Page 23 of The Temp

Folding my arms, I make my way along the dewy lawn, rehearsing my speech silently – Hey Zee, having a good time? Look, there’s something I need to tell you. Frank isn’t the man you think he is – he’s got an eye for the ladies, was even checking Daisy out right under your nose earlier. No, no, I want to keep Daisy out of this. I’m going to have to be brutal. Frank made a pass at me. I rejected him, quit the gym and fired him. I picture her horrified expression, then plough on. I’m sorry to say this, but he looked you up on my Instagram followers list and I think he’s got an ulterior motive for dating you. Maybe it’s revenge for turning him down. The thing is, Zelda, he knows stuff about me, things that could destroy my marriage. But I love you, you’re my sister. So, I’m risking everything to keep you safe. Oh, God, will I even get all that out before Frank comes wading in?

Blades of grass tickle my toes that are peeking from my cross sandals. A light, warm wind blows in my face, carrying the musky smell of my sister’s perfume. Zelda looks up at me from her phone. ‘Hey, Sis, where’ve you been?’

‘Hey, Zee, having a good time?’ Nodding, she shoves up, making room for me on the white bench. Throwing a glance at the house, I take a pew. Through the window, I catch sight of Frank wandering around the kitchen and saying something to Daisy. ‘I need to talk to you. It’s important.’ I can feel my heartbeat belting in my abdomen.

‘Is everything okay?’ Zelda puts her phone down and I take her hands in mine.

‘Zelda, I need you to listen to me carefully and trust me on this, okay?’ Zelda nods, frowning. ‘And promise that you won’t…’

A tinkling sound of metal against glass demands our attention. I look around. Tom is sitting on the rattan sofa, Theo and Linda are on the three-seater. Daisy is standing next to Linda, breadstick in hand, a look of intrigue on her face. Georgia is on the lounger, stuffing her face with a sandwich. They’re all looking at Frank standing on the decking, bottle and spoon in hand.

‘Listen up, guys.’ Frank is striding towards us now. He thinks I’ve trashed him to Zelda and is out for revenge. I close my eyes, breath shallow, waiting for him to expose me to my family and friends for what I really am. A liar. A cheat.

‘We meet a lot of arseholes in this lifetime. Fact.’ Lukewarm laughter ripples through the air. I can hear the rustle of his footfall approaching. My gut simmers with anxiety. Swallowing sour spit, I squeeze my eyes tighter, clenching my fists until I feel the sting in the flesh of my palms. ‘Life is short. So, without further ado.’ There’s a pause and a shuffle of movement. ‘Zelda, we haven’t known each other long, but…’ My eyes snap open. Frank is on one knee gazing up at my sister. He’s holding a ring between his fingers made out of kitchen foil. ‘Will you marry me?’

Chapter 20

I twist Georgia’s long, golden curls in my hands as she vomits into the toilet bowl for the fourth time. It’s just gone midnight. We saw the last of our guests off an hour ago. After Zelda said yes to Frank, Tom opened a bottle of Bollinger that he’d been saving for a special occasion and turned up the music. I’m surprised Mr Stanhope didn’t come pounding on our door. The fizz barely touched my lips when Tom made a toast to the happy couple. I was in no mood to celebrate my sister’s engagement to a maniac.

Georgia gags again and I stroke her back soothingly. Tom’s muffled grunts and snores filter from the bedroom. The sound of water splashing floats from Daisy’s en-suite. She’s taking a shower before bed. It’s been a long day, for all of us.

‘Oh, Mum,’ Georgia sobs. ‘Am I going to die?’

‘No, my love,’ I soothe, hand on her back, ‘but next time listen to your mother. You’re too young to drink. Who gave you the alcohol anyway, was it Linda?’ Georgia shakes her head, eyes red, features droopy from booze. ‘Auntie Zelda, was it?’ I say dryly. I could swing for my sister sometimes. She’s too lenient with Georgia, forgets she’s only fifteen. ‘It had better not have been Frank.’

