‹ Prequel: Black Sheep
The Other Woman
Chapter Nineteen
“You’re being childish.” Lara found a stray chair in the corridor and claimed it as her own.
“I’m not! I just…” I knew I was being childish but I just didn't want to admit it.
“You’re jeopardising something potentially wonderful with Max just because you can’t have your own way.” She was inspecting her manicure as if to not want to pay me any attention. I paced up and down the corridor, not wanting to back to the ballroom but not wanting to be in that room with Lara.
“I just don’t like him.”
“What is there not to like?!” She scoffed.
“When you look at Skippy, what do you see?”
“What kind of question is that?” She watched as the waiters walked past with plates of starters. She stood up to leave. I caught her arm.
“What do you see?”
“I love him. I want to spend the rest of my life with him.” I saw her face light up as she watched him through the glass window in the door. Her voice softened. “I understand.” She was sheepish.
“I just don’t feel that way about him. And I don’t think I ever could.” Her arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me into her side in a hug.
“I’m sorry. I want you to be happy.”
“I will be.” I saw a flash of red hair walk past the window. Enough to make my stomach knot and my hands grip for Lara’s. “I will be as soon as I can get out of this bloody building.”
…
“This is Mercy.” Nurse Emmanuel Said as we walked from child to child in the hospital. “She has HIV.” My breath caught in my throat and my stomach tied in knots. Every child I had seen that morning had HIV and AIDs. All of them children. I sat on the bed next to her and held her tiny hand in mine. She felt cold and her eyes caught mine. “When she was a baby,” Nurse Emmanuel lowered her voice and stepped closer to speak to me. “When she was a baby, her uncle raped her because he was told to have sex with a virgin to get rid of the disease.” I felt like my whole body jolted with the news. My lungs told me to sob and my eyes burned with wanting to cry, but I knew that these children had seen so many tears from strangers and family and to see another stranger cry would be no help to them. I scooped her up in my arms, avoiding pulling on the various tubes and wires that were linked between her and the machine that beeped and buzzed. “We don’t think she’ll last much longer.” I held her tight. She felt like she was just a pile of bones. Her eyes flickered up to meet mine as if she was asking me to help her.
….
“Look, I think the best way to get through this is to face it head on.” Lara was talking to me as if she were a boxing coach talking to their latest prodigy before the fight of their lives. “Just walk out there and make the most of your night. Who cares if Max assumes you’re together again? Who cares if that ginger bastard thinks you’re hotter than his wife? Who cares that that same ginger belled wants to bend you over his sofa and fuck you until the whole world knows about you?!” I shot her a look.
“Lara?!” She shrugged.
“Skippy and Harry have very graphic conversations.” She linked my arm and took a deep breath. “So after three we’re going to step out of these doors and laugh like we’ve just shared the funniest joke ever. Ready?” I took a deep breath and nodded. “One…” I gripped her tighter, “Two…” My hand reached to push the door. “Three!”
…
The day had taken it’s toll on me emotionally and Harry physically. They had the walls of the new hospital block up and the basic roof up. His hands were rough and dirty and his eyes had closed sleepily in the back of the Jeep. I was still wide awake long into the next morning.
“How long have you been awake?” Harry asked as he turned around in bed to face me.
“Not long.” I lied. I hadn’t had a wink of sleep all night. I just kept thinking of Mercy and all the other children I had seen. Would they still be alive this morning? “I want to go back to the hospital today.” I said, checking the time on my watch. I angled my watch so that I could see it in the moonlight. It read half past five. I sat up, stretching.
“Why don’t you just come back to sleep?” Harry was flat on his back, his eyes still closed. He had his arm out for me to snuggle into his side where the sheet had fallen to his hips. Any other night I would’ve jumped at the chance to cuddle up under the sheets with my naked boyfriend but I had a hideous feeling of guilt thinking about the children in the hospital just a few miles away.
…
“Where have you two been?!” Skippy asked as we both sat down.
“Just girly chat.” I smiled at him, still holding Lara’s hand for support. Skippy and Max shared a look that said ‘we’d better not ask’. We noticed that our starter had gone cold, so we both sipped what was left of our glasses of wine while we made polite conversation and exchanged jokes with the rest of the table. I felt my phone buzz in my bag. I ignored it.
“Maybe you should get that?” Max questioned, feeling my phone buzz again against his leg. I shook my head.
“It won’t be important.” I smiled.
We carried on laughing through our main course and dessert, my phone buzzing throughout.
“Please just get that.” Max said, his arm resting on the back of my chair. I nodded standing to leave, his arm wrapping around my waist tight. “Hurry back.” He winked. He had been fine all night up until then. I smiled and left, finding my phone in my bag. I had 14 texts all from one person.
