Just Tell Me (The Justice Series) by Emma Appleton Page A

hangover in the morning, it was worth the pain as she felt her spirit’s lift for just one night.
    The following weeks dragged on.  Andrew was hardly talking to her, she cooked his dinner and they shared the flat. Nicole felt a weight lifting off her, she would have preferred to have left the flat but he no longer seemed to care about what she was doing.
    It was a relief when Friday finally came round and she was due to meet Libby in the city, she got home early, before Andrew and got changed into a black t-shirt and jeans. 
    She tied her long brown hair into a ponytail and looked at herself in the mirror. She was starting to pile on some wei ght, she noticed as she pinched her belly.  That was it , no more sitting on the sofa, Nicole resolved to go for a run through the city in the morning. If she wasn’t too hung-over she smiled at herself in the mirror, Libby was a bad influence.  
    Libby was her oldest friend. She worked as a travel consultant and loved to jump on a plane and travel to some strange and exotic country, especially if there were guns and hummus involved. She was also the worlds biggest gossip, she loved everything celebrity and was always telling Nicole who was seeing who. Nicole hadn’t heard of half of them but she loved her friends’ infectious enthusiasm. The three girls were close, Anna and Libby were a bad influence on each other when they got together and Nicole always felt like the quiet one of the three. She couldn’t compete with their all night drinking, or stories of passionate sex. Well she could now she smiled sadly at the fading memory of Daniel. 
    Nicole felt her s tomach churn as she walked through the small area of grass between China town and the station. The air was muggy and warm, the balmy city smothered her and the smell hit her nostrils. The aroma of stale Chinese food, exhaust fumes and tramp wee was specifically potent and Nicole felt a wave of sickness as she walked towards the bar. She spotted her friend straight away, sat outside, a jug of cocktail, two glasses, and one almost empty. Libby was unmistakable with her curly blonde hair and quirky dress sense, hunting out vintage and wearing it perfectly with her slim figure. They had met at sixth form, Nicole instantly liked Libby, she felt like she had led a sheltered life before her confident friend took her to clubs and they were always having a drama over which men to date. When Nicole moved to Sheffield to study law, Libby had needed to escape from Manchester so spent three months sharing the student flat Nicole rented with Paul and Anna and they remained close. 
    Nicole was always the quiet one of the group, and although everyone said her and Anna could pass as sisters with their dark curly hair, they were as different as two people could be.  Nicole was quiet and studious while Anna was confident and a party animal, Libby just encouraged her. Like two man eaters, while Nicole sat in the sidelines and watched them, she used to joke that those two would be classed as cougars if they were all in their 40s. After university Nicole had returned back to Manchester and while she was qualifying as a solicitor, Libby had finally focused on her career. She tried being a PA for a few months but it ended disastrously when she fell in love with the married director. It had hit her hard but she eventually got herself together again and was now a senior travel consultant. A perfect job for headstrong Libby, although Nicole knew she had experienced some strange and disturbing adventures which Libby rarely liked to discuss. 
    Libby stood up, cigarette in one hand and gave her old friend a hug.
    “Nicole, you look fab as usual” they sat down and Libby poured Nicole a cocktail “So tell me all about this mystery man, please tell me he has messaged you? and have you sacked off old fuckface yet?”
    Nicole had almost forgotten she had mentioned Daniel to Libby and knew she wouldn’t stop asking until she got all the detail,