Court Out - By Elle Wynne Page 0,62
on her face.
“It appears you’ve had a busy day, plus we haven’t had a proper chat in ages. Come on, I’ll even buy the first bottle.”
I quickly weigh up the pros and cons in my head. Yes, it is a weekday, yes I do really have a lot of work that I could and should be doing, yes I really should get home to Sebastian, but I could do with having a bit of a vent about this to someone who understands exactly what the issues are and I do need to talk to Serena about the Andrew situation. Decision made, I nod at her and grab my handbag from beneath my seat.
The bar is about half full so we have no difficulty in finding a table with two squashy armchairs next to it. We fall into our usual topics of conversation easily and spend a good hour chatting about general Chambers news and gossip.
Apparently, Joanna received an anonymous letter from one of Robert’s conquests disclosing details of their illicit liaisons. She’s thrown him out and he’s spending his time either asleep in one of the conference rooms in Chambers or here, in the bar drowning his sorrows. He’s not here now, which I’m quite glad about, as I don’t think I could muster any sympathy for him. He made his bed and now he’d been chucked out of it.
“He only has himself to blame. He’s not sorry he did it, he’s sorry he’s been caught!”
“I feel quite bad for him actually,” comments Serena.
“Why?”
“Well, he obviously doesn’t get what he needs at home, so what does she expect?”
“You think this is Joanna’s fault?”
“No, I don’t think it’s her fault but perhaps if she’d been more attentive then he wouldn’t have strayed.”
“Bullshit!” I exclaim, banging my glass down onto the table in front of me “That’s such a cop-out and I’m surprised you’re thinking like this. Would you still say that if Ewan cheated on you?”
She laughs, and it’s not a pleasant sound. “As if Lauren. Ewan wouldn’t know where to start.”
“Ok then, what about if you cheated on him?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asks looking somewhat guarded.
“Well if you thought that Ewan wasn’t giving you everything you needed, would it be ok for you to look elsewhere?”
She pauses for a fraction too long.
“No, I didn’t say that. Ewan and I are completely different anyway.”
I raise an eyebrow at her.
“Really, how?”
She ignores me and changes the subject, taking a deep gulp of her drink.
“Are you all set for the reunion?”
“Yes, I got my ticket the other night.”
She checks her watch then looks at me closely.
“Have you been eating spinach?”
“What? No. Why?”
“You have something green stuck in your teeth.”
I fish about in my bag for my mirror but struggle to find it.
“Do you have a mirror on you?”
“It’s really dark in here, you’d best go to the ladies.”
“Ok, thanks.”
I get to my feet and hurry to the door at the back of the room. What on earth could it be? I’ll be so mortified if it’s something that’s been there since lunch. As I emerge into the toilet I study my reflection in the large mirror above the sink and bare my teeth. I can’t see anything.
I open my mouth wider and examine each tooth in turn. Nothing. I wash my hands and leave the room, running my hands over my hair as I walk back to Serena. She’s sitting forward in her armchair and she’s tearing up one of the napkins that came with our drinks.
“There was nothing there?”
“Maybe you dislodged it with your tongue?” she postulates, “Let me see?”
I bare my teeth at her.
“No, you’re right,” she says, “It’s gone now. Never mind.”
“So, where’s Andrew this evening?” I ask.
“Oh, I’m meeting him later.”
She shifts in her seat and refuses to meet my gaze.
“I bet you haven’t had much time to chat today because of this morning.”
“Oh no, we met up this morning after you left Chambers. I hadn’t realised he wasn’t going on the trip either, but he called me and we hooked up.”
“Really, what for?” I ask, leaning forwards in my chair in an attempt to engage her in a proper conversation.
“Just to discuss the case and stuff,” she replies, leaning ever further away from me back in her seat.
I sigh.
“Look, I’m not stupid. I have eyes. If there isn’t something going on with you two already, there will be soon.”
Her eyes snap up and she fixed me with a laser like stare. She speaks slowly.
“Stop being daft