Stockings and Cellulite by Debbie Viggiano Read Free Book Online Page B

you?’
    ‘I meant
our
lives getting back to normal. Apart from anything else, Cynthia’s sofa is doing my back in.’
    I froze. So he wasn’t sleeping in her bed after all? Or was he? Was he telling the truth? Or was he lying? Would I ever recognise when he was being honest or whether I was being spun a pack of lies? The very thought of never knowing for sure sent my stomach churning. Could I resume living by his side knowing I would be in a constant state of turmoil? I had a mental vision of riffling through the pockets of his suit at the end of every working day. Feverishly scrolling through the text messages on his mobile. Possibly even ringing a few numbers I didn’t recognise just to see if the voice that answered might be female. And then what? Hang up? Or blindly wade in asking impudent questions with somebody who might innocently turn out to be a female tax consultant? If our relationship stood any chance of reviving and surviving, then trust was paramount. But I no longer trusted Stevie. In fact, I didn’t think I’d ever trust him again. My head felt dizzy and I clutched hold of the doorframe to steady myself.
    ‘Are you okay?’ Stevie had a protective arm around my shoulder in a flash.
    ‘Fine thanks,’ I tetchily shook him off just as the twins appeared.
    ‘Cass I’d better go, Cynthia’s got a big roast in the oven for all of us.’
    ‘Oh yummy yummy. Well run along then,’ I spat.
    ‘Don’t be like that Cass. Please. Could you let me have some sort of answer fairly soon?’
    After he’d gone I moodily plucked an apple from the fruit bowl and bit into its lacklustre skin. Huh, just like mine. Yuck, it was badly bruised. Like my heart too. Suddenly I whipped round and flung the apple at the kitchen wall. It splattered against the paintwork leaving a trail of pulp and sticky juice in its wake.
    ‘Bastard!’ I shrieked at the disgusting mess and promptly burst into tears.
    Oh God, this was no good. Jed would be here in a couple of hours. I needed to calm down. Have a bath. Get ready.
    I blew my nose on a sheet of kitchen towel, cleared up the mess and went upstairs. While the bath was running I routed around in the medicine cupboard looking for something to sooth frazzled nerves. What was this? Suppositries. A periodic requirement but only good at soothing frazzled piles – the result of bearing two babies in one go. I sorted through the packets and selected some hayfever tablets.
May cause drowsiness
. Excellent. Three of them should calm me down. Along with a good stiff drink.
    Jed was greeted by a lethargic woman with dilated pupils.
    ‘Hi!’ he greeted.
    ‘Hi!’ I gushed back.
    ‘You look fabulous,’ he smiled appreciatively.
    ‘So do you,’ I blurted.
    It was true. Jed was even better looking than I remembered. Olive green eyes, dark hair and extremely white teeth. I wondered if they were bleached. Best not to ask at this stage. Maybe later, when he’d unbuttoned a bit. Perhaps he could even tell me who his dentist was.
    ‘Ready?’ he asked offering his elbow in a charming old-fashioned gesture.
    He led me to his Porsche Boxster and opened the passenger door. I sunk into the leather depths. Oh very nice. Yes, very nice indeed. I tucked my legs in and let him shut the door.
    We drove to a quaint pub and started the evening off sitting before a warm log fire, heads together chatting. I sipped a gin and tonic while Jed stuck to mineral water. A sense of relaxation stole over me which I suspected was nothing to do with the mix of pills and alcohol but everything to do with Jed.
    Eventually we went through to the pub’s dining area which was all knotty wood and low beams. Lots of atmosphere. Inevitably the conversation touched on our respective failed marriages and we exchanged sob stories. Surprisingly, when I told Jed how I’d found Stevie
in flagrante
, instead of becoming angry or upset I found myself seeing the funny side. I won’t pretend I creased up slapping my thighs with