The Final Seduction

‘Five?’ queried Shelley, aghast.

‘I know. It’s unbelievable, isn’t it?’ asked Amanda as they watched them go. ‘That beautiful, serene-looking woman has four at home and another on the way—whatever it is she’s taking, I want some of it!’

The slap of the waves against the shore from the nearby beach was hypnotic, and Shelley’s attention was caught by the sight of Drew adding a couple of pieces of wood to the unlit bonfire. She watched him while pretending not to, as up above them the stars dazzled their pale fire over the indigo sky.

‘Gorgeous, isn’t it?’ asked Amanda, looking around. ‘I love this setting. Drew has the best house in Milmouth, in my opinion. I said to him the other night, If you’re ever thinking about selling up, then I want first option!’

‘Have you known him…very long?’

‘Only about a year. Charlie and I met him when we took over the shop.’

Shelley frowned as Amanda’s words clicked into place. ‘Charlie’s your husband?’

Amanda looked slightly nonplussed. ‘Yes, of course he is! I thought you knew that. We were having drinks with Drew the other night when you telephoned to say that Ellie was sick. I was offering to go with him as my baby is the same age as Ellie. I thought he told you?’

‘Yes, he did,’ agreed Shelley slowly. ‘He told me you were there.’ But he had omitted to tell her that Charlie had been there, too. Or that Amanda had a husband. He had just answered her question honestly, so that she had been able to put two and two together and come up with a number somewhere in the thousands! Now why had he done that?

‘Look!’ said Amanda suddenly, and they saw Drew put a light to the base of the bonfire, and watched the slow orange sparking as the fire began to crackle.

The smell of smoke mingled with the smell of the sea while the sound of chattering voices competed with the rush of the waves, and as Shelley let her guard down she began to relax more than she had done for ages. ‘See how quickly the fire has taken,’ she murmured, watching as tongues of flame began to lick at the wood.

‘Do you want to come and meet some people?’ smiled Amanda. ‘Drew said to make sure you had a good time because hosts get tied up!’

‘Not literally, I hope!’ Shelley quipped as a rather disturbing image popped into her mind. Of Drew bound helplessly by hand and foot…

She looked over to where he stood by the bonfire, his head bent as he listened to what a tiny woman in a micro-skirt was saying to him. Shelley took a hasty mouthful of punch and looked away. She’d leapt to all the wrong conclusions about Amanda—so maybe it was time she gave up on that kind of thing. ‘Yes, I’d love to come and meet some people, Amanda!’

She chatted to Charlie, who told her that word on the ground was that a clothes shop would be a very welcome addition to the village.

‘So will you think about it?’ he added.

‘I’ll think about it!’ she promised.

She met a couple who had holidayed near Marco’s villa and wanted to talk restaurants, then caught up with the two old schoolfriends Drew had mentioned. She hadn’t seen Marianne and Nicola for years and both were married, with one expecting twins!

‘Everyone here seems to be pregnant!’ exclaimed Shelley.

‘Must be something in the water!’ Marianne surveyed her swollen stomach with a rueful expression. ‘Remember that time we all sunbathed topless on the beach, Shelley?’

‘Do I?’

‘And Drew came over all furious and protective and masterful,’ Nicola sighed.

Shelley nodded. ‘That’s right. He did. Some people might have said that he came on very heavy!’ She knew what was coming next. A question on the lines of what exactly was happening between her and Drew nowadays. A question she did not want to answer, simply because she couldn’t. She didn’t know herself. Maybe nothing.

Maybe it was naive to suppose that, just because they were no longer hurling abuse at each other, something romantic was waiting to burst into life instead. The only thing she was sure of was that he still wanted her physically, only this time he was prepared to follow through. And this time she didn’t even have the reassurance of knowing that he loved her. It was time to move away.

She raised her empty glass. ‘I’m going to find another of these before the fireworks start,’ she said.

‘There’ll be fireworks starting any minute now if my husband has much more to drink,’ said Nicola grimly, her eyes fixed on a tall man at the other side of the garden who seemed to be having difficulty maintaining his balance.