Page 14 of You Lied First
‘You’re welcome,’ she says. ‘I love showing people around.
‘And I’m so impressed with how you handled the accident.’
She shrugs. ‘You learn these things when you live here.’
‘Do you think you’ll ever move back?’
‘You can never say never, can you? But I don’t want to,’ she says, stretching out her tanned limbs on her lounger. ‘I live for the sunshine. The salary’s tax-free, and I earn more here than I would back home.’
‘When you put it like that …’ I say, laughing. ‘And you can afford to live somewhere really lovely like this.’
‘Oh, I share with three other teachers. But I’d rather do that and have all this than be in a studio or one-bed on my own.’
‘Fair enough,’ I say, trying not to compare the grounds to my own muddy patch of grass back home. ‘I’d love to wake up to sunshine every day.’
‘I know, right? I find people are just more cheerful here and I’m sure it’s because of the sun.’ She pauses. ‘So how do you know the Forrests?’
‘Just through Liv.’
Celine swats a fly off her arm. ‘Is that all? I got the feeling it was more than that. With Guy anyway.’
I give a little shrug. ‘No. I barely know him.’
‘You sure?’ Celine says. ‘Because Margot’s got her eye on you.’
‘Got her eye on me? In what way?’
‘You haven’t noticed the way Guy looks at you? His whole face lights up.’
I scoff. ‘Stop it! That’s not true.’
Celine pulls a face at me. ‘Isn’t it? “Come on, Sara! Try the lamb!’’’ She mimes Guy holding out his fork earlier. ‘Well, in my opinion, you’re on Margot’s radar.’
‘Oh. That’s not good.’ I shift awkwardly on the lounger.‘They’ve been so kind inviting me here. I’d hate for her to feel uncomfortable. About nothing!’
‘Oh, trust me, Margot Forrest is always uncomfortable about something. That woman is never happy.’
‘Really? She’s so successful and she has a lovely family. Though I do feel like I barely know her …’ I hope Celine will take the bait and tell me more.
She snorts a laugh. ‘It’s not you, it’s her – trust me. I don’t think anyone knows her properly, not even Guy. It’s just how she is. So buttoned up.’
‘How long have you known them?’
‘Since I moved into this compound, so I knew them for about two years before they left, which was just before Covid.’
‘Do you know why they left? They seem to miss it so much. Margot especially.’
I don’t want to gossip but it’s tempting to pick the brains of someone who knows the Forrests better than I do.
‘The official answer is it was because of Margot’s dad,’ Celine says. ‘He’s getting on and was no longer able to live independently. He was going to move in with them. That’s what they told everyone anyway.’
‘Fair enough.’
‘But when they got back, they put him in a block of really fancy assisted living apartments, which – because I googled – I know is only available to rent and costs an absolute fortune. It even has a swimming pool. Anyway, as far as I know, Guy’s paying for it out of an inheritance he received when his parents passed away.’
‘Ah. That’s nice of him.’ But even as I say it, I’m wondering if it’s as generous as it sounds. Guy spending his inheritanceon her dad’s home would definitely skew the balance of power in their relationship, if it wasn’t already skewed to begin with. I like Guy, but it doesn’t take a lot for me to imagine him holding that over her if he wanted to.
‘Isn’t it just? Well, that’s the party line on why they left,’ Celine says with a naughty smile. ‘But, if you think about it, her dad is in a lovely place, so that really isn’t a reason to leave here, is it? It’s not like he moved in with them.’ She pauses and licks her lips. ‘So that brings me on to the unofficial reason.’
