Eleanor hadn’t been in anywhere like The Club since she had left London.
She realised she had come out wearing her old clothes, no make-up and her hair a mess. But she didn’t care. She was too worried about Megan to think about what she looked like.
She tried to think positively as they weaved their way through the hordes of good-looking people. It was Friday night so the place was packed.
‘There she is!’ hissed Annie, nudging her in the side.
Eleanor followed her gaze to the VIP area. There, under an unforgiving strobe light, was Megan, sitting with a man.
As they edged through the crowd, Annie said, ‘Who’s the guy?’
‘I know who that is,’ said Eleanor. ‘That’s Gareth from school. The one she’s been messaging on Facebook.’
Annie was shocked. ‘What shall we do?’
‘Let’s get a bit nearer,’ said Eleanor.
They managed to manoeuvre themselves near to the next table along, which had just become vacant and hid behind a large pot plant. Thankfully, the couple were needing to shout to hear each other above the hubbub around them.
Eleanor peered through the leaves of the fake fern at his profile. Gareth hadn’t aged well. His eyes were smaller than she remembered, the face bloated.
She could just about see Megan taking a large swig of champagne and looking very nervous.
‘God, you’re still so sexy,’ shouted Gareth, casually putting one arm along the back of where she sat.
‘Me?’ giggled Megan, taking another large swig from her glass. She was wearing a strappy top with a low V-neck which Eleanor had never seen before.
‘I can’t believe it,’ he carried on. ‘Three rug rats and you’ve still got a hot body.’
Rugrats? Eleanor exchanged a cross look with Annie, who was now glaring at Gareth.
‘What about you?’ they heard Megan ask.
‘Not married and definitely no kids. I’m too busy having fun.’ Eleanor could see him run a finger down Megan’s bare arm. ‘Fun with hot women like you.’
Megan was shuffling in her seat. She was obviously uncomfortable.
‘So what kind of work do you do?’ she asked, sipping from her glass.
‘I’m a love doctor, baby,’ he said, leaning forward and suddenly kissing her on the lips.
Megan sprang away. ‘What are you doing?’
‘Come on,’ drawled Gareth. ‘Don’t go all coy on me now. You know you want it. Why else were you flirting with me on Facebook?’
‘Look, I’m sorry,’ stammered Megan, standing up. ‘I made a mistake. I’m happily married.’
‘Come on. You bored housewives are all the same. Gagging for it,’ said Gareth.
That was it. Eleanor and Annie sprang up at the same time and rushed around the pot plant.
Annie grabbed Megan’s arm and snapped, ‘Let’s get out of here.’
‘What are you doing here?’ said Megan, staring wide-eyed at her friends.
‘This is an inter-friend-ion,’ said Eleanor, reaching for the bucket of champagne and tipping the ice into Gareth’s lap. ‘Time for you to cool down, you sleazebag,’ she told him.
Then they rushed Megan towards the back of the club and into the Ladies’ toilet.
‘We’ve come to stop you doing something you’re going to regret,’ said Annie, finally letting go of her arm.
Megan burst into tears almost immediately. ‘It’s too late,’ she sobbed.
‘You’ve slept with him already?’ said Annie, aghast.
‘No!’ said Megan. ‘I should never have come here. It seemed like a bit of fun on Facebook. But as soon as I got here it just felt horribly wrong.’
‘Do you know how lucky you are?’ Eleanor told her, grabbing her by the arms. ‘Have you any idea how great Neal is? How much he loves you?’
Megan nodded, still crying. ‘Gareth’s right though,’ she said, between sniffs. ‘I led him on.’
‘Forget about him,’ said Annie. ‘He’s a creep.’
‘I’ve got to get out of here,’ said Megan, suddenly looking panicked. ‘What if someone’s seen me? What if it gets back to Neal?’
‘Listen,’ said Eleanor, leaning across the sink to open a latch on the window. ‘There’s never any shame in going out of the bathroom window. Trust me, if I had followed my gut instinct and done the same thing, I’d have never ended up with Lucas two years ago.’
Megan’s brief laughter turned to tears once more. So they had a group hug before Eleanor and Annie each took one arm and helped Megan over the sink and out of the window.
Out in the car park, they ran across to Sam’s Range Rover that Annie had borrowed and went back to Eleanor’s house, where she made them hot chocolate, despite the warm night, and the three of them curled up on the cushions in the lounge, surrounded by various animals.
‘You’re going to stay here tonight,’ said Eleanor, stroking the kitten on her lap. ‘You can’t go home in this state. Mum’s out having a drink with Rose so it’s just us, okay? Nobody else needs to know.’
Megan nodded gratefully before taking a sip from her steaming mug. Her face was tear-stained and pale.
‘Talk to us,’ said Annie, in a soft tone. ‘What’s going on?’
Megan shrugged her shoulders. ‘I just got so bored. I mean, I love my children, but I miss my life before them. I know I was only in marketing, but at least I had grown-up conversations back then.’
‘Have you talked to Neal about this?’ asked Eleanor.
Megan shook her head. ‘No. I mean, he wouldn’t understand. Why would he? He gets to go out every day to work whilst I’m stuck at home.’
‘You don’t think he would be supportive?’ asked Annie.
‘I don’t know anymore,’ sighed Megan. ‘He’s always working so hard and so late. Does it make me a bad mother to feel like this? I shouldn’t be bored, should I? What’s wrong with me?’
Annie shook her head. ‘You have three children who are all healthy and happy. You deserve a bloody medal.’
‘She’s right,’ said Eleanor. ‘Besides, you can do something else as well as being a mum.’
‘We just need something that fits in with your family,’ said Annie.
‘We’ll think of something,’ Eleanor told her.
Megan nodded before her face suddenly distorted into panic. ‘What if he finds out about me meeting up with Gareth? What if he leaves me?’
‘Neal loves you,’ said Annie. ‘And he won’t find out.’
‘Not from us,’ said Eleanor, nodding in agreement. ‘You jump, we jump, remember?’
‘Thank god for you guys,’ said Megan, drawing them into a hug. ‘I love you both so much.’
‘We love you too,’ said Annie.
Eleanor nodded her agreement but, as always, those particular three words would never come.