Chapter 34
Issy always thought Boxing Day should be plan-free, a chance to relax after the silliness of the festive season, but instead she was plumping cushions and straightening coffee table books in an effort to make the display apartment presentable for Hugh’s brother, who would be arriving any minute.
It was the last thing she felt like, if she was honest, but he was her future brother-in-law and the poor man had found himself suddenly single, at Christmas no less.
She was slicing cucumbers for gin cocktails when the doorbell rang.
‘Hugh, can you please get the door?’
She waited.
‘Hugh?’ She bit her lip. His phone had rung ten minutes before and he’d disappeared into the spare bedroom, shutting the door behind him.
‘Hugh!’
Still nothing. A ripple of suspicion ran through her.
The doorbell rang again. She took a deep breath and went to open the door.
‘Marshall!’ she said. Oh. Carmen was standing by his side.
‘And Carmen! How lovely! Come on in.’ What were they doing here together?
Hadn’t they broken up? Clearly not. Hugh must have forgotten to fill her in on their speedy reunion. Where was he?
‘Issy, lovely to see you again.’ Carmen held out an enormous bunch of flowers wrapped in garish yellow cellophane. ‘These are for you. Thank you for inviting us.’
Carmen, a psychologist, was one of those serious women who spoke in a deep tone and held eye contact for too long. They’d only met twice before, briefly, and both times her company had the effect of making Issy feel like a silly little girl.
They followed Issy through to the kitchen, where she put the flowers in the sink.
‘Mate!’ Hugh entered and gave his brother a rough hug. ‘Carmen, looking lovely!’ He leaned in and kissed her cheek. Issy thought he seemed twitchy beneath the amiable facade.
‘Drinks?’ he offered.
‘Beer, mate,’ Marshall said.
‘Just something soft for me,’ Carmen said. ‘Thanks, Hugh.’
Hugh disappeared into the little laundry room where he’d put drinks on ice in the sink.
‘Please, have a seat.’ Issy gestured towards the lounges, where a grazing platter sat on the coffee table. She’d had her mother’s caterers deliver it earlier.
‘Much traffic on the way down?’ Issy asked.
Marshall gave a detailed rundown of the route he’d taken out of Sydney, but when he’d finished, Hugh still wasn’t back.
‘I might see if Hugh needs a hand with the drinks,’ Issy said.
When she entered the dark laundry, Hugh was standing at the bench, doubled over, his head in his hands. She put a gentle hand on his back, but he startled. She stepped back, shocked at the sudden movement.
He rubbed his forehead. ‘Sorry, I didn’t hear you come in.’
‘Are you okay?’
‘Yeah, I just have a headache.’
She frowned. He’d seemed fine before he’d received the phone call.
‘Who was on the phone?’ she asked, trying to keep her tone light.
‘What? Oh, just Spencer.’
‘On Boxing Day?’ Issy kept her face neutral. ‘What was he calling for?’
Hugh pressed his thumb and forefinger against his closed eyes. ‘A property deal he wants to close before New Year’s.’
Was that true? Was it really Spencer on the phone just now? If it was a lie, it came easily. She bit her lip. ‘Is there something going on, Hugh?’
He opened his eyes. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I don’t know, you seem …’ She swallowed. ‘Stressed.’
He shook his head. ‘It’s just the deal. Spencer’s worried it’s going to fall through.’
She scrutinised his face for evidence he was lying, but found nothing. She sighed. ‘I’ll get you a Panadol.’
‘Not for me, thanks,’ Carmen said, when Issy offered her a gin spritz once she’d finished her lemonade. ‘I’m the designated driver today.’
It was only then that Issy started to suspect there was a reason she wasn’t drinking.
As the conversation flowed around her, Issy wondered.
Had Carmen put on a little weight? Possibly, although it was hard to tell under the shapeless chiffon kaftan she wore.
She did seem a little fuller in the face.
She also hadn’t touched the soft cheeses or the prosciutto.
And then there were the little glances Issy had noticed between Marshall and Carmen.
Surreptitious glances between people who shared a secret.
Marshall was on to his fourth beer when he cleared his throat. ‘We have some news,’ he said, taking Carmen’s hand. He paused for effect with a dopey smile on his face, a less handsome version of his brother’s.
‘Well?’ Issy prompted, although she knew what was coming. ‘Don’t keep us in suspense!’
Hugh looked clueless.
‘Carmen’s pregnant!’ Marshall said, beaming.
Carmen nodded and put a hand on her belly. ‘We’re having a baby.’
