‘Well done, darling!’ her mother had exclaimed with pleasure.
‘You’re a chip off the old block,’ her father had said approvingly. ‘You set your sights on something, and then you go for it.’
Jade had certainly done that, because from the moment she’d clapped eyes on her new boss, she’d not known what she’d wanted most. The job, or him.
Tom had been twenty years older than Jade. The age difference hadn’t mattered. This was a guy in his prime who’d oozed charisma. It had been so refreshing compared to the immature jerks that had usually asked her out.
Jade had been more than happy to stay late at the office to prove just how indispensable she was. When Tom had suggested she accompany him to Bristol on business regarding a potential merger with another law firm, she’d not hesitated in packing a small suitcase and going with him.
Jade had made sure that where Tom Harrison was concerned, she never said no, and that included when he’d asked her to join him for a nightcap – in his room. When he’d led her to his bed, she’d opened her arms to him. Then her legs.
He’d told her she was gorgeous... an absolute ringer for Hollywood’s late actress Kathryn Hepburn. He’d laughed when she’d looked at him blankly and said, “Who?”.
Jade had been fully aware that Tom was married, and this was where her immaturity showed. When Tom had ruefully said that the timing wasn’t quite right to leave his wife and family, she’d believed him.
‘Deanna is obsessed with the twins passing the eleven-plus exam,’ he’d explained. ‘I don’t want my leaving to impact upon Scott and Daniel. After all, they’ve swotted hard. If I go now, it could mess up their chances of securing a place at the local grammar school. Can you bear with me for a little while, sweetheart?’
Naturally Jade had said yes. She was besotted. Off her head with love. And lust.
By this point Jade had left home. Tom had installed her in a tiny cottage in Swanley Village. The cosy property was a safe distance from his own stomping ground in Culverstone Green, but equally not too far to divert to on the way home from work, or for snatched moments at weekends.
A few months had passed. Jade had ventured to ask Tom if he could now leave his wife? He’d considered for a few moments, and then smiled and said yes.
‘I’ll do it this weekend. There will be tears from both Deanna and the twins, but now is as good a time as any.’
Jade had been so excited. She’d blitzed the love nest and made some space in the wardrobe for Tom’s suits and belongings. She’d then set about cooking dinner. Tom had said to expect him around seven. She’d planned on them having a romantic meal together before helping him unpack.
As she’d cooked, her heart had danced with joy. Tom was going to walk away from Deanna and their boys with nothing but a suitcase of clothes. He’d reminded Jade that he had a conscience. An extremely guilty one. Therefore, he would be letting Deanna keep the family home with its almond-shaped swimming pool and tennis courts set in immaculate gardens. Jade had initially been annoyed, but Tom had insisted it didn’t matter.
‘I’ll start again. We’ll start again. Together. I earn enough. We have the cottage for now, but one day we’ll have a large house of our own. There will be a bigger pool. Better tennis courts.’
As Jade had laid the table, she’d allowed herself a tiny daydream about their future home, which included a couple of kids to fill the empty bedrooms. Tom had two sons. Perhaps she could give him two girls? Smiling, she’d lit scented candles, and even picked some flowers from the garden as a floral centrepiece.
At five past seven she was ready to dish up. By half past, she’d turned the oven to low. An hour later, the meal was drying out. Two hours later it was ruined. Three hours later, the candles had turned to waxy pools. Their flames had flickered and finally died.
Four hours later, Jade had done the cardinal sin of texting Tom. She’d had to. What if he’d had an accident? What if Deanna was refusing to let him leave? Perhaps his wife had locked Tom inside their house and was, even now, screaming at him and begging that he stay. Maybe Daniel and Scott were hanging on to their father’s shirttails.