Holiday Affair (10 page)

“That would be great,” she said. “I’m free on Saturday.

Is there anything I can bring?”

“No, just yourself. I’ll pick you up at about one.

Melissa, I would like to make an informal announcement to the family on Saturday that we are seeing each other.

Are you happy with that or am I rushing you?” She paused and again Nick’s face came between her and Tom.

“I think that would be perfect,” she said.

After they finished lunch, Tom insisted on walking her back to her office, even though he was located at the other side of the university in the main administration building.

As they walked along the corridor of the history faculty, they heard laughter coming from the staff room. An attractive blond woman came out of the room, saying over her shoulder, “Professor Richards, you’re incorrigible.” Tom rolled his eyes. “Looks like my brother is up to his old tricks with the ladies,” he groaned.

Nick was at the door when they passed and looked pointedly at Tom’s arm around Lissy’s waist.

“Hey bro, this looks serious,” he said.

“Yes, Nick, we will be making a little announcement on Saturday at the barbeque at home. Please don’t tell Mama or the girls or they will be hopeless and won’t leave Melissa in peace all week.”

Nick nodded grimly. “Don’t worry, I wouldn’t dream of ruining the surprise.”

Lissy shivered at the angry look he directed at her as she walked past him.

…

Oddly enough, as the days passed, Nick helped Lissy in her resolve to have as little to do with him as possible. He flew to Sydney twice for meetings and had one overnight visit to Brisbane. He rarely entered her office and only attended a couple of the faculty meetings. He was charming and polite, and might as well have been a chance acquaintance. She managed to sit at the other end of the conference table and focus on her laptop on the occasions that he spoke to the faculty.

Contact between them was mostly by email. Nick would send her an area of research that he required her to verify, and she would email the results of her inquiries back to him. As the week drew to a close and he wasn’t required for lectures, he worked from home and she didn’t even see him at the university.

It wasn’t as easy as Lissy had anticipated to oust Nick from her thoughts. She could hear every move he made in the cottage next door and there were times when her resolve was threatened. She heard his shower running, she knew when he had the television on, and she could hear his telephone ring. She felt as though they were living in the same house. She dreamed about him regularly and woke aching with an unfulfilled desire.

Jenny had offered to pick Lissy up at her place and drive her to Ivy Cottage for Clare’s birthday party, and Lissy gladly accepted the offer. She was looking forward to going out to the restaurant with the girls, having a few drinks and forgetting about the Richards men for one night.

“Wow, look at you! I nearly didn’t recognize you.

Melissa, you should wear your hair down more often. You look fantastic!” Jenny said when she laid eyes on Lissy.

She had settled on a brightly patterned skirt that brushed her ankles and a figure hugging red body suit with a deeply scooped neck. The shell necklace Gramps had given her for her last birthday highlighted the hint of cleavage. She put some mousse in her hair and scrunched her curls, and heavy dangling earrings completed the gypsy look.

“The only downside of being pregnant,” Jenny said,

“is I can’t have a drink with the girls tonight.” When they entered Ivy Cottage, they heard a scream of delight as Clare spotted them in the foyer. She came running over with a glass of champagne sloshing in her hand.

“Well, looks like the party has started,” said Jenny, leaning over and giving Clare a birthday kiss, narrowly avoiding a champagne spill down her back as Clare returned the hug with one arm.

“Happy Birthday, Clare.” Lissy gave Clare a hug before they made their way over to a large table, where about twenty of Clare’s friends were already seated. Clare made Lissy and Jenny stand up at the end of the table while she introduced them to the other girls. There were a dozen of her friends from school, and others up from Sydney. Clare sounded as though she had already downed a few birthday drinks.

“Ladies, ladies, listen up. These—” she paused and put an arm around Lissy and Jenny, “—are my two very best work friends in the whole, wide world. This is Jenny and this is Lissy.” A chorus of greetings came from the group as Lissy and Jenny sat at the last two vacant chairs.

Lissy looked around the restaurant and was pleased to see only a couple of other tables with customers who were almost finished with their meals. She had a feeling this was going to be a loud and noisy party, quite different from the usually formal Friday night atmosphere at Ivy Cottage. A loud pop signalled the opening of the next bottle of champagne and Lissy took a sip from the glass that was handed to her.

