hint of a smile in her reply: “No, I’ll be there.”
He was on the outskirts of Briarstone now, joining the back of the queue to the town center car parks. He wondered what sort of day Lou was having, whether she was making progress and whether she would bother to keep him updated. He still had a lot of ground to make up with her, he knew, but despite her best efforts to persuade him to the contrary, he could not quite believe that everything between them was over. She had been one of the best shags of his life. She hadn’t been the first of his trips “over the side,” as his colleagues put it, and she probably wouldn’t be the last. He didn’t think of it as cheating. There had been no real emotional connection with any of his sexual partners. The one who had come closest, however briefly, was Lou, so it was probably a good thing that it had ended when it did.
He remembered the moment Lou had found out that he wasn’t single, the fury in her eyes. She had made him promise that he was going to come clean with his wife and tell her he’d had a fling, ask for her forgiveness, otherwise she would do it herself. He believed her.
“Why?” he’d said. “If it’s all over between us, Lou, why do I have to tell her? She’ll . . . she’ll be devastated.” He’d been about to say “She’ll kill me,” which was nearer the truth, but he realized Lou would probably have been even more adamant if she knew that would be the reaction.
There were tears in Lou’s dark eyes but her voice was cold. “You have to tell her, Andy, because you have to start learning that there are consequences to your behavior. And if she knows about this, then it’s much less likely that you’ll feel inclined to try and resurrect things with me. Do you understand?”
The following morning he told her that he’d confessed to Karen.
“How did she take it?”
As if you care, he’d thought, but he’d answered: “She was pretty upset. She’s gone to stay with her mother for a few days, taken Ben with her.”
She’d seemed satisfied, which was a relief, because it was all a complete fabrication. In reality he would no more have confessed to Karen than he would take up a vow of celibacy. Karen might only be five foot one, but she had a fearsome temper on her and he was genuinely scared of her reaction. Besides, Karen was fine just as she was. She had no need to know; as long as Andy had no intention of actually leaving her for someone else, why trouble her with information that was only going to hurt them both?
Of course, Lou had been partly right; he still had this feeling like they had unfinished business. He thought of her sometimes, late at night, when Karen was asleep, her back to him.
07194 141544 To 07484 322159
02/11/12 14:16
Police want to interview me later. Can u be there with me? 3pm in town. Call if u get chance. F Xx
14:19
The MIR was quiet when Lou got back from an update meeting with Buchanan. He’d bid for additional resources on her behalf at the tactical meeting, and she now had a tiny overtime budget. And even more pressure for a quick result.
She thought the office was empty but Jason was there, focused on his computer screen. From her office, sitting at her desk, she could glance to the side of her screen and see him in profile: good cheekbones, a strong jawline and a straight nose, short, dark hair that would have been curly if he’d let it grow. He moved abruptly and she looked quickly back to her own screen, feigning fascination with it as he tapped on the door frame.
“Hi!” she said brightly.
“I wondered if you’d like a coffee?” he said.
She stared at him for a moment, as if he were a figment of her hormonal brain.
“I’ve got a better idea,” she said. “Would you like to see the scenes? I think it helps to see where everything is.”
“Sure, that would be great.” He gave her a smile then, and it lit up his face.
14:52
“We can go to Reg’s office,” Taryn said.
He was on the outskirts of Briarstone now, joining the back of the queue to the town center car parks. He wondered what sort of day Lou was having, whether she was making progress and whether she would bother to keep him updated. He still had a lot of ground to make up with her, he knew, but despite her best efforts to persuade him to the contrary, he could not quite believe that everything between them was over. She had been one of the best shags of his life. She hadn’t been the first of his trips “over the side,” as his colleagues put it, and she probably wouldn’t be the last. He didn’t think of it as cheating. There had been no real emotional connection with any of his sexual partners. The one who had come closest, however briefly, was Lou, so it was probably a good thing that it had ended when it did.
He remembered the moment Lou had found out that he wasn’t single, the fury in her eyes. She had made him promise that he was going to come clean with his wife and tell her he’d had a fling, ask for her forgiveness, otherwise she would do it herself. He believed her.
“Why?” he’d said. “If it’s all over between us, Lou, why do I have to tell her? She’ll . . . she’ll be devastated.” He’d been about to say “She’ll kill me,” which was nearer the truth, but he realized Lou would probably have been even more adamant if she knew that would be the reaction.
There were tears in Lou’s dark eyes but her voice was cold. “You have to tell her, Andy, because you have to start learning that there are consequences to your behavior. And if she knows about this, then it’s much less likely that you’ll feel inclined to try and resurrect things with me. Do you understand?”
The following morning he told her that he’d confessed to Karen.
“How did she take it?”
As if you care, he’d thought, but he’d answered: “She was pretty upset. She’s gone to stay with her mother for a few days, taken Ben with her.”
She’d seemed satisfied, which was a relief, because it was all a complete fabrication. In reality he would no more have confessed to Karen than he would take up a vow of celibacy. Karen might only be five foot one, but she had a fearsome temper on her and he was genuinely scared of her reaction. Besides, Karen was fine just as she was. She had no need to know; as long as Andy had no intention of actually leaving her for someone else, why trouble her with information that was only going to hurt them both?
Of course, Lou had been partly right; he still had this feeling like they had unfinished business. He thought of her sometimes, late at night, when Karen was asleep, her back to him.
07194 141544 To 07484 322159
02/11/12 14:16
Police want to interview me later. Can u be there with me? 3pm in town. Call if u get chance. F Xx
14:19
The MIR was quiet when Lou got back from an update meeting with Buchanan. He’d bid for additional resources on her behalf at the tactical meeting, and she now had a tiny overtime budget. And even more pressure for a quick result.
She thought the office was empty but Jason was there, focused on his computer screen. From her office, sitting at her desk, she could glance to the side of her screen and see him in profile: good cheekbones, a strong jawline and a straight nose, short, dark hair that would have been curly if he’d let it grow. He moved abruptly and she looked quickly back to her own screen, feigning fascination with it as he tapped on the door frame.
“Hi!” she said brightly.
“I wondered if you’d like a coffee?” he said.
She stared at him for a moment, as if he were a figment of her hormonal brain.
“I’ve got a better idea,” she said. “Would you like to see the scenes? I think it helps to see where everything is.”
“Sure, that would be great.” He gave her a smile then, and it lit up his face.
14:52
“We can go to Reg’s office,” Taryn said.
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