Later, things really took off for Reggie. Without a second thought, she had dropped out of uni, having been snapped up by a prestigious model agency. By now she was earning a ridiculous amount posing for magazines and on the catwalk. And no wonder. She moved like a gazelle, the epitome of grace and elegance. I felt like the dowdy supporting actress to her exotic and infinitely more glamorous leading lady. Any time I had ever brought anyone home, their interest in me, if ever there had been any, waned noticeably as soon as they saw Reggie. It wasn’t her fault, but it did little for my self-confidence, however much she tried to reassure me. With my poker-straight, medium-length mousy hair and slim but unremarkable figure, I felt decidedly average, and had all but given up on finding someone who found me either attractive or interesting. My only real assets, I had been told, were my almond-shaped, hazel eyes, inherited apparently from my father. One smooth-talker (who had lasted a whole two dates) had described them as ‘the hypnotic eyes of a she-wolf’. I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not, but it clearly hadn’t been enough to keep him coming back for more.

Even before we moved to Avoncote, I had been seeing less and less of Reggie, as her modelling commitments took her away from home for long periods of time. We chatted regularly on the phone and she had congratulated me half-heartedly on the nuptials. Although she didn’t say as much, I suspected that she was even less enthused about the idea of the pregnancy. She and Jack were civil to one another, but didn’t really get along for some reason. They had very different priorities and I think their personalities clashed.

Reading between the lines, I think that deep down she thought I was making a mistake. Reggie was my friend, and I knew that she had my best interests at heart. I loved her dearly, and was saddened that the two people who meant the most to me in the world couldn’t be friends. But I knew Jack was the one for me, and nothing would persuade me otherwise.

CHAPTER 8

While part of me wanted to see Reggie and hear all her news, I was slightly uneasy about her visit. It felt as though we had grown apart as my relationship with Jack blossomed and I almost felt disloyal to him, since there was obviously some unspoken animosity between them. And she represented my past, the old Stina; something which I was keen to shake off. I did miss our chats though, and wanted to tell her all about Avoncote and the weird goings-on in our house. We always used to shared everything and I missed talking to her and her infectious energy.