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Authors: Trisha Ashley
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here like this?’
‘Oh, come on, Daddy told me that Tansy’s up in Lancashire with the old bat, so you don’t get rid of me thateasily.’
She must have barged past him because suddenly she was in the room. She caught sight of me, frozen to the spot, and her jaw dropped.
‘The “old bat” was well enough to leave overnight,’ I said evenly, in a voice that didn’t sound in the least like my own. ‘What did you mean, Rae, about Justin paying you maintenance money?’
Justin, who’d followed her into the room, flushed angrily. ‘It’s nothing, Tansy. You misheard,’ he said quickly. ‘I’d loaned your sister some money and told her I needed it back, that’s all.’
‘As well as your mother? Have you taken up moneylending as a sideline?’ I suggested acidly, while my mind whirled and computed and came up with an almost unbelievably horrible possibility …
‘No – actually, I only lent money to Rae; Mother’s got plenty of her own. But I didn’t like to tell you, because I know you two don’t really get on.’
I suppose doctors often have to think on their feet, but it wasn’t good enough to fool me. Anyway, both their faces gave the game away. Justin looked angry and guilty in equal measure, while Rae looked guarded and slightly worried, creases sharply pointing downwards on her usually smooth forehead.
‘Whoever’s been doing your Botox, I’d ask for your money back,’ I told her.
‘I don’t know what you mean, Tansy, but it’s true about Justin giving me a loan, when I got into a financial scrape,’ she said quickly, backing him up. ‘I couldn’t ask Daddy because you know what he’s like – thinks we should stand on our own two feet and earn anything above the allowance he gives us. He’d be furious if he knew how much I’d got into debt. But now Justin’s suddenly demanded it back without warning, because you two are finally getting married.’
‘That’s not going to wash – do you think I’m stupid? Rae, you said “maintenance”and that Justin was trying to shirk his responsibilities. What responsibilities?’
Rae threw herself down on the cream leather sofa and sighed. ‘Well, it was worth a try, but I can see that the game’s up. The truth is, Tansy, that we had a teensy weensy little affair a few years ago.’
‘How many years ago?’ I demanded. ‘You’d never met until you came back over here to live after your divorce and I was engaged to Justin by then!’
‘That’s right, it was just after I came back.’
My head and my heart struggled to take this in. That first year after I’d got engaged to Justin, the time I remembered as full of sunshine, love, happiness and promise for the future, had in reality been just a sham …
‘Tansy, I can explain,’ Justin said desperately. ‘I’m so sorry. But it wasn’t an affair, just a mad impulse, and it was always you I loved.’
‘But you said you didn’t even like her!’
‘I don’t. In fact, I think I hate her. I don’t know what got into me.’
‘I think I can guess,’ I said. ‘But Rae, how could you do that with my fiancé?’
She shrugged. ‘Justin was so indifferent to me when we met, making him change his mind was too much of a challenge to resist.’
My world was rocking, shifting onto a different axis, and things were clicking into place with the sound of deadlocks slamming shut. ‘So, this maintenance you mentioned …?’
‘Justin’s paying for the resultof his little mistake,’ Rae said silkily. ‘Charlie.’
‘Charlie is Justin’s ?’
Now my suspicion was finally confirmed, I felt truly sick.
‘He certainly is – and it’s only right he should support his son, isn’t it?’
‘And the rest,’ Justin said bitterly. ‘You wanted extra to keep your mouth shut about who Charlie’s father was and you’ve got increasingly greedy.’
‘It’s not greed – it’s necessity. Charlie needed a nanny, and then private nursery school wasn’t cheap …’
‘And
‘Oh, come on, Daddy told me that Tansy’s up in Lancashire with the old bat, so you don’t get rid of me thateasily.’
She must have barged past him because suddenly she was in the room. She caught sight of me, frozen to the spot, and her jaw dropped.
‘The “old bat” was well enough to leave overnight,’ I said evenly, in a voice that didn’t sound in the least like my own. ‘What did you mean, Rae, about Justin paying you maintenance money?’
Justin, who’d followed her into the room, flushed angrily. ‘It’s nothing, Tansy. You misheard,’ he said quickly. ‘I’d loaned your sister some money and told her I needed it back, that’s all.’
‘As well as your mother? Have you taken up moneylending as a sideline?’ I suggested acidly, while my mind whirled and computed and came up with an almost unbelievably horrible possibility …
‘No – actually, I only lent money to Rae; Mother’s got plenty of her own. But I didn’t like to tell you, because I know you two don’t really get on.’
I suppose doctors often have to think on their feet, but it wasn’t good enough to fool me. Anyway, both their faces gave the game away. Justin looked angry and guilty in equal measure, while Rae looked guarded and slightly worried, creases sharply pointing downwards on her usually smooth forehead.
‘Whoever’s been doing your Botox, I’d ask for your money back,’ I told her.
‘I don’t know what you mean, Tansy, but it’s true about Justin giving me a loan, when I got into a financial scrape,’ she said quickly, backing him up. ‘I couldn’t ask Daddy because you know what he’s like – thinks we should stand on our own two feet and earn anything above the allowance he gives us. He’d be furious if he knew how much I’d got into debt. But now Justin’s suddenly demanded it back without warning, because you two are finally getting married.’
‘That’s not going to wash – do you think I’m stupid? Rae, you said “maintenance”and that Justin was trying to shirk his responsibilities. What responsibilities?’
Rae threw herself down on the cream leather sofa and sighed. ‘Well, it was worth a try, but I can see that the game’s up. The truth is, Tansy, that we had a teensy weensy little affair a few years ago.’
‘How many years ago?’ I demanded. ‘You’d never met until you came back over here to live after your divorce and I was engaged to Justin by then!’
‘That’s right, it was just after I came back.’
My head and my heart struggled to take this in. That first year after I’d got engaged to Justin, the time I remembered as full of sunshine, love, happiness and promise for the future, had in reality been just a sham …
‘Tansy, I can explain,’ Justin said desperately. ‘I’m so sorry. But it wasn’t an affair, just a mad impulse, and it was always you I loved.’
‘But you said you didn’t even like her!’
‘I don’t. In fact, I think I hate her. I don’t know what got into me.’
‘I think I can guess,’ I said. ‘But Rae, how could you do that with my fiancé?’
She shrugged. ‘Justin was so indifferent to me when we met, making him change his mind was too much of a challenge to resist.’
My world was rocking, shifting onto a different axis, and things were clicking into place with the sound of deadlocks slamming shut. ‘So, this maintenance you mentioned …?’
‘Justin’s paying for the resultof his little mistake,’ Rae said silkily. ‘Charlie.’
‘Charlie is Justin’s ?’
Now my suspicion was finally confirmed, I felt truly sick.
‘He certainly is – and it’s only right he should support his son, isn’t it?’
‘And the rest,’ Justin said bitterly. ‘You wanted extra to keep your mouth shut about who Charlie’s father was and you’ve got increasingly greedy.’
‘It’s not greed – it’s necessity. Charlie needed a nanny, and then private nursery school wasn’t cheap …’
‘And
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