Page 71 of Strictly Friends
‘It’s a long story.’And it’s not one I’m prepared to discuss with you!
‘I’ve got time.’
Barely holding on to her temper, Ruby snapped angrily, ‘Look, just because you and Griffin are together doesn’t give you the right to—’
‘Me and Griffin arewhat?’ Shirlee spluttered. ‘Youarejoking, aren’t you? Where on earth did you get that idea? I’ll have you know that I’m almost engaged to Simeon.’
Who the hell is Simeon?Ruby stared in confusion at Shirlee’s flabbergasted expression. ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t understand. Jake says you’re at Griffin’s house a lot, and I assumed...’
She trailed off as Shirlee’s face cleared and the woman burst into peals of laughter. ‘Do me a favour! Do you honestly think I’m daft enough to waste my time on a man who’s so obviously into someone else? God, no, I learned my lesson the first time! Besides Simeon and I are practically engaged.’
Ruby was watching Shirlee’s lips move but her brain had frozen at the words ‘God, no’ and the only information she could process was that Griffinwasn’tback with Shirlee. But if that were true, why was a woman obsessed with marriage spending so much time with a man who had so callously broken up with her? The question slipped out before Ruby could remind herself that it was none of her business.
Shirlee waved a hand impatiently. ‘I work in fundraising, which you would know if you’d ever bothered to find out anything about me. I’ve been helping Griffin find sponsors and secure long-term funding to expand the foundation’s Music Heals centres.’
‘Oh!’ Ruby said blankly.
‘If you must know, Griffin got in touch with me late last year to apologise for having been such an absolute bastard. He knowsI’m great at my job, so when he started the foundation, he offered me the contract to make amends.’
‘Ohhh!’ Ruby breathed.
‘Obviously, as he works mostly from home, we meet at his place. Not that it’s any of your business.’
Shirlee’s blue eyes were like chips of ice and her hostility was almost palpable. Puzzled, Ruby shook her head.
‘Um, have I offended you or something, Shirlee? You seem incredibly annoyed with me.’
Shirlee let out a short, humourless laugh. ‘Do I? Okay, I’ve answered your question, so it’smyturn now. Why exactly did you cut Griffin off?’
Ruby inhaled sharply, taken aback both by the question and the ferocity of the woman’s tone. She opened her mouth to tell Shirlee to mind her own business and then caught herself. Shirlee might be annoying, but she was right. Itwasher turn to answer the question.
Picking her words with care, Ruby said slowly, ‘I didn’t cut him off, at least not in the way you mean. Look, something happened, and it’s for the best that we go our separate ways.’
‘Griffin told me the two of you two slept together when you were on the island, if that’s the “something” you’re referring to,’ Shirlee said bluntly.
Ruby reeled as if she had been punched in the stomach. Her hand flew to her mouth and the blood drained from her face.
‘He didwhat?!’ she gasped.
The full truth of what had happened that night on Sorrel Island had remained their secret until, fuelled by too much wine as she tried to drown the gut-wrenching pain of losing her best friend, Ruby had spilled the beans to Mac one night. It seemed she wasn’t the only one to have slipped up, she thought in anguish, althoughwhy, ofallthe people in the world he could have chosen, had Griffin confided in Shirlee?
Shirlee shrugged. ‘To be fair, he was so drunk when he told me that he probably doesn’t remember anything he said. I can’t believe you just dumped him after that. God, that’s so much worse than anything he ever did!’
‘Now, hold on a second, you don’t know the whole story! Griffin lied to me about—’
Shirlee cut in abruptly. ‘Yes, he told me that, too.’
‘Well, then, you should understand why I didn’t want to—’
‘Oh,puh-leese!’ Shirlee interrupted again, her voice dripping with scorn. She folded her arms and looked Ruby up and down. ‘You are such a sanctimonious hypocrite!’
Ruby gasped. ‘What?Wait a minute—’
‘No,youwait,’ Shirlee snarled, the tip of her nose white with fury, and Ruby stepped back in alarm. Although Shirlee was quite a bit shorter than her, right at that moment she looked like an enraged blonde Rottweiler about to pounce.
Her blue eyes flashing fire, Shirlee stepped forward to close the gap and jabbed an accusatory finger at Ruby. ‘Aren’t you the one who said Griffin was wrong to dump me simply for suggesting we take our relationship to the next level? I sat on your auntie’s sofa bawling my eyes out while you pretended his behaviour was unacceptable.’
‘Ididn’tpretend,’ Ruby argued, keeping a wary eye on the finger. ‘I told you Griffin was a pig-headed idiot to treat you the way he did, and I meant it. But that’s not the same thing at all.’
