The Other Woman(29)

13

True to form, from the moment she’d arrived, Pammie had dominated our very existence, from moaning about the flat’s temperature, to pulling a sulky face when Adam told her I’d made up the spare bedroom for her.

‘But it’s a single bed,’ she whined. ‘A put-you-up, no less. I won’t get a wink of sleep in that.’

I knew what was coming before Adam even opened his mouth.

‘Okay, why don’t you go in our bed and Em can sleep in here?’ I could feel him looking at me to gauge my reaction.

‘Oh no, I can’t put you out like that. Why don’t you just take me home? I’ll be fine there.’

I plumped up the pillows, willing myself to turn the conversation off in my head. I needed space. I needed to get out of there.

‘Don’t be silly,’ said Adam. ‘That’s not a problem, is it, Em?’

I shook my head, still not looking at him. I didn’t want to watch him as he pathetically grovelled to her.

‘But where will you go?’ she asked.

‘I can bed down on the sofa for a few nights. It’s honestly not a problem.’

‘Well, if you’re sure,’ she went on. ‘I really don’t want to put anybody out.’ How ironic, given that it seemed that that was precisely what she was put on earth to do.

Three days later, when she cleared the top of my dressing table into a box and replaced my lotions and potions with her own toiletries, I turned up on Seb’s doorstep. ‘I can’t cope anymore. Can I stay at yours for a couple of nights, just till she goes home?’

‘Of course you can,’ he said, ‘but are you sure it’s the right thing to do? You’re a proper couple now, not just playing at it. You’re getting married, for God’s sake, so you need to work through this together.’

‘There is no “together” when it comes to his mum,’ I complained. ‘It’s me against them. They come as a pair. He just doesn’t see what she does and how she behaves.’

Seb let out a heavy sigh. ‘Maybe he knows exactly what she’s like and chooses to ignore it.’

I slumped back into his sofa, laying my head on its orange upholstery, remembering the night before. ‘I do hope that’s organic mince you’re using?’ she’d sniffed haughtily as she watched me stirring bolognese. ‘It’s what Adam prefers, and is so much better for him.’

‘It’s also three times the price,’ I’d reminded her, wondering if ‘organic’ had even been invented when Adam was still living at home.

‘I’ve spoken to Adam twice today but I forgot to ask him what time he’ll be home.’ She’d then laughed, underlining how close they were. It wasn’t lost on me that when I’d called him at lunchtime, he was too busy to speak, but not, it seemed, to her. Twice.

‘He’s working late,’ I’d said abruptly. ‘He’ll be home around ten.’

‘Do you not worry about him working such long hours?’ she’d said.

I know I shouldn’t rise to it, and I’m all too aware that I give her what she wants, but I almost want to test how much she knows. To see if she really does know more about Adam than I do.

‘Why would I worry?’ I’d said.

‘Well, just that he’s doing what he says he’s doing.’ She’d smirked. ‘You never know what these young men get up to, especially someone as handsome as my Adam.’

I silently mimicked ‘my Adam’ as I continued to stir the bolognese, more furiously than before.

What was I supposed to say to that? What did she want me to say? That, up until now, it hadn’t even occurred to me? But, hey, now you come to mention it, you could be right. Maybe he is screwing his twenty-two-year-old blonde colleague.

Instead, I’d said, ‘He’s got a lot on at the moment, but normally he’s home by now.’ Feeling as if I somehow needed to validate him, his work, and our relationship. To offer an excuse for something he so often did, which, until now, I’d not questioned. Largely.

‘That may be so,’ she’d said. ‘But you need to be careful if he’s feeling stressed. He only needs someone at work to turn his head and he’ll be gone. It happens so easily these days.’

I sank further into Seb’s sofa, brought my hands over my face, and let out a frustrated scream.

‘She’s undermining me in front of him all the time. But does he pick up on it? Does he say anything to her? Of course not.’

‘He just wants an easy life, Em,’ said Seb. ‘It’s probably his way of placating her. He’s known her a long time, so we’ve got to assume that he knows what works and what doesn’t.’

‘But it’s not about placating her. It’s about standing up for me, the woman he supposedly wants to marry. Honestly, Seb, I’m really not sure I can go ahead if it stays the way it is.’

‘Well, then, you’ve got to talk to him. Tell him exactly how you feel and how you need his support and backup on this issue.’

I nodded sagely.

‘It’s important, Em. This should be one of the happiest times of your life. You’ve got a great new flat together, he’s gone and put a ring on it, and you’re supposed to be planning your wedding. This is your happy time.’