Page 26 of Rivers of Ink
“Come on then, it seems I’m outvoted.” He pulled Alicia with him and drew her towards him. Their bodies fitted together perfectly, and Alicia rested her head on his shoulder. Their movement was barely perceptible as other couples joined them. His heart soared as she let out a contented sigh. It felt so right between them. He wanted to tell her how much she meant to him, how she’d taken the darkness out of his life and filled it with light. As he was about to speak, the DJ changed the music and a frothy pop beat filled the air. It kind of killed the moment for him.
“Shall we get a drink?” he suggested instead. “I’m parched after all that effort.”
“Oh, yes please. I think my champagne levels are dangerously low.”
They walked hand in hand towards the bar, and Callan thought he saw a flash of blonde hair he recognised. He shook off the thought and spotted Jason getting a drink.
“All right, mate? Glad you could come tonight,” he said.
“Thanks, Cal, yes. Great evening so far and nice of Aidy to invite me at such late notice,” said Jason. “Alicia, you look lovely.”
“Thank you.” She beamed.
Callan spotted Jason had two drinks waiting in front of him. “Did you bring someone?”
Jason’s gaze swept across the room. “Yes, she was here a minute ago.”
“I thought it was nice of him to ask me.” A familiar voice came from behind Callan. “It would have been a shame to miss out on Aidy and Wren’s big day.”
Slowly, Callan released Alicia’s hand and turned around to face Isobel. “What the hell are you doing here?”
The clear blue eyes he had once fallen in love with fixed him with a triumphant look. “Jason asked me.”
A knot of anger balled in Callan’s stomach. He felt sick. “You’re not welcome. Do Aidy and Wren even know you’re here?”
“I bumped into Wren in the ladies. She was a little surprised to see me, yes, but I wished her well.” Isobel looked Alicia up and down. “She also mentioned you have a new girlfriend.”
“Leave Alicia out of this.”
“Out of what? I’m not causing any trouble.” Isobel’s words were laced with saccharine sweetness, only Callan recognised the underlying venom.
“Then you won’t mind leaving before you do.” Callan grabbed her arm and manhandled her towards the exit.
“Get your hands off me!”
“Why don’t the two of you go and have a chat?”
Callan’s head whipped around at Alicia’s suggestion. Isobel’s did the same.
“Clearly the two of you have some issues you need to sort out, so why don’t you get them off your chests and then move on?” Alicia looked between the two of them.
“Are you sure?” Callan frowned at her request, questioning her motive.
She nodded. “It’ll do us all good.” Alicia waved her glass in Jason’s direction. “Plus, Jason is going to get me another drink, and we can get to know each other better.”
Callan marched Isobel out of the hall and into a quieter area, occupied by an elderly couple, and a woman with a sleeping baby in her arms and a toddler playing at her feet. He took them into one corner, out of earshot of the others.
“Tell me why, Isobel.” He sank down onto the sofa. “And why Xander?”
His blonde ex-girlfriend sat down beside him.
“It just happened,” she said. “We didn’t plan it. You know we were always flirty at work, bantering and stuff. More and more frequently we worked late together, even though you were only upstairs.”
“Did anything ever happen in the shop?”
Isobel shook her head. “No. We were very careful not to arouse suspicion.” She looked at the floor rather than meeting Callan’s gaze as she spoke. “I’d go over to his place. When I told you I was out with friends, that’s where I was.”
She had certainly never aroused his suspicions at the time. Callan had no idea until he found them together. “Why him, Is? Why did it go wrong for us?”
