Shopaholic & Baby

“This is just…bloody…madness.” Luke shakes his head in exasperation. “I don’t know what kind of conversation you had with Venetia, what kind of…crossed wires or misinformation….”

“So you’re saying nothing’s been going on between you? Nothing at all?”

Luke clutches his hair, closing his eyes briefly. “Why would you think anything was going on?”

“Why?” I stare up at him. “Luke, are you serious? Where do I start? All those times you’ve gone out with her, just you and her. All those texts in Latin, which you wouldn’t tell me about. And everyone was so weird toward me at the office…and I saw you sitting together on her desk…and you lied, the night of the Finance Awards….” My voice is starting to wobble. “I knew you weren’t really there….”

“I lied because I didn’t want to worry you!” Luke sounds more fraught and angry than I’ve ever heard him. “My staff were weird to you at the office because I’d sent round an e-mail saying that nobody, but nobody, was to mention the company problems to you. On pain of being fired. Becky…I’ve been trying to protect you.”

I have a sudden flashback to him, sitting at his desk in the gloom, his brow creased. That was weeks ago. He’s been moody and absent ever since.

But then why would Venetia have said…

Why would she have…

“She told me you were leaving me for her.” My voice is really jumping around now. “She said you’d still want to visit the baby.” I give a sudden sob.

“Leaving you? Becky, come here.” Luke wraps his arms tightly around me, and all of a sudden I’m burying my head in his chest, tears streaming into his shirt. “I love you,” he says firmly. “I’m never leaving you. Or little Birkin.”

How did he…

Oh. He must have found my list of names.

“It’s Armageddon now,” I correct him, through my snuffles. “Or Pomegranate. That’s what I told your mother.”

“Excellent. I hope she passed out.”

“Nearly.” I try to smile, but I can’t. It’s all still too raw. I’ve had weeks and weeks of worrying and imagining and fearing the worst. I can’t just snap my fingers and act normal again.

“I thought I was going to be a single mother.” I gulp. “I thought you loved her. I didn’t know why you were being so weird. It’s been awful. If you had problems at work you should have told me.”

“I know I should.” He’s silent for a bit, resting his chin on my head. “To be honest, Becky…it’s been nice to have somewhere to escape from it all.”

I lift my head up and study Luke. He looks grim. And tired. It suddenly hits me. He looks really, really tired.

“What’s been going on?” I wipe my face. “What’s the trouble? You have to tell me now.”

“Arcodas,” he says shortly.

“But I thought it was all going so well,” I say, confused. “I thought that’s why you were opening the new offices.”

“I wish I’d never fucking pitched for them.” He sounds so bleak, I feel a thud of dread.

“Luke…what’s happened?” I say nervously. “Let’s sit down.” I make my way into Fabia’s sitting room and sink into a squashy suede sofa.

“A load of things,” says Luke, following me. He raises his eyebrows briefly at the B and L cushions, then sits down, resting his head in his hands. “You don’t want to know.”

“I do. I want to know everything. From the start.”

“It’s been a nightmare.” He turns his face toward me. “The main nightmare being a harassment claim.”

“Harassment?” I gape at him.

“Sally-Ann Davies. Remember her?”

“Of course.” I nod. “What happened?”

Sally-Ann has worked for the company ever since I’ve known Luke. She’s quite reserved, but really sweet and reliable.

“There were…incidents between her and Iain. She says he came on to her in an aggressive, unpleasant manner. She made a complaint. Which he laughed off.”

“God, how awful,” I breathe. “So…what did you…”

“I believe Sally-Ann one hundred percent.” Luke sounds totally resolute.

I’m silent. My mind has flashed back to the manila file from Dave Sharpness’s office. The dossier he collected on Iain. All those hushed-up cases.

Should I tell Luke?

No. Not unless I have to. It would raise so many awkward questions, and he might get angry when he hears what I did. Anyway, I shredded everything in the file, so I haven’t even got the evidence anymore.