You look beautiful tonight H
My stomach knotted and I sighed. I was having a lovely evening and now it had all came crashing down. I had told myself time and time again that the two of us could move in the same circles very easily without it being awkward. The mere thought of his voice made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and my knees start to shake like jelly. I knew it was wrong to feel like that. I knew it was inconvenient at best but I just couldn’t help my heart from skipping a beat when someone even said his name. I made my way to the ladies, reading the messages ranging from ‘I want to tear that dress off you right now’ to ‘you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen’ all from ‘H’. I had a horrible feeling as if I had done something wrong. I caught myself in the mirror. Not sleeping had given me bags under my eyes and years of late nights, stressful days and too many parties had taken it’s toll on my face. I felt almost twice my age, just down to stress. I heard the door swing open behind me. I read through my messages quietly until I heard the clicking of heels stop behind me.
“I should’ve guessed that my husband would’ve invited his bit on the side.” Clarissa’s voice had changed over the years. When I first met her at Lara and Skippy’s wedding, she sounded like anyone else from Kent but her accent had changed to a fake RP accent that nobody could understand, even Charles and Camilla. I straightened up and slid my phone back into my clutch bag.
“His what?” I asked, turning to face her.
“His bit on the side? His mistress? Or are you too common to not understand?” She cocked her head to the side with fake pity.
“No, I understood you perfectly.” I spat. I’ve never hated anyone more. “I’m not your husband’s anything.” I went to leave but she put her leg out to stop me.
“We both know that’s not true.”
“What makes you think that?” I asked.
“Why else would you be here? It’s not like you care about the little shits. They probably deserved to have aids anyway.” She had either had too much to drink or was being honest.
“I actually do care. Have you ever seen someone dying of AIDs? Have you ever watched a child die in your arms because her uncle raped her?!” The lid came off the bottle and it all came pouring out. “No you haven’t. Because you don’t give a fuck unless it gets you into the latest club or onto the front page of a magazine!” She looked taken aback, but pursed her lips with disgust. “That isn’t what tonight is about! This is about raising money for people who need it, not for you to be on the cover of Hello magazine!” She stepped closer to me and opened her mouth, probably expecting to floor me with her response.
“At least I’m not wearing last season.” She stepped back as if she’d just thrown a verbal grenade. I just stood in disbelief.
“You really don’t understand do you?” She was shocked that I hadn’t left yet. “You don’t seem to be able to get it. This is not about you. This isn’t even about me either. This is about thousands and thousand of kids who need help. I know you will never visit those children, you don’t have heart. But I’ve met children just like them who died. They were raped and died. They hadn’t even been to school before they died. Fuck! They couldn’t even count before they died. And all you care about is how you look and who you have on your arm. And you have the cheek to call yourself gracious and classy. Sweetie, you wouldn’t know grace if it slapped you across the face.” I turned to leave then stopped, needing to get rid of the final drop of stress. “And by the way, I did fuck your husband. Plenty of times.” I opened the bathroom door and left, texting Harry.
'Tell me more about tearing this dress off.'
“I’m not! I just…” I knew I was being childish but I just didn't want to admit it.
“You’re jeopardising something potentially wonderful with Max just because you can’t have your own way.” She was inspecting her manicure as if to not want to pay me any attention. I paced up and down the corridor, not wanting to back to the ballroom but not wanting to be in that room with Lara.
“I just don’t like him.”
“What is there not to like?!” She scoffed.
“When you look at Skippy, what do you see?”
“What kind of question is that?” She watched as the waiters walked past with plates of starters. She stood up to leave. I caught her arm.
“What do you see?”
“I love him. I want to spend the rest of my life with him.” I saw her face light up as she watched him through the glass window in the door. Her voice softened. “I understand.” She was sheepish.
“I just don’t feel that way about him. And I don’t think I ever could.” Her arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me into her side in a hug.
“I’m sorry. I want you to be happy.”
“I will be.” I saw a flash of red hair walk past the window. Enough to make my stomach knot and my hands grip for Lara’s. “I will be as soon as I can get out of this bloody building.”
…
“This is Mercy.” Nurse Emmanuel Said as we walked from child to child in the hospital. “She has HIV.” My breath caught in my throat and my stomach tied in knots. Every child I had seen that morning had HIV and AIDs. All of them children. I sat on the bed next to her and held her tiny hand in mine. She felt cold and her eyes caught mine. “When she was a baby,” Nurse Emmanuel lowered her voice and stepped closer to speak to me. “When she was a baby, her uncle raped her because he was told to have sex with a virgin to get rid of the disease.” I felt like my whole body jolted with the news. My lungs told me to sob and my eyes burned with wanting to cry, but I knew that these children had seen so many tears from strangers and family and to see another stranger cry would be no help to them. I scooped her up in my arms, avoiding pulling on the various tubes and wires that were linked between her and the machine that beeped and buzzed. “We don’t think she’ll last much longer.” I held her tight. She felt like she was just a pile of bones. Her eyes flickered up to meet mine as if she was asking me to help her.
….
“Look, I think the best way to get through this is to face it head on.” Lara was talking to me as if she were a boxing coach talking to their latest prodigy before the fight of their lives. “Just walk out there and make the most of your night. Who cares if Max assumes you’re together again? Who cares if that ginger bastard thinks you’re hotter than his wife? Who cares that that same ginger belled wants to bend you over his sofa and fuck you until the whole world knows about you?!” I shot her a look.
“Lara?!” She shrugged.