“Happy birthday, Clare,” the girls said in a toast, holding up their glasses.

Lissy sat at the head of the table, and the girl on her left immediately started up a conversation. Within five minutes, Lissy had heard all about the girl’s job, her family, and her two broken relationships and how horrible all men were. She didn’t get a chance to get a word in and smiled gratefully as Jenny interrupted and rescued her.

The waitress came out with menus and the table quietened as the girls discussed what they were going to order.

All of a sudden, Clare hissed across the table at Jenny and Lissy.

“Ssssh, ssssh. Girls, girls, quick.” She was gesturing madly at the door behind them and her whisper was loud enough to be heard by all of the diners in the room.

“It’s Johhny Depp,” she whispered urgently, pretending to swoon.

Lissy felt her stomach take a dive to her toes. Refusing to turn around, she waited until the group walked past the table of girls and were seated in the opposite corner of the room. Looking up slowly, she met Nick’s sardonic gaze and to her absolute horror, she realized that Nick, Tom, and two very attractive women were seated at the table.

From a distance, she heard Clare’s voice.

“Earth to Melissa, earth to Melissa.” She looked up and saw the waitress standing next to her, pen poised waiting to take her order.

“Oh, sorry.” She grabbed the menu in front of her and read out the first thing she saw.

“I’ll have the chicken, please.”

“Salad and chips, or vegetables?” asked the waitress.

“Ah…salad, please.” Her hands were shaking, her heart thudding. She had never felt so angry in her life. She picked up her champagne and drained the glass in one gulp.

Not only was Nick flaunting his next conquest in public, but dependable, honest Tom was with him and had a woman with him as well.

“Melissa, are you feeling okay? You’re really flushed,” said Jenny.

She pulled herself together and plastered a smile on her face. “No, Jen, I’m fine. I just need another drink.” Grabbing the champagne bottle out of the ice bucket, she filled her glass and tipped her head back and drained the glass in one go.

Clare burst out laughing. “Go Melissa! This is going to be a great party.”

The noise level in the restaurant increased as three more tables filled with customers. Luckily for Melissa the lights were dim, the girls’ table was in a corner, and she could avoid looking at the group of four across the room.

On the odd occasion that she glanced over there, she could see Nick watching her with a tight expression on his face.

Damn him
, she thought and threw back another glass of champagne.

Their group got louder and more raucous as the drinks flowed. Lissy was not used to being out with a group of women determined to let their hair down. Her social life during university had been limited because she had studied hard, determined to succeed.

After a couple more drinks, Lissy stood up and announced loudly to the group that she was going to the ladies room, and invited all of them to join her. Clare elbowed Jen and said laughing, “You’d better go with her Jen, and make sure she comes back.”

As Lissy and Jen passed the Richards’s table on their way to the restroom, Lissy was pleased to see the shock on Tom’s face when he looked up and saw her sashaying past.

She waggled her fingers at them.

“Hi, Tom. Hi, Nicky. Hi, lucky ladies with Tom and Nicky,” a giggly champagne--fueled hiccough escaped her lips and Jenny dragged her into the rest room.

“Melissa!” exclaimed Jenny. “The professor is a hunk.

Tell me all…you called him by his first name. Have you been out with him or do you just know him from work?”

“Nuh, juss from work, Jenny,” slurred Lissy. “He’s a nightmare to work with, very full of himself…not very nice at all.”

“What about Tom? Are you still seeing him?”

“Huh—” said Lissy, “—thought he was different, but they are tarred with the same hairbrush.” Clare burst out laughing. “Oh Melissa, you are so funny with a few drinks under your belt. You mean brush, not hairbrush!”

Lissy tried to be serious for a minute, and had to hang on tightly to the basin to keep her balance. She squinted into the mirror and saw that her curls were out of control.

“Woo…a bit giddy,” she said. “And I’m hungry.” Jenny pulled a chair over and sat Lissy down in front of the mirror. “Okay, let’s fix you up.” She stood behind Lissy and tried to tame her curls down with her hand.

“Speaking of hairbrushes, did you bring yours, hon?” Lissy fumbled in her bag and tipped it out onto the bench. The contents of the bag rolled around and fell over the edge, just as the two glamorous women who were with Tom and Nick entered the restroom. Lissy dived to the floor to catch lipstick, brushes, keys, and coins as they hit the floor.

