Page 48 of The Missus

‘So, can I ask about your books?’ Alanna said, attaching herself to a somewhat safer topic.

‘God, not you as well.’

‘Come on, I just need something—’

Keira’s phone vibrated in her pocket. ‘Do you mind if I check that?’ she asked.

‘Please,’ Alanna said. ‘Go ahead.’

Keira looked at her phone. ‘Jesus tap-dancing Christ. Not again.’

‘What’s up?’ Alanna asked.

‘I should have blocked her.’

‘Who?’

‘What’s her name? Amazon Kelly,’ Keira said with a tut.

Alanna felt her heart rate increase. ‘Oh? She texting you still?’

‘Not lately. I thought she was over it.’ She began to read the text.

‘Don’t read it, just delete it,’ Alanna urged. She hadn’t told Keira about their accidental date. Because she didn’t want her to find out what she now knew about Keira’s childhood. ‘Block her,’ Alanna said, panicked.

But Keira wasn’t taking that advice, and her brow creased deeper with every word she read. She looked up from the phone at last. ‘Why didn’t you tell me you went out with her?’

‘Because I didn’t, not really. It was a catfish, as I’m sure you can imagine. It’s amazing, really, that she got us both. Is no one else on that frigging app? Just Kelly and some bots?’ She tried to laugh, but it died in her throat.

Keira was looking at her oddly. ‘Last night’s date was just Kelly. Why didn’t you tell me that?’

‘Umm, well, I haven’t seen you.’ That had been intentional avoidance, so this very conversation wouldn’t have to happen.

‘It’s weird, though. That you didn’t text me or anything. Or even now. We’re standing here chatting. I would have thought it would be the first thing you’d tell me.’

‘I guess I… I was embarrassed,’ Alanna fibbed.

‘Why would you be embarrassed? She did the same thing to me…’ A look of dark suspicion flew onto her face. ‘What did you… Did she talk aboutme?’

‘Well, yes, of course. She’s obsessed with you,’ Alanna answered quickly. That was true, at least.

‘But what did shesay?’

‘I don’t think this is the place to discuss it,’ Alanna said, checking around her. But no one was paying a blind bit of notice. It was only more avoidance.

Keira glanced around her. ‘We’re good. What did she say?’

Alanna was out of excuses. ‘We talked about… She thought I was cheating on my girlfriend, so you can imagine she was pretty excited to think the relationship was over.’

‘Anything else? About me?’ Keira asked.

But Alanna felt as though it wasn’t really a question. It was like Keira already had the answer and she was waiting to see if Alanna was going to lie about it. Alanna would have loved a look at the text Kelly had sent to find out exactly how boned she was right now.

But it didn’t matter what Kelly had said. Keira was intuitive, she knew. The only way out for Alanna was the truth. ‘She mentioned something about your childhood. That you were adopted.’

‘I was never adopted,’ Keira was quick to correct. Her face was inscrutable.

‘Oh, I must have misunderstood,’ Alanna said. ‘It’s just, Kelly said…’ What Kelly had said was that Keira had been ‘Dumped off.’ Alanna would never have repeated that phrasing in a million years. But a different phrasing escaped her because right now, she was afraid. This was delicate. Alanna, for all her training, felt suddenly out of her depth.