that one second was as close as Riley had ever come to getting satisfaction from him. Until he said, ‘You only hate me because I gave you everything. Because now you’ve got nothing to hide behind if you fuck up your life. Every advantage and look at you. Wasting time at some charity that pays shit so you can pretend you’re better than me while you live offmycharity? Now living off your friend? You’re a fucking child.’

Riley turned and walked out, her blood pumping hard in her ears. She thought that might be the last time she would ever speak to her father.

Outside, Juliet was only just reaching the end of the driveway. Riley jogged to catch up to her. ‘Hey!’

Juliet turned in surprise. She didn’t look happy to see Riley. ‘What?’

‘I just wanted to… Where are you going?’

‘My sister’s offered me the sofa. She says I can have it in exchange for some childcare. Not a bad deal, I guess.’

Riley sighed. ‘This wasn’t your fault.’

‘Well, Ididleave the pool gate open at a kid’s party,’ Juliet said philosophically.

‘It was India. If she hadn’t bumped you into the pool, it never would have happened.’

Juliet paused. ‘You saw that?’

‘I mean, I don’t think it was intentional,’ Riley added quickly. ‘She’s just a bit… She doesn’t think.’

‘So, you didn’t seeanything?’ Juliet sighed, turning away.

‘What does that mean?’

‘What I mean is that your friend is a bad person. But maybe you already know that, and you just don’t care. Maybe you’re more like her than I wanted to understand,’ Juliet said, walking away.

Riley was left dumbfounded in the driveway. All this time, she’d known this was going to happen. Ten years and here they were again. Juliet Sullivan had laid waste to her. Made her small and silly and nothing.

Nothing ever changed.

Twenty-Five

Juliet had had it. She’d been sacked. Again. This time, she was alright for it to stick. Except she hadn’t even been able to say goodbye to Mia. That poor little girl, she wouldn’t understand where Juliet had gone. Juliet felt the rip too, felt torn away from Mia. They’d been together constantly for months. Yet with a click of Mike Sullivan’s fingers, Juliet would probably never see Mia again.

She had to get away from this house and these people and the way they made her feel. It was just the same thing, time and again. Literally. She’d been shoved in yet another pool and been embarrassed,again. And what did Riley think about it? She only wanted to stick up for her precious India. India, who was only a bumbling idiot, not a mean, vicious, spiteful, cruel monster of a person who had been screwing her forever. If that was the side Riley wanted to take, then it was true, wasn’t it? Riley was no better. She was the same girl who’d made her feel worthless when she was eighteen.

Juliet had been silly to imagine change was possible, that people ever grew, that her life wasn’t always at the mercy of the rich and whatever mood they happened to be in. You could imagine they cared about you when the light was right. But then the sun set. And you were just staff. Amanda hadn’t even fought for her this time; she’d just let it happen. But Amanda wasn’t the person she was angry at. Not even Mike, really. He was who she’d always thought him to be—a cutthroat arsehole with no kindness or compassion in him. His actions couldn’t have been more predictable. No, at the crux of her anger was Riley. Always Riley.

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