Chapter 28
“You actually saw it?”
Lottie sounded as stunned as I expected her to be.
“Oh yes, I saw it all right, in high definition and technicolour splendour; and believe me, it was a video nasty. I may never sleep again.”
“You have to tell Seb.”
I had phoned Lottie as soon as I got home. I hadn’t even bothered to take my coat off in my haste to speak to my friend, dialling the number I knew by heart.
“I can’t tell him, Lottie, I just can’t.”
The firmness in her voice was evident over the phone line.
“You have to, Lila, you’ve got no choice. He’s your friend; you owe him that much.”
“But he’ll hate me for it. He already thinks I made up, or at least exaggerated, what I saw with her ex, he’s going to think this is just me stirring it again. He’s never going to believe it; I barely do, and I saw it with my own eyes.”
I shuddered at the memory.
“I wish to hell I could unsee it.”
I felt a chill run through me and walked briskly to the thermostat in the hall to crank the central heating right up.
“That’s a chance you just have to take. He needs to know, and you’re the one who has to tell him. You can’t let him carry on seeing her; she’s making him into a laughing stock.”
I knew she was right, but I also feared this would be the end of Seb’s and my friendship forever; and the thought of that was even more horrendous than what I had witnessed this evening. Hard to believe, but true.
I could hear Lottie still speaking, so forced myself to concentrate on her words.
“And he’s got a wife too, poor… what was her name again? Deidre?”
“Dinah.”
“Yes, poor Dinah, I know you’ve always said she’s got the personality of wet lettuce, but she needs to know. He’s betraying her in the worst possible way. Believe me, I know how that feels, you need to tell her too.”
I let out another lengthy sigh, but I knew in my heart that Lottie was right. There wasn’t only Seb going to be destroyed by this; there was Fluck’s wife to consider too. Dinah always looked like misery personified whenever she was near her husband, but even so she would no doubt be devastated to discover his infidelity. They had been married for over thirty years. I was sure this was going to break her heart.
I carried the phone with me into the kitchen and stuck my head in the fridge, looking for something chilled and alcoholic to blur the edges of the day. There was a half-opened bottle of Pinot Grigio, that would do the job nicely.
I poured myself a hearty glass and filled a small bowl with cashews to serve as my dinner, then returned to my spot on the settee in the lounge. I might as well get comfy. This was where I planned to be spending most of my weekend. I put the glass bowl of nuts down on the oak coffee table. My mind returned to when I had bought it. I had dragged Seb along to get his opinion on it, as it was a bit of an investment buy. He had taken one look at the price ticket and shaken his head in disbelief.
“Distressed furniture, I ask you? I’m bloody distressed after seeing the price.”
God, how I missed him and his Yorkshire charm.
Lottie’s voice was persistent on the other end of the call.
“So, you will tell Seb, Lila. You must.”
I sighed deeply to myself. I knew she was right. I just couldn’t face it now. I would do it face to face first thing Monday. And like I had as a child, I hoped the weekend would last forever and the new week would never come.