Page 124 of The Honeymoon Affair

‘In what way could she have been a better wife?’ I ask, delighted that the conversation has turned towards dissing his agent-slash-soon-to-be-divorced-ex.

‘You can’t have two very ambitious people in a marriage,’ says Pamela. ‘Something’s got to give.’

Everyone seems to have the same view about Ariel’s ambition. Even though I don’t want to sympathise, I can’t help feeling a little sorry for her. Why shouldn’t she be ambitious?

‘If she wasn’t so driven, she wouldn’t have got him all those deals,’ I remark.

‘All she ever thought about was how good he was for her agency,’ argues Pamela. ‘She forgot he was her husband too.’

And they’re off again, making the case for and against Ariel as a wife. I’m thinking they’ll start on me next, but fortunately Charles returns with the other plates of salmon. He puts one in his place and one in front of Ellis and asks what we were talking about.

‘Ariel,’ says Ellis.

Charles, who’d popped some potato in his mouth, starts to cough.

‘Hot,’ he says. ‘Sorry.’

‘The potato? Or Ariel?’

‘For crying out loud, Ellis.’ He glares at her.

‘I was just wondering,’ she says.

‘Well don’t.’

There’s a definite atmosphere whenever Ariel’s name is mentioned, and it’s not because they’re being sensitive around me.

‘Did you like her?’ I ask Ellis.

‘She always, always did her best for Charles,’ she replies. ‘Still does. Goes above and beyond. No job too big or too small. Or too personal.’

I glance at him. He’s glowering at his sister now and says that it’s in Ariel’s best interests to make sure his life is hassle-free.

‘You’ll be expected to keep it hassle-free too,’ she says to me. ‘If you run into problems, just let me know.’

‘It will be hassle-free with me,’ I tell her. ‘I’m low-maintenance.’

‘What about your wedding?’ she asks. ‘Is that going to be low-maintenance too, or something grand and glamorous?’

‘We haven’t really talked about it much.’ I glance at Charles. ‘He’s been so busy with his book . . .’

‘Oh, for feck’s sake, Chas!’ Ellis gives her brother an exasperated look. ‘Get with the programme. You need to start planning.’

‘Not before his divorce,’ says Pamela.

‘Why not?’ asks Ellis. ‘Are you expecting him to back out?’

I shoot her a horrified look.

‘Sorry, Izzy. I didn’t mean that he would. I’m sure he can’t wait to tie the knot with you.’

‘For your information, I have a meeting with Laurence on Monday.’ Charles’s tone is frosty. ‘So there’s no issue about the divorce, and yes, darling Iseult, we’ll get on with our plans straight away.’

‘Great.’ I smile at him. He reaches for my hand and holds it tightly.

‘So what happened to the original caterer that meant you needed a substitute chef?’ I ask, deciding a change of subject is a good idea.

‘It’s not important.’ Charles doesn’t look at me.

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