Page 4 of Sun, Sea & Strawberry Shortcake
‘Have you tried phoning him?’
‘Well, yes.’ She smiles condescendingly, as if addressingsomeone nice but rather dim. ‘Never mind. Don’t worry, Ruby. I’ll track himdown.’
‘If he calls, I’ll tell him you need to speak to him.’
She beams at me. ‘Thank you so much, Ruby. That would besuper. And maybewecould have lunch some time? It would be lovely toget to know you better.’
‘Oh. Yes. That would be... great.’
‘Toodle-oo for now.’ With a cute wave, she whisks out,leaving a cloud of flowery perfume as a parting gift.
‘She’s very sweet,’ remarks Anita. ‘Nice teeth.’
‘Lovely teeth,’ I agree, while privately thinking they look unnaturallyperfect. They probably cost Joanna an absolute fortune at the firm ofYour-Wonky-Teeth-Are-Our-Retirement-Fund. But that’s just me being catty. I’mnot proud of it. And I’m not usually catty, either. But some people just rubyou up the wrong way, even though sometimes you can’t quite put your finger onwhythey do.
Anita smiles. ‘I’m getting the feeling you’re not terriblykeen on the lovely Joanna.’
‘What? No!’ I stare at her, horrified it’s that obvious.‘No, I mean, I’ve got nothing at all against her. I’m sure she’s a wonderfulperson.’
‘But she’s Hudson’s new assistant and she probably spendsmore time with him than you do at the moment?’ remarks Anita with a sympatheticsmile.
I open my mouth, preparing to reject this idea strenuously.
But instead, I grin at her. ‘You’re probably right. I mightbe just theteeniestbit jealous that the woman who looks and dresses likea supermodel spends all day with my boyfriend.’
‘And drives a Jaguar.’
‘And lives in a gorgeous townhouse.’
‘How the hell can she afford it?’
I shrug. ‘Hudson says her parents are wealthy, so maybeDaddy bought them for her.’
Anita smiles. ‘Well, you’ve got looksanda greatpersonality, Ruby, so I wouldn’t worry. Plus there’s the small fact that Hudsonhappens to be madly in love with you.’
‘True. I’m obviously paranoid.’
She laughs. ‘Listen,myboyfriend’s the only man onan otherwise all-female staff at school. So I’ve had plenty of insecure momentsmyself, especially when I wake up looking like Nanny McPhee’s less attractiveolder sister and we have an argument before we leave the house.’ She shrugs. ‘Youjust have to trust.’
‘And I do. Of course I do.’ I nod firmly. ‘Joanna Vickers isabsolutely zero threat to me.’
*****
Later, when Hudson walks into my flat, I’m stirring thespaghetti Bolognaise sauce. He grabs me around the waist and nuzzles my neck.
‘Hey, gorgeous. You smell delicious,’ he murmurs.
I smile, laying down the spoon and turning towards him.‘It’s probably the food.’
‘Ah, yes.’ He grins, pulling me against him. ‘There’snothing like the whiff of garlic to get a man’s juices flowing.’
‘Ooh, sounds promising.’ Reaching up, I plant a soft kiss onhis mouth. ‘Speaking of food, did Joanna catch up with you at lunchtime?’
‘She did, actually. She wanted some time off and since we’renot hectic at the moment, I said yes.’
‘Ah. Right.’
‘And that got me thinking.’
