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Juliet couldn’t believe how fast the sale went through. But ‘No forward chain’ was apparently how you went from hearing it was happening to being out on your arse inside a couple of months. Her parents had a place sorted for themselves, the absolute bastards. A one-bed flat twenty minutes down the road, they were ensconced, happy as pigs in shit. Juliet didn’t understand how they could be so unsentimental about the house they’d lived in for thirty-plus years.

Juliet had taken it differently. She’d gone into full-scale denial until her parents were clinking cava in front of the mantel. ‘Sale’s gone through! You need to move out in two weeks.’

Thank god Amanda had stepped in. Been happy to help, actually. Juliet had tried to get Amanda to cut her pay in exchange. But Amanda laughed it off and said, ‘Just babysit on an occasional evening, and we’ll call it square.’ God, she was a nice woman. Too nice for her husband, that was for sure.

Juliet had thoroughly believed that Riley wouldn’t be living there by the time she moved in, so she hadn’t worried aboutthatsituation too much beyond its current status. But here she was, all her worldly belongings in a few boxes and bags, being helped in by Riley.

‘Jesus, what’s in this one?’ Riley asked, lifting a small box.

‘Books.’

‘You need a kindle,’ Riley puffed. ‘I could be carrying all this in my back pocket right now.’

‘You’re not the first to make that argument, but I can’t seem to bring myself to get one,’ Juliet told her. ‘Give me that box,’ she said, holding out her arms.

‘No, no,’ Riley said, stepping back. ‘I’m fine. Just complaining for fun.’ She took the box into the house.

Juliet grabbed another box and followed her in and up to her new room. It was big, beige, plush.

Riley dropped the box gently on the floor, and Juliet put her own on top. ‘You need help unpacking?’

‘Oh, no thanks. I’m gonna leave most of it boxed. This isn’t a permanent thing. I’ll probably only be here a few weeks.’

‘That’s whatIsaid,’ Riley remarked grimly.

Juliet chuckled. ‘Not found a place?’

‘Oh no. I’ve foundloadsof places,’ Riley said dryly. ‘Yeah, if you want to share a tiny shithole with a hoarder with poor hygiene, you’re well catered for. I guess I was just hoping I might find a nice-ish place with a boring but pleasant enough housemate. Turns out, that’s asking too much.’

‘Don’t tell me that,’ Juliet grimaced. ‘I’ve got to start looking myself.’

‘It’s not that bad, don’t listen to me,’ Riley assured her. ‘Anyway, I’ve kind of stopped looking recently. Amanda, she… she asked me to stay on a bit.’

‘Did she?’ Juliet asked, surprised.

‘Yeah, she… I mean, she’d neversayit, but… I think it’s been a bit of a relief for her to have some adults around the place that aren’t my dad.’

This was tricky territory. Juliet had found that you were never supposed to say bad things about people’s families, even if they started it. She had to be careful here. ‘So, things are a bit tense?’

Riley smiled. ‘Come on, you know what he’s like. You don’t have to be cool about it. He tried to sack you on your first day, for the love of god.’

Juliet had to laugh. ‘Yeah, he’s… he’s been a challenge.’

Riley looked at her fondly. ‘God, Juliet. You’re so fuckingappropriate.’

Juliet shrugged. ‘I’m staff. I have to be.’

Riley grimaced. ‘Jesus. Please don’t refer to yourself that way. It turns my stomach.’

‘Why?’

‘I don’t know. But it does,’ Riley said. ‘I mean, we went to school together.’

Riley’s eyes flitted away on the word ‘together.’

Juliet was slightly thrown and groped for the first conversational life preserver she could reach. ‘Yeah, I guess. You still close with India?’

Riley sighed. ‘Yeah, I see her now and again. I mean, we’re kind of… We don’t have a ton in common now, but we have a long history. You have to keep that going, don’t you?’