Eleanor stared in shock at her boyfriend.
‘What are you doing here?’ she spluttered.
‘I was in the neighbourhood and thought I’d see how you are,’ said Lucas, laughing at how ridiculous that sounded. He was dressed in his best jeans and leather jacket, despite the warmth of the evening. In the street was a fancy convertible sports car which she presumed was his.
‘Do you want to come in?’ she asked, opening the door wide. The sound of girly laughter filled the hallway and front garden.
Lucas shook his head. ‘No,’ he replied. ‘I think we’ll be able to talk more privately out here, don’t you?’
That was no surprise given his normal reaction to her mother’s house. So Eleanor closed the front door and wandered down the path with him.
‘How are you?’ she asked.
‘Great,’ he replied. ‘Got a promotion. Excellent timing on my part. I should be VP by next summer.’
‘Wow,’ she told him. ‘That really is good news.’
‘There’s no chance of any more VIP tickets, are there?’ he asked. ‘It would help me out greatly with the directors.’
Eleanor sighed. Was that the only reason he had come to see her? She shook her head. ‘Sorry. I gave all that up when I left London.’
‘Shame. I really can’t believe you stayed in this place for so long,’ said Lucas, glancing up at The Forge with disdain.
‘Why not? My mum lives here.’
‘I just thought you’d head back to London as soon as possible,’ he replied, with a shrug. ‘What is there for you to do in a dump like this?’
‘Plenty, and it’s not a dump,’ she said, frowning. ‘It’s a charming village where people care about me.’
Lucas’ eyebrows shot up. ‘Well, you have changed.’
She looked up at his sneering face and suddenly felt very defensive. What did he know? How would he understand about the warmth and community of a place like this?
‘What’s wrong with your hair?’ he asked. ‘And your face looks different too.’
Eleanor knew that was Lucas speak for ‘you look a bit of a mess’. He was just like her Dad, she realised. He wanted her to look perfect all the time too.
She suddenly remembered Tom telling her how much he preferred her to look natural. And that she felt the same way.
‘I’m having a spa evening,’ she told Lucas. ‘I’ve been making hand and face creams actually.’
He scoffed. ‘Seriously?’
‘Yes. Why not?’ she snapped. ‘I like helping people with their skin problems. What did you ever do to help people?’
‘Make them rich,’ he replied with a wide smile.
Eleanor had had enough. ‘You know what, I think we both needed this break from each other. I for one was really glad of it.’
He frowned. ‘You mean, absence makes the heart grow fonder?’
She shook her head. ‘No. I mean, absence has made me realise that I think our break should be a permanent one.’
‘Wait!’ Lucas looked panicked. ‘Are you sure there really is no way you can get hold of any more VIP tickets?’
She stared up at him coldly. ‘Quite sure.’
He looked at her for a moment before he broke into an unexpected smile. ‘You know those pictures of Tommy King kissing some mystery girl at Glastonbury? Well, I thought she looked a lot like you.’
Eleanor felt as if she had been drenched with cold water. ‘It was the back of someone’s head,’ she told him, trying not to look panicked. ‘It could have been anyone.’
He nodded. ‘I agree. Only I came home to an answerphone message a week or so ago from your old editor. Theresa whatsername. Asking about a story on Tommy King. Seems a bit coincidental, don’t you think?’
She forced herself to shrug her shoulders in a nonchalant manner. ‘That was a different story that I was going to write before I lost my job. Not the same thing at all.’ She began to turn away. ‘Well, if there’s nothing else…’
‘So this really is it?’ he asked.
‘I’m afraid so. As you said back in London, it was only ever supposed to be a bit of fun.
Goodbye, Lucas. Take care of yourself.’
As she turned to head back up the garden path, she noticed the curtain in the front room twitching. Knowing that her friends were waiting for her gave her the strength to carry on and close the door behind her.
She was still standing, sagged against the front door, when Annie and Megan came out into the hallway.
‘That was Lucas,’ she told them, with a sigh.
‘Are you okay?’ asked Annie.
‘I’m fine,’ said Eleanor ‘Just annoyed with myself more than anything.’
She followed her friends back into the front room and slumped onto the sofa.
‘I just wish I could take back the last couple of years. What on earth was I thinking of?’
Megan shrugged her shoulders. ‘Maybe you were just getting by, like everyone else.’
‘I think he only wanted me for my press pass into all those parties. Something to impress his colleagues at the bank with.’
‘That’s awful,’ said Annie. ‘But you did care for him, didn’t you?’
‘I don’t know. I think I just settled for him because I was lonely in London,’ Eleanor told them, before giving a short laugh. ‘Of course, now I haven’t got a clue what I’m doing with my life.’
‘Well, I think you’re amazing,’ said Annie, gesturing at the pots of cream on the table. ‘Maybe you can make some money whilst you come up with an alternative career plan. I’d buy any of your creams.’
‘Yeah, you might just have a career after all,’ said Megan, reaching for the jug of Pimm’s that was on the coffee table. ‘Now, what does this do?’ She pointed at a box.
‘I think it’s coloured mascara,’ Eleanor told her, handing it over.
‘Excellent,’ said Megan. ‘About time I look my best.’
Annie smiled. ‘Whatever for?’
Megan sighed. ‘Because I want to be a yummy mummy from now on. Actually, scrap that. I want to be a MILF.’
Eleanor had laid out some of the freebie expensive creams that she had picked up from the many VIP events she had attended. Her own skin was too sensitive for her to use them. She handed a pot of some kind of oil to Annie.
‘Looks a bit posh for me,’ said Annie, putting it down as if it were made out of diamonds. ‘I think my skin is more simple than that.’
But Megan snorted a laugh. ‘Mine is crying out for posh, to be honest.’ She smeared on an anti-wrinkle mask and lay back on the sofa.
‘This doesn’t smell as nice as yours,’ said Annie, sniffing a tube of hand cream.
‘Oh, by the way,’ said Megan, still lying down. ‘One of the other mums saw how red I was and I told her about your cream helping my sunburn. She asked if she could have some carrot cream for her summer holiday. Actually, I think a couple of people want some.’
‘Oh. Okay.’ Eleanor beamed with the satisfaction that perhaps she did have something to contribute after all.
‘Maybe Tommy King can give you a celebrity endorsement,’ said Megan, grinning. ‘After all, he is your boyfriend now.’
‘Only on Twitter and only with the back of my head,’ said Eleanor, rolling her eyes. ‘It’s so embarrassing.’
‘I think it’s romantic,’ said Annie in a dreamy tone.
Eleanor bit her lip. ‘But what if he finds out what I used to do…’ Her voice trailed off as she thought about Lucas and what he had guessed.
‘Maybe you should tell Tom the truth,’ said Annie.
Eleanor shook her head. ‘He would hate me. And, I, er, really enjoy his company.’
Annie grinned. ‘I know you do. I’ve been watching the two of you together. Just be careful.’
Eleanor nodded but knew she could never tell Tom the whole truth. He would hate her and she didn’t want him to think of her that badly. She realised she really did want him to like her.