Read Online The Other Half by Sarah Rayner - Free Book Online Page B

Maggie—and, finally, Alex. Typically, he was half an hour late, and hadn’t dressed up at all. Yet he grinned at Maggie winningly, said “you look ravishing” and handed over not just wine but her favorite dark Belgian chocolates, so she decided to let him off.
    With the guests gathered, drinks in hand, and introductions over, Maggie began to relax. She turned to Jean. “How’s work?”
    “Exhausting!”
    Maggie smiled to herself. She knew that Jean really loved being editorial queen; long sufferance was just a role she played.
    “You know how it is. And I must say, though I have a good team, at times I despair of some of my junior copy editors. Call me old-fashioned, but it does seem education isn’t what it used to be. I’m constantly picking out grammatical errors at the eleventh hour! And the spelling! I was thinking on the drive down here, please make sure Nathan goes to a decent secondary school, won’t you? Only last week I picked up a classic error in an article about agoraphobia. We’d split ‘therapist’ over two lines into ‘the’ and ‘rapist’—changed the meaning completely. Had to get my features editor to go through it with a fine-tooth comb. Actually—” she turned to Jamie “—didn’t you come in and see her the other day? What was that about?”
    “Eh?” Jamie, who’d been gazing absentmindedly out of the window, was forced to jump to attention.
    “Chloë Appleton. Didn’t you come in to see her last week?”
    “Oh, er, yes. I thought it’d be a good idea to introduce myself to the senior members of staff at UK Magazines. I’m eventually hoping to get around everyone. Information gathering, you know.”
    “Well, how thorough !” said Jean. “Sounds a bit over-keen to me. Rather like when you’ve got a new car. For the first few weeks you’re out there cleaning and polishing every Sunday but sooner or later you’re back to your old ways. I’m sure that once you’ve talked to a couple, you’ll feel you’ve talked to them all.”
    “Maybe. Though so far I’ve found it most enlightening. Well,” Jamie turned to Georgie, “all this magazine chat must be rather dull for you. How’s life in the fast lane at Waterstones?”
    Maggie winced; she could recognize Jamie’s sarcasm. She hoped it would pass Georgie by.
    “You’d be surprised.” Georgie grinned. “It’s one earth-shattering crisis after another. ‘Are the stocks on Roget’s running low?’ ‘Have we got that order in for Mrs. Bradshaw yet? She’s called twice already today.’ ‘Is it worth persuading that local author to do an evening signing, or will the sales not warrant paying staff to stay late?’”
    Maggie warmed to Georgie even more. She liked a woman who didn’t take herself that seriously. She glanced at Alex. From the way he was leaning forward, it seemed he might like her too.
    “How did you get into the book world?” asked Jamie.
    “Oh, it wasn’t some major career plan. It was just the first job I got after college.”
    “Know the feeling. But you must be pretty good at it. Maggie said you’re in charge of the one in Guildford. It’s one of their biggest branches, isn’t it?” Clearly he was prepared to be more charming now Georgie had revealed she could hold her own.
    “It is. I like working out which books might sell and helping give them a push. But what I most enjoy is the people; managing my staff and meeting customers.”
    Maggie could see she’d be good at that.
    “Well, you’re obviously getting something right,” continued Jamie. “I gather Waterstones is doing better these days. I must admit, I’d hate to lose the chain—I’ve always liked it.”
    “I’m glad you think so.” Georgie relaxed visibly at his compliment.
    Maggie listened while Jamie drew Georgie out, helping put her at ease among strangers. He can be such good company when he wants to be, she thought proudly. It was one of the things that had first attracted her to him.
    “Anyway,