Page 56 of Lie For Me

Burying her face in her hands, she tried to block out the images.

She would never see a cleaning cupboard––or a cleaner, or a duster, or a waiter, for that matter––and not remember being caught with Jack outside that cupboard. What must he think of her?

She ran her fingers over her lips, still swollen from that kiss. Her neck flushed pink as she remembered his hands on her hips, urging her into him, the feeling of his hardness pushing against her.

The door to the bathrooms barged open, and a gaggle of women entered, bubbling over with excitement and prosecco.

A stall door banged shut, and then someone was peeing loudly.

‘Aahhhhh, just in time…’ came a voice from a couple of stalls away.

There was a clattering as makeup tumbled out of bags onto the counters.

‘How’s my lippy? Should I go for this pink, instead?’ asked a voice.

Lucy stayed quiet in her stall, her hands on her cheeks, trying to cool them down.

‘Have you seen that hotty with the dark hair, the tall guy with the light grey jacket?’ one asked.

‘Oh, I know, he’s very cute,’ came a whispered reply. ‘Is he a friend of Ollie’s?’

There was a rattle of make-up rolling about on the counter.

‘Shit, my lipstick.’

‘Who are you talking about?’ came a shout from the stall.

‘You know,’ said the first voice, ‘that guy who held the door open for you, and you said he had an amazing smile. Wearing a light grey jacket. I think I heard someone call him Jake?’ Lucy’s ears pricked up, and she froze in place. Were they talking about Jack? He was wearing a grey jacket, sure, but so were half the men at the wedding.

The toilet flushed, and the woman from the stall joined her friends. Water was running and Lucy strained to hear.

‘Ooh yes, he was very nice.’

They all cackled.

‘Might have to see if I can help him slip out of that jacket and make himself more comfortable…on my bed!’

They all giggled.

Lucy wished she could see who was talking, but she’d been in the cubical for a suspiciously long time now, so she didn’t dare go out.

‘Isn’t he with that fair-haired woman?’

Lucy froze in place, holding her breath.

‘Not sure. If he is, he doesn’t seem that excited about it.’

The woman laughed at her own joke, and the others joined in.

Lucy smarted. She wished they’d seen how excited Jack was outside the cleaning cupboard. Her face flushed even harder at the thought, and she shook her head to dislodge the image. It didn’t matter if this woman liked Jack, she told herself; he was a free agent, technically.

‘Check my lippy,’ the second woman said, smacking her lips together.

‘Lemme see… yes, perfect,’ said the other. ‘Let’s go! Woo hoo!’

Heels clicked on tiles, and music flooded in as the door opened. Their laughter and voices melted into the noise, and they were gone.

The toilets fell silent. Lucy was still sitting on the floor behind the stall door, staring at the toilet bowl. She stayed still until she was sure she was alone. Cracking the door open, she clambered to her feet and smoothed down her dress.

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