“Skippy and Harry have very graphic conversations.” She linked my arm and took a deep breath. “So after three we’re going to step out of these doors and laugh like we’ve just shared the funniest joke ever. Ready?” I took a deep breath and nodded. “One…” I gripped her tighter, “Two…” My hand reached to push the door. “Three!”
…
The day had taken it’s toll on me emotionally and Harry physically. They had the walls of the new hospital block up and the basic roof up. His hands were rough and dirty and his eyes had closed sleepily in the back of the Jeep. I was still wide awake long into the next morning.
“How long have you been awake?” Harry asked as he turned around in bed to face me.
“Not long.” I lied. I hadn’t had a wink of sleep all night. I just kept thinking of Mercy and all the other children I had seen. Would they still be alive this morning? “I want to go back to the hospital today.” I said, checking the time on my watch. I angled my watch so that I could see it in the moonlight. It read half past five. I sat up, stretching.
“Why don’t you just come back to sleep?” Harry was flat on his back, his eyes still closed. He had his arm out for me to snuggle into his side where the sheet had fallen to his hips. Any other night I would’ve jumped at the chance to cuddle up under the sheets with my naked boyfriend but I had a hideous feeling of guilt thinking about the children in the hospital just a few miles away.
…
“Where have you two been?!” Skippy asked as we both sat down.
“Just girly chat.” I smiled at him, still holding Lara’s hand for support. Skippy and Max shared a look that said ‘we’d better not ask’. We noticed that our starter had gone cold, so we both sipped what was left of our glasses of wine while we made polite conversation and exchanged jokes with the rest of the table. I felt my phone buzz in my bag. I ignored it.
“Maybe you should get that?” Max questioned, feeling my phone buzz again against his leg. I shook my head.
“It won’t be important.” I smiled.
We carried on laughing through our main course and dessert, my phone buzzing throughout.
“Please just get that.” Max said, his arm resting on the back of my chair. I nodded standing to leave, his arm wrapping around my waist tight. “Hurry back.” He winked. He had been fine all night up until then. I smiled and left, finding my phone in my bag. I had 14 texts all from one person.
You look beautiful tonight H
My stomach knotted and I sighed. I was having a lovely evening and now it had all came crashing down. I had told myself time and time again that the two of us could move in the same circles very easily without it being awkward. The mere thought of his voice made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and my knees start to shake like jelly. I knew it was wrong to feel like that. I knew it was inconvenient at best but I just couldn’t help my heart from skipping a beat when someone even said his name. I made my way to the ladies, reading the messages ranging from ‘I want to tear that dress off you right now’ to ‘you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen’ all from ‘H’. I had a horrible feeling as if I had done something wrong. I caught myself in the mirror. Not sleeping had given me bags under my eyes and years of late nights, stressful days and too many parties had taken it’s toll on my face. I felt almost twice my age, just down to stress. I heard the door swing open behind me. I read through my messages quietly until I heard the clicking of heels stop behind me.
“I should’ve guessed that my husband would’ve invited his bit on the side.” Clarissa’s voice had changed over the years. When I first met her at Lara and Skippy’s wedding, she sounded like anyone else from Kent but her accent had changed to a fake RP accent that nobody could understand, even Charles and Camilla. I straightened up and slid my phone back into my clutch bag.
“His what?” I asked, turning to face her.
“His bit on the side? His mistress? Or are you too common to not understand?” She cocked her head to the side with fake pity.
“No, I understood you perfectly.” I spat. I’ve never hated anyone more. “I’m not your husband’s anything.” I went to leave but she put her leg out to stop me.
“We both know that’s not true.”
“What makes you think that?” I asked.
“Why else would you be here? It’s not like you care about the little shits. They probably deserved to have aids anyway.” She had either had too much to drink or was being honest.
“I actually do care. Have you ever seen someone dying of AIDs? Have you ever watched a child die in your arms because her uncle raped her?!” The lid came off the bottle and it all came pouring out. “No you haven’t. Because you don’t give a fuck unless it gets you into the latest club or onto the front page of a magazine!” She looked taken aback, but pursed her lips with disgust. “That isn’t what tonight is about! This is about raising money for people who need it, not for you to be on the cover of Hello magazine!” She stepped closer to me and opened her mouth, probably expecting to floor me with her response.
“At least I’m not wearing last season.” She stepped back as if she’d just thrown a verbal grenade. I just stood in disbelief.
“You really don’t understand do you?” She was shocked that I hadn’t left yet. “You don’t seem to be able to get it. This is not about you. This isn’t even about me either. This is about thousands and thousand of kids who need help. I know you will never visit those children, you don’t have heart. But I’ve met children just like them who died. They were raped and died. They hadn’t even been to school before they died. Fuck! They couldn’t even count before they died. And all you care about is how you look and who you have on your arm. And you have the cheek to call yourself gracious and classy. Sweetie, you wouldn’t know grace if it slapped you across the face.” I turned to leave then stopped, needing to get rid of the final drop of stress. “And by the way, I did fuck your husband. Plenty of times.” I opened the bathroom door and left, texting Harry.
'Tell me more about tearing this dress off.'