‘David, over here!’ Juliet prided herself on being a cool customer. She had a policy that people should come to her, but found herself waving to her friend enthusiastically.
He stalked over, holding a flute of champagne.
‘Fancy coming on the rides?’ she asked.
‘I think I’ll probably vom if I go anywhere near those things.’ He snorted.
‘What have you been doing?’
‘Avoiding Max. He’s still trying to persuade me to spend six months in Goa with him. Two weeks isn’t enough apparently, and he doesn’t understand the concept that I have to start work.’
He looked drunk and irritable and Juliet wondered if he had been taking drugs. She’d heard that Mungo Descales was so off his head on coke, he’d already had to be carried home by three members of the rugby team.
He handed her the empty glass and looked back towards the dance floor. ‘Back in a tick,’ he said, and staggered off again.
Pog appeared by her side with a fresh glass of champagne. ‘For you, my dear,’ he said, loosening his white tie.
‘What’s wrong with David?’ frowned Juliet, watching him latch onto a drunk-looking brunette.
Pog followed her gaze. ‘Had a terrible row with Annabel, apparently. She’s been putting all sorts of pressure on him to move in with her. Think he’s finally seen sense and dumped her.’
‘Thank God,’ she said, feeling her heart race a little.
‘Don’t know what that means for his employment prospects, though. He was supposed to be starting at Annabel’s dad’s firm in a few weeks. Slightly stuffed with that now, I should imagine.’
‘He’ll find something else,’ she said with absolute confidence. ‘David is brilliant. Any bank in London will be lucky to have him. I know lots of people in the City. I’ll start making some calls on Monday.’
‘You don’t have to sort out everyone’s problems, Jules.’
‘Don’t I?’ she said, feeling buoyed. ‘Anyway, let’s forget about real life for one night. Would you care to dance?’
She led Pog to a spot close enough to David that she could keep an eye on him but just far enough away that she could monitor the entire room. She liked to think of herself as a strong and independent woman; liked to think a couple of steps ahead and plan accordingly.
David was looking very red in the face now as he swayed to whatever track it was that the DJ was playing. But hell, he looked sexy. Cigarette hanging out of the corner of his mouth, his white shirt loose at the neck, h
e was easily the most handsome man at the party. Juliet knew she had to make her move. Annabel was lurking somewhere, and she’d seen Amy half an hour earlier too, behaving as if she belonged at the ball. She was looking pretty tonight, Juliet had to admit that. The warm weather had given her face some colour, the sun streaking her hair with highlights.
David’s friendship with Amy had started to worry Juliet of late. It had been a novelty having her in the house at first. When Pog had suggested his friend from The Bear joining them as the fifth housemate, Juliet had been sceptical but practical. Amy was an outsider – she was from the poly, for goodness’ sake – but no one else would want the attic room, which smelled overpoweringly of damp, so eventually she had agreed to the girl joining them.
At the beginning she had even quite enjoyed having her around. Juliet had a lazy streak when it came to domestic chores, and Amy kept the house spick and span. She would even do the washing-up, unasked, after it had piled up to mountainous proportions.
But lately, things had changed. On at least three occasions, Juliet had come back after lectures and found David and Amy sitting at the kitchen table, laughing, having fun, their conversation slowing on her arrival as if they had secrets they were unwilling to share.
At least David had a puritanical streak – a strong sense of decency that made Juliet fairly sure he would never two-time Annabel with his pretty housemate. But now that Annabel was out of the picture . . . well, she didn’t want to think about it.
‘What is he doing now?’ said Pog, peering over the top of the crowd. ‘He seems to have moved on to Dirty Dancing.’
Juliet squinted through the crowds. Was that Karen he was dancing with? Amy’s trashy friend from Bristol?
The track changed to one she recognised. Pulp’s ‘Common People’. She almost laughed out loud, but then quickly sobered as David took Karen’s hand and led her off the dance floor.
‘He’s having fun,’ grinned Pog. ‘Phwoar . . . look at them go.’
‘Pog, this isn’t funny.’
‘Why not?’
Juliet gritted her teeth. She couldn’t have anyone interfering with her plan. She had to tell David how she felt, tonight. Pick up from where they’d left off at the McGregor castle. This was no time for curveballs. She grabbed Pog’s arm.