Her thoughts had been full of Julian’s suicide from the moment she had heard about it. Madison, Diana, Rheladrex, Ross McKiney; sometimes it was impossible to think of anything but those things, but still Liam crept into her consciousness unbidden. What she couldn’t believe was that she had spent three years in his almost constant company, and although she had acknowledged how handsome he was, realised that she was a little bit in love with him, she hadn’t done anything about it. And now it was possibly, probably too late.
‘Of course I don’t mind,’ she lied, pasting a broad smile on her face. ‘I know you want to see as many of your friends as possible whilst you are in London.’
Modelled on a belle époque French bistro, Casper’s was exactly the kind of restaurant Rachel had enjoyed coming to on expense account when she worked in London. The sort of place where ‘French peasant food’ set you back fifty pounds for moules frites and a tarte aux pommes. It was hot and exclusive and impossible to get into unless you were press or connected.
‘Your guest has already arrived,’ smiled the pretty waitress as she showed them to their table.
Sitting in a plum booth in the corner was a beautiful, fragile blonde in an impeccably tailored suit that screamed investment bank.
‘Rachel Miller, may I introduce Alicia Dyer?’ said Liam.
Ooh, get you with your fancy ways, thought Rachel, but she held her tongue and smiled.
‘Hello,’ she said simply.
Alicia was beautiful – that was if you liked the willowy blonde type with big tits and flawless milky skin, of course. Rachel immediately felt dowdy and invisible next to her.
‘So you two work together?’ Alicia smiled, glancing at the menu.
‘We run the diving business in Ko Tao. And you?’
‘We were at Cambridge together.’
One of those, thought Rachel. Keen to get their Oxbridge credentials in from the get-go.
‘And then we were together together, which all seems a bit of a lifetime ago, doesn’t it?’ she said, flashing an orthodontically perfect smile Liam’s way.
‘You went out?’ Rachel said, laughing nervously, trawling through her mind for his previous references to girlfriends. It was a topic they had never particularly lingered on, another good sign, she had often thought. There had been a Helen and an Emma, and an Ally who had obviously broken his heart, not that Liam had ever expressed it in so many words.
Ally. Alicia.
Rachel felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. A bottle of champagne arrived and the waiter started to pour. She raised her hand to refuse a glass and then gestured for him to top her up.
‘So Liam called me and said his friend wanted the skinny on the Denver Group,’ said Alicia, flipping back her hair.
Rachel’s mouth felt dry. She longed for something smart and witty to say, but the words had deserted her. She felt as if she had suddenly been dropped into the middle of a gladiatorial ring, without sword or shield, and she was clearly going to come off worst.
‘My sister is – was – Julian Denver’s wife, you see, and, well . . .’
Alicia gave a sympathetic nod. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said.
‘I thought it might be useful to talk,’ Liam said. ‘Al works in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs. You must know all about the Denver Group.’
‘Not really,’ laughed Alicia. She ordered a steak and salad.
‘You’re an analyst.’
‘For my sins,’ she smiled. ‘Listen, I’m no expert on Denver, but I might have picked something up along the way. What’s your interest? Getting a handle on the company for your sister? I assume she’ll have inherited some of her husband’s shareholding.’
‘Something like that,’ said Rachel, taking a sip of champagne. She felt nervous. She had always worn her smarts on her sleeve and had never been ashamed of her cleverness or tried to hide it, but it was impossible not to feel intimidated by Alicia, who had almost certainly had numerous Superwoman profiles written about her. ‘What do you know about the pharmaceuticals division?’
Alicia pouted and shook her head. ‘Not much, I’m afraid. Not my sector, but Liam mentioned you were interested, so I asked around discreetly.’ She leant in slightly. ‘I’ve heard there are problems in the division. They deal mainly in generic drugs, have few medications still under patent, and an unimpressive R and D department, although their new weight-loss drug has got people talking.’
‘So Rheladrex has made the company more attractive, more valuable.’
‘Without question. If it’s as successful as they are hoping, you’re talking about a twenty, thirty billion valuation all of a sudden.’
‘And without it?’