‘Not as much as I’ll miss you …’

‘You’ll be having too much fun to miss me. But as this may be our last night together for a couple of weeks, let’s make it one to remember.’

Bella grinned. ‘What did you have in mind?’

‘Trust me, darling. You’ll remember it.’

Chapter 20

‘Oh, Pops, it’s absolutely beautiful. I can’t believe how generous you’ve been – this and Dorothy. Have I got time to try it on before we go?’

Bella was kissing the beautifully bound Collected Short Stories of Dorothy Parker and stroking the peacock silk of the Halston halterneck maxidress that Poppy had bought her in Sandra’s vintage store at the beginning of the summer. She had flown into New York late last night and this was the first time Poppy had had the opportunity to give Bella her presents since she’d bought them. They had just finished a disgustingly greedy breakfast of pancakes with bacon and maple syrup, washed down with a huge jug of freshly squeezed orange juice, to set them up for the long journey ahead.

‘Yeah, go on,’ said Poppy, laughing. ‘I’ll clear this lot away.’ She gestured at the remains of their breakfast. ‘But be quick; he’s got quite a head start on us already.’ When Bella had arrived the previous night, Poppy had shown her the route that she was ‘almost a hundred per cent certain’ Damian had taken.

‘It’s the route Kerouac took in On the Road,’ she’d said. ‘Sometimes I wonder if my husband’s ever going to grow up.’ She’d said it flippantly, but Bella could see the worry in her eyes, and her gamine little face was starting to look gaunt. ‘I’m not worried about whether I can persuade him to have me back,’ she’d added. ‘I know that once I explain about Ben, he’ll realize that the whole thing’s a bloody idiotic misunderstanding. But I’m shit-scared that he’ll do some damage, either to himself or to somebody else. You should see the amount of booze he’s been putting away recently, Belles.’

‘He doesn’t drink and drive, though, does he?’

‘Not usually, no. But he’s been so angry and depressed, God knows what he’s capable of.’

Now, Bella went into Poppy and Damian’s bedroom to try the dress on and Poppy started to tidy up the breakfast stuff. Just as she’d finished stacking the dishwasher, her doorbell rang. Impatiently, she walked over to the intercom – it had to be a mistake at this time in the morning.

‘IT IS I, LARS,’ boomed the huge and familiar voice.

‘Oh, hi, Lars, come on up.’ What on earth did he want?

Bella emerged from the bedroom, wreathed in smiles. The dress suited her even better than Poppy could have hoped, the empire line emphasizing her long legs and giving her a beautifully slender silhouette (skimming the recent belly podge), while the deep halterneck showed off her impressive cleavage and pretty shoulders.

‘I love it, I love it, I love it!’ she cried, skipping over to Poppy to give her a hug.