Page 9 of Ex in the City
‘But I’m trying to make it right,’ Rowan insists, as though that should be good enough.
‘No,I’mtrying to make it right,’ I correct him. ‘I mean, as if it wasn’t bad enough that you’ve got yourself mixed up in some kind of protein Ponzi scheme, but to put my name down on the paperwork without telling me – to think you could drag me down with you and that I would be chill about it – is just unhinged. Bloody Carrie knew more than I did.’
Carrie, a business acquaintance of Rowan’s, wasn’t someone I knew well, although I did make her dinner a couple of times. Ever so slightly in Rowan’s defence, it seems like Carrie might have manipulated him, involving him in promoting some ridiculous protein powder that claimed to do all sorts of magical things, but surely did none of them. She even had him help recruit more investors – more people for her to scam money out of. I suppose that’s how these things work, not that I’m an expert, but it seems like there isn’t really anything to invest in. The people at the top get the money and the fools like Rowan hand it over. The only real way to not be out of pocket is to find someone else to ‘invest’, to pay yourself.
At the start, I don’t think Rowan knew that it was a scam, I think he really did think he was investing in something with asupposedly high return, which is why he put not only his own but also a big chunk of my savings into it. And then, I guess when he realised he was being scammed, he started working with Carrie to make our money back before I found out about it.
Oh, but I did find out about it – pretty much by accident, which made it all the more of a shock. I knew he was up to something, that’s why I was sneaking around in his office, looking for clues, or evidence. To be totally honest, I thought he and Carrie were having an affair, rather than just being the business associates he claimed they were. When I found the paperwork, I didn’t know what I was looking at but it led to me looking at the bank statements, and then I started to piece together what was happening.
I was furious at Rowan for putting me in such a shitty situation – especially given my job – but I knew I had to clean up the mess. He had mostly replaced our money, but that was with scammed money, so we figured the best thing to do was for him to take on more work, to not only replace our money but to pay back the people he had taken money from. For weeks, I’ve put my job on hold, turning away genuine clients to try to fix this mess, ensuring that no one Rowan recruited lost any money, and securing Archie and Ned’s future by making sure that their stupid dad didn’t damage his reputation or lose them their home. This is why I’ve had to stick around, because a big part of Rowan’s brand is the family, and so all of his promotional work and sponsored content relies on me and the boys. I’ve been sticking around as a prop, to pick up the pieces, and it has worked. We’re almost there.
Honestly, if this wasn’t my job, I don’t know how I would have handled it. I work with individuals and businesses that are entangled in scandals or struggling with their public image. It’s my responsibility to transform the public’s perception of them – but not by making them look good, by making them be good,genuinely, sometimes through unconventional methods. Well, after years working with rock stars, I got quite good at putting out fires – sometimes quite literally. While it’s a good thing that this is my job, because it’s put me in the best position to tackle what Rowan has done, it would be devastating for my career – the girl who cleans up the scandals, caught up in one of her own.
My hope is that, once the mess is cleaned up, Rowan and I can part amicably, avoiding any scandal, drama, and anyone digging up my past dalliances with the tabloid press. All I want – all I’ve ever wanted since I left showbiz – is a low-key life, and for Rowan to blow it up so spectacularly is infuriating and unforgivable.
‘I made a mistake,’ Rowan admits, his voice tinged with regret, but I’ve heard it so many times now. ‘I just wanted to make more money, for us, for the family, for our future – so you don’t have to work.’
‘I like to work,’ I tell him firmly. ‘I like to help people. I don’t like ripping people off.’
‘Look, Carrie had me all confused about it, I didn’t realise it was wrong, and I didn’t mean to get you involved, I just saw it as our money, our investment,’ he explains.
I can’t help but roll my eyes.
‘It still makes me laugh to think that, at first, I thought you and Carrie were sneaking around together because you were having an affair,’ I say wryly. ‘Now I almost wish you had been.’
‘You don’t mean that,’ Rowan says, panic creeping into his voice. ‘And look, I need you, look how you’ve fixed everything – we make a great team.’
‘Rowan, please, just let me get on with this,’ I beg. ‘And then let me go. We both need a fresh start.’
‘But the boys,’ he insists.
‘The main reason I’m still here is for the boys,’ I snap back. ‘So that when I do leave, they still have a house.’
Rowan lets out a sigh, puffing air from his cheeks. But then he finds his confidence again, his voice getting stronger as his determination grows.
‘Look, I know I messed up, big time, and I know I’ve hurt you, but I’m going to make it up to you. I’m going to show you that you can trust me, that I’m working hard for this family, and that I love you. I’m going to win you back, Nicole. I’m going to show you that I’m the man you fell in love with.’
I really wish he wouldn’t.
‘Rowan, it’s too late,’ I tell him firmly.
‘It’s never too late,’ he insists. ‘I’m holding up my hands, dropping to my knees and begging for forgiveness, but I know that actions speak louder than words, so, just, let me show you, okay? I have a work meeting to get to, but let me make dinner tonight. When I get home, you do nothing today.’
‘I have to work,’ I remind himagain. ‘Now that our crisis is almost wrapped up, I need to figure out which new clients I’m taking on, get started with that…’
‘Okay, okay,’ Rowan says, relenting. ‘But then, after that, let me spoil you and the boys tonight. Let’s have a great family night. Dinner, a movie, hot chocolate and warm blankets on the sofa.’
I take a deep breath and try to be reasonable.
‘I’ll do it for the boys,’ I tell him. ‘They’ll really like that – and it might take the sting out of the difficult conversation I need to have with them about appropriate language.’
Not that I’m one to fucking talk.
‘Great,’ Rowan says with a hopeful smile, clearly thinking he’s making progress. ‘And I’ll even drop the boys at school in the morning, so that you can have a lie-in. You deserve it. See you later.’
He kisses me on the cheek as he passes me on his way to the door. I finally put my bag down. I head to the kitchen,switching on the coffee machine, ready to make myself a much-needed drink. As I gaze out of the bifold doors into the back garden, I can’t help but think about the colossal mess we’re in. Gosh, it could have been such a nice life, here, in picture-perfect suburbia, with everything any family could ever want.
It would be nice to forgive Rowan, and go back to how things were, but how happy could I really be, knowing that I couldn’t trust him? I’d forever be worrying, snooping on his business, checking the bank account, questioning his friendships and business acquaintances. Even thinking about it sounds exhausting.
