A man grinned at her. “Oh hi, Astrid. My apologies for keeping you.” Without waiting for her reply, he pulled at the free chair opposite her.
Alice kept her voice steady. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“My meeting ran late.” He leaned in closer and she caught the subtle scent of deodorant or body spray. “It’s okay, I’m well versed in these situations.” His voice was low. “We’ll get the business out of the way in a discreet manner first, then we can have a drink before we leave.”
“What are you talking about?”
A look of confusion crossed his face. “We spoke earlier.”
“No, we didn't. And I’m not Astrid.”
The confusion disappeared and his confident grin returned. “My apologies. There appears to have been a misunderstanding on my part.” He stood, ran his eyes over her and shook his head. “Terrible shame. For a moment I thought I’d struck gold. Solid gold.”
Alice watched him walk to a table in the corner, where another girl drank alone. He pulled out a chair and the girl smiled at him. They spoke for a moment, then the girl looked at Alice and laughed. When Alice caught her eye, the girl waved her fingers and smirked.
As Alice realised what had occurred, a surge of anger rose in her and she grabbed her phone to post something about it. But as she thumbed the screen into life she saw @StalkingAlice kept the hate conversation going.
Will give her ONE for u m8. Slut choke her and up the arris an all!!! #guiltybitch #alicemadsen #champagneterrorist
What did he mean by slut choke? She rubbed her neck as the understanding grew. She narrowed her eyes and took four deep breaths to calm her racing pulse. It didn't work. Alice lifted her glass and swallowed an oversized mouthful of wine. She ignored the dribble that trickled down her chin, tapped on @StalkingAlice’s tweet and began to type.
36
Ian knocked once on the door to Jo’s apartment. She let him in with a smile. “Hey lover. How are you doing?”
“Glad to be here. Shit few days. Like, really shit.”
“Need an oasis of calm, huh?”
“Prefer a reservoir of filthy sex.”
She took him by the hand into the kitchen. “You know, you might have come to the right place.”
He handed her a bottle of wine. “It’s red. A decent Burgundy.”
“Thanks, but I’ll stick to the Monkey.” She placed the wine alongside the bottle of gin on the table. “You want one?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
She turned to him and put her arms around his neck. “What’s wrong with you tonight?”
He sighed. “I’ll be fine later.”
Jo let her hands drop. “I wish we could be friends too.”
“We are.”
“I’m just a fuck buddy to you.”
“That’s what you want, isn't it?”
She shrugged and picked up her glass. “Sometimes I need more.”
“You almost spilled your drink when I asked if you wanted me to leave Alice.”
She sipped her gin and leaned against the counter. “Can you pretend? You know, just for tonight.”
“Pretend?”
“Yeah. Pretend that you love me.”
Ian raised his eyebrows. “Seriously?”
Jo nodded. “I need to feel there’s more to us than sex.”
“Um. Okay.” He opened a cupboard and took out two wine glasses. “I can do that.” She said nothing while he opened the drawer with the corkscrew and popped the wine. He poured himself a glass and glanced to her with the bottle poised over the other glass. She nodded, and he filled her glass. They looked at each other for a minute, and he grinned. Then he sipped on his wine while she sipped on her gin. “I love you,” he said.
Jo laughed. “Not sure I’m convinced.”
He set the wine down and held her in his arms. They kissed. She thrust her hips into him, and he responded in kind. “Not only do I love you,” he whispered. “I want you.”
“I want your love. I need it. Let me feel it.”
“What do I get?”
“Everything you don't get at home.” She nuzzled into his neck. “Everything you want.”
“Tell me more.”
She undid his belt and slid her hand down. “I bet Alice doesn’t do this.”
“That’s for sure. Don't think she’d know what to do with it.”
“What does she do then?”
“Come on, Jo. Let’s not talk about her.”
She withdrew her hand. “I feel like she’s between us.”
Ian sighed. “She’s in Denmark. Forget about her. I want you.”
Jo raised an eyebrow. “Keep going...”
“All right.” Ian grabbed her around the waist. “I love you.” Then he kissed her.
37
Cole spent the evening in the Slug and Lettuce, a pub within walking distance of Alice’s house. Around 9pm, hunger got the better of him, and as he had no specific time frame in mind, he ordered scampi and chips from the bar.
While he ate the greasy food at his table, he tapped on his phone and searched for the last tube time from Notting Hill Gate to Bethnal Green. It took several frustrating minutes to navigate to the correct information on the website, where he saw it left at 00:21. According to his map app, he was 15 minutes from Notting Hill Gate tube station by foot, which meant he’d need to leave the area by midnight at the latest, unless he got the night bus. But that was a pain in the ass. He’d have to change buses and it took for ever. No. It would be the tube.
He squeezed more ketchup onto his plate and dunked a large chip into it. The chip sagged in his fingers as he brought it to his mouth. When he finished the food, he pushed the plate away
