Happily Ever After_ - Benison Anne O'Reilly [66]
‘Poor baby,’ she said. ‘He’s always getting sick these days. You need to look after him better. Just make sure your sister is on time as I don’t want to be late for my lunch.’
I briefly contemplated Pamela’s reaction to Daniel, Emma’s boyfriend. It would probably confirm all her opinions about my family, being just one level up from trailer trash in her eyes. At other times I would have thought this funny, but not this particular night.
By the time I got back inside everyone else had finished their main course and my plate was gone again. I had steam coming out of my nose until Alex explained that he’d had my meal taken away to the kitchen so they could keep it warm for me. He had it brought back and I tried to eat, but by this time I was too upset to feel hungry. I drank another glass of wine. Rosanna had gone off in a huff and was now on the dance floor, dirty dancing with the sleazy guy from the training department. At least someone was having a good night, I thought.
I drank yet another glass of wine.
Alex had been sitting there beside me the whole time, silently observing me. ‘Okay, what’s happened?’ he asked eventually.
That was all I needed. I told him all about what had happened - about Tony and how I was suspicious that he was sleeping around and, if so, it wouldn’t be the first time and how he’d turned into such a prick and his bitch of a mother - everything. He was so quiet and sympathetic and understanding about it too. A little voice inside me was saying: he’s your boss, Ellie. This is Alex we are talking about - Mr Discretion himself. He’s probably freaking out right now and thinking you’re mentally unstable and going to get you fired on Monday, but this voice wasn’t loud enough to stop me spilling it out.
Then I realised that I wasn’t feeling too well. The room was spinning a bit. Oh my God, Alex was now going to think me a drunk as well as mentally unstable. I said quietly, ‘I think I’d better go to my room. I’m not feeling too hot.’
‘I’d better make sure you get there okay,’ he said and helped me to my room on the second floor. I was so overcome by his kindness and my own stupid drunken sentimentality that I gave him a little hug and said, ‘Thank you so much. You’re really very sweet, you know.’
That’s when something most unexpected happened. He kissed me. Not a chaste peck on the cheek either, it was a proper kiss on the mouth. And his lips were so warm and inviting that I kissed him back. Then he put his arms around me and pulled me really tight. It felt so good. It was only when his hands started exploring too far, roaming up and down my back, that another warning light flashed on in my head and I thought: What are you doing?
I pulled away from him savagely and said, ‘What are you doing? I’m a married woman!’
‘I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I thought…’
‘Well you thought wrong. You better go, right now.’
So he left. Oh, what a night this was turning out to be.
Instead of the blissful night’s slumber I’d had planned, I hardly slept a wink. My head was all woozy and the bed felt like I was on an ocean liner in a heavy swell. I couldn’t stop thinking about Tony and whether he was having another affair and about Alex and how I’d thought he was so nice and how all men were bastards, till finally I fell asleep at about 5am. I woke up to crusty, bloodshot eyes and a throbbing head.
Not wanting to run into Alex before it was absolutely necessary, I ordered breakfast in, swallowed some pain killers I’d had the good sense to pack and drank vast amounts of coffee in preparation for my talk at 9am. I looked truly awful but had rehearsed my presentation often enough that I could wing that okay. From the looks of a few of the people in the audience I was not the only one nursing a hangover that morning. Alex and I avoided eye contact and I begged off the rest of the day, claiming I had to pick up Isabel earlier than expected. Then I left as soon as I possibly could.
At least Isabel had a good time with Emma at the zoo.
12
Motive and opportunity
I had Monday off and took