Page 39 of Love, Accidentally

‘I didn’t think of that. See, that’s why it’s good you’re here. It’s worst in the sitting room. Why don’t you hang up your coat and come in?’

I brace myself as Luke’s heavy tread comes down the hallway and I’m conscious of Cindy doing the same. I’m not sure what I’m expecting to happen when Luke comes through the door, but whatever it is isn’t going to be good.

‘I can’t smell anything, Mum,’ he’s saying irritably as he strides into the room before coming up short when he spots Cindy. ‘Oh, hello, love. What are you doing here? Don’t tell me Mum’s got you roped into this gas thing as well. Mum, she’s pregnant. If there was gas, it could harm the baby. What were you thinking?’

The position of my chair means I was half hidden behind the door when he came in, so he hasn’t spotted me yet.

‘I’m not here because of the gas,’ Cindy tells him in a voice so icy it could freeze a volcano. ‘I’m here because ofher.’ Even I’m surprised by the venom in her voice as she says it. Time seems to stand still as Luke slowly turns, noticing me for the first time. I’m watching his face carefully, expecting to see the colour drain from it as he realises the game is up but, apart from a brief narrowing of the eyes, there’s nothing.

‘Sorry, I don’t understand,’ he says innocently, turning back to Cindy. ‘Why is Tilly here?’

‘So you admit you know her.’

‘Of course. We’re work colleagues. Is someone going to tell me what’s going on?’

‘I think you’re a little more than that,’ Cindy retorts. ‘Try again.’

We’re all watching him intently, waiting for him to crumble and admit everything but, to my astonishment, he actually starts laughing softly.

‘Oh, no,’ he says, looking at Cindy and his mother in turn but pointedly ignoring me. ‘Has she told you…’

Cindy says nothing, but merely raises her eyebrows.

‘Fine,’ Luke says with a sigh. ‘I’ve tried to keep a lid on this, but I can see it’s gone too far.’ He turns to address me. ‘Tilly, you need to get help, OK?’

What?It’s all I can do to stop my mouth dropping open in shock, but Luke is evidently warming to his theme as he turns back to Cindy, holding his palms out in a ‘you can trust me’ kind of gesture.

‘Cind,’ he begins. ‘I can see how this might look, especially after what happened before, but I haven’t done anything. The fact is that, much as we admire Tilly’s nursing skills, everyone in the department knows that she sometimes struggles to separate fantasy from reality. I’d barely finished my first set of shifts with her before I could see that she was starting to latch on to me as some kind of hero figure, and Dr Patel, one of our senior consultants, warned me to be careful around her. Apparently, there have been incidents in the past.’

My mouth is full-on open now. What the bloody hell is this?

‘Now, I have no idea how she tracked down this address, or what story she’s spun you, but what I can categorically tell you is that it’s pure fiction. It’s what she would like to have happened, not what happened.’

To my amazement, I can see a flicker of doubt in Cindy’s eyes. Is she actually believing this horseshit?

‘Cind, love,’ he continues, sensing her hesitation. ‘I know I hurt you before, but I promised not to do it again and I meant what I said. It’s you, me and the baby. Nobody else, especially not a love-struck, deluded nurse like Tilly.’

This is too much. ‘I’m sorry?’ I ask incredulously.

‘You heard me,’ he says, hardening his voice as he turns to me. ‘I’ve tried to be kind. I’ve tried to explain that you and I can never be a thing, but you’re not listening and this is a step too far. You leave me no option, Tilly, and I have to protect my family. As soon as I get back to work, I’ll be raising a sexual harassment complaint against you with HR. I know you’re sick, but you can’t do this to people. Can’t you see how much this fantasy of yours has upset Cindy? She’s pregnant; she doesn’t need this stress. And as for stalking my mother, or whatever you did to find her address, you’re lucky I don’t report you to the police.’

‘Hang on a moment.’ Cindy holds up her hand. ‘Are you saying that the so-called “important appointment” you were so desperate to get to just now actually had nothing to do with Tilly?’

‘Of course it wasn’t to do with her!’ he exclaims. ‘If you must know, I was meeting a jeweller to talk about having a bespoke bracelet made for you to celebrate the baby’s birth. It was supposed to be a surprise.’

‘But you messaged her, literally minutes before, to say you couldn’t make it,’ Cindy persists. ‘I was sitting here when it arrived.’

‘No, I didn’t.’

She holds out her hand. ‘Give me your phone.’

‘Gladly.’ He pulls it out of his pocket and hands it to her. ‘You know the code.’

We all watch as Cindy unlocks the phone and checks various messaging apps. For some reason, I’m holding my breath; even though I know everything he’s just said is totally untrue, I feel suddenly like I’m the one on trial here. If I wasn’t so angry, I’d be impressed with his ability to think and lie on his feet.

‘There’s nothing here,’ Cindy announces eventually. ‘I’ve checked texts, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, which are the only messaging apps I can see.’

‘But I’ve got the text here,’ I tell her, pulling out my own phone and unlocking it so they can all see.

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