‘Mummmah…stop. I got it myself when you went inside.’

‘Oh, Georgie.’ I push her hair off her flawless face, clammy with sweat, and look into her deep blue eyes - her father stares back at me. She’s so like him, it’s uncanny sometimes. If it weren’t for the shape of her eyes, you wouldn’t think she was related to me at all. ‘Well, I wouldn’t put it past Frank to ply you with booze,’ I groan, running her hair through my fingers. ‘I saw him chatting to you and Daisy. But grown-ups aren’t always right, you know.’ Georgia goes to get up, saliva dripping from the side of her mouth. ‘All done?’ I ask gently, and she nods, wiping her spit with the sleeve of her Barbie pink pyjama top. I hold her in my arms as we walk back to her room.

‘Is Auntie Zelda really gonna marry him?’ Georgia asks, climbing back into bed awkwardly.

‘I don’t know, honey. But it seems that way.’ I pull the duvet over her slender body.

‘She’s only known him like three days. Why was everybody clapping like they’d been together for three years or something?’ There were boozy cheers and whistles when Zelda said yes, although I’m not entirely certain any of us were actually delighted with Frank’s shocking proposal. He obviously did it to silence me, knew I was on the verge of self-destruction, prepared to risk everything to protect my sister from his clutches. But now, with a ring on her finger, albeit one made out of kitchen foil, it’ll be harder to convince her to break up with him. I haven’t seen her this happy since Jake. In fact, she might not even believe me now – take his side, like Linda said. Frank will convince her that I’m the jealous sister. What a mess.

Kissing Georgia’s forehead, I breathe her in, before tucking her into bed as if she were six, then look at her adoringly, heart swelling with love, and in that moment, I wish I’d had more children. ‘They’ve only known each other a few weeks, but I suppose it’s their decision, sweetheart,’ I offer. ‘Lots of whirlwind romances work out.’ A knot forms in my stomach because I know that this one is destined for failure.

‘Mum, will you stay a while? In case I’m sick again?’

‘Of course, I will.’ Sitting on the edge of Georgia’s bed, my mind drifts back to earlier. Linda found me in the kitchen after Frank’s announcement, slamming cabinet doors and wiping down spotless worktops – hot water gushing from the tap, plumes of steam rising from the sink like a mini sauna.

‘Bella,’ she said, worriedly, turning off the hot tap. ‘Are you okay? I didn’t see that one coming. What did you say to Frank? You were meant to put him off her not persuade him to walk her down the aisle.’

‘Oh, Linda, it’s all such a fucking mess and it’s all my doing. I…I… when…’

Linda folded me in her arms and held me as I sobbed on her shoulder, shushing me gently. ‘I can’t believe I’ve brought this psychopath into my family.’

‘It wasn’t your fault, baby,’ Linda said kindly, even though we both knew it was. ‘Talk about a fast mover. I take it my plan backfired. I am sorry, Bells. I wish I’d kept it zipped now.’

I pulled out of her embrace, wiped my cheeks with the back of my thumbs, told her it wasn’t her fault, that I stupidly tried to bribe him with ten grand and made matters worse. ‘He knew I was going to tell Zelda about his vicious temper and how he tried it on with me, and that he looked her up on my Insta account and tricked her into believing his Granny story. What am I supposed to do now?’

‘Tell him to stick his head into a bucket of water three times and only take it out twice.’ I laughed when Linda said this. ‘Well, you’ve got a couple of options now,’ she went on, ‘say nothing and let them get on with it. It might even work out, you never know. They do seem besotted with each other.’

‘Oh, Linda.’ It’s not what I wanted to hear. I sat down heavily at the table, tapping my fingers. ‘You don’t know the half of it,’ I said, tiredly. ‘He heard everything Liam and I said at the café in Crouch End and is threatening to tell Tom.’

‘I thought he was listening to music on his headphones.’

‘So did I.’

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