Someone Like You (The Ever After Agency #4)

Chapter 9

9

POPPY

‘Good morning, everyone,’ Freya chirrups as she arrives.

‘Hey, can I talk to you when you have a sec?’ I ask, keeping my tone light. I want to give Freya time to drop her stuff at her desk and make her morning coffee before I spring my suspicions on her.

‘Ooh, yes, I can’t wait to hear all about yesterday,’ she replies. ‘Five minutes?’

‘Sure.’

I spend the time rehearsing what to say in my head. How do you tell your colleague, one you’re close with and whose case you’re handling, that you suspect her best friend has feelings for her other best friend?

I’m still undecided when Freya rolls her desk chair over, carrying her favourite mug with ‘Sip, Love, Repeat’ printed on it in scrawling letters. If the agency gave out an award for ‘Biggest Romantic’, Freya would win without question.

‘I want to hear absolutely everything,’ she says, visibly bursting with anticipation.

I launch into an account of the screening with Gaby, fielding every clarifying question Freya has .

‘Wait – she rejected Maria ? But she would have been perfect for Raff,’ says Freya.

‘I thought so too,’ I reply, seeing the ideal opportunity to transition to the topic I really want to discuss. ‘But apparently, she reminded Gaby too much of one of Raff’s exes – Sheree.’

‘Hmm, Sheree…’ Freya stares into space as if she’s trying to conjure a mental picture of this mystery ex. ‘Oh right, yes, I remember her,’ she says eventually. ‘Irish girl Raff dated for a couple of months a few years back. I suppose she and Maria look similar – they’re both tall, willowy brunettes – but…’ She shakes her head in disbelief. ‘Did Gaby really reject her because of that? It seems… I don’t know…’

‘Not pertinent?’ I offer, wondering if Freya will connect the dots herself.

‘Exactly.’

‘She wasn’t keen on Julia either.’

‘But she and Raff share several compatibility markers – they’re both highly creative, for one.’

‘I know. Ursula pulled rank and made her our alternate.’

‘Well at least there’s that but, Poppy, I really thought Maria would be our frontrunner.’

‘Me too. So, any thoughts?’

‘About the shortlist? I mean, it’s not exactly what I had in mind, but it’s a solid list.’

She’s not getting it. I’m going to have to be more explicit.

‘Any thoughts on Gaby’s reaction to the longlisted potentials, specifically the ones she rejected?’

She drops her gaze as she contemplates the question. ‘I suppose it shows that Gaby and Raff are much closer than he and I are these days. She seems to have picked up on quite a few factors I hadn’t considered. ’

How is she not making the connection?

‘Frey, I’m pretty sure there’s something else going on here.’

‘How do you mean?’

‘Has it ever occurred to you that Gaby may have feelings for Raff?’ I ask.

‘Feelings?’

‘Romantic feelings, yes.’

Her surprise is so extreme it’s comical, and then she bursts out laughing – and not a snigger or a chuckle or even a giggle. We’re talking full-on, throw-her-head-back-and-guffaw laughter. Soon, everyone in the office is looking our way.

‘Oi, Freya. What’s so funny?’ Nasrin shouts over the laughter.

Freya waves her hand in front of her face as she tries to catch her breath. Nas and I exchange a glance and she rolls her eyes.

‘Are you done yet?’ I ask Freya, my patience wearing thin.

She inhales deeply and gets her laughter under control. ‘Sorry,’ she gasps, running her forefingers under her eyes and blinking back tears.

‘What’s all this about?’ asks Ursula, suddenly appearing at our side.

‘Poppy said the funniest thing just now,’ Freya replies, still catching her breath.

Ursula’s lips quiver disapprovingly. ‘Do tell.’

‘Just about Gaby being in love with Raff.’

Freya shakes her head at me, her mouth curling into an amused, almost patronising smile. I really don’t enjoy seeing Freya behave this way – it’s very unlike her and almost definitely a result of her being too close to this case.

‘I didn’t say she’s in love with him,’ I say coolly. ‘I was positing that there may be some underlying feelings impacting Gaby’s judgement. ’

‘Poppy, Gaby has never fancied Raff – and vice versa. They’re like brother and sister.’

‘Got it,’ I reply.

She sighs noisily, then stands. ‘But thank you for the update.’

As Freya rolls her chair back to her desk, Ursula leans down, overwhelming me with her signature scent, Chanel N°5.

‘After the staff meeting, I suggest you and I meet with Saskia and Paloma,’ she whispers.

I meet her eyes. ‘So, you agree with me?’

‘Oh, absolutely. If you hadn’t raised it, I would have.’

After Ursula leaves, I lean back in my chair as I start sifting through Freya’s OTT reaction. This is worse than I anticipated – she’s completely blind to a major factor that could derail this entire case. Maybe agreeing to keep her in the loop was a mistake.

I take a sip of tea, discovering it’s gone cold, so I leap up and head to the kitchen to boil the kettle. After that interaction, I need all the magical, soothing properties tea can bring.

‘I can see why you brought this to us,’ says Saskia, ‘but perhaps it was merely Gaby’s protective instincts kicking in. He is her closest friend. Maybe she’s just concerned about him getting hurt.’

Paloma chimes in with, ‘That sounds plausible.’

‘Hmm…’ I murmur, not really convinced.

‘No,’ says Ursula, rejecting this line of reasoning. ‘What Poppy and I witnessed last night was more than protectiveness. And I’d say these feelings have only recently come on. For Gaby, the concept of matching Rafferty has now become reality , triggering this response.’

‘Interesting,’ says Paloma. ‘So, now she’s been confronted with the competition, it’s made her realise there’s more to the friendship than she thought.’

‘Actually,’ I say, ‘I doubt she’s even aware at this stage. And if she does become cognisant of her feelings for Raff, she may conclude on her own that they’re misplaced. We also need Gaby to act as envoy between us and Raff – otherwise we won’t be able to action our meet-by-happenstance plan.’

‘In that case,’ says Saskia, ‘why don’t you proceed as planned but keep an eye on Gaby. If she comes to realise her true feelings or the manifestation of her feelings escalates, then let’s revisit this.’

‘Sounds good, Sask,’ Paloma agrees. ‘And thank you for raising this issue,’ she says to me and Ursula. And with that, we’re dismissed.

Even though we have a way forward, I’m worried that achieving Raff’s HEA may lead to Gaby and her feelings becoming collateral damage. And, based on our earlier conversation, I don’t know that I can keep my promise to Freya about sharing updates on the case.

Both realisations make me feel sick.

When I arrive home, our flat is warm and well-lit (thanks to our automated system), making it the sanctuary I’m craving after the day I’ve had.

Tristan’s keys aren’t in the catch-all on the hallstand, so I’ve beat him home, something that’s becoming less frequent as the year progresses. We’re so busy at the agency, I’m hoping we’ll take on another agent in the New Year.

I shrug out of my coat and hang it up, then call for Saffron.

Surprisingly – not – she doesn’t come, so I go into our room and change into my well-loved trackies and a hoodie – about as daggy as my outfits get .

Back in the lounge, I tell Google to start playing my favourite playlist of upbeat pop songs, then go to the fridge and take out the fixings for an epic grazing board. I may be a rubbish cook, but I can assemble a killer array of nibblies.

I’m putting on the finishing touches when Tristan’s key sounds in the lock.

As soon as he enters our flat, I fly into his arms, clasping my hands behind his back and burying my face in the collar of his wool coat. ‘I’m so glad you’re home,’ I say, my voice muffled. Still holding his laptop bag, one of his arms wraps around my waist, holding me tightly.

‘Did you have a bad day?’ he asks.

‘Not terrible, but definitely not great.’

‘I’m sorry, my love.’

‘But look,’ I say, gently easing out of our embrace, ‘I made dinner.’

He regards my triumph with obvious appreciation. ‘Nice. I can’t wait to dig in.’ His eyes meet mine, his expression softening. ‘Are you sure you don’t want me to whip something up?’ he offers.

I shake my head. ‘I just want to veg out on the sofa and stuff my face with cheese and olives.’

‘Sounds good,’ he says, his eyes twinkling. ‘Give me a moment to change out of this,’ he says, glancing down, ‘and I’ll find us a nice bottle to go with your superb grazing board.’ He kisses me on the nose. ‘Be right back.’

While Tristan’s getting changed, I take the board to the lounge and set out plates, napkins, and utensils. I sit on the sofa, tucking my feet underneath me right as Saffron comes out of her room, her mouth stretching into a wide yawn.

‘Oh, hello, little minx,’ I say. ‘Did you wake up because Tristan’s home?’

She ignores me, instead sniffing the air .

‘You haven’t been fed yet, but I’m sure your boyfriend will sort you out after he’s changed.’

‘Hello, Saffy,’ Tristan coos as he enters wearing almost an identical outfit to mine. If it were possible, I’d love him even more for slumming it in tracky dacks with his dag of a wife.

Saffron runs to him and he scoops her up one-handed and holds her to his chest. Even when he takes her with him into the kitchen, I can hear her purring. I’m convinced she’d be happier if it was just the two of them. He quickly feeds her, then peruses the wine fridge, returning with a Pinot Noir and two glasses.

‘How’s this?’ he asks, showing me the label.

‘Great,’ I reply. I barely know my Sauv Blanc from my Cab Sauv, but it’s nice of him to ask.

He pours and hands me a glass, then lifts his. ‘To tomorrow being better than today.’

‘Hear, hear to that,’ I say. I clink my glass against his and take a sip, savouring the tangy pepperiness.

A moment later, Tristan reaches over and runs his hand along my thigh. ‘Now, tell me about your not-so-good day.’

‘I don’t really want to go into the details, but there’s been a complication in my case – the one with Freya’s friend.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that, darling,’ he says, peering at me intently. He doesn’t say anything more – no solutionising or mansplaining, just unadulterated empathy – another reason I love him as much as I do.

‘Thanks. I’ve got Ursula I can lean on and I’m sure we’ll figure something out, but…’ I shrug.

‘You’ve had better days,’ he says.

‘Yep.’

Out of the corner of my eye, I spy Saffron sniffing about the grazing board .

‘Saffron Dean Fellows! You get away from that cheese immediately, if not sooner!’ I bellow.

Saffron freezes, her paw suspended in air above the brie, and to her credit, she slowly places it on the floor. Tristan’s laughter fills the room, and I start laughing with him, the mental and emotional toll of my not-so-good day ebbing away.