Page 40 of The Wake-Up Call

She has the icing pen back in her hand and is pointing it at us.

“Sunshine and cocktails with people who have stood by me.”

“Thatis my sort of holiday,” Izzy says. “I love this. Can I have a hat?”

“Oh, hats are obligatory,” Shannon says, pointing to a stack of them on the kitchen counter.

Izzy looks at me. “Perfect! Lucaslovesnovelty headgear.”

“I’ve brought the ring,” I say to Shannon. Someone needs to get this conversation on track. Though I can’t help thinking that we aren’t as likely to get a £15,000 reward for a ring representing a marriage that’s ended. “We will need some way to confirm that it’s yours—that is, if you still want it.”

“One step ahead of you,” says Shannon, still icing as she pulls her phone out with her other hand. “Here, my wedding photos.”

I glance from the screen to Shannon’s face.

“Don’t worry,” she says. “They don’t make me sad anymore. I’m where I want to be right now. It doesn’t matter how I got here.”

“God, that is such an amazing mentality,” Izzy says, mouth already full of a cupcake she’s picked up from somewhere.

With herThank u, nexthat on, Izzy looks like everyone else at the party—already quite at home. I was so surprised when she told me that she had been bullied at school. Everybody loves Izzy. But I can see it now—the way she just fits in. I suspect that is a skill she picked up because she needed it.

“Are you sure that’s your ring?” she asks Shannon. “Could it be... a similar ring?”

Shannon looks at her in surprise. Izzy pulls an apologetic face, cupcake pouched in one cheek.

“Sorry. We have a bet,” she explains, swallowing. “If it’s your ring, I lose.”

“Ah. Well, sorry,” Shannon says. She spreads her hands. “But if it’s any consolation, every loss can be a win, right?”

Izzy absorbs this, then turns to me.

“Can I have a word?” she asks, tugging me into the corner by the drinks trolley. “She hasn’tprovenit’s hers,” she whispers.

“This is very undignified, Izzy,” I say, enjoying myself immensely. “Perhaps you should learn to lose with grace.”

“She could have just ordered the same ring from the same jeweller!”

“And stayed at the hotel at the same time as someone else with that ring, who also lost it?”

“Yes!”

I fold my arms and look down at her. Her hair is mussed beneath her ridiculous hat, and for a moment, her relentless competitiveness doesn’t seem irritating—it seems charming. She just caresso much.

Then her shoulders sag. “Shit,” she says.

She looks genuinely gutted. I look away. Winning doesn’t feel quite as good as I thought it would.

“Today is about fresh starts,” Shannon says as we return to her side. “Wiping that slate clean. If that means anything to you two, you’re welcome to stay for the party.”

I check the time on the clock above the kitchen door. We should be getting back. Ollie is on his own at the desk, and technically our work here is done.

“We should go,” Izzy and I say to each other in unison.

There is a pause. And then I find myself saying, “Perhaps we could stay for a short while. An hour or so.”

Izzy stares at me, mouth slightly open. I feel a small flash of triumph at having surprised her.

“You want to stay at the party?”

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