‘It’s true …’ Beth mumbled quietly.

‘I’ve just been through one hell of an ordeal defending your honour, to get you out of shtook, and why? Because your best pal wanted me to spend time with you so that I would realise what a nice girl you are!’ He slammed his palm down on to the steering wheel. ‘What an idiot! I knew you were a wrong ’un from the very beginning, yet here I am nearly getting court-martialled for you! You!’ he repeated scathingly.

‘I didn’t ask Olivia to go to the lavvy,’ Beth said defensively.

‘Maybe not, but the end result’s still the same. If only she knew what a mistake she’d made.’

Beth hid her face behind her hands. ‘Please don’t say anything!’

Ralph’s face remained wooden as he rounded the next curve in the road. After a minute or so, his expression softened slightly. He shot her a sidelong glance. ‘I’d never do anything to hurt Liv, and if you say you didn’t mean to egg me on, then I shall have to believe you. But if you ever do anything like this again …’

‘I won’t!’ said Beth hastily.

‘Then I think it best if we keep this little … misunderstanding between the two of us. Agreed?’

Beth nodded fervently. ‘Agreed.’

It felt as if the remainder of the journey took a lifetime, and by the time they reached Shirehampton Beth couldn’t wait to get out of the car. Slamming the passenger door shut, she made her way to the ablutions so that she might wash the tears which had stained her cheeks.

She had hoped that Ralph would leave without stopping to say hello, but to her dismay she heard him ask the guard for Olivia’s whereabouts. She opened the door to the ablutions, walked over to the nearest sink and splashed her face with cold water. She wondered what Ralph was going to say to her friend. Would he keep his word? She gazed at her reflection. Had she given him the wrong impression? It was plain for anyone to see that she was melting in her seat. She winced as the memory of his lips so close to hers came to the forefront of her mind. He’d tried to kiss her, then, when she refused his advances, he’d turned the blame on her. She stared at her face in the mirror. Ralph was the one at fault, not her, but he’d almost made her believe that she was the instigator. If she believed it, then there was no doubt that Olivia, Maude and Josie would also believe it. She tried to fight back tears of frustration as they welled in her eyes. Ralph Stebbins was a dirty rotten hypocrite, and there wasn’t a damned thing she could do about it. If she told Olivia, Ralph would tell his side, which would sound far worse, and Olivia would believe him, and Beth would lose her friends as a result.