Page 159 of The Honeymoon Affair

‘Who’d’ve thought it,’ she says. ‘We’re alike because we both let Charles take over our lives. We both wanted more for him than we did for ourselves. And now we’ve both decided enough is enough.’

‘I think Charles loves you in a way he never loved me,’ I say.

‘He loves himself more,’ she remarks.

‘Oh, Izzy, I know he can be self-centred, but—’

‘But you still defend him.’

‘It’s been my job. I can’t help myself.’ I grin. ‘I heard about your promotion. Congratulations.’

‘I do a lot of the North American flights. Just to warn you.’

I laugh, and so does she.

‘I’ll be going.’ She stands up. ‘It was . . . good to see you, Ariel. I’m sorry we never got to know each other in better circumstances.’

‘Maybe there’s never good circumstances for an ex and a wife-to-be.’

‘But we’re both exes now.’ She smiles again, and her face lights up. ‘So you never know.’

‘You never do.’

She heads for the stairs.

She’s disappeared from view when Charles comes up to me.

‘Great reading,’ I say. ‘Congratulations.’

‘Never mind that.’ He gives me an impatient look. ‘Was that . . . did I see Izzy?’

I nod.

‘Where’s she gone?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘What did she want?’

‘To hear you read.’

‘Why didn’t she wait?’

‘I don’t know that either.’

‘Why didn’t you stop her?’

‘Because she said goodbye.’

‘I’ve been trying to see her for months!’ he cries. ‘Absolutely months. With no success. It’s impossible to see her at work and I can’t hang around her house, not with her parents there. They’d report me to the police.’

‘Are you still in love with her?’

‘You always thought it was some stupid fling, didn’t you?’ he demands. ‘But it wasn’t. I do love her, Ariel. I think I loved her from the moment I first saw her. I never properly showed it, because even though I thought I was the mature person in the relationship, I absolutely wasn’t. I kept thinking it was OK to mix it up with you and her, that it didn’t matter because I knew how I felt. I was able to keep you apart in my head. But she didn’t know. Not really. I love her and I lost her and I’m an absolute fool.’

A few months ago, I would have been devastated by those words. Now, I’m simply amazed. Amazed that he’s said them and amazed that he sounds so sincere.

‘I patronised her,’ he says. ‘I treated her as though she were young and foolish instead of the clever, capable woman she is.’

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