Lipstick and Lies (32 page)

‘She’s tired
,
bless her.’

Since when had
tired
ever figured in Rocket’s doggy vocabulary?
The dog was usually bursting out of her skin with energy.

‘Rocket has been doing the night shift with me,’ Nell beamed.
‘Every time Rosie wakes up, Rocket is right there by my heels.
She keeps me company while I feed the baby.
She’s even learnt to fetch me the nappy pack when I change Rosie.
She’s am
azing.’

‘Than
k goodness she’s not jealous.’

‘If Rocket could talk she’d ask to have Rosie in her basket, wouldn’t you boofl
es?’ Nell cooed at the setter.

Rocket thumped her tail
,
but didn’t move.
I’d never seen her like this before.
But then again I’d never seen a dog with bags
under its eyes before either.

‘Rosie is absolutely gorgeous!’ Morag came into the kitchen.
‘I can’t tell you how broody I feel
just
looking at her.
She’s so tiny.
So exquisite.
I want another baby.
That’s it.
I’ve decided.’

‘Well before you pin Matt down and get big with child
again
, let’s put the kettle on,’ said Nell.
She stared vaguely around the kitchen.
‘If I
could only
find it.

‘Where’s Ben?’ asked Morag.

‘Out
for the afternoon
.
Taken Dylan off for some
father and son
time.
Ah, there it is!’
Nell shoved some bottles out the way.
‘Oh, it’s empty.’
She stared from the kettle to the congested sink.
‘I’ll just pop into the downstairs
loo and use the tap in there.’

Morag turned to me.
‘Take Henry from me Cass.
I can’t stand this muddle.
Trust Ben and Dylan to naff off and leave a bombsite.
Some men just haven’t a clue.’

Nell returned with the kettle and plugged it in.

‘Here,’ I thrust Eddie and Henry at Nell.
‘Take the boys into the lounge
and
let me help Morag.
We’ll soon have the place ship-shape.
There are
some baby toys in my hold-all
to keep them entertained
.’

Fifteen minutes later
,
order was restored.
Machinery
whirred
.
The tumble dryer was
humming with wet
laundry, the washing machine was sloshing the next load, the dishwasher had started a fresh cycle, empty
glass
jars had been rinsed and taken out to the recycling box in the garage
,
and surfaces shone like a new pin.
Morag made the coffee and
, finding an unopened packet of Hob Nobs,
took
everything
through to the loun
ge.

‘I’ll put the
drinks
here,’ she said setting a tray on the occasiona
l table, ‘away from the boys.’

The babies were l
a
ying on their tummies, heads up and bobbing about.
Henry was rocking his little body in a desperate
effort
to move around.
Eddie, two months older and that much bigger, was actually attempting to crawl.
Another week or two and he might
have
master
ed
it – and then I’d really have my work
cut out keeping an eye on him.

‘Thank goodness Rosie is still sleeping,’ Nell said.
‘Hopefully she’ll stay down long enough for me to enjoy this.’
She
leant back
in
her
armchair
,
and lifted a mug to her lips.

‘And while you’re enjoying five minutes peace and quiet, you can open this,’ Morag rummaged in her hold-all.
‘This is
for Rosie,
from me and Cass
with our love.
She’s too young for it now, but will
appreciate
it later.’

Nell took the parcel and tore at the wrapping paper.
‘This is beautiful girls
.
’
S
he smiled in delight at the Wedgewood Peter Rabbit Dinner set.
‘Thank you.’
She set the china carefully on the occasional table and once again leant back in her armchair.
‘So come on Cass.
What happened last night?’

‘Apparently I behaved in an embarra
ssing and outrageous fashion.’

‘However much bo
oze did you ship?’ asked Nell.

‘Well that’s just it.
I didn’t.
Not really.
Two glasses of champagne at best.
But clearly enough to render me virtually
unconscious until noon today.’

Nell went very still.
Her expression was solemn.
‘Cass, people don’t pass out on two glasses of champagne.
This smacks of having
your drink spiked.’

‘Don’t be silly,’ I laughed, ‘who would do
such
a thing–’

We stared at each other.

‘Selina,’ Morag said.

‘B-But why?’ I asked bewildered.
I knew there was no love lost between us
,
but surely she wouldn’t do something like that.
‘Apart from anything else – how could she have?
I was sitting opposite her!’

‘Well it’s obvious how,’ Nell puffed out her cheeks.
‘She nobbled your champers.
Did she t
ouch your glass at any point?’

Like forked lightning, a dollop of memory flashed through my brain.
‘Yes!’ I squeaked.
‘She reached across the table to pick something up.’
A cocktail list?
I frowned in concentration.
‘She almost knocked my glass over
,
but caught it in the nick of time.
And later she poured me more champagne.
But nobody else.’

‘Sorted,’ said Nell.
‘She slipped something in when she righted that glass.
And she topped up your glass to speed up the effect of the Mickey Finn.
This happened to a colleague of Ben’s a few months ago – a bloke would you believe.
He went away on business, and later h
ad his drink spiked in the
hotel’s
bar
.
T
he police suspected the barmen did it.
And when this chap was carrying on all drunk and peculiar, the barman and another member of staff put him to bed.
In the morning he woke up to find his wallet gone
,
along with
his mobile, laptop and
the
keys to his car.
And when he finally got home, he’d been burgled.
No prizes for guessing who
’d
robbed him.
’

‘If this is true,’ said Morag, ‘then I feel perfectly dreadful.
I for one have urged Cass to tolerate this woman
.
Not just
for the sake of Jamie’s business partnership
, but for the
family and the whole–’ Morag swept
an
arm wide, ‘lifestyle thing.’

‘Well we’ve all urged Cass to tolerate this woman.
But hang on a minute,’ said Nell, ‘there is no proof it was actually Selina who did this.
I mean, c
ould it have been the waiter?’

‘Why would the waiter pu
t drugs in my drink?’ I asked.

‘Was he, you know,’ Nell winked, ‘batting his eyelids at you.
Giving you the come on.
Hoping to
lure you away from the table?’

‘From under her husband’s nose?’ asked Morag.
‘I hardly think so.’

‘We have no proof I was drugged,’ I massaged my temples.
‘Can a test be done?’

‘Yes.
A urine test,’ said Nell.
‘However, even if we could do such a test right now, it wouldn’t prove anything.
These date rape drugs can leave the system in as little as eight hours.
That
time has long since elapsed.’

‘You’re going to have to tell Jamie
,’ Morag took a sip of coffee.

‘Do you really think he’s going to believe me?’ I cried.
‘We have no
proof
.
Only supposition.
And
what
would be Selina’s motive?
Just to get some sort of vicarious kick out of seeing me spread-eagled across a table in a top
London
restaurant?’

‘Yes,’ replied Nell calmly.

‘She’d have to be off her trolley to pull a
stunt like that,’ I breathed.

‘Well she’s been off
her trolley before,’ said Morag.
‘
W
e know that from the past when she stalked you
,
and tried to frighten you off when you hooked up with Jamie.
Perhaps she’s
always been off her trolley.’

‘She told me she’d been in a bad way at
one
point
.
But she also assured,
thanks to
counselling,
she was
better.’

‘Clearly Selina isn’t better,’ said Nell.
‘Let’s look at what we know so far.’
Nell put down her coffee cup and began to tick off on her fingers.
‘Firstly, you’ve been anxious about this woman from Day One.
Secondly
,
Selina was definitely once a fruitcake.
So it might well be that she still
is
a fruitcake. Thirdly, she’s very conveniently wormed her way into Ethan’s life, managed to get engaged to him
and
work with him thus impacting on yours and Jamie’s lives.
Coincidence?
Maybe.
But let’s continue.
Fourthly, because of this whole scenario, Selina can now even come inside your home and potentially make mischief.’

‘Selina incensed me when she invited herself for kitchen supper
,’ I nodded.
‘
She informed me
that
she wanted at least six children
,
and my five would do for starters.
Then she flattered Edna
,
and said one
day
she wanted to live in a house like
Lilac Lodge
with a mother-in-law just like
mine
.
Finally Stevie turned up to see the twins, was bowled over by Selina, and Morag and I have reason to believe she ha
s started an affair with him.’

Nell’s jaw dropped open.
‘So finally,’ Nell ticked off her little finger, ‘what Selina really wants is your life.
And if she can’t have your current husband, by the looks of things she’l
l settle for your ex-husband.’

‘This is ridiculous,’ Morag piped up.
‘We sound like three frustrated housewives with nothing better to gossip about.
Even if Selina did want Cass’s life, reali
stically that’s not possible.’

‘So the drink spiking could be some sort of petty revenge,’ Nell put her head on one side and considered.
‘But as you say Cass, we need proof.
We can’t get proof of the drink being spiked, but might it be possible to pr
ove Selina is bonking Stevie?’

‘Yes!’ I hissed.
‘Thanks to Stevie having his brain lodged in his boxers, he slipped up and rang Matt and Morag’s riding stables.
Booked a hack for himself and a woman called – wait for it – Selina!
Moments later he rang back and cancelled.
And then last night Selina told us all she’s going horse riding today.
At Maxwell’s Equestrian Centre.
But she lied
and s
aid she was going w
ith an old chum called Laura.’

‘For
Laura
read
Stevie
,
’ breathed Nell.

‘Why didn’t you tell me earlie
r about this?’ demanded Morag.

‘Because it’s only just come back to m
e!’ I cried.