Page 78 of You Belong With Me

‘I’d gone out for some time alone in the garden after the speeches. Obviously, wedding days are fabulous but intense, and I wanted to take a moment to reflect. Edie must have seen me leave and followed me out.’

Marshall shakes his head. ‘I’d had a few drinks – I was already emotional. Edie decided that was the moment to tell me she was in love with me, that she was devastated I’d promised to spend my life with someone else. Then, to my shock, she kissed me.’

Jack blinks back tears.

‘In my mind, it was like the moment Keira Knightley kissesAndrew Lincoln inLove Actually, except I was Keira. Acknowledging someone’s declaration – allowing just one tiny lapse of indiscretion, for their sake, before you both put it to one side, forever.’

Unfortunately, it was less like a romcom and more a horror film – as Jack’s new bride stumbled upon them. The day ended in hysterical upset and explosive recriminations. The newlyweds separated for good six weeks later.

‘I suppose it’s natural to think the woman was preyed upon by a rogue, but in reality, it was six of one, half a dozen of another – two guilty parties,’ Jack says ruefully. Yet he refuses to blame Thompson for what happened: ‘At the end of the day, I should have stopped her. I was the one wearing the wedding ring, and it was my responsibility.’

Jack was sacked for the indiscretion, and his former bride has also since left the Ad Hoc agency by mutual agreement. Thompson mysteriously won a reprieve. She remains employed by the company at an office in Nottingham – a post created for her.

Another colleague from Thompson’s workplace, who wished to stay anonymous, said: ‘After the wedding, a lot of staff wanted her to leave and even signed a petition asking her to have the decency to go, but she ignored it. It felt very unfair that others lost their jobs over it, and she didn’t. But Edie has a way of making the friends that matter. Elliot Owen is just the latest example.’

Sources close to Owen have described him as ‘head over heels’, and sources close to the star predict he will soon pop the question.

‘Good luck to him,’ is all Jack will say about this, grim-faced, a man still picking up the pieces from an event he says he will ‘never live down’. ‘He’ll need it.’

Lucie Maguire, 35, property agent from Dulwich, is more direct about the prospect of Thompson’s reward in snagging aPeoplemagazine winner of ‘Sexiest Man Alive’. She was chief bridesmaid on the fateful wedding day. Lucie says the former bride, her best friend, still cannot bear Thompson’s name spoken in her presence.

‘Edie caused absolute mayhem for my beloved friend. Her selfishness obliterated what was supposed to be the happiest day of her life. She moved on to Elliot Owen without an apology or backward glance,’ Lucie says.

‘My advice to Elliot is to run as fast as he can, in the opposite direction,’ Lucie says. ‘I’m sure he’s bought into the idea that Edie is a wronged angel, but seducing a man into that behaviour on his wedding day? Make no mistake – she is a truly cold vixen.’

If there are wedding bells in her and Owen’s future, Thompson must hope her own guests understand the phrase is ‘you may kiss the bride’ … but not necessarily the groom.

Edie Thompson and reps for Elliot Owen declined to comment when contacted by our reporters.

As usual, that paragraph resounded with: RENDERED MUTE BY GUILT.

A dazed Edie sent the link – still without comment as she was incapable of formulating one – to Nick and Hannah.

Five minutes later, her phone buzzed with the WhatsApp group notification.

Hannah

Fuck me, I will fucking murder the lying cunt. How is this not libel?

Nick

I say we come back at this hot, sassy, and strong. I’m getting a t-shirt made with COLD VIXEN for your next pap shots. In fact, I think there’s legs in a whole COLD VIXEN line of merch. xxx (I hope you’re laughing Edie, cos that’s all it deserves)

Edie wasn’t laughing; she was crying.

41

When Elliot rang her, it was one of those rare occasions where Edie had so much to say, she was temporarily rendered near speechless.

She’d been forever enshrined as a homewrecking, Machiavellian, and desperate sexual mutineer, in SEO eternity, with Jack Marshall. It was almost as awful as the original aftermath.

Worse, they’d now drawn a direct line between him and Elliot. The barely concealed thrust of the entire piece was: this nondescript woman is such a devious harlot, she addles men’s minds.How had a 36-year-old from Nottingham, a total unknown …Why not caption it simply:Seriously – her?!

‘Edie. I’ll be honest with you, you weren’t my first call,’ Elliot said, into the back and forth of aghast monosyllables and deep breaths. ‘I didn’t want you to deal with me at that point. I did my ranting and raving to Lillian first, got it out of the way. I don’t want you to think I’m not raging, because I am. I thought I’d be more support to you if I’d done the swearing already.’ Elliot paused. ‘Er … with some understatement – how are you?’

Edie said brokenly: ‘I can’t believe he did it. I know he’s a bastard. But to do this?’

‘Oh, Edie,’ Elliot said, down the slight echo of a phone in Croatia, ‘It’s so fucking despicable and out of order, and I’m so, so sorry. I actually can’t believe how nasty it is, and it’s not like I’m easily shocked at this point.’

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