‘I knew it!’ Issy said. ‘How exciting!’ She reached out and squeezed Carmen’s hand, her mind racing with questions she wanted to ask—none of them appropriate. Was this why they’d got back together? What a disaster! ‘How far along are you?’ she asked instead as Hugh pulled his brother into a hug.
Once the excitement subsided, Hugh and Marshall went out onto the balcony, beers in hand, leaving Issy and Carmen alone.
‘This calls for bubbles!’ Issy said, already opening a bottle of Veuve.
‘Pour me a tiny one so I can pretend,’ Carmen said.
Issy poured two glasses and sat back down on the sofa next to Carmen.
‘Cheers!’ Issy clinked her glass against Carmen’s.
‘To your little one! And to you and Marshall, who will make wonderful parents!’ She wasn’t actually sure what sort of parents they’d make.
She’d never heard them mention having children before.
Clearly this whole situation was an unfortunate accident.
Carmen took an imaginary sip. ‘Thank you, Issy. We’re just thrilled.’
‘You guys are good now, then?’ Issy asked.
‘Me and Marshall?’
‘All the problems are behind you now. That’s great news.’
Carmen narrowed her eyes. ‘Problems?’
Crap. She’d put her foot in it. She obviously wasn’t supposed to let on that she knew about their recent relationship dramas, but she had a nice buzz from the gin and, what the hell, they were going to be sisters-in-law. Carmen wasn’t exactly Issy’s first choice, but she would have to do.
‘Oh, you know,’ Issy said, keeping her voice light, as though it was no big deal. Every relationship has its rough spots! ‘Hugh mentioned things were a bit rocky for a while there between you two.’
Carmen cocked her head to one side, as though she was still confused. It was very convincing. If Issy didn’t know the truth, she would probably have believed her. She obviously wasn’t ready to go there, which was fine.
Issy sighed and changed the subject. ‘Are you and Marshall going away over summer?’
‘Why didn’t you tell me they were back together?’ Issy asked as Hugh closed the door behind them.
‘Who?’ he asked, walking back up the hall. She followed him.
‘Marshall and Carmen!’
He took another beer from the fridge, popped the top and took a long swig, then looked blankly at Issy, who was still waiting for an answer.
‘Hugh?’
‘I never said they’d broken up,’ he said, but he was frowning slightly, as though he suspected he’d been caught in a lie.
Issy frowned. ‘Yes, you did.’ Didn’t he?
‘I just said they had an argument.’
Issy rifled back through her memory of the night she’d arrived home from the fundraiser, when Hugh had said he was on the phone to Marshall.
She knew he’d lied. It wasn’t Marshall on the phone when Issy arrived home, but he had spoken to his brother earlier that night.
The dialled numbers log had confirmed that.
She’d assumed the relationship dramas were legit.
‘When I asked Carmen about it, she denied it.’
‘Why the hell were you talking to Carmen about it?’
‘Sorry, I was just trying to have a proper conversation!’
‘Don’t go telling Carmen stuff Marshall says to me.’ He held her gaze for a moment too long, then shook his head, as though she’d disappointed him. ‘I’m going to take a shower.’
She rubbed her face. Was anything Hugh said true? He was constantly slipping out of rooms to take calls. Like earlier: one minute he’d been sitting on a barstool at the island bench making a Spotify playlist, the next his phone rang and he’d disappeared.
Her head was throbbing now. This was why she hated day drinking—it always left her feeling groggy and slightly depressed. She needed to rehydrate.
As she filled a glass with water, she noticed Hugh’s phone sitting on the bench and considered checking it again.
And then it lit up, flashing silently.
George Mobile.
Her heart raced as she swiped to answer. She said nothing.
‘Hugh?’ a husky voice said.
Issy’s heart pounded. George was a woman. A very young woman, from the inflection in her voice.
‘Hello?’ the voice said. ‘Hugh?’
Something stirred in Issy’s subconscious. Thinking of the waitress at Kilmore yesterday, she closed her eyes, summoning the scene in the lounge room right before they sat down for lunch. Her mother’s words echoed in her mind: ‘Tell the caterers we’re ready for lunch. Thank you, Georgie.’
Issy inhaled sharply, stunned by the clarity of the revelation. ‘George’ was the waitress.
‘Are you there, Hugh?’ the voice on the phone said, as the sound of running water in the bathroom stopped.
Issy hung up, carefully placing the phone back where it was, then she spun around and opened the fridge, pretending to search for something.
Hugh appeared, his hair wet from the shower, a towel around his waist. ‘Have you seen my phone anywhere?’
‘I saw it on the bench,’ she said, without turning around.
‘Thanks.’ He left the room again, phone in hand.