I got to my feet. I wasn’t going to argue that nothing had happened in working hours, that I hadn’t known his wife was pregnant. I’d been a good employee, I’d never been late, and I’d always worked overtime whenever he’d asked me to. I didn’t mention that I’d set up systems that streamlined their administration, that Harry had said I was ten times better than Clare, his previous PA. I could tell, though, from looking at Kourtney’s furious face that nothing I said would make a difference.

I picked up my bag and turned away.

The other staff were staring at me, agog, but lowered their eyes when they saw me glaring at them. The office was hushed as I walked through, my face burning, my heart pounding. As I shut the door behind me I heard an explosion of angry voices.

So, it might be better to look somewhere else for a job.

CHAPTER 12

Ruby

My mistake was going from the recruitment agency straight to the letting agency, where with increasing desperation I was taken to view a number of flats.

My home with Tom had been lovely, even if it didn’t always feel like mine. I’d lived there with him for twelve years and in that time we’d worked hard on it. Every room was freshly decorated. Paintings hung on the walls, soft rugs lay on the oak floors, and everything was clean and comfortable and warm. Josh came to visit a couple of times a week, but even he didn’t make much mess. Before I married Tom I’d lived in my own apartment, a stylish minimalist place whose huge windows overlooked the skyline of Liverpool. I’d loved living there; there was a crowd of us in our twenties who had apartments in the area and there was always someone to go out for drinks or a lazy Sunday brunch with. Those friends were long gone. Some had moved abroad and it was inevitable we’d lose touch, but others had disappeared after I married Tom.

Before I went to the letting agency, I bought coffee in a small café, hoping I wouldn’t bump into anyone I knew. I was still humiliated from the conversation with Kourtney. I knew she must have had a complaint from Sheridan’s, but had they really told her about our affair?

I desperately wanted to talk to Harry, but I forced myself not to call him. He was the one person whose advice I valued, yet he had let me down so badly.