“Oh, hello,” she said giggling. “Your legs match the rest of you.”

The two women laughed and moved into the cubicles.

“Come on, Melissa.” Jenny said. “Our meals will be there soon.”

She helped Lissy pick up the contents of her bag, straighten her hair and lipstick, and they headed back into the restaurant after visiting the cubicle.

“Oh, no you don’t,” said Jenny as Lissy spotted the two empty chairs at the Richards’s table and dragged Jenny over. She plonked herself down next to Tom, who looked as though he wanted to sink through the floor.

Nick sat back and folded his arms, looking at them with interest.

“Hi boys. I would like you to meet my very best friend Jenny. It’s her birthday and she would love a birthday kiss.” A little hiccough escaped her red painted lips and she giggled.

“Hap…happy birthday, Jenny. Nice to meet you,” said Tom.

He could not take his eyes off Lissy. She smirked; he had never seen her in anything but tailored suits and French-rolled hair. Nick continued to sit and look without saying anything. Lissy caught his eye. She leaned over and said, “Nicky dear, why do you look like the cat that got the cream?”

He shrugged his shoulders.

“Thank you, Tom, but it’s actually Clare’s birthday,” Jenny said. “Come on, Melissa, our meals will be there.

See you later.”

She grabbed Lissy and pulled her to her feet as Lissy laughed. “Come on, Clare, we’ll leave this pair to their floozies.”

Jenny looked mortified and whispered behind her hand to Nick and Tom.

“Sorry, guys. Melissa’s had a bit too much champagne.” She dragged Lissy across the restaurant to their table and sat her down next to Clare so that her back was to the Richards’s table. She had a whispered conversation with Clare who turned to Lissy and started up a conversation with her.

“So, Melissa, tell us about your holiday.” Lissy burst out laughing, and heads turned at some of the tables close by.

“Ooh…” she giggled. “I had the best time. I went on a yacht and I met a gorgeous man and we…” She was sober enough to think before she continued. “And we became very good friends. She paused for a moment. “But now I am home in the cold weather and back at work and the man is horrible.”

She stopped and put her head down and her eyes filled with tears. Their meals arrived at the table and Lissy decided she had better eat something. She picked up her knife and fork and tried to concentrate on her meal, which seemed to be moving from left to right. As she speared a chip, it shot over the table.

Jen leaned over and laughed. “Melissa, let me be mum. I’ll cut it up for you.”

“Nuh—” replied Lissy. “—easier if I have champagne for dinner.” She picked up her glass and swallowed the rest of her drink.

After a couple of hours of laughter, conversation, and several more bottles of champagne, Clare decided it was time to go dancing. The other girls had drunk champagne all night and Lissy’s out-of-character behavior didn’t stand out too much.

“Who’s up for the nightclub?” asked Clare, as they stood in the foyer paying the bill.

The Seven Brothers dance club was around the corner on the next street. Jenny looked tired. “No thanks. I think I’m done,” she said, as she patted her baby bulge. “Melissa, do you want a ride home now or will you catch a taxi?” There was movement behind them; Nick was standing in the foyer next to them.

“It’s okay, Jenny. I’ll take Melissa home. We live close by to each other,” he said.

Lissy looked up at him and giggled.

“But, Nick, that’s not in the rules anywhere, is it? And I want to go dancing.”

Nick shrugged. “I can wait.”

“But what about your guests?” Jenny asked.

“Not a problem. Tom will drive the girls back to the farm.”

Lissy was faintly aware that there was something bothering her, but couldn’t put her finger on it. She looked up at him with squinting eyes, trying to figure it out.

“Okay, come on, Nick, you’re welcome to come dancing with us,” said Clare.

Nick followed them down the steps. As soon as the fresh air hit her, Lissy’s head started to swim and her knees buckled.

“Woo…” she said, clutching for the railing.

Strong arms reached beneath her legs as Nick swept her up. The girls were halfway along the street and turned to see if she was all right.

“It’s okay, ladies. Melissa has decided she wants to go home now.” Nick reassured them. She squinted again, looking up at him, trying to figure out who he was and what he was doing, but it was all too hard.