Read Online Love You Better by Natalie K Martin - Free Book Online
Authors: Natalie K Martin
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now.’
That wasn’t a good thing, so why was the swirling in her stomach bordering on being pleasurable?
‘Fine,’ she said, standing up. ‘We can be civil, but that’s it. I m eant what I said at Somerset House.’
‘I know.’ He stood up and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he looked at her. ‘Like I said, message received loud and clear.’
His voice sounded monotone and matter-of-fact, but instead of feeling relieved at his apparent acceptance, Effie felt a flash of disappointment . She looked back at him and told herself to get a grip. This was exactly what she’d wanted from the moment he’d got back, and he was finally playing along.
She nodded. ‘Good.’
‘Good.’ He nodded back.
She stalked past him, swinging the door open and not even caring that it nearly hit him in the face. Bloody Smith.
After her disastrous day at work, she took herself off to get her Christmas shopping done. It was a bad idea. Thanks to Smith, she was in a foul mood. He’d shocked her out of her skin, showing up in the office like that.
‘So, I heard you’ve got a new colleague. Mickey just told me,’ Lou said.
Effie held the phone in her hand as she toyed with the price tag on the Ted Baker jumper. Oliver would look amazing in it, which wouldn’t be difficult. He looked amazing in pretty much everything.
‘Apparently, Doug asked him in to help out with A&R. He’s like a bad smell that won’t go away.’
‘It’s hardly surprising, though. He did used to be a DJ, and he’s massively into music. He knows a heap of people.’
Effie rolled her eyes. ‘Well, yes, of course he does. He spent every weekend getting high with them, remember?’
‘So, I guess now’s a good time to tell you he’s coming to Ireland .’
A frustrated sigh left Effie’s mouth, and she dropped the price tag on the sweater. ‘You have got to be having a laugh.’
‘Well, it would’ve been hard to leave him out, not to mention unfair,’ Lou pointed out. ‘What difference does it make anyway? You’ll be with Olly, and you’ve told Smith to stay away. It’s not like he’s going to pounce on you.’
Effie moved out of the way as someone else picked up one of the sweaters and took it straight to the till. It did make a difference. It made all the difference in the world.
‘I’ve got to go and get dinner on,’ Lou said. ‘Good luck with your shopping. We’ll catch up soon.’
Lou blew a kiss down the phone and hung up, and Effie left the shop feeling deflated. So far, she hadn’t seen anything she even remotely liked that came within her measly budget. Oliver had offered to set her up with an allowance, but she’d turned it down. Having an allowance from your husband seemed to be like travelling back sixty years, and she didn’t like the idea of him effectively paying for his own Christmas present. She had her own income, as meagre as it felt.
She meandered through the crowds of shoppers, scrolling through her phone to check her bank balance, just in case some money had magically appeared. It hadn’t. Sliding into an empty chair in the rest area, she sighed. The mere fact that a shopping centre had to have rest areas depressed her. She’d never needed a rest from shopping in her life. Everyone else seemed to have a minimum of five bags each, and she could only begin to imagine the cumulative cost of them all. She’d wanted this year to be different. She’d wanted to shower Oliver with gifts.
How would Smith be spending Christmas?
She scowled at the unwelcome way Smith had popped into her head. It was bad enough, him turning up unannounced at her wedding and Somerset House, but at work? It was such a small team, she wouldn’t be able to avoid him, and even though he’d apparently accepted that she wanted him to stay away, it wasn’t him she was worried about. It was herself. Smith had been perfectly professional after they’d left the meeting room, following her around as she familiarised him with the
That wasn’t a good thing, so why was the swirling in her stomach bordering on being pleasurable?
‘Fine,’ she said, standing up. ‘We can be civil, but that’s it. I m eant what I said at Somerset House.’
‘I know.’ He stood up and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he looked at her. ‘Like I said, message received loud and clear.’
His voice sounded monotone and matter-of-fact, but instead of feeling relieved at his apparent acceptance, Effie felt a flash of disappointment . She looked back at him and told herself to get a grip. This was exactly what she’d wanted from the moment he’d got back, and he was finally playing along.
She nodded. ‘Good.’
‘Good.’ He nodded back.
She stalked past him, swinging the door open and not even caring that it nearly hit him in the face. Bloody Smith.
After her disastrous day at work, she took herself off to get her Christmas shopping done. It was a bad idea. Thanks to Smith, she was in a foul mood. He’d shocked her out of her skin, showing up in the office like that.
‘So, I heard you’ve got a new colleague. Mickey just told me,’ Lou said.
Effie held the phone in her hand as she toyed with the price tag on the Ted Baker jumper. Oliver would look amazing in it, which wouldn’t be difficult. He looked amazing in pretty much everything.
‘Apparently, Doug asked him in to help out with A&R. He’s like a bad smell that won’t go away.’
‘It’s hardly surprising, though. He did used to be a DJ, and he’s massively into music. He knows a heap of people.’
Effie rolled her eyes. ‘Well, yes, of course he does. He spent every weekend getting high with them, remember?’
‘So, I guess now’s a good time to tell you he’s coming to Ireland .’
A frustrated sigh left Effie’s mouth, and she dropped the price tag on the sweater. ‘You have got to be having a laugh.’
‘Well, it would’ve been hard to leave him out, not to mention unfair,’ Lou pointed out. ‘What difference does it make anyway? You’ll be with Olly, and you’ve told Smith to stay away. It’s not like he’s going to pounce on you.’
Effie moved out of the way as someone else picked up one of the sweaters and took it straight to the till. It did make a difference. It made all the difference in the world.
‘I’ve got to go and get dinner on,’ Lou said. ‘Good luck with your shopping. We’ll catch up soon.’
Lou blew a kiss down the phone and hung up, and Effie left the shop feeling deflated. So far, she hadn’t seen anything she even remotely liked that came within her measly budget. Oliver had offered to set her up with an allowance, but she’d turned it down. Having an allowance from your husband seemed to be like travelling back sixty years, and she didn’t like the idea of him effectively paying for his own Christmas present. She had her own income, as meagre as it felt.
She meandered through the crowds of shoppers, scrolling through her phone to check her bank balance, just in case some money had magically appeared. It hadn’t. Sliding into an empty chair in the rest area, she sighed. The mere fact that a shopping centre had to have rest areas depressed her. She’d never needed a rest from shopping in her life. Everyone else seemed to have a minimum of five bags each, and she could only begin to imagine the cumulative cost of them all. She’d wanted this year to be different. She’d wanted to shower Oliver with gifts.
How would Smith be spending Christmas?
She scowled at the unwelcome way Smith had popped into her head. It was bad enough, him turning up unannounced at her wedding and Somerset House, but at work? It was such a small team, she wouldn’t be able to avoid him, and even though he’d apparently accepted that she wanted him to stay away, it wasn’t him she was worried about. It was herself. Smith had been perfectly professional after they’d left the meeting room, following her around as she familiarised